Review: Seasons of the Storm by Elle Cosimano ~ Smokin' Hot Book Blog

For fans of Maggie Stiefvater and Laini Taylor, a perfect storm lies ahead in this riveting fantasy duology opener from award-winning author Elle Cosimano.

SEASONS OF THE STORM by ELLE COSIMANO

Series: Seasons of the Storm #1

Publication date: June 23, 2020

Published by: HarperTeen

Genre: YA fantasy

SYNOPSIS

One cold, crisp night, Jack Sommers was faced with a choice—live forever according to the ancient, magical rules of Gaia, or die.

Jack chose to live, and in exchange, he became a Winter—an immortal physical embodiment of the season on Earth. Every year, he must hunt the Season who comes before him. Summer kills Spring. Autumn kills Summer. Winter kills Autumn. And Spring kills Winter.

Jack and Fleur, a Winter and a Spring, fall for each other against all odds. To be together, they’ll have to escape the cycle that’s been forcing them apart. But their creator won’t let them go without a fight.

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Praise for Seasons of the Storm:

“Enticing and thrilling, Seasons of the Storm is flawless and addictive.”

- Jennifer L. Armentrout, #1 New York Times Bestselling Author

"Seasons of the Storm is a mind-boggling mix of mythology, nature, competition, and powerfully original characters. I couldn't read this book fast enough—captivating on every level."

- Megan Shepherd, New York Times bestselling author

"Cosimano tells a story of the bonds of friendship and the power of hope for the future. The themes of friendship despite differences and self-sacrifice shine through."

- Kirkus Reviews

"With lots of action and an exploration of when and how much to trust those in authority, the story asks whether you will be the user or the used."

- Booklist

"Narration alternates between Jack and Fleur, adding some depth to the action. It’s the scenes wherein the Seasons whip up their elemental powers that really grab attention, with vivid descriptions of murderous vines, killer waves, and suffocating fire. Fans of Holly Black and April Genevieve Tucholke will hope that their time with these characters is not yet up."

- Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Author of NEARLY GONE, HOLDING SMOKE, THE SUFFERING TREE, SEASONS OF THE STORM, and FINLAY DONOVAN IS KILLING IT (Feb 2, 2021 from Minotaur Books). Represented by Sarah Davies of The Greenhouse Literary Agency.

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Website | Goodreads | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram

REVIEW

Seasons of the Storm by Elle Cosimano
My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

“In the midst of chaos, there is also opportunity. A perfect storm lies ahead. You can let it destroy you, or you can take control of it. How the story ends is up to you.”

Seasons of the Storm was a phenomenal teen fantasy loaded with originality. At this point I've read quite a lot of this genre, and yet this story still managed to feel refreshingly new and engaging. It has forbidden love, rebellion against corrupt supernaturals in power, and an elemental magic system with humans who are the embodiments of seasons. It's all pretty heady and engrossing stuff. Jack and Fleur are the main characters in the forefront and we alternate between their POVs, but there is a full cast of "seasons" and "handlers" who eventually join forces to fight for their freedom. You also have the guards who are assigned to keeping order among the other two groups. They can manipulate elemental magic as well, but are generally more powerful in order to be able to maintain order through fear.

Jack Sommers was a rebel in his human life, and that hasn't changed since he's become an eternal winter. He's the type to break the rules, test boundaries, and question everything. Once you accept Gaia's offer though, you have to live by her rules or you're terminated. Gaia and Chronos give life and power after death, but they can take it away at the smallest infraction. In this world, you're given only three choices: Whether you want to live, Who your handler is, and your new identity. The seasons' handlers are humans brought back to life who are immortal inside the Conservatory where they live. They guide their assigned season with their yearly assassinations. Their fates are tied together-if a season fails to do their job properly, it reflects on both of them. When you choose your new name, it must relate to the season you're given. As a winter, Jack's last name of Sommers was a red flag right from the start that he wasn't ready to blend in and keep his head down.

At the start of the book you learn that Jack and Fleur are supposed to be enemies. In order for Spring to follow Winter, she must kill him every year and send him back to the Observatory in a state of stasis. The entire process is always monitored through video and audio, and any irregularities or failure to comply with the murder in a timely way will eventually lead to true death. They are all told that it's a necessary evil in order to keep the world and seasons in balance. But what if they've been lied to for centuries? Jack isn't so sure that the regimented life they live is all there is. He's hungry to find out if he could ever have an existence where he has choices and freedoms again.

The seasons have continued to do what they're asked because they've been told that they need their stasis chambers and the ley lines to "recharge" themselves in order to reanimate. If they are not hooked into the system created for them, they're as good as dead anyway, so why bother to dream? An unplanned incident during one of Fleur's killings leads him to start investigating what he thinks are wild ideas at first.

What if the entire notion of a rechargeable battery came from the potential chemical energy stored in every Season’s magic, because we were capable of recharging ourselves?

The last thing Jack would call himself would be a leader or a hero. But once he sets the ball in motion the impact is bigger than he could have ever anticipated. He's not just putting his own neck on the line, it's his handler Chill, Fleur, Poppy, Amber, Woody, Julio, and Marie who must all fight to stay alive together on the run. Jack has an unexpected ally in a position of power who gives him glimpses of hope. Professor Lyon shows where his loyalties lie on different occasions by covering up Jack's indiscretions or even aiding him when he's in trouble. He is the only one who isn't afraid of revealing information that would otherwise be forbidden. Knowledge is power, and the key to everything. While he can't come right out and tell Jack things, he gives him the breadcrumbs to lead him to the destination point.

This brings up my one niggle about the story. My one complaint would be the communication issue between Jack and the rest of the group, especially Fleur. Jack is given warnings frequently throughout the book, but for some unknown reason he conceals a lot from the others. Keeping things to himself prevents them from making decisions in an informed way. Honestly I didn't quite understand why he would even want to keep silent. During their time together the importance of them working as a team and communicating is more and more important the deeper they go. And yet he either doesn't tell them right away, or he hides things from Fleur and hopes that she will figure out what she has to do when the time comes. It didn't bother me that much, but plot wise I didn't see why he wouldn't be totally transparent since they're all on the same side.

One thing I loved was that Fleur was wonderfully brave and much more powerful than she gave herself credit for. Maybe it was the fact that most others underestimated her abilities as well, but it took her some time to come to the realization that she was a true force to be reckoned with. At first, I thought that Amber's strong fighting skills put her at the top of the chain, but I was wrong. Each person had their own strengths and weaknesses, and Fleur's strength was her powerful ability to manipulate the earth. If you put all of their strengths together, they learned that they could not only protect themselves from what they feared the most, but they could inspire a full on revolution among the seasons.

The romantic feelings between Jack and Fleur is already established from page one, which initially felt a little disappointing. But we do get to backtrack eventually and discover how they arrived at that point.

She smells like wildflowers in moonlight, like forests of night blooms, and if I look at her again, I’m done. Game over.

It was kind of crazy when you think about the fact that Jack was falling for the person perpetually killing him, but that unlikely pairing made it all the more interesting. Neither had blame or hate in their heart for the other, it was all about survival of the fittest in their world. Whomever conforms and plays the game the best will go the furthest. At some point, neither cares about furthering their status and position, they become more concerned about making things easier for each other.

In addition to Fleur and Jack's romance behind the action, there are other connections as well which was nice. There was a lot of hidden machinations that are revealed, people getting moved like chess pieces in an unexpectedly long game. Loyalties and motivations are questioned, and Jack has to decide who he can trust. The last few chapters had me right on the edge of my seat, and I enjoyed every minute of it. The epilogue leaves you in a happy for now place, but unresolved in some aspects. I can see the solid potential for the next book, it's not going to just be filler pages for the characters. After being left where things are, there are surprising twists that I need to see played out. I will most definitely be continuing with the follow up whenever that may be. Let the sequel stalking commence.