Review: The Flame in the Frost (A Northern Kingdoms Novel) by Olivia Boothe @TheOliviaBoothe

The Flame in the Frost

A Northern Kingdoms Novel

by Olivia Boothe

Published: June 30, 2026.

Publisher: Three Brothers Press

Genre: Fairy Tales, Dark Fantasy, Epic Fantasy, Romance

Blurb:

When a cursed Winter Prince and a royal guard with a forgotten bloodline are bound by an ancient prophecy, they become the only ones who can stop a rising enemy—if their forbidden love doesn’t destroy them first.

They tried to silence their bond, but the gods had already sung their fate into the heavens.

In the frostbitten kingdom of Skadgard, Sylvanna Isenwulf has finally claimed her mantle as Captain of the Guard, but her loyalty to the crown is tested when Prince Jökullson “Jack” Drakmyr—her best friend and heir to the Frostbound throne—is forced into an arranged betrothal with a princess he’s never met and an alliance that could ignite war across the northern realms.

Ordered to accompany Jack on a dangerous envoy through the cursed Wildlands, Sylvanna is thrust into a perilous journey filled with ancient magic and deadly creatures. But it is another kind of danger that threatens to unravel their friendship...

Bound by an invisible tether that has pulled at their hearts since childhood, Sylvanna and Jack must not only confront their deepest secrets and darkest desires but choose between the love consuming them at their core or the duty binding them to their kingdom.

And when a ruthless enemy rises, threatening to tear Sylvanna and Jack apart, The Frost Prince must decide to either honor the crown that has caged him his whole life or unleash the deadly monster dormant in his veins—a winter storm fiercer than anything Skadgard has ever faced.

Enough to topple kingdoms. Enough to shatter fate.

The Flame in the Frost is a Norse-inspired Friends to Lovers Jack Frost reimagining romantasy intended for readers 18+. Reader discretion is advised.

Goodreads ~ Amazon

My Review:

The Flame in the Frost is the first novel in the Northern Kingdoms Series by Olivia Boothe, serving as an excellent introduction to a new universe. From the beginning, The Flame in the Frost had me on the edge of my seat, wondering whether Jack and Sylvi would ever admit their feelings for each other, both to themselves and to those around them.

Jack’s mother appointed Sylvi as the Captain of the guards, a role she had dreamed of her whole life. The queen’s motive for promoting Sylvi to captain was to keep her close to Jack and persuade him to marry a princess he had yet to meet.

Although Jack and Sylvi are honest with each other most of the time, they tend to keep some secrets, mainly to protect each other, their families, and the kingdom. The queen has her own secrets that could lead to conflict. What truths are they hiding? What are they afraid to reveal?

These questions and more motivated me to keep reading, eager to find out the answers that arose with each page. The intrigue and suspense added to the story’s appeal.

The world-building was done wonderfully, helping me visualize everything clearly, as if I were part of the story myself. I found it hard to turn the pages as fast as I wanted.

I didn’t want to stop reading, though there were times when my real world interrupted Jack and Sylvi’s, forcing me to put the book down for short breaks.

I can't wait to read the next book in the Northern Kingdoms Series to discover more about this realm and its characters.

I strongly recommend The Flame in the Frost to all fans of epic fantasy! Be sure to get your copy today!

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Review: Race the Sun (World Gone Dark #1) by January Bain @JanuaryBain

Race the Sun

World Gone Dark #1

by January Bain

Published: June 30, 2026

Publisher: Rough Edges Press

Genre: Disaster Fiction, Post-Apocalyptic, Survival Thriller, Dystopian, Fiction, Science Fiction

Blurb:

When the lights go out, the real darkness has just begun.

The sun did it in a heartbeat: one catastrophic Coronal Mass Ejection exceeding the 1859 Carrington Event, and everything that kept the modern world alive—power, modern vehicles, communications, supply chains—is gone. The Mackenzie family of Hardin Creek, Kentucky, is scattered across a dying America: one sister fighting to keep her diabetic youngest sibling alive, another stranded two thousand miles away in Los Angeles, and their brother locked on death row for a murder he didn't commit.

