A Heart of Ice

Araneae Nation #0.5

by Hailey Edwards

Reine knows marriage isn’t about love. It’s about making the best bargain you can with what you have and then living with the consequences. Wedding vows are alliances given voice, and I do is on the tip of her tongue. Ennis is a man on a mission to woo the future Araneidae maven, whether she wants him or not. Her clan is wealthy, prosperous and in dire need of the one thing his people have to offer—protection. But one look at her and all thought of his obligations vanish. He’ll court Reine, but he wants the feisty heiress all to himself. Forced to entertain offers from her bevy of suitors, Reine is torn between duty to her people and loyalty to herself. Ennis is the man she wants, but is he the future paladin her fragile clan needs? She can choose to lead with her head or, for once, she can follow her heart.

Genres: Fantasy, Romance, Paranormal Romance, Paranormal, Fantasy Romance, Novella, Short Stories

66 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 1, 2014

About the author

Hailey Edwards writes about questionable applications of otherwise perfectly good magic, the transformative power of love, the family you choose for yourself, and blowing stuff up. Not necessarily all at once. That could get messy.

Hailey isn't on Goodreads.

Please email her via her website:
https://haileyedwards.net/contact-form/

Reviews

[Jeanny · Rating 3 out of 5]

A superficial short story. It was entertaining enough to engage me & arouse Curiosity. I’ll continue on to book 2. Hopefully it’ll involve more world building.

[Marta Cox · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not my first book by this author I admit but this is the first bite of her Araneae series that I've taken. Characters with fangs and venom who live mainly below ground had me a tad confused trying to work out what they looked like as I started getting an arachnid vibe although clearly they have arms, legs etc. The princess needs a husband but as her mother sets up suiters it's clear something is very wrong with her father ( who is strangely absent throughout this vignette ) . My favourite character was Isolde the friend as she's vibrant and funny. Reine our heroine didn't really capture my imagination and her would be lover Ennis certainly went through a lot to prove his worth. All in all the relationship was far too quick for me but I'm sure if you've followed this series then this extra peek will be of interest.

[April · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was really interested in this series, and thrilled to see it in audio. This is a quick story and, I hope, taste of things to come.

It is a fantasy, the world isn't fully fleshed out, more of a rough idea. That is understandable because it is such a short read.

I like the main character Reine, she really knows how to take care of herself. I love a girl with sass and deadly weapons. She doesn't let a smexy man walk, or kiss, all over her. Not without permission!

Ennis is bold and sure of himself, perhaps too much, His lady is sure to take him to task and let him know his place. He only needs to learn that lesson once! He is so yummy though!

There is a bit of steam here, not as much as I would like. But more than enough to get a gal hot under the...um collar.

I listened to the audiobook narrated by Leah Christine Will, who is new to me. I liked the tone of her voice and her characterizations. My problem had to do with the pacing, it was quite slow. There were also times when she hits her consonant way too hard. With more practice she could develop a great read, but this is early times. It wasn't terrible, and playing it at double speed helped.

I am interested in seeing more of this series. I know they are out in print/ebook, but i am going to dream of them in audio too!

Disclosure – I received this audiobook in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts opinions and ratings are my own.

*** If you found this review at all helpful, please take a moment to let me know. I love reading and sharing my opinions with other readers. Thanks for taking the time to read my review! You can see more audiobook reviews on my blog www.eargasmsaudiobookreviews.com ***

[Amber Todd · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I liked a Heart of Ice I was a little lost in the world building department, which makes me think I should've started with book one and went back to the prequel. I understood the story quite well, but Reine's world was a bit of a mystery to me. Outside of wanting to know more about the world, I quite enjoyed the actual love story between Reine and Ennis. Their attraction was instant, but they still had tons of angst and tension to keep things interesting.

[Celestine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice prequel to A Hint of Frost. This short novella tells the story of Lourdes' parents. It is just a little interlude and doesn't really set up the world building like the first novel in the series. I will definitely be reading more of these!

