Aeralis

The Frost Chronicles #5

by Kate Avery Ellison

Lia Weaver and her friends have finally driven the Farther soldiers from the Frost, but all is not settled yet. Ann Mayor and her father have found themselves the target of violence, the villagers are fighting, and Jonn’s life hangs in the balance.

When an unexpected enemy surfaces in the Frost wilderness and endangers Lia’s family, she is faced with a terrible choice, and against Thorns orders, she sets out to find answers in Aeralis.

Genres: Fantasy, Dystopia, Young Adult, Romance, Science Fiction, Fiction, Paranormal

223 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 23, 2013

About the author

I've been making up stories since I was five years old, and now I'm thrilled to be able to do it as a full-time job. I have an obsession with dark fantasy, dystopian futures, and Pride and Prejudice-style love stories full of witty banter and sizzling, unspoken feelings. When I'm not writing, I'm creating digital art, reading funny blogs, or watching my favorite shows (which include TVD and BSG). I live with my geeky husband and our two bad cats in Atlanta, GA.

Click here to read the first chapter of THE CURSE GIRL!

Click here to read the first chapter of FROST!

Attention Book Bloggers ~ If you are interested in interviewing me or reviewing one of my books, send me a message. I'd love to hear from you! (Please note: I am currently not able to fulfill most requests for print copies at this time, but you can always ask. However, I am ALWAYS able and happy to provide e-copies or PDFs of my books in exchange for an honest review.)

If you're wondering why I categorize books as "breathless," "cake," or "amnesia," check out this blog post!

Reviews

[(ツ) Has · Rating 1 out of 5]

What a way to end a series! this book was sooo pointless! it should have ended in Bluewing but not have her brother Jonn get sick. Let me just say that I have loved this series from the very beginning and I really like this authors writing style. But with this I'm left disappointed.

Some Spoilers

“There’s a man in the Frost, a man from the old time of the Compound. He kidnapped Ivy and implanted her with some kind of capsule containing the Sickness. He wants a device that Borde is here to find, he said, and he wants me to find it. If I don’t do as he says, she’s going to be infected just like Jonn.”
This was her mission throughout this hole book. And in the end once she gets it he ends up dead and she figures out the cure all by herself. This hole thing was soo pointless!

And the love triangle? it was more present in this, figuring out who she was going to end up with. I was team Adam all the way but in this I sort of disliked him, there was hardly any romance between them, Adam never fought for her to be with him, he was almost pushing her towards Gabe and I hated that.

“I just wanted to tell you that I wish you happiness with Gabe, if that’s what you desire.”
really Adam? you don't even care!

So then I switched to Gabes side, he was way more affectionate towards her, you always got the feeling that he wanted her everytime he looked at her or held her hand.

Gabe leaned close and put his lips to my ear. “I’ll look for you.”

“I want you to come back with me,” he said.
“Come back with you?”
“To Aeralis. I want you to stay there for good,” Gabe said.
aww Gabe.

But in the end my true feelings were for Adam, she was always supposed to end up with Adam, have kids, LIVE and grow old TOGETHER.
and that's what I got.... until the epilogue.

This was a solid 3stars but after that ending its down to 1. I'm left in tears. Seriously author?!! you couldn't have her end up happily ever after with Adam? you had to give him pneumonia and have him die?! and then eventually get with Gabe? Ridiculous. Ruined my hole day.

She just had to have both guys in the end didn't she?

This book could have been so great. I'm left in tears knowing that Adam died in the end.

I'm glad that Jonn recovered and got together with Ann that's the only bit in the epilogue I liked.

If you want to save time, read the last couple pages of the last chapter and then the epilogue, its all you need to know.

[Susana · Rating 1 out of 5]

Keeping it short and concise:
I regret the time that i wasted on this series.
This turned out to be one of the most absurd, boring, convoluted, time wasting things i've ever read! I kept hoping that this would get better, and it never did!!

We're told in the end, that adam and Lia get married, and live together for about twenty years, and then he catches pneumonia, and dies. And that's it...let's bring the other contestant: HERE'S GABE!! Wait a year..okay, you can get married....
I'm mad like...


For a more concise review:
http://paperbackwonderland.blogspot.p...

