Daughter of Winter and Twilight is a beautifully-crafted atmospheric YA fantasy. It picks up a little while after Queen of Coin and Whispers ended and features Lia and Xania’s adoptive daughter. While reading the first book can provide a little bit more understanding of these characters and this world, it isn’t necessary. Daughter of Winter and Twilight stands up just fine on its own, and recaps enough of the first book’s events that if you forgot everything (like me), it’s easy to catch up. 

In this book, Emri is grappling with the intricacies of foreign politics as her cousin, Melisande, visits court. Those problems are quickly replaced by much bigger ones, though, when both heirs are ripped from the castle and thrust into a magical adventure assembled by ancient gods. 

One of the reasons I think I enjoyed this book more than the first is that Helen Corcoran has clearly grown as a writer. Her voice is more clear, her characters more unique, and the story more interesting. I don’t remember how much Queen of Coin and Whispers described the setting, but Daughter of Winter and Twilight goes a bit deeper into the world building. I understood the world better and found it easier to follow the story in this book.

That being said, the plot did have its ups and downs. It would have almost been better as a standalone, without the connection to Queen, because this series didn’t really need magic. The politics in the first book were interesting enough on their own, and the new addition of magic and gods to this world felt a tiny bit forced. I did love the whole facing-their-past theme of the book, though, and the way the characters slowly unraveled the tensions between them and confronted the traumas and mistakes of their pasts was very fascinating. And I did enjoy the gods. I thought the concepts behind them were interesting, and I liked the distinctive personalities tied to their domains.

Speaking of characters, that is another one of Corcoran’s strengths. I loved glimpsing Lia and Xania’s life as a happy ruling couple, the awkwardness between Emri and Theo, and the tension between her and Melisande. Every character was unique, with stories and personalities that all tied together as they struggled through their little mountain quest. (I also adored Gabi, as grumpy as she was.)

To conclude; this book was very good. The casual queer representation (even without a major romance storyline!) was lovely to see, and the story and world were both very unique. The reason I knock off a star is because of the slower pacing and the random addition of magic. If you enjoy politics, mythology, and icy worlds (like The Winter Duke), you’ll enjoy this one.