Review: Midwinterblood

Info: 

Title: Midwinter Blood
Author: Marcus Sedgwick
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Publication Date: February 5, 2013

Blurb: 

Seven stories of passion and love separated by centuries but mysteriously intertwined—this is a tale of horror and beauty, tenderness and sacrifice.

An archaeologist who unearths a mysterious artifact, an airman who finds himself far from home, a painter, a ghost, a vampire, and a Viking: the seven stories in this compelling novel all take place on the remote Scandinavian island of Blessed where a curiously powerful plant that resembles a dragon grows. What binds these stories together? What secrets lurk beneath the surface of this idyllic countryside? And what might be powerful enough to break the cycle of midwinterblood? From award-winning author Marcus Sedgwick comes a book about passion and preservation and ultimately an exploration of the bounds of love.

My Thoughts: 

Midwinterblood is a tough book to review, mainly because it is pretty unlike anything I've read before. It's not a linear story, like most books. Instead, it's a series of seven short stories, all tied together and written in reverse chronological order. Because it was such a different writing style, at first I was unsure and wasn't sold on the setup. However, once I got to story five, I was hooked.

It's difficult for me to explain what this story is about, but I think the fairest summary is: love in all it's forms. Love between a husband and wife, love between a mother and child, love between siblings, forbidden love, love for a stranger in a difficult situation; it's all there. I think that's what really made me enjoy this book: it's exploration of love in all it's forms.

Because of the nature of the book, I can't say which characters were my favourite or talk about most of the things I usually talk about in a review. I would say my favourite of the stories was The Unquiet Grave because it was so creepy and terribly sad. But all of the stories play their own part in the overall arc of the book and I appreciated all of them.

One thing I did find odd was that the book was classified as YA. It really didn't feel YA to me at all and I think it should have been marketed as an adult book. Not because of any overtly adult themes, but because it really doesn't have any of the characteristics I'm used to seeing in YA books.

Overall, Midwinterblood really grew on me and turned from a book that felt somewhat disjoined and odd to a beautiful exploration of love that can be enjoyed by teenagers and literary buffs alike.

On the Cover: 

There's a bunch of different covers for this one floating around. The one above is closest to the ARC cover that I have and it's also my least favourite. This book is so much more than a girl with leaves and swirls overlaid on her face! Here's the other covers I could find on Goodreads, which are both better, although the one on the right is my favourite by far!

Rating: 4 Hearts

Source: I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

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