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A cute, wintery story full of gift giving and love! A Winter Courtship is a novella set in the Nymph Solstice series.
From the blurb:
An MM fantasy winter holiday novella.
A lonesome village blacksmith. A nymph determined to court him.
Blacksmith Ulrich struggles to connect with those in his mountain village. But at least he has his pet reindeer to keep him company through the long winter. Then one day, a nymph approaches him and declares he is courting Ulrich. He calls Ulrich “pretty.” Ulrich can’t comprehend what is happening. How can anyone call him, the uncouth, hulking blacksmith, pretty? And why does Ulrich like it?
Lutoth is part wind nymph, part mountain nymph. He has spent his whole life travelling. Now he yearns for a place to call home. He sees the blacksmith and immediately recognises him as the boy he knew years ago. His first crush. In that moment, Lutoth decides he will court Ulrich and make the man his.
However, Lutoth has never stayed still. In fact, some believe his wind nymph blood makes him incapable of it. Can Lutoth give up his wandering ways so they can be together?
Angel's Review:
Ulrich has lived alone with just the company of his reindeer for most of his life. He doesn't talk much to the people in the village. When he does venture out into a different town, they see his size and misjudge him. They treat him like he's no good. Ulrich longs for a companion, preferably one that speaks to him. One day when he's walking with Ethel, an oread appears out of nowhere with a gift. That day is when their connection starts, or at least that's what Ulrich thought.
Lutoth knew Ulrich as a youngling and had a crush on him then but couldn't do anything about. Now that he's back, he made a plan on how to court Ulrich properly.. but things won't be easy.
I thought this book was a sweet romance story, and something I really appreciated is how these two MCs flipped societal 'norms' on its head. For example; Ulrich is seen and described as this big, giant, gruff, manly man.. when in reality, if someone takes the time to get to know him, that's not actually the person he is. And Lutoth knows that Lutoth sees Ulrich for who he is.
The descriptions of their interactions as they were giving gifts were so cute, especially when Lutoth brought the gift for Ethel. Talk about cute! I thought the writing was done well. This story is on the shorter side but it didn't feel as anything was missing. I think this could count as low to medium angst, somewhere between those two? It's mostly just a lot of sweet winter cuteness. I really enjoyed this story and how Ulrich found the courage to stand up to his father.
Side note.. Ulrich's character, along with Ethel, reminds me of a certain duo from a Disney movie..
Rating: 4 Stars
SNik's Review:
A Winter Coutship is the fourth in the series (A Nymph Solstice Romance), but can be read as a standalone. Fantasy. Hurt/comfort. Quick read. Dual POV.
Ulrich is the town’s lonely blacksmith. His only companionship is his rescued reindeer, and the brief moments of berating he receives from his father. When Lutoth decides to court Ulrich, he fully commits to living in one place to show his true commitment towards wanting to build a life with Ulrich and not give in to his half nature inherited from his mother who always follows wherever the wind takes her.
I really enjoyed the return of this series and to the small mountain town of Ores, where nymphs and humans live together and love together. As usual, the author is able to quickly create characters that the reader can empathize with, and very clearly write emotional scenes and honest communication between the main characters.
Romance and spice abound in this solstice holiday read, and both Lutoth and Ulrich are sweet, likable and deserving of love.
Rating: 4.5 Stars
A Winter Courtship is available to buy as an ebook, paperback, or to read with Kindle Unlimited subscription.
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