[Tammie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Aeralis was mostly a good ending to the Frost Chronicles, although some of the things that happened seemed a little pointless. One thing in particular regarding someone's parent had no effect on the plot at all and was just a side thing added in. I like who Lia chooses, but I have mixed feelings about the epilogue. I didn't hate it like some people did, but didn't love it either. I liked the glimpse into what happened and how they had a family and who ended up with whom until I got to the end. That's where the mixed feeling come in. The epilogue reminded me a lot of the one in The Clockwork Princess. Lia marries Adam at the end of the book and we are told they have a family. Then when their oldest child is 20 Adam dies from pneumonia. Gabe never married and so she ends up marrying him after Adam dies. I think I would have preferred it if Gabe would have just moved on and found someone else to love and Adam would have grown old with Lia. I did love that Jonn and Ann fall in love and marry. Throughout the whole series I wanted happiness for him.

[Ashleyjo · Rating 1 out of 5]

I said in my review from book 1 that the world is what interested me in this series & prodded me to continue reading, that is the mysterious Frost, Further's land, the mysterious creatures, a land far away in a portal, etc, because the characters were simply horrid, the dialogue was frustrating, and the plot was almost nonexistent.

Despite my better judgment and extreme irritation that a scattered 30% or more of each book seemed to recap its' predecessor, I read all the books expecting something, anything to redeem the fragile fondness I harbored for book 1. Sadly, the series only grew more intolerable!

Two main plot points existed in this final book - the sibling's sickness (the MCs concern) and overthrowing the dictator ( everyone else's concern) & just like everything else that's ever happened in this series, somehow those two very different goals seemed to coincidently, conveniently converge for each party. Aside from the too convenient aspect, it was also boring, slow, and the 'getting there' was a big case of much ado about nothing.

Then there is the romance eye roll , sigh, cough . Omg this love triangle is the most exasperating thing I've ever seen. Dear author... looks, glances, unspoken feelings, thickness in the air, hand gestures, nods, blah- blah DO NOT EQUATE TO DIALOGUE! Aside from the maybe 5 sentences the trio speak to each other the entire book r/to their love, their dialogue consist of just such nonsense as thicknesses in the air and quick nods of understanding over words never f'ing spoken. This isn't a romance... It's Chinese torture.

I didn't root for either if the guys in this love triangle because I found them both unappealing for different reasons, one a near mute that valued duty over love just too many times and the other a polar opposite of the female MC, but I get that some readers will be pro one or the other. The MC made a final choice in the last of the book, but the author let her have her cake and eat it too over a 20 year epilogue ;-| that I think was a complete appeasement cop out.

I ultimately feel that I cannot find a single redeeming quality upon to recommend this series.

[Doreen · Rating 2 out of 5]

my rating for this series decreases towards the ending. it is a good thing that this is the final book.
i am not sure if i mentioned this before, but this series could have ended earlier.
there are a few twists/surprises which i like but the epilogue has ruined my good feeling towards this book.
if the epilogue could squeezed 20 years into it, then the series could have ended much earlier and hence my earlier point.
well, in the end, i guess the one who has everything is Lia. poor Gabe who has to play the second fiddle to.....
i find myself liking Korr rather than the other guys... he turned out to be a noble person after all.

[Rebekah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I spent the first half of this book feeling a little bored. I liked the story but it just wasn't exciting. The writing was good and very smooth, Ellison definitely knows how to write well.
I really didn't care for the lack of development of the romance and then boom its tied into a neat bow at the end. I really really didn't like the epilogue. Talk about disgracing Adam's character. I don't believe you can cram 20 years in a epilogue. I don't mean a glimpse of 20 years later I mean 20 years of life into the stinking epilogue. Geesh!
My favorite character was Korr. He was so complex and I love complex characters.
Overall, it was a steady read that had some exciting parts towards the end.

[Phyllis · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great conclusion to the series. I like that there were new plot elements brought in but not just to throw them in, they worked well and were necessary to the story.

I have read other series that have lost my attention by the time they reached the end, but this one kept me interested the whole way through.

[Julianne · Rating 2 out of 5]

Goddamn epilogue!

Not that I particularly enjoyed the book in the first place but the epilogue was the straw that broke the camel's back. I was gonna give this 2.5 stars but I'm taking back my half star for the epilogue.

