Fairytales aren’t real…yeah…that’s exactly what Bianca thought. She was wrong.
For generations, the Frost family has run the Museum of Magical and Rare Artifacts, handing down guardianship from mother to daughter, always keeping their secrets to “family only.”
Gathered within museum’s walls is a collection dedicated to the Grimm fairy tales and to the rare items the family has acquired: Cinderella’s glass slipper, Snow White’s poisoned apple, the evil queen’s magic mirror, Sleeping Beauty’s enchanted spinning wheel…
Seventeen-year-old Bianca Frost wants none of it, dreaming instead of a career in art or photography or…well, anything except working in the family’s museum. She knows the items in the glass display cases are fakes because, of course, magic doesn’t really exist.
She’s about to find out how wrong she is.
Bianca got out of her car and ran inside the house. She called for her mother as she searched for her upstairs in all of the rooms. Nothing. She quickly ran downstairs and was ready to go down to the basement when a strange turquoise light caught her eye. She looked out the kitchen window; she couldn’t believe what she saw. Her mother was throwing what Bianca could only describe as balls of turquoise fireballs at a woman wearing a black hood. Bianca couldn’t see the woman’s face, but she could see her pale hands and slender fingers.
Bianca tried to make sense of it all. She kept expecting to see a special effects crew to come out from behind the trees and tell her that it was all part of an elaborate prank. But no such thing happened. All she knew was that a strange turquoise flame was coming out of her mother’s hands.
She knew that her mother sometimes read old dusty books on witchcraft, but she didn’t know she had actual powers. She thought about all the little quirks her mother had. Things that Bianca thought were essentially Rose. Her mother talked to plants and trees. She would sometimes stare off into space as though she were looking at something in another world. Something only she could see. She read tarot cards to random people and would tell them things about his or her life as though she were reading an open book. Bianca always thought she just made really lucky guesses. She chose not to believe in this other world and everything it stood for. Magic represented a life out of the norm, and Bianca desperately wanted to be normal. Just like everyone else.
Bianca pulled herself out of her thoughts. As she looked at the blue and green flashes in the backyard, she quickly realized that this was something she couldn’t escape. Normal was no longer a part of her world. Normal was no longer an option for her.
Bianca didn’t know what to do. She was frozen in place. She was afraid to distract her mother for even a second. She ducked behind the screen door; at least this way she could still hear what they were saying to each other.
“Did you really think I wouldn’t come?” the witch shouted.
“Oh, I knew you’d be back,” Rose replied.
Bianca slowly lifted her gaze and peeked above the screen. She saw her mother standing behind the shed on the left side of their backyard. The witch was still too far away for her to get a good look at her, but Bianca could tell that she was on the far right corner of their yard.
“Where’s the book?” the witch demanded.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Rose replied with a smirk.
“Don’t be coy with me. You know very well what I’m talking about.”
“Sorry. I can’t help you.” Rose’s breathing was becoming more labored and she was drenched in sweat…obvious signs of exhaustion, but Bianca could tell by the look on her mother’s face that she wouldn’t give up.
“The wards in the museum are impressive. I couldn’t get past them. But maybe…she’ll know where the book is,” the witch said as she looked in Bianca’s direction and threw a sickly olive-colored fireball at the screen door.
Bianca shrieked and jumped out of the way. The screen door fell off its hinges and landed on the kitchen floor with a loud thud.
“Bianca!” Rose screamed.
- Word Count: 67,774
- Author: Liz DeJesus
- Website: Liz DeJesus
- Heat Level: 1
- ISBN: 978-1-61937-226-9
- Cover Artist: Kelly Shorten
- Editor: Meredith Stratton
Night Owl Review
Reviewer: Crystal
Rating: 4.0
Review: First Frost is a fantastical novel that will bring you back to when you were a kid when knights in shining armor and princesses ruled…
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Witchmag's Boekenplank
Reviewer:
Rating: 3.0
Review: * Squeal* Fairy Tales! I absolutely love reading them! I don’t know how many times I’ve read Snow White or Rapunzel. Although it comes a…
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Reflections of a BookWorm
Reviewer: Heather Boustead
Rating: 5.0
Review: Seventeen year old Bianca Frost spends her summers and weekends continuing on a family tradition working in their Fairy Tale Museum. She has grown up…
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Authors to Watch
Reviewer: Tricia Drammeh
Rating: 4.5
Review: Bianca Frost seems like a typical teenager, but it soon becomes apparent there is more to her than meets the eye. I don't want to…
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Book Nerds United as One
Reviewer: Cassondra
Rating: 5.0
Review: I am very excited to review this book. I had never read a fairytale story like this before. I have found I love this book…
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Girls Heart Books
Reviewer: Mel and Lana
Rating: 4.0
Review: Mel: First Frost is the first book in the Frost Series by Liz DeJesus. I actually learned about this book on Goodreads and then saw…
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Captivated Reading
Reviewer: Christy
Rating: 4.5
Review: So, I initially received this book FROM Ms. DeJesus, herself, to review on my blog. But then I signed up to be a part of…
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Little Hyuts
Reviewer: Jill Marie
Rating: 5.0
Review: Wow! Let me start by saying I ADORED this book. It was the perfect before bed young adult fairytale!
Liz has done an amazing job…
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The Readdicts
Reviewer: Sarika
Rating: 4.0
Review: First Frost was like walking straight into Disneyland. I absolutely love the idea of a fairy tale coming into a contemporary setup.
For Bianca, accompanying…
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Long and Short of It
Reviewer: Poinsettia
Rating: 4.5
Review: Bianca is about to find out just how much magic has already changed her life.
I’m a big fan of the original fairytales, so when…
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