An epic fantasy of forbidden romance that chronicles the coming of age of a princess who is possessed by the Snow Queen and fated to rule her kingdom with a strong hand and icy heart.
As a child, Princess Freyja looked into the Snow Queen’s cursed mirror - and was changed.
Now an aloof and difficult young woman with a wit as sharp as her tongue, the future monarch is in need of a tutor. And Ambrose, a failed poet, is in need of a teaching position. He just never suspected how dangerous the extracurricular activities would be!
Soon, Ambrose finds himself on a grand adventure fighting to save the vexing but alluring princess from the court occult conspiracies that have targeted her. He is opposed not only by sorcerers and the evil Snow Queen, but also the icy royal damsel who holds his heart.
Will Ambrose’s love cause Freyja to thaw…or will she put him in the deep freeze instead?
Sensuous, suspenseful, supernatural and filled with witty banter, this romantic fantasy will both turn up the heat and leave you thoroughly frost smitten!
A 2019 Critters Readers Poll top ten finalist in the category of Science-Fiction and Fantasy.
~ Universal Amazon Link ~ The price of this book as been steeply discounted on Amazon for this event! Check it out!
Micah S. Harris is the Author of the epic fantasy romance Portrait of a Snow Queen, which took third place in the category of science fiction and fantasy in the Critters Readers Poll. Strong female protagonists and banter are trademarks of his work. Portrait of a Snow Queen is no exception and is recommended for older fans of Frozen and lovers of the witty verbal sparring in The Princess Bride.
He won the 2016 Pulp Ark Award for best novel for Ravenwood, The stepson of Mystery: Return of the Dugpa. He is also the Author - Along with artist Michael Gaydos (Marvel’s Jessica Jones) - of the graphic novel Heaven’s War, a historical fantasy pitting the Oxford Inklings against Aleister Crowley.
His lifelong love of movies also influences his fiction, whether a fairy tale retelling, horror story or paranormal mystery. He taught film on a collegiate level and has chronicled, both in print and via podcast, fascination lost genre gems.
Portrait of a Snow Queen is a full-length adult fantasy. The story is full of rich details that you need to pay attention to. Some things and characters were hard to keep track of, and I found much easier reading when I devoted a longer amount of time to read the novel. Ambrose the poet, was a wonderful character as the teacher of Princess Freyja. He was wise, cunning, and very knowledgable when it came to dealing with people of all stations. Ambrose was the highlight of the book for me. This novel is great storytelling that reminded me of grand storytelling of past ages. This novel is not for casual readers, but for those that want to delve into a complex fantasy that reads as a fairy tale full of complex and mystical beings and some romance. There is some graphic violence, profanity, and some adult situations, so this novel is not for young readers.
Long Excerpt
#5:
She
took a few steps more, stopped, turned slightly and looked at me sidelong, “Are
you…are you…Jack Frost?”
I was
about to burst out laughing, but now she was near enough that I saw that
longing in her eyes, eyes looking out from across a chasm of loneliness. I
sobered up quickly, and determined that she would as well.
“Freyja!
Jack Frost? You can’t be serious. You
know who I am.”
“I… am
not so sure, anymore,” she said, still holding me with her stare. “Are you …a
Snow King? My king?”
There
was such piteous longing in that look that it made me want to lie to her.
“Are
you…for me?” she asked. Her eyes never leaving mine, she suddenly raised both
her gloved hands to her double hooded head, hesitated, then grasped and threw
both hoods back, exposing the pile of golden hair and her pale head completely.
With a quick in-rush of breath and toss of her fair head, she owned the
elements
Heaven
knows she owned me.
I
gnawed my lower lip and forced my feet to stay planted on the ground, knowing
all it would take would be one step forward on my part, and she…she would rush to me.
All I
had to do was tell her what she wanted to hear.
It was
though the whole afternoon had been leading to this moment. And I knew she felt
it, too…
But, I
thought, all that was but romantic
whimsy. Fine for a teenage girl, but I, I was twenty-four years old, an adult,
and she was…
… so
very lovely…
…eighteen
in less than a month…
…wanting
my hands on her more than anything else in the world…
Oh,
yes, I knew what I wanted.
I
wanted her mouth as much as she wanted mine, to hold her as much as she wanted
to be held. I wanted the feel of the fair, soft skin of that face pressing
against my own.
I had
long admired her beauty, but what I was seeing now, in the bracing air blowing
off the mountain, her eyes shining and her cheeks crimson from the bite of the
cold; her lips flushed, and snowflakes hanging like diamonds in that crown of
golden braids…
I had
never imagined such fresh, wholesome loveliness could exist in a living woman,
and she was ready to hand it all over to me.
She was
so close now…her fragrance that of the forest pines blowing down from the
mountain above us; her breath like mint, pure as the scent of the wind coming
off the fresh snow. I could already taste it.
Oh,
yes, I knew what I wanted….
…I
wanted a girl who was my student? My
high bred, social superior? ‘Social superior?’ My word! She was almost queen!
Nothing lasting could come of this. I knew it well, Johan knew it….
Yet,
wasn’t that all the more the reason to seize this moment? To take this little
bit of happiness for my own? I had been the truest of friends, everything I was
doing would be for her benefit and that of another man who had done nothing! A man who could not possibly
love her as much as I did, but who would get everything!
While my reward would be “a new situation”
courtesy of Lord Melchior. In reality, a banishment from even the sight of her.
I would be a fool to deny myself this chance…
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