[Blodeuedd Finland · Rating 3 out of 5]

Honestly, so short, I do not have a lot to say.

Reine has to marry. She meets a cute guy. She talks to her friend. She falls for cute guy. The end.

Eh, it worked. And it was short.

[Carolyn F. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had started this story a while ago and thought spiders - yuck. And then stopped reading. But I started it again and really liked it. Short and sexy story.

[SheLove2Read · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting worldbuilding, and great chemistry between the two main characters. I enjoyed it.

[ButtonsMom2003 · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the first book I’ve read by Hailey Edwards and I liked it a lot. It’s the prequel for The Araneae Nation Series. It’s a short story but she really managed to put a lot into it. While isn’t my usual type of reading material, reading this story has made me seriously consider continuing the series.

Reine and her best friend Isolde get up to shenanigans and that’s fun but the real story is that Reine must wed soon. Reine’s mother, as the head of this matriarchal society, has selected a few different suitors for her to choose from.

I loved this line from the book: “Love can be earned one gesture at a time, built one smile upon another, throughout a lifetime.” It wasn’t really a surprise when we learn who Reine will choose but it sure was fun getting to that point.

[Melinda · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a short but cute story.
I don't think it interested me enough to continue to the next book though.

[Jodi · Rating 4 out of 5]

This prequal is fast paced and packs a lot into its shortness. Reine must marry for obligation and protection. Ennis has the protection Reine and her people need. There are secrets, sexy kisses and other suitors to fiend off.

[Netanella · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you're a fan of the Araneae Nation series, then this is a great short of the meeting of Lourdes' parents, many years before their deaths in the first book. Otherwise, it pales in comparison to the fully-fleshed out tale of the daughter.

[MrsJoseph *grouchy* · Rating 3 out of 5]

http://bookslifewine.com/r-a-heart-of...

[Angela]

3 December 2014: $0.00 FREE on Kindle (again) :)

5 September 2014: $0.00 FREE on Kindle

[Maura · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although this seems to be a prequel, there wasn't a lot of world-building going on and so I was a bit confused about who these people were and what kinds of beings they were. I'm thinking this was written after the first book in the series, but chronologically, it involves the parents of the characters in that first book. So, there's that. This is short and has a bit of steam to it. I liked Reine, the main character - she's pretty mature and self-assured for her age. She's pretty good at dealing with Ennis, but you definitely get the feeling that Ennis keeps pissing her off and she doesn't seem very conflicted about not liking him. And so when she's all of a sudden saying she likes him a lot, it doesn't seem right. He takes liberties without her permission twice, then listens and releases her once and after that one time I guess she decides he's a stand up guy. I would have liked to have seen a bit more evidence of that. But length constraints and all that. I'm interested in what this series and its universe has to offer so I'll keep reading.

[Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm diving back into this series after reading book 1...a while ago. A couple of years, at least. This was the PERFECT bite-sized morsel of a story to remind me of all the little pieces that make up the Araneae world.

Some of those things being: A matriarchal society. Fangs and venom and all manner of nasty ways to die. Clan loyalty and alliances made to better their positions among the other clans.

I like it. As much, if not more, than when I first dipped my toes in this world.

While things move fairly quickly as far as the romance goes, Reine and Ennis are sweet and sexy together. She starts out resigned to her matrimonial fate and he's a little cocky. They clash. They come together. THINGS HAPPEN.

I think I have most of the rest of this series (if not all the series) waiting for me to read it. I'm on it!

-Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal

[Jagged · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not many novellas reach beyond 2 stars for me, so keep that in mind.

“Males are simple creatures,” she confided. “Your comment aroused the wrong end of him.” “The wrong end?” I choked. “Is there a right one?” - best quote of the novella.