[Jayme Tate · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was ready for this series to end, so I'm glad this was the last or perhaps I wouldn't have continued. I didn't ever really care much for the love triangle, which still dragged on through this final book. And that epilogue? Oy. I could have done without that.

[Kerryann Kauffold · Rating 3 out of 5]

Should have stopped before the epilogue...the epilogue wrapped everything into a nice, neat package with a bow...completely ruined it for me.

[Marisa Swift · Rating 4 out of 5]

Awesome book, but the epilogue ruined the series. Agghh

[Sarah ☽ · Rating 3 out of 5]

"The sound of my feet was just a whisper against the path. The wind caught my cloak and flung it behind me, and I ran. Snowflakes drifted around me, bits of white like a shower of petals at a wedding. The sky glowed above me, blue as hope and bright as love, the same color as the snow blossoms that lined the trail through the wilderness of silver and white. Here and there, green punctuated the snow where plants pushed through the crust of ice and reached for the sun."

Even if I really enjoyed this series (even this book) I have many things to say about this one that I didn't quite like.
The overall book, up until the last 5 chapters, is really good and reminds me of the other ones in the series. It has good details, it's catchy, and we want to read the rest. Like any book, there are some characters and things we like less but it is bearable. With this only, I would give it a small 4 stars.

The last 5 chapters (not counting the epilogue) are really rushed. I feel like it had so much potential and everything was said in two sentences and the ideas were not developed. Still, it's a good 3 stars because we have some answers and things evolve well.

Now the worst for me, is that epilogue. I wish I could erase the last 3 paragraphs from my memory and I wish I would have never read them. Like, just, WHY???? NO THANK YOU. I wish I could give a 0 star for those paragraphs. We have that vibe and rhythm of the 5 book with the characters that are gone in nothing. I was pretty shocked and I wish it didn't exist.

Still, if not that last rush (and bad surprise of the "ending"), I think this book is a good ending to the series, and even if we still have some questions, it is still pretty good overall, and a quick and nice read.

[Sherri · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hmmmmm...

This book was really hard for me to finish. I loved the first book in this series.... The love triangle that came into play through the other four books drove me a bit crazy. It got to a point by this book I kept having to put the book down... For days.. In fact at one point I wasn't going to finish it but I'd read all of them so the need to just finish it won out. But I really enjoyed the first book, it was Great!!

[sheila zeeman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Aeralis

I loved this series. Lia had to grow on me, I could definitely relate more to her sister Ivy, but I could understand why she was so hard at times because she had to protect her loved ones. I loved her strength and determination. Korr was one of my favourite characters. The world building was well done, as I could picture it all so clearly. I also loved the ending. Cannot wait to read other books by Kate. A great storyteller!

[Rita · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this series and I went book to book without pause, wanting to know what would happen. However, I have lowered this last books rating because of the Epilogue. I really wish the author hadn't included that chapter AT ALL. It was like she was trying to make everyone happy and tie of all the loose ends. It wasn't necessary and it spoiled a good story, in my opinion.

[Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m sad to see the series end, but I expected more from this book. Most of the people that mattered ended up dead. Why couldn’t Jon have married Everiss? Why couldn’t Ann marry Korr? Why the long and drawn out love triangle with Lia? Why did Adam get sick and die? I feel this was rushed, not well thought out. It really was disappointing.

[Debbie Hicks · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well I normally like Kate Ellison.. The series started out ok.....bit different with the watchers and the characters were ok.....but very "wooden" Korr was actually my favorite character. Just think the series lacked the depth and warmth of characters......I think Kate seemed to loose interest in the series......could have been so much better.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Frost

Well this was a wonderful read. Some very emotional parts. Lia journey was filled with excitement and many emotional turns. She risked all she had to make a better future for the ones she loved

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really enjoyed racing through this series. The ending is both happy and sad like a dystopian world should be. There’s a touch of romance, sci fi, and maybe fantasy. I look forward to reading more of Kate’s work.

[Randomshe · Rating 2 out of 5]

The series was good until the epilogue of this book ruined everything, poor Gabe, he became the spare lover of Lia at the end and he always does since book 3. He should have been with Clara/Claire rather than growing old and watch Lia have kids with Adam and live life until she became widowed.

