The only reason this book took me a while to finish reading is because work is a monster and won't leave me alone to lose myself in my books anymore. Anyway, this book was absolutely amazing! I hadn't been too sure at first if I was going to like the book all that much, but the plot intrigued me to the point where I didn't care whether or not I liked it, I just needed to read it. 
 Smitha's story begins at seventeen, when she spurns the affection of a man working beneath her father's care. She'd given him plenty of hints that she doesn't feel the same - nor will she ever, and frustrated that nothing seems to go through his thick head, she says ... well, a few choice words designed to make him finally realize her true feelings. Revealing himself to be a wizard that the local people are afraid of, he unleashes his anger by placing a curse on Smitha, to forever be as cold as her heart. Now everything Smitha touches turns into ice, the very air around her turns cold and a cloud of wintery snow follows wherever she roams. Cast out of her town for her curse, Smitha spends the next three years by herself, wandering from place to place, stealing food to survive, and leaving before the cold she brings becomes too damaging. 
 Her only companion is Sadriel, also known as Death - and she's the only one who can really see him and talk to him. Despite his constant urging that she join him and be a part of his world, Smitha stubbornly refuses and continues to cling to life, despite how miserable she is. The one day, a prince and his army come looking for her, desperate that she join them to their homeland, where they are suffering a drought that only Smitha and her curse can cure. 
 Smitha's tale took me by surprise. I was expecting a book that maybe started off strong only to taper off and become dull enough for me to set aside and just forget. But I was wrong. If anything, the more I read on, the stronger the story became and the more interested I felt in it. I was engrossed in her tale, I felt awful for what she endured - and all because she didn't reciprocate someone's feelings! Talk about holding a grudge. I rooted for her throughout the entire book and despite how warm and friendly Imad was, I kept half-expecting for him to turn around and treat her cruelly after he'd gotten what he wanted. 
 I was pleasantly surprised by the fact that Smitha finally felt like she belonged somewhere. And her growing friendship with Lo really had me looking forward to seeing what would happen between them. Their romance was a complete surprise, if I had to admit. I sensed them becoming more comfortable with each other, but I honestly hadn't expected for romance to blossom, so the fact that it did was unexpected and was such a sweet surprise. 
 That ending completely blew me away though. In a good way! This book had everything, just about. Romance