I'm not a fan of short stories because there's not enough time to connect. But I got this series as the whole collection, so this was the first book in line. Being that I haven't read anything beyond this, there's nothing to reference these characters to, so naturally, everything moves far too quickly for any believable situation.

On top of that, my guess is this was released as an afterthought, so not truly the first book. Therefore, world building and character development is practically nonexistent.

The good news is, I've read Edward's Black Hat series, so I know there's a lot more to come and can see there'll be some awesome humor in store as well.

[Tina · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a cute story! This book is the prequel to the Araneae Nation series. It was a quick read. Reine is about to be married off by her mother in an arranged marriage. She would prefer love but will go along with the arrangement for her clan. I loved the chemistry between her and Ennis. The instant attraction but the denial of that attraction for duty was pretty good. I also loved Ennis's integrity. He wouldn't let anything physical happen with secrets between them. Sometimes it is good to follow your heart. It will lead you to great places.

[Aneesah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting

And waaaay too short!
Yet 16 more words are required
Choosing someone for purpose is fine
I prefer choosing someone whom i trust- someone i am willing to leap with- why? We will find out!

Someone i am comfortable with, at ease with and is attractive! 😊

It is different at 54 verses 25 or younger-

I find that when the attraction is very high, it can take you a very long way-

This book is fascinating

[Stephanie Garza · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked the book, but it was fairly obvious it was a prequel since some of the information given wasn't explained, almost like the author figured the reader would already know. Since I plan on reading the rest of the series, that wasn't an issue for me.

I'm very intrigued with the premise, and I can't wait to read the rest.

[Ellen Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short and cute

I would give this 3 3/4 stars if I could. It’s a short and cute prequel about the love story of a maven and paladin before they became married. It’s their offsprings stories in the future books and so it was cute to see some of the fire of the parents even if it was a very short novella.

[Kathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Araneae Nation #0.5
I read this book at the same time I listened to it and I have to say I was surprised… The written word did not completely match the Audible version. At this time this is the only book in this series that is out on audiobook so the rest will have to be read the old-fashioned way. I enjoyed it, but it was too short.

Read:
August 24, 2019 – Kindle edition/Audible Audiobook

[E.G. Manetti · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've shelved this as paranormal but it is more epic fantasy in an alternate reality where magic is the norm. InD'tale featured the author and lured me to check out her books. This prequel is short and some the world-building is a bit confusing, but overall, an intriguing and enjoyable read with a strong heroine who is actually strong.

[Holly Stone · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the first story I've read by Hailey Edwards. My first dip into the Araneae Nation world. A good place to start, and a short story. A Heart of Ice is the story of Reine and Ennis, a girl forced to chose to marry for protection for her clan....can also chose to marry for love. Good story, I'm looking forward to reading more of this world and more from this author.

[BookwormMomma7 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heart of Ice

Reine is blown when she finds out as daughter of the Maven she is expected to take certain duties and she plans to evade them for as long as she can.
Doing one’s duty should not be so difficult but does she have a choice? The fun comes in finding out the answer to that question.

[angie beth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great one

This is a great read as always Hailey Edwards is an amazing story teller. She gives so much life to her characters! I love the meeting g of these two best friends and the closeness they share .Then the meeting of the possible love interest!! A must read !!!

[Brittany · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoy the story it was interesting. I just did not love it because of the fact they are basically spider people. I'm not a huge fan of spiders. I tried to focus on the romance but the spider aspect was disconcerting.

[Bonnie Jennings · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this prequel because 1. It was free and 2. I like anything different. This sounded completely different from anything else I've read. So I'm hooked. Bought the next three books (on sale at Amazon). My TBR pile is getting huge.....

[Aybiline Dahlson · Rating 2 out of 5]

This series starts with a short novel. I read only this one. It was not the kind of story I look for. Nicely written it promises love but deals with sexual desires and not with profound emotions.
I didn’t read the other toms.

Aybi

[vyoletkyss · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty cool. Looking forward to reading the series. Great intro to the series.