Dark Frost by Jennifer Estep

Dark Frost
(Mythos Academy #3)
Jennifer Estep
Release: May 29, 2012

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I’ve seen so many freaky things since I started attending Mythos Academy last fall. I know I’m supposed to be a fearless warrior, but most of the time, I feel like I’m just waiting for the next Bad, Bad Thing to happen. Like someone trying to kill me—again.

Everyone at Mythos Academy knows me as Gwen Frost, the Gypsy girl who uses her psychometry magic to find lost objects—and who just may be dating Logan Quinn, the hottest guy in school. But I’m also the girl the Reapers of Chaos want dead in the worst way. The Reapers are the baddest of the bad, the people who murdered my mom. So why do they have it in for me?

It turns out my mom hid a powerful artifact called the Helheim Dagger before she died. Now, the Reapers will do anything to get it back. They think I know where the dagger is hidden, but this is one thing I can’t use my magic to find. All I do know is that the Reapers are coming for me—and I’m in for the fight of my life.





Dark Frost is my favorite in this series, the best yet! It is darker and more action-packed and starts off with a bang.

The book begins with Gwen and several other students from Mythos Academy visiting a museum that houses several priceless artifacts that are significant to the world of gods and goddesses. The museum comes under attack from a group of Reapers, who prove that they are just as ruthless as we have been told in the first two books in this series. This beginning scene is thoroughly entertaining and had me a bit on the edge of my seat. I was so excited that we finally got to see the Reaper of Chaos in action!

"Now, figures wearing long, black, hooded robes stormed through the coliseum - and they all carried sharp, curved swords. The figures swarmed over everyone in their path, their blades slashing into the students who'd been staring at the artifacts just a few seconds before. More screams and shouts tore through the air, echoing as loud as gunshots, as people realized what was happening. But it was already too late."

We also get to see Gwen, Logan, Daphne, and Carson in action as well, as they try to fend off the Reapers. From the first chapter of this book I knew it was going to be my favorite so far and I was not disappointed. This one really focuses on the Reapers and Loki and we get to learn a little more about both. I'd been waiting for this series to become epic and I'm so glad I stuck around because it finally succeeded!

My favorite aspect of this book, and what probably took it to five stars, was the growth that we finally see in Gwen. I've always liked her character and he snarky attitude. But, in previous books she often bothered me with her "I sort of remember an important detail that will help solve this, but it's just on the edge of my mind". In this one that happens much less often. She also begins to grow more into her psychometry power and we learn much more about what she can do. I really enjoy watching Gwen grow a little more in each book and that makes me excited to see where she will be going as the series continues.

Gwen and Logan continue to sort out their complicated relationship as well. It makes me so happy that this series does not have insta-love and that Gwen and Logan are so back and forth, but I'm ready for them to move past all their issues, especially on Logan's end, and get on with it already! Fans of the two will be happy with this book and their progress, but of course there was plenty of times when I wanted to throttle Logan for his stubborn stupidity.

Gwen's power of touch magic comes in handy when questioning prisoner Preston about the location of the mysterious Helheim dagger, the last key to unlocking Loki's tomb and unleashing him on the world. I'm glad Preston returned in this installment because I thought he was a kind of obvious and not well developed villain in Kiss of Frost so I'm glad he got some more face time in to become more developed and complex. Preston's Fenrir wolf also makes a return appearance, and that darn wolf became one of my favorite characters in this book.

The plot's main mystery was slightly predictable, as always, but the ride was quite fun so I can excuse the lack of surprise. That predictability is really the only reason I gave this one 4.5 stars instead of the full five. This one made me snort and brought tears to my eyes and, even better, made my chomping at the bit to get my hands on the next in the series.

Recommended for fans of: mythology, good female teen leads, action scenes, Vampire Academy, talking swords, and fun reads.

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