At this point, I think I'm resigned to the fact that Frost is a one-of book and none of the sequels will ever be as good. And that's fine, because the first book of The Frost Chronicles featured a unique combination of elements - setting up a tough heroine in Lia Weaver, creating a harsh winter landscape in the Frost, and having Lia harbor an outsider and fugitive that tests her convictions to the core, a combination that really can't be repeated. Still, even though I don't think Frost can't be topped, Weavers isn't a bad book by any measure, and while I'll always prefer Lia's first story to everything else that's happened so far, I don't regret reading and finding out what's next.
I do think though Weavers is an improvement over the last book, Thorns. The introduction to the Frost and the recap of the events of the previous book are handled a lot better, and while there are new characters as usual as old ones such as Ann and Korr disappear into the mysterious black hole of secret assignments in the enemy capital city, the focus of the plot, discovering the history of the Frost, the origins of Echlos and the Watchers, and exactly what happens to the people who use the portals isn't a bad one. The plot picks up almost right away with Lia being sent on her mission to use the PLD and all the stuff with the Farther occupation of Lia's village sort of take a back seat to that, but for those who's always wondered about exactly what's up with the mysterious ruins in the middle of the Frost, it'll all make sense, though I have to say I personally had a pretty good idea of the origins of the Frost and the disappeared ancient civilization while reading the first book. Really, for anyone who's watched Stargate Atlantis, the whole concept about a society of ancient humans more advanced than the present who disappears and leaves behind a whole trove of technologies will be very familiar, so nothing about what Lia discovers really surprised me, well except the timeline.
All the reveals about the background of the Frost means Weavers is pretty plot heavy and loses a bit of character development, but like I said, we've already established Lia as the tough survivor, and even as she's going on missions and still worried about her family, about her friend Ann, about Gabe and Adam, well, where do we go with her character from here? And that's what I mean about Frost being the book that won't be topped, because Lia was just so compelling in the first book I don't think any development or exploration of her character in these sequels can really add anything entirely new and different to her character from everything I've already known. I want say the other characters pick up some of the slack, and Ivy does at least with her huge turnaround from the first book in one of the few scenes she's in, but if the biggest reveal by a previous character is another piece of Gabe's mysterious past that's really a nonevent, well, yeah this book isn't really about the present or the future - not when Adam barely appears, Jonn and Everiss are underused, Ann and Korr not at all, the new Thorns agent really added nothing to the plot - all signs point to this book being entirely focused on exploring the past, that’s where all the biggest plot points were.
So yeah, I guess the two things I got out of Weavers is pretty much a confirmation of my theories about the setup from the first book and a somewhat lack of development on the part of many of the characters, Ivy aside. I'm intrigued by all the new stuff brought up by Dr. Borde, but maybe it's time to pick things up, set up those last few connections, and bring things to a close.