Publisher: Kensington Publishing Corporation
Publication Date: November 29, 2011
Format: ARC
Status: Second in the Mythos Academy series. Book one, Touch of Frost came out earlier this year, book three, Dark Frost, has a publication date of May 29, 2012, and book four, Crimson Frost is expected to be released in January 2013.
Source: Received from the author for review (Thanks Jennifer!)
Genre: Private School Paranormal, YA
Location: Georgia
Other Info: Jennifer Estep is the author of the Elemental Assassin series and the Bigtime books. The Mythos Academy series is her first foray into YA.
Description and link from Goodreads:

     Kiss of Frost is a solid follow-up to a series that is vivid, surprising and fascinating all at the same time. Unfortunately, because I began this book with high expectations, I was disappointed by its slow start. Jennifer Estep spends an inordinate amount of time reacquainting her readers with the Mythos world. I needed a little refresher–no question–but I was about to start skimming pages when the story finally picked up.
     Once it got started, Kiss of Frost was a fast and furious read after that. It hit the ground running and didn’t stop. While this makes for an exciting book, it detracted from what I’ll call the “Veronica Mars” element that I loved so much in book one. Gwen doesn’t get to spend a great deal of time investigating because she’s too busy being in danger and running for her life. Not to mention moping about Logan. Granted he’s hot (oh so hot), and Gwen’s a teenager, and these two factors combine to make the fact that he’s dating someone else wickedly painful for her, but I wanted a little less moping and a little more of the self-confidence she exhibited in Touch of Frost.
      I did love the relationship between Gwen and Daphne. It’s touching to see Gwen have a true best friend at last, and their relationship is portrayed with realism. Gwen and Daphne’s friendship began about the same time as Daphne’s relationship with Carson, a fact of which Gwen tries to be respectful–sometimes to her own detriment. Also, I think the two girls are still trying to figure out how to be best friends, and for Gwen especially, that’s not going to be a smooth path.
     Back when I read Touch of Frost, I developed a major crush on Logan Quinn, but in this book, his allure waned a bit for me. This was, in part, due to two things. One, he plays a much smaller role in this book. He makes a number of onscreen, nonspeaking appearances, and Gwen thinks about him a great deal, but we don’t get to see him, er, in action all that much. The other issue was Logan dating Savannah when he had feelings for Gwen. It was a crummy thing to do, and I liked him the less for it. Kind of like I’m really hoping it’s only a rumor that he signs all the mattresses of the girls he’s slept with. Because: ew.
     Finally, there was the mystery, which was the weakest element of Kiss of Frost. The mysteries weren’t mysterious at all. (Though to be honest, I only guessed half of Oliver’s secret.) In all, Kiss of Frost suffers from book two malady. It’s a bridge to the next book, but doesn’t stand well on its own. I’m looking forward to the next installment because I know what Jennifer Estep can do–and this wasn’t it.

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