Giants of the Frost

All the reviews that have been writen give an accurate description of the plot summary. I won't bore you by repeating it, as I'd risk spoiling it or not doing it justice. GotF is my first Kim Wilkins novel. I never considered myself a reader of fantasy or science fiction. I don't like those labels, because they sound like cheesy purple fairy stores and star trek conventions. Labels. I see the danger in them. Now I've learned there is a new term, "speculative fiction." I like that. The "what if" genre. GotF appealed to the German major and Germanic studies person in me. It also appealed to the child who still is fascinated by mythology. There is a romance, but it's not goopy. The term "romance" can turn people off as it sounds like the stuff one sees on a soap. I found the romance in GotF just about love, but not melodramatic. I also enjoyed the character development. I loved hating the some and loving the others. Now quit reading the reviews and buy the book! Get to know an Australian author. If you have kids, look into getting Ms Wilkins's children's series (Ghost Ship, Tide Stealers, Sorcerer of the Waves, & Star Queen).

I purchased this book on a whim and am so glad I did. Kim Wilkins is truly a master at creating a haunting atmosphere and compelling characters, both good and bad. I felt drawn into the story from the very first page and couldn't put it down despite the terrible sense of doom that hung over the main characters. In a way, I didn't want to find out what happened to them, feeling that it could only be something horrible. Yet, I was so invested in the characters and their fate, I couldn't tear myself away.

Once I started the first page of this haunting romantic fantasy, I couldn't put it down until the very last page. Kim Wilkins has brought to life the worlds of Midgard and Asgard. Midgard is the world as we know it whereas Asgard is where Nordic gods such as Odin reside. In Midgard, Victoria Scott has escaped from her two failed engagements and her psychic-consulting mother to Othinsey, an isolated island in the Sea of Norway, to continue her work in meteorology research. Othinsey is the stepping stone between the two worlds and, as such, several inhabitants from Asgard have been exiled there by Odin. Those at the meteorological station have rumored that Othinsey is haunted due to whispers heard during the night as well as sightings of a hag who'll steal your breath, the draugr, and a wight (a twig man). Victoria is a skeptic until she too sees both the hag and the wight Skripi, but due to her chronic insomnia, she tries to excuse the sightings as hallucinations. Unfortunately, events have been set in motion that leave Victoria alone on Othinsey. Meanwhile in Asgard, Vidar, Odin's son, becomes aware of Victoria and decides to see her again. Victoria is the reincarnation of his love, Halla, who was killed by Odin. Odin feared that Vidar would leave Asgard as Vidar is prophesied to save Odin from the end of the world, known as Ragnarok. Vidar, in his grief over Halla, had gone to see Hel in Niflheim who granted the reincarnation of Halla but allowed that it would be many, many years before her return. In addition, Vidar cannot reveal her past until Victoria has fallen in love with him again. I will not spoil this wonderful mythology based romantic fantasy by revealing more of the plot as it is the intricately interwoven details that make this such a masterpiece. Suffice to say that Loki makes an appearance and with Loki there is always mischief. Overall, this hauntingly beautiful tale is well worth reading.

Wow! just finished the fantastic novel Giants Of The Frost by Kim Wilkins...It's about Victoria who is a scientist stationed at a remote weather station on an island off Norway. Complications set in when bizarre happenings linked to her unknown past appear. Odin, son of a Norse God believes Victoria is the reincarnation of his love he lost a millennium earlier. I couldn't put the book down once I'd started it and couldn't believe it when it was finished. Wanted more. Still want more! Can't wait to read other Kim Wilkins novels.

Victoria Scott travels to the island of Othinsey, two hundred nautical miles off the Norwegian Coast as a meteorologist at Kirkja station. This job will help her in getting her doctorate in meteorology but the drawback is that many of her fellow workers believe this island is haunted as they hear voices in the woods at night. One evening she meets Vanir whom Victoria feels as if she has known all her life and beyond. She is right because they have loved once before when she was Halla who lived on Othinsey circa 1104 with her missionary uncle and his family. Odin didn't want Christ worshippers on his island so he sent his son Vanir to kill them but he fell in love and was unable to do it. He was prepared to leave Asgard and stay with Halla but Odin destroyed that dream. Now Halla has returned as Victoria and is once again in danger from Odin who fears that his son won't be there to save him on the day of Rangorak. Vanir vows to save her this time and find a way to be together but fate is immutable and some things are not meant to be unless someone can get the Fates to change their minds. Kim Wilkins has written one of best and most beautiful romantic fantasies in years. The hero is prepared to die for his love or give up his mortality while Victoria fights the supernatural creatures on the island who destroy to gain Odin's favor. Her love for Vanir is so beautiful it will bring tears to the readers' eyes because she doesn't seem like she will get the happily ever after they both desperately deserve. Harriet Klausner