Touch of Frost and First Frost by Jennifer Estep

Description:

My name is Gwen Frost, and I go to Mythos Academy — a school of myths, magic and warrior whiz kids, where even the lowliest geek knows how to chop off somebody's head with a sword and Logan Quinn, the hottest Spartan guy in school, also happens to be the deadliest. 

But lately, things have been weird, even for Mythos. First, mean girl Jasmine Ashton was murdered in the Library of Antiquities. Then, someone stole the Bowl of Tears, a magical artifact that can be used to bring about the second Chaos War. You know, death, destruction and lots of other bad, bad things. Freaky stuff like this goes on all the time at Mythos, but I'm determined to find out who killed Jasmine and why—especially since I should have been the one who died. . .

If you have been around the blog for a while now, you know I am a total fan geek of The Elemental Assassin series by Jennifer Estep. So, when she announced she was going to come out with a YA series that deals with mythology, I totally squeed. Oh yes I did. Now that I have devoured this book, I can say I was right to squee. I really enjoyed this introduction to this series.

Gwen has always had psychometry and has made good use of it in a completely teenage way. She makes money off her friends finding lost items. One day, she is using the brush of a friend and find out what horrors lurked in her house because of a pedophile. Gwen's strong reaction lands her in the hospital and the pedophile in jail thanks to Gwen's mother who is a cop. This is the beginning of Gwen's foray into the realm of Mythos Academy. It was time for her to learn more about her gift and how to control it.

The academy is attended by the decedents of various groups both mythical and real but all with mythic histories. Amazons, Spartans, and Valkyries are a few of the groups that attend the academy. Gwen is the only Gypsy. They deal with typical teenage problems but their classes are quite a bit different. Gwen is having a hard time adjusting and believing in all this "mumbo jumbo".

The world created here is very interesting. I love mythology and I love the twist given in this book. I also really enjoyed Gwen's character. The mystery was easy for me to solve, but I also understand why it took Gwen much longer to see it all come together. Her journey was much more emotional than ours and so it made sense to me.

If none of what I have said has convinced you to pick up this book since I have left so much out so I do not spoil anything, may I say you must read this for no other reason than to meet Logan and Vic. Oh I LOVED Vic but will not say who he is at all. You'll just have to meet him with Gwen. He made me laugh so much! There are also a couple of homages to her other series books like Karma Girl and the Pork Pit. Loved that as well. :)

I give this fun YA book 4 1/2 stars. I really enjoyed this read and I cannot wait for the next book Kiss of Frost due in Dec, 2011
I received this book from the author and no compensation was given for my review.

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Description:

I am Gwen Frost, and I have a Gypsy gift. It's called psychometry - that's a fancy way of saying that I see images in my head and get flashes of other people's memories off almost everything I touch, even guys.

My gift makes me kind of nosy. Okay, okay, maybe a lot nosy--to the point of obsession sometimes. I want to know everything about everyone around me. But even I don't want to know the secrets my friend Paige is hiding or the terrible loss that will send me to a new school - Mythos Academy, where the teachers aren't preparing us for the SATs, but to battle Reapers of Chaos. Now I have no friends and no idea how my gift fits in with all these warrior whiz kids. The only thing I do know is that my life is never, ever going to be the same. . .

Okay, this is actually the prequel to the above book but you know me, I don't do anything in order if I can help it. ;) Actually I just finished that book and wanted a bit more detail. This is what this book gives you... more detail as to what Gwen references in the first book as to what leads her to Mythos Academy. It is a short, teaser book so it isn't as satisfying as the first book, but it was not meant to be that way. I would get this book (only .99 at amazon and b&n) and have it when you get Touch of Frost. That way when you end this appetiser book you can dive right into the main course. Ah... satisfying!
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Oh and don't forget to come back on Aug. 3 for an interview and giveaway with Jennifer Estep! Mark your calendars! ;)