Book Review: The Cold is in Her Bones by Peternelle Van Arsdale (spoiler-free review)

Welcome back to Musings of an Arthritic Artist! Today I'm going to be doing a book review. This review is for The Cold is in Her Bones by Peternelle Van Arsdale.

I won an ARC of this book through Goodreads back in 2019. The premise itself was promising, so I entered and I won.

Let's get into the review!

I received an ARC of this through a Goodreads giveaway back in December 2018. Once I saw that this book was based on the myth of Medusa, I immediately signed up to win an ARC, given my love of Greek mythology and mythology in general. I'll begin with a synopsis before I get into my thoughts.

Milla is the main protagonist of the story. She's sixteen, tries her best to be well-behaved, and is good at pretending to be something she's not. She struggles with the responsibilities put on her and wants to be a well-behaved girl, even if her mother looks at her as if disappointed. She's never been allowed to go to the village, even though her brother, Niklas, is allowed to. Milla knows to salt the windowsills and she knows why, but she doesn't know the story behind it.

When a girl from the village named Iris comes to live next door with her grandparents, Milla finds a friend. Iris is meant to become Niklas' partner eventually, as well as Milla's future sister-in-law. However, when Iris begins acting strange, Milla's world changes. Iris is taken away by her brother and father.

A demon had placed a curse not too many years ago on the village and its outskirts. The demon gets inside girls' heads, possessing them, making them yell nasty things at everyone, and making them believe their families are the monsters. They are taken to "The Place," a place in the village for 'demon girls,' as they are called, as well as a place for girls who behave badly, whose parents are afraid they'll become demon girls themselves.

Milla leaves her home and family to look for Iris. There is only one problem. She must save Iris, eradicate the curse, and keep her family away from harm, along with becoming a demon in the process.

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First, I'm going to discuss plot. The plot I found very intriguing. I didn't think I needed to know more than the author provided. The book, in my opinion, was very straightforward and easy to understand. The writing was simplistic, yet descriptive. It wasn't the most amazing writing ever, but seeing as this is Peternelle Van Arsdale's second book, it's written very well. She's still a fairly new author, so I thought this was written very well. The story itself was very simple.

Next, let's discuss characters. Even though the story mainly focuses on Milla and Iris, I really enjoyed Milla and Niklas' relationship. I found their sibling dynamic amazing to read, and I would arguably say that theirs is one of my favorite relationships in this book, if not my favorite. In my opinion, it's just so realistic. I've read a lot of books with sibling dynamics, and I think this is one of my favorites.

Niklas is the protective older brother who looks out for his sister's well-being, while also teasing her and being her best friend until Iris comes along. Milla is the little sister who loves her brother and does things wrong, while he is the one who tends to get her out of trouble. If this doesn't define my relationship with my sister, I don't know what does.

Another thing I want to discuss is this cover. The colors are gorgeous. I love the composition. It's a gorgeous cover, and looks really great with the other books I own. The girl on the cover who's supposed to be Milla is gorgeous. 

The last thing I'm going to discuss is the Greek mythology aspect of this book. I've researched a lot of the Greek myths, particularly after reading Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan. This book is inspired by the myth of Medusa. It's important to note that this novel was based and inspired by the myth of Medusa. It isn't a retelling.

You can definitely see influences of the myth in this novel, but it isn't a retelling, which means there is no Medusa, Poseidon, or Athena like in the classic myth. Despite that, I thought the story was very original and creative. I've definitely never read anything quite like this. It is very simple, but it's fun and enjoyable.

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Overall, I loved the story. I thought it was told well. The plot was very straightforward and enjoyable. The characters were relatable and likeable, as well as realistic. I didn't believe it tried too hard. I was never confused by what was happening. I'm glad I own a copy of this book. I'll definitely read it multiple times. 

I rate The Cold is in Her Bones 5 out of 5 stars.

That's it for this review! I hope you enjoyed it! 

See you Thursday, 

Lexi K🖌