[Leasa Spiers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent

This series was amazing. The storyline was a breath of fresh air in its creativity. So descriptive you could feel the cold, the exhaustion, the terror, the turmoil of emotions. So very well written!

[Anita (Anitareads) · Rating 4 out of 5]

The ending felt rushed and I didn't like it. Overall, I enjoyed the book.

[Relyn · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hmmmm....





Well. That was a nice, neat little bow to wrap up the series with.





Now I'm worried about how The Sworn series will end.

[Clare · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fitting end to a really enjoyable series of books.

[April Neal]

From Hard ship to glory

A fantastic ending to this series, filled with challenges, heart ache and joy. Once again I just needed to read one more chapter.

[Nicole · Rating 2 out of 5]

When you kill the only interesting character in the series- Korr- without a reason….

[RUSTINA M GOCHENOUR · Rating 5 out of 5]

By far my favorite of all of the Frost Series. Definitely tears at the end. Such a beautiful ending to everyone’s stories in the books.

[Saundra Wright · Rating 5 out of 5]

With the fifth installment of the Frost Chronicles everything hangs in the balance for Lia Weaver. With the farthers removed from their village one would thing the troubles were behind them, but the problems have just begun. The villagers are fighting amongst themselves. John, Lia's brother, is critically ill, and Lia must choose between her loyalties or loose her family. Grab this exciting conclusion to the series!

[J · Rating 2 out of 5]

There were a few moments that I really loved in this book, but I'm sorry to say that my favorite books were actually probably the first two--and Thorns in particular.

There was a lot of fun political intrigue here, a nice interweaving of plots that I enjoyed. At the same time, Lia just got mad a lot of the time (not that it wasn't totally justifiable, but I just wished she'd stop after a while), and the love triangle drove me crazy. I didn't really see Gabe as a viable choice--not even in the first book, but especially after Thorns.

Thus: some sweet moments I really enjoyed, but I even hesitate to shelve this as "sweet romance" because there were also some moments I really didn't like, and I honestly wished that Lia would stop going back and forth with Gabe so much. I mean, a few moments of regret or thought, sure. But it felt like it was just so much, and really overblown. The thing is, maybe because these books individually are shorter than the typical YA fantasy (nowadays about 400 pages), I didn't feel like Lia's relationship with Gabe especially--but even with Adam--was strong enough to merit this back and forth. I also really disliked the Epilogue. It was an Epilogue that went too far. Especially Adam dying and Lia marrying Gabe anyway at the end. Just... ugh. I admit that I didn't mind that version of the story too much in Clockwork Princess, but that was because I was rooting for the doomed character the whole time.

Phew, most of this review was about the love triangle. There was other stuff I really enjoyed, and overall, I appreciated how much we got to see of all the different characters. But the ending wasn't my favorite, and the love triangle especially wasn't.

[Saluxstrosi · Rating 2 out of 5]

The whole series was written in a lulling way that is great for dragging the reader into the world, but after a while the lull nearly put me to sleep. I'm all for world building and I ADORE snowy places but even I got annoyed with her constant reminders that the Frost was FREAKING COLD and that Aeralis was filthy and depressing.

The biggest issue for me was that Ellison killed off all the good characters. I won't mention who they were, but seriously I would've happily killed off the whinier of the two suitors Yes, I wanted Gabe to freaking die and instead lost my favorite character in the gala scene.

I am not a big fan of love triangles and definitely not a fan of a triangle that stretches over 4 books. Ellison made it all to clear who she was going to pick in the "end" but she had to have it both ways because she was clearly too indecisive (explains why the triangle lasted so long). I would've adored Ellison more if she had Lia pick to marry stupid Gabe, realize it is a mistake upon arriving in Aeralis, and ran back to Adam who, being the love-hurt puppy he is, followed her the entire way to support her. Gabe ignored her like the stupid brat he has been the whole series after she turned him down and yet she ends up with him when she should supposedly be "more mature". Nice move.

Overall, read the series and see what you think. I suggest checking it out at a library or borrowing it from a friend to read it because you'll either really love it or be left with a bitter feeling of potential wasted.