With temperatures soaring and desperate strangers turning violent beneath a sky blazing with ghostly Northern Lights, Burgundy Mackenzie will do whatever it takes to hold her family together. But help comes from an unexpected source—Frost Hellebuyck, a rebellious survivalist who plays by no one’s rules but his own. In the old world, she never would have trusted him. But the old world is gone.

Auburn is racing home, Cormac is fighting to stay alive long enough to prove his innocence, and the darkness gathering over Hardin Creek isn’t the kind you can fight with a gun. When civilization collapses, everyone is one desperate choice away from becoming something unrecognizable—and not everyone is going to make it.

Race the Sun is Book 1 of the World Gone Dark series. Start the race now—before the world leaves you behind.

Goodreads ~ Amazon

My Review:

Race the Sun marks an excellent start to the new series, World Gone Dark, by January Bain. It tells the story of the Mackenzie family, who are scattered across America when the lights suddenly go out.

Burgundy is in Hardin Creek, Kentucky, their hometown, where she struggles to keep their younger sibling, Poppy, who has diabetes, alive. At the time the lights go out, Poppy is hospitalized.

Auburn is stranded 2,000 miles away in Los Angeles, where she is attending college. She has no desire to return to Hardin Creek but struggles to communicate her decision to her siblings.

Upon learning of the impending catastrophic solar event, Auburn, Tara, and Zack decide to return to Hardin Creek on their mountain bikes. They are apprehensive about flying, fearing that a plane might crash if they were aboard during the solar event.

Cormac is on death row for a crime he did not commit. He is racing against time to prove his innocence. Just before a pivotal moment in Cormac's life, he falls ill and must be taken to the hospital.

Frost Hellebuyck, a defiant survivalist, helps Auburn gather the supplies and insulin Poppy needs to survive before the solar event strikes. Frost is not someone Auburn would have trusted in the previous world, but the circumstances they face after the lights go out change everything. It turns out that Frost may be the most capable person to safeguard her and her siblings in this new reality.

Race the Sun is an incredibly gripping narrative that had me racing towards the conclusion, unable to put it down for even a moment, eager to discover whether the Mackenzie siblings would ever reunite. The anxiety surrounding Cormac's uncertain fate consumed me, while Poppy's medical crisis kept me on the edge of my seat.

I wholeheartedly recommend picking up a copy of Race the Sun, the beginning of the new series, World Gone Dark, today!

Connect with January Bain

Blog ~ X ~ Facebook ~ Goodreads ~ Amazon ~ BookBub ~ Email

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Week Blast + #Giveaway: His Sacrifice by Beth D. Carter @RABTBookTours

Secret Society Romance

Date Published: 01-22-2026

Publisher: Evernight Publishing

In a city ruled by a secretive Coalition, the gap between rich and poor is evident. When the leader dies, a fierce competition arises. James Roarke believes he’s destined to lead. To secure his place, he chooses Kleya Dane as his wife, drawn to her kindness for all, regardless of wealth.

Together, they form an unbreakable bond, but power comes at a price. As the competition intensifies, James learns that to claim leadership, he must make an unimaginable sacrifice: Kleya's life. Can love survive when ambition demands the ultimate cost?

 

About the Author

 

 I’m passionate about weaving tales of romance and connection, inviting readers into worlds where love conquers all. Crafting heartfelt stories and steamy scenes that make the pulse race, as well as taking readers on swoon-worthy adventures. I try to weave emotions into my stories that punch you in the gut because I love stories that break your heart before putting it back together. I try to write characters who aren't cookie cutters and push myself to write complicated situations that I have no idea how to resolve, forcing me to think outside the box. I strive to create characters who are complex and full of flaws. Deep passion romance between heroes and heroines who find redemption through love.

