Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow

I really wanted to like this book. I really did. I love the East of the Sun, West of the Moon story but this one by Jessica Day George fell a little flat for me. Perhaps it's because Edith Pattou's East is one of my favorite books ever.

Lass, the ninth child in the family, has never been given a name. Her mother didn't want her and refused to name her. But Lass has her brother's love and her father's and she seems to be mostly content with that. When she is twelve, she meets a magical white reindeer and she is given the ability to speak to animals. This comes in handy when the great white bear comes and asks him to go live with him in an ice palace.

I guess my real dissapointment was in the love that developed between Lass and the bear. It didn't feel real to me. It seemed that they didn't have enough going for them for her to risk her life for him. But again, that's just me. But one thing that I really did like about the story is how her brother is woven into it. That was a nice and unexpected twist. It was an okay book, but in my opinion, East far surpasses it.