Blue Archipelago

20 Sep, 2008

Book Review | The Ice Queen by Alice Hoffman

Posted by: Clare Swindlehurst In: 5 stars| 50 book challenge

The Ice Queen by Alice Hoffman

The Ice Queen by Alice Hoffman

Rating

5 stars - a tale of wishes come true

The Ice Queen is about…

A woman who wishes an idle wish - to be struck by lightening - and has that wish granted. Surviving the lightening strike she embarks on a passionate relationship with another strike survivor.

The Ice Queen is a powerful novel; Hoffman’s often lyrical use of prose draws you into a magical tale of love, loss and redemption. The main character - who remains nameless throughout - has a fascination with death that affects the way she leads her life and interacts with other people.

It’s a beautiful novel that will have you captured from the first sentence to the last.

‘Love was like rain: it turned to ice, or it disappeared. Now you saw it, now you couldn’t find it no matter how hard you might search. Love evaporated; obsession was realer; it hurt, like a pin in your bottom, a stone in your shoe. It didn’t go away in the blink of an eye. A morning phone call filled with regret. A letter that said, Dear you, good-bye from me. Obsession tasted like something familiar. Something you’d known your whole life. it settled and lurked; it stayed with you.’

I’d recommend this book to…

Anyone who is looking to truly escape with a book and to be captivated by the words as well as the story they tell.

Would I read another book by Alice Hoffman?

Yes, definitely - I have another on my bookshelf already and two more on the way thanks to Book Mooch. I was hooked on Hoffman after I read Skylight Confessions earlier this year and The Ice Queen has only confirmed that she is indeed an amazing author.

Have you reviewed this book?

If you have reviewed this book on your site please fill in the boxes below to link me up to your review - don’t forget to link to the specific post to make it easy to find:

Have you started your Christmas shopping yet? Here are some Christmas Gift ideas you might find useful.

Related posts:

  1. Book Review | Skylight Confessions by Alice Hoffman
  2. Book Review | The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold
  3. Book Review | The God of Animals by Aryn Kyle
  4. Book Review | Things I Want My Daughters to Know by Elizabeth Noble
  5. Book Review | The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale

7 Responses to "Book Review | The Ice Queen by Alice Hoffman"

1 | Trish

September 20th, 2008 at 3:57 pm

Avatar

Ohhhh–5 stars! I’ve heard so much about this book and I *almost* picked it up yesterday to read just for fun, but then I got The Heretic’s Daughter in the mail and couldn’t resist. I’ll have to squeeze this in soon, though. Glad you liked it so much!

2 | Nymeth

September 20th, 2008 at 5:02 pm

Avatar

It’s a brilliant book, isn’t it? I need to get Skylight Confessions too.

Nymeths last blog post..Nation by Terry Pratchett

3 | Mrs S

September 21st, 2008 at 8:58 am

Avatar

@Trish - Funny thing was I gave it 4 stars before I wrote the review - then I realised that some day I’d enjoy reading it again - and that’s my definition of 5 stars!

4 | Mrs S

September 21st, 2008 at 8:58 am

Avatar

@Nymeth - I much much preferred Skylight Confessions - get your hands on it as soon as you can!

5 | Nicole

September 27th, 2008 at 7:50 am

Avatar

I read a book by Alice Hoffman and it really stayed with me though the title escapes me now. It was about the murder of an outsider boy at a New England prep school and some of her descriptions and observations of that kind of life haunt me to this day. Sounds like this could e another good one.

Nicoles last blog post..Sometimes

6 | Mrs S

September 27th, 2008 at 9:43 am

Avatar

@Nicole - by the wonders of Google (what did we ever do without it!) I have found the title The Probable Future - and managed to mooch myself a copy! Thanks for the tip :)

7 | madeline

November 24th, 2008 at 7:58 pm

Avatar

Anyone ever read “Second Nature”? It’s also by Alice Hoffman and it is SOOOO good! It’s what got me into her.

Comment Form


  • Jessica: I'm loving the new format. I loved your other one too, but I understand about the "tired" thing. I love my theme, but I think it needs some revampin
  • Kimberlyy: I'm In Love With Twilight, I Saw The Moviee And Thought It Was Amazingg<33 When I Heard About The Frist Chapter Of Midnight Sunn I Went To Her Web
  • Jessi: I'm not familiar with the service, but it sounds wonderful! Thanks for sharing. :) Jessi´s last blog post..

About Blue Archipelago

I'm working my way through 75 books this year - and writing a review of each one as I finish it. You can share your thoughts in the comments section.

My rating system

5/5 Loved it - highly recommended
4/5 Enjoyed it - can recommend
3/5 Okay - not too exciting
2/5 Not worth the effort
1/5 Hated it
0/5 Didn't even finish it


The chatty corner