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Release Blitz + #Giveaway: Death and the Social Climber by Winnie Simpson @RABTBookTours

Ann Audrey Mystery, Book 2

Cozy Mystery / Mystery & Detective

Date Published: 06-30-2026

Publisher: Mission Point Press

Murder Is the Ultimate Power Move

When a beautiful Atlanta woman is widowed twice under suspicious circumstances, Ann Audrey Pickering finds herself drawn—once again—into someone else’s trouble.

A former lawyer who once helped the FBI convict her own husband for fraud, Ann Audrey has settled into a reclusive life, until her longtime friend Flynn Reynolds asks for help. His elderly aunts are convinced that another nephew was murdered by his wife, Kathryn, whose second husband is now also dead. Ann Audrey is skeptical. Still, she owes Flynn, and there are some odd questions. Complicating matters is Kathryn’s latest mother-in-law, a woman who rose from an impoverished background into Atlanta’s upper circles and recognizes a kindred spirit in her dead son’s ambitious widow. She doesn’t believe Kathryn is a murderer—but she has heard rumors, and she wants them stopped.

Set in Atlanta in January 2000, as the city buzzes with anticipation for the upcoming Super Bowl, Ann Audrey searches for the black widow through the city’s frenetic bar scene, private clubs, high-rise offices, and beloved local institutions like Mary Mac’s Tea Room and The Varsity. With help from Flynn and her friend Theo, along with the return of sexy detective Mike Bristol, she pieces together a twisting story of social climbing, carefully managed appearances, marriage, and murder. As the Super Bowl kickoff draws near, the case reaches a climax when an ice storm shuts down Atlanta’s roads and power, leaving secrets and murderers with nowhere to hide.

 

About the Author

 

 Following her mother’s lead, Mississippi native Winnie Simpson was an avid murder mystery reader beginning in the third grade, starting with Nancy Drew and moving through the classics of British, American, and international crime. Winnie studied music at Duke University, later receiving an MFA in Music at SUNY Buffalo, where she worked as an arts administrator before throwing it all over in order to make a decent living. After finishing law school at Emory University, she became a partner in a large firm in Atlanta where her practice focused mainly on securities litigation. Retiring early, Winnie relocated to Northern Michigan where she lives in a renovated nineteenth-century building that served as a former Michigan state asylum. For more than a decade, she has taken writing classes and participated in writing groups. She is fond of opera, hiking, cycling, and Duke basketball, most seasons.

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Book Blitz: Born to be (Unconsciously) Biased by Fabi Fugazza @RABTBookTours

Strategies to Unbias Your Business Decision Making

Business, Business Diversity & Inclusion, Self Development

No activity in organisations is more important than decision making.

Unconscious biases, however, cloud our view, and threaten our ability to make optimal, rational decisions. These biases impact our thinking without us even being aware of it, so, because we don't see our own unconscious biases, we often feel our decisions are based purely on "merit".

This is not so. This book will lift the cloud, explain why decisions made purely on merit are generally a "myth", and show you how unconscious bias impacts your decisions. This book will then provide you with practical strategies to minimise bias in your decision-making processes, helping you to optimise your organisational decision making and your organisation’s outcomes.

About the Author

 

 Fabi Fugazza ANZAM LLB BBusComm MMgmt GDLP is a management expert, author, international academic and lawyer with extensive experience in equity initiatives, human/civil rights and organisational management.

She has owned unconscious bias consulting and training business jObjective since 2018, is Co-Executive Director of the Italy-based human/civil rights coalition CILD and is a multi-award-winning academic at two universities based in Australia. She has taught unconscious bias, law, business, and social sciences in undergraduate and graduate programs across three continents, and in executive education programs. She is a former Lead Scientific Adviser of New York University’s Public Interest Law Clinic in Paris, has delivered several CPDs on unconscious bias, and has worked with non-profit organisations for over 15 years.

 

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