An epic fantasy of forbidden romance that chronicles the coming of age of a princess who is possessed by the Snow Queen and fated to rule her kingdom with a strong hand and icy heart.
As a child, Princess Freyja looked into the Snow Queen’s cursed mirror - and was changed.
Now an aloof and difficult young woman with a wit as sharp as her tongue, the future monarch is in need of a tutor. And Ambrose, a failed poet, is in need of a teaching position. He just never suspected how dangerous the extracurricular activities would be!
Soon, Ambrose finds himself on a grand adventure fighting to save the vexing but alluring princess from the court occult conspiracies that have targeted her. He is opposed not only by sorcerers and the evil Snow Queen, but also the icy royal damsel who holds his heart.
Will Ambrose’s love cause Freyja to thaw…or will she put him in the deep freeze instead?
Sensuous, suspenseful, supernatural and filled with witty banter, this romantic fantasy will both turn up the heat and leave you thoroughly frost smitten!
A 2019 Critters Readers Poll top ten finalist in the category of Science-Fiction and Fantasy.
~ Universal Amazon Link ~ The price of this book as been steeply discounted on Amazon for this event! Check it out!
Micah S. Harris is the Author of the epic fantasy romance Portrait of a Snow Queen, which took third place in the category of science fiction and fantasy in the Critters Readers Poll. Strong female protagonists and banter are trademarks of his work. Portrait of a Snow Queen is no exception and is recommended for older fans of Frozen and lovers of the witty verbal sparring in The Princess Bride.
He won the 2016 Pulp Ark Award for best novel for Ravenwood, The stepson of Mystery: Return of the Dugpa. He is also the Author - Along with artist Michael Gaydos (Marvel’s Jessica Jones) - of the graphic novel Heaven’s War, a historical fantasy pitting the Oxford Inklings against Aleister Crowley.
His lifelong love of movies also influences his fiction, whether a fairy tale retelling, horror story or paranormal mystery. He taught film on a collegiate level and has chronicled, both in print and via podcast, fascination lost genre gems.
Long Excerpt #1:
“Freyja,” Lord Melchior said as we came to a stop before
her, “This is your new tutor, Master Ambrose Gaius Aurelianus.”
I bowed. She sniffed and raised her chin.
“You mean the new fool,” she said.
“Charmed,” I said.
“Freyja!” Melchior said.
“No, it’s all right, my lord.”
I looked Freyja in the pale gray eye.
“I am new to court, my lady, so I admit I may need some
help understanding manners here. Please to clarify: am I on the receiving end
of your rather banal efforts at being rude, or are you so dull that what you
were supposed to have learned at charm school was beyond your comprehension?”
Her gray eyes flashed like a thunder cloud, her blush
spread, but she did not lose her dignified posture. “You dare speak to me this
way?” she said.
“It’s a necessary question, my lady. I need to know what I
am up against. That is, has your ability to comprehend been compromised by the
tendency to inbreed among royal families, resulting in your becoming a hopeless
mental degenerate?”
Her mouth gaped, she shook her head at me, scowled, and
turned to Melchior. “Do you just stand there and say nothing in defense of my
honor? Of the entire royal family’s
honor?”
He looked at me, his eyebrows narrowing. “It…happens.”
“Yes, my lady. Just tell me: are you so hopelessly stupid
by nature that you will be a waste of my time?”
Now she was completely red. “Do you know with whom you
speak, mortal? I am the Snow Queen, a force of nature!”
Melchior slapped his forehead and looked away. “Here we
go….,” he moaned.
She addressed Melchior but did not turn from mine those
eyes that were now hard and sharp as ice shards. “Did you not explain to this
fool exactly the nature of whom, and what,
he is dealing with?”
“He did,” I said, “but it was so ridiculous, I didn’t
think it was worth retaining.”
“I am the Snow
Queen,” she said. “I am no longer human but have become an elemental being, and
this vestigial flesh and blood is but
a mere covering.”
The flush had receded from her face and that white
complexion made her every word feel cold and from somewhere remote. For a
moment, I could almost believe her claim.
Then I saw a glint in her eye and recalled Melchior’s
story of that speck of cursed mirror that had gotten in there, that still held
the reflection of the Snow Queen. Was I seeing that image now? Freyja as she
saw herself?
“Would you, little man, seek to dance with the whirlwind?
Would you gaze directly into the sun’s face like it was your lover’s and think
it worth your time?
“Lay hold on me, and you take hold of a tempest of hail
stones and thunder, arctic blasts that buffet so that they will flay your skin,
a cold so cold that it burns, and burns enough to leave you black where you
stand.
“One flick of my wrist, and you would look like you had
been exposed to the frozen elements for days though it would be over in moments.
You would be over in moments. Do you
still find me ridiculous? Place your ‘disciplining’ hand on me, and you will
quickly find me otherwise!”
I stared at her. “No,” I said after a moment, my voice
soft. “I find you very, very sad, my lady. And broken. Whatever really happened to you? Whatever it was,
it should not have happened to anyone. You were just an innocent child who had
your whole world snatched away from you in a moment.”
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