Book Review: Prisoner of Ice and Snow by Ruth Lauren

I received a free ecopy of this book from Bloomsbury and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Title: Prisoner of Ice and Snow 

Author: Ruth Lauren

Publisher: Bloomsbury
Publication Date: April 4, 2017
Genre: Middle-Grade Fantasy

Length: 288 pages
Format: ebook
Source: Netgalley

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Synopsis:

In a thrilling fantasy that's equal parts Prison Break and Frozen, Valor attempts the impossible--breaking her sister out of prison.

When Valor is arrested, she couldn't be happier. Demidova's prison for criminal children is exactly where she wants to be. Valor's sister Sasha is already serving a life sentence for stealing from the royal family and Valor is going to help her escape...from the inside.

Never mind that no one has escaped in three hundred years. Valor has a plan and resources most could only dream about. But she didn't count on having to outsmart both the guards and her fellow prisoners. If Valor's plan is to succeed, she'll need to make unlikely allies. And if the plan fails, she and Sasha could end up with fates worse than prison. 

This fresh and exciting middle-grade debut effortlessly melds an unforgettable protagonist, a breathless plot, and stunning world-building--and is impossible to put down.

My Thoughts: 

Valor will do anything to save her sister from prison. Even if it means going to prison herself. 

When Valor's sister, Sasha, is sent to prison for allegedly stealing a very important music box from the royal family, she makes an attempt on the prince's life so she will be sent to prison as well. Armed with memorized passages beneath the prison and a plan to get her sister and escape, she immerses herself into her incarceration within the children's prison. She soon makes friends but must learn who she can and cannot trust in this harsh new world.

I enjoyed this from start to finish. We are immediately caught up in Valor's reckless attempt to become a criminal so she will be sent to Tyur'ma, an all children's prison that no one has escaped in over 300 years. While there, she causes plenty of trouble for herself and others with her rash acts. She makes a few friends and a few enemies but she never strays from her goal of finding her sister and escaping. 

Our main character is fiercely independent and determined, keeping family and friendship as the motivation for her endeavors. She is brave and loyal to a fault. I really enjoyed the close relationship between the sisters and how far Valor was willing to go to save her. 

This is Prison Break for children but set in a terribly harsh environment and definitely worth the read!

My Rating: 4 stars

Keep an eye out for the Prisoner of Ice and Snow blog tour (with giveaway!) on the blog this week.!