Rating: 3.75 stars
Buy Link: Amazon | iBooks | Amazon UK
Length: Novella
Aryn has left the city for the mountains to finally make his family proud. As the youngest child, he has always gotten passed over and his parents are disappointed in him again and again. His family name is known for the perfume they produce and Aryn has always been expected to take up the family business. But Aryn’s passion isn’t perfume and he’s not particularly good at creating new scents. What he can do, though, is bring the newest fragrance to the castle and then his parents will finally notice him. Except, Aryn doesn’t know anything about life in the mountains and he’s not dressed appropriately when he gets lost in the snow and his horse runs off.
As a half nymph, Sero doesn’t feel the cold. He came to his mountain retreat for some quiet after another failed relationship and he really doesn’t need some unprepared city guy ruining his plans of being alone. But the man is freezing and won’t survive without Sero’s help, so he brings him inside to wait out the snow—inside his mountain home with only one bed. When things heat up inside, Sero invites Aryn to his village to spend Solstice with his family. But Sero has no intention of leaving the mountains and Aryn has responsibilities back in town, making their newfound relationship seem doomed before it really even has a chance to start.
A Winter Romance is a shorter read set around the winter solstice in the mountains, where it’s common to see nymphs living together with humans. The scenery is vivid as Aryn is lost is more than one way. He never feels like he is enough for his family and he sets out to prove to them he’s worthy. We do not see Aryn’s family on page, but as Aryn tells the story, he will never be what they want and even his recent heartbreak at the hands of a man only interested in the family name does not elicit any empathy from his family.
Sero is the opposite of Aryn. He’s a half nymph that loves the winter and loves being a baker in the small village. He isn’t impressed with Aryn when he meets him, as he finds him unprepared for his journey and Aryn isn’t too interested in folks from the city. But Sero and Aryn have a lot more in common then they realize.
This book is shorter, so the relationship moves faster and I would have liked some more depth to both the relationship, as well as Sero’s life as a nymph, as he was an intriguing character. I also didn’t feel the chemistry between them made that leap off the page and was more talked about than I felt. Their communication becomes a factor, as they both expect the other to make huge life changes quickly, and it was a lot for the short time they had known each other.
I liked the feel of the village and the excitement and warmth of family set around the Solstice. A Winter Romance is the first book in the Nymph Solstice Romance series and I look forward to spending more time in the village as nymphs and humans find love in the heart of winter.
