Touch of Frost (Mythos Academy) [Paperback]

Jennifer Estep (Author)

Book Description

Release date: July 26, 2011 | Series: Mythos Academy

Gwen Frost is an outsider at Mythos Academy, a school of myths, magic and warrior whiz kids, where even the lowliest geek knows how to chop off somebody's head with a sword. Gwen is an outsider both to the students of the Academy and the rest of the world. But when her gift of psychometry - the ability to know an object's history just by touching it reveals dark undercurrents and danger afoot, she has no choice but to get involved.

Product Details

• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: K-Teen; 1 edition (July 26, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0758266928
• ISBN-13: 978-0758266927
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 1.1 x 5.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (133 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #401,057 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Jennifer Estep is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author, prowling the streets of her imagination in search of her next fantasy idea.

Jennifer writes the Elemental Assassin adult urban fantasy series for Pocket. Books in the series are SPIDER'S BITE, WEB OF LIES, VENOM, TANGLED THREADS, SPIDER'S REVENGE, BY A THREAD, and WIDOW'S WEB. THREAD OF DEATH, an e-novella, is also available.

HAINTS AND HOBWEBS: AN ELEMENTAL ASSASSIN SHORT STORY can be found in THE MAMMOTH BOOK OF GHOST ROMANCE.

DEADLY STING, the eighth book, is set to be released on March 26, 2013.

Jennifer also writes the Mythos Academy young adult urban fantasy series for Kensington.

Books in the series are TOUCH OF FROST, KISS OF FROST, and DARK FROST. CRIMSON FROST, the fourth book, is set to be released on Dec. 24, 2012.

FIRST FROST, a prequel e-story to the series, is available as a download. HALLOWEEN FROST, an e-short story, is available in the ENTANGLED e-anthology.

Jennifer is also the author of the Bigtime paranormal romance series. Books in the superhero-themed series are KARMA GIRL, HOT MAMA, JINX, and NIGHTINGALE. A KARMA GIRL CHRISTMAS, an e-story, is also available.

Excerpts, free short stories, and more information on Jennifer's books can be found at http://www.jenniferestep.com.

Amazon Author Rankbeta 

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#58 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Fantasy

#72 in Books > Romance > Fantasy & Futuristic

#80 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Fantasy

#58 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Fantasy

#72 in Books > Romance > Fantasy & Futuristic

#80 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Fantasy

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

160 of 189 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Too much sex for a YA . April 10, 2012

By Lucine

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

I like Estep, but she is going to have to tone things down a little if she wants to write succesful YA books. Books, with Teenagers having sex ( I would be more descriptive but my review was turned down the first time, as being obscene and I was just quoting the book) and classmates leaving used condoms in the library, will not find their way into school libraries. This would have been a nice girl version of the Percy Jackon books if she had not been so set on having most of the kids seeped in adult vices (sex, drugs, alcohol). Please, Ms Estep, do some more YA, but write as if your 13 year old daughter was going to read it . I can recommend this book for adults, but I would never recommend it to one of my students. Lucine

68 of 79 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars Cliched paranormal story August 11, 2011

By Cinnamon

Format:Paperback

Gwen Frost is being forced to attend Mythos Academy, an elite school set apart to train kids who just so happen to be descendants of various mythical warriors. Of course, Gwen doesn't believe in any of the supernatural skills her classmates supposedly possess. The only type of magic she actually accepts is her own and that of her own family. When the school's most popular girl, the icy Valkyrie princess Jasmine, is murdered right in the library next to a stolen mythical artifact called the Bowl of Tears, Gwen is determined to get to the bottom of the entire situation. It's never a good idea to poke your head into other people's business, though. So the results? Who else is to blame but yourself?

"Touch of Frost" belongs to the new batch of paranormal stories that all seem exactly the same, only with different character names and fantastical elements. This novel's back story is a mishmash of tons of various warriors -- from Norse gods to ninjas. While that is certainly a nice idea, it's never really delved into. Except for a few key warrior gods, all the others felt extraneous and were barely mentioned at all.

The characters aren't especially mind-blowing, either. You have the blonde mean girl clique, the quirky and unpopular heroine, and the hot bad boy who falls in love with the heroine anyways; just the same formula used over and over and over again. The character with an actual personality was Vic, the ancient magical sword, who has a grand total of about five lines in the entire novel. That is just sad. A sword beats out all those other full-fledged human characters? Sad, sad, sad.

"Touch of Frost" is quite a cliché, but lovers of stereotypical teen paranormal stories (I know there are a lot of you out there) will devour it with glee.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars An Intriguing Mythology that Left Me Wanting More August 1, 2011

By Mundie Moms/Mundie Kids

Format:Paperback

3.5 stars

Touch of Frost is fun read with an intriguing mythology that left me wanting more. I'm a little torn about the book, as there are things I both really liked about it and some things I wanted to know more about. I loved what Jennifer did with her mythology and the way she introduced little bits and pieces of each lore through out the story. She created some great legends about both the Greek & Norse Gods and Goddesses, and tied them into the story via Mythos Academy, a school were the children of Valkyries, Spartan Warriors, Gypsies and more attend to learn about their history and how to control their powers. I liked being able to learn more about the legends at the same time the story's main character Gwen does.

Gwen herself is a character that liked getting to know, but there were times I was a little bit frustrated with her character. I was bugged that being halfway through the story she still didn't catch on to certain things about the school and why she was there, like I had excepted her to. One of the things I did like about Gwen is though she seems to be an outsider, she's not someone who's swayed easily and despite how hard it may be to stand up to the school's Queen Bee and her team of "mean girls", she does. I also liked her wit and the way she handles herself about the resident bad boy and main love interested Logan Quinn. One of the things that kept me hooked with the story was their chemistry. I'm looking forward to finding out what happens between these two in Kiss of Frost.

I liked Jennifer's writing, and I felt the story flowed well. There's a few things I felt that weren't covered as much as I had hoped, but I think those things will be addressed as the series goes on. I liked the murder mystery and how that intertwined with the story's mythology. I found the plot to be both predictable and unpredictable at the same time, and I liked that. While some things were easy to figure out, Jennifer was able to still throw some surprises at me. Though I felt the story read a lot like a teenage soap opera, I'm looking forward to reading the rest of the series. I'm hooked on the mythology and the chemistry between Gwen and Logan. I'd definitely recommend this book to older YA readers. There is language and sexual references through out the book and a scene with underage drinking.