Review – Wind Daughter (Echo North, Book 2) by Joanna Ruth Meyer (5/5 stars)
Reading Level: Young Adult
Genre: Dark Fantasy
Length: 355 pages
Publisher: Page Street Kids
Release Date: July 12, 2022
ASIN: B0927CV1Y7
Stand Alone or Series: 2nd book in the Echo North series
Source: Borrowed ebook from Library
Rating: 5/5 stars
“In the dark, cold reaches of the north lives a storyteller and his daughter. He told his daughter, Satu, many stories―romances like the girl who loved a star and changed herself into a nightingale so she could always see him shining―but the most important story he told her was his own. This storyteller was once the formidable North Wind, but he lost his power by trading it away in exchange for mortality―he loved her mother too much to live without her. The loss of his magic impacted more than just their family, however, and now the world is unraveling in the wake of this imbalance.
To save the North, Satu embarks on a perilous journey to reclaim her father’s magic, but she isn’t the only one searching for it. In the snow-laden mountains, she finds herself in a deadly race with the Winter Lord who wants the North Wind’s destructive powers for himself.
Satu has the chance to be the heroine of her own fairy tale, only this one has an ending she never could have imagined.”
Series Info/Source: This is the 2nd book in the Echo North series. It is more of a companion novel to “Echo North” and could be read as a stand alone. I borrowed a copy of this on ebook from my library.
Thoughts: I absolutely loved “Echo North” and had also read “Into the Heartless Wood” by Meyers and enjoyed that book as well. So, I was incredibly excited to read Wind Daughter and it did not disappoint.
This book follows Satu, the Daughter of the former North Wind. When an Unraveling starts to destroy the world, it is up to Satu to undertake a journey to hunt down the North Wind’s powers and claim them as her own. Satu finds herself in a race with the Winter Lord, who wants to claim the North Wind’s power for himself.
Echo is in this book a bit but very much in the background. It was nice to know the story and background from “Echo North” reading this book but not necessary.
This book is so beautifully written, I absolutely adore Meyer’s writing style. This book is at heart an adventure fantasy and has a heavy folklore/fairy tale feel to it. This was a wonderful book to read at the start of winter. The scenes in here really come alive for the reader; you can feel the cold and feel the coziness as well. Additionally, these characters feel so deeply you can’t help but be drawn into their hopes, dreams, and trials. I loved every aspect of this book and can’t wait to read more books by Meyers. I realized I haven’t read her “Beneath the Haunting Sea” duology and I will definitely pick that up sometime soon.
My Summary (5/5): Overall I absolutely adored this book. It was a perfect companion to “Echo North”. I loved the adventure, magic, beautiful writing, and the heartfelt characters. This was a breeze to read and I enjoyed every minute of it. The adventure combined with the fairy tale feel was a perfect fit for me. I love Meyer’s amazing description and lyrical writing style. I look forward to reading more books by her in the future. If you are looking for a lovely adventure fantasy with heavy folklore overtones, this book is the perfect winter read.
