In Ice in Moonlight, author Emilia Farrow explores a brutal fantasy world.

In the Borealia realm, the natural elements are dangerous. When the sun sets and conditions turn to what’s known as Midnight, mortal beings still outdoors perish from the brutal cold—and plenty of humans suffer that fate. That’s because all priority for safety goes to the Gifted, a race imbued with magical powers, particularly the ability to change form.

In this world, humans are on the bottom of a rigid caste system — a reality the story’s heroine Eirwen knows well. Both her parents were human servants to the Gifted in the king’s palace and perished when she and her brother, Arthael, were very young. Eirwen believes they were worked to death. An innkeeper then cared for the orphans.

After a Gifted forcibly takes Arthael to serve in the palace, Eirwen longs for revenge. When her friend Dillyn is unable to show up for a meeting with Canis, a particularly unsavory member of the Gifted class, Eirwen meets Canis in Dyllin’s stead, setting in motion actions that ultimately lead Eirwen to the royal halls. There, she uncovers unsettling secrets about the Gifted, clues about her own status and origins, and answers about the never-ending war against the southern kingdom, where humans reportedly rule and there are no “shifters.”

In this 600-plus page epic, Farrow displays a knack for character building and quickly establishes the bounds of her richly imagined universe. However, overwrought descriptions (e.g., “the vibrant, flame-hot auburn of her hair and the mist-less, pine green of her eyes”) significantly slow momentum. Some passages could easily be trimmed.

Other issues include unnecessary wordiness, excessive use of the passive voice, and detailed sex scenes, which, while not overly graphic, may prove too spicy for traditional fantasy readers.

Despite such drawbacks, readers will appreciate the novel’s fresh and compelling depiction of Borealia, from its fatal cold to its shape-shifting elite class.

Also available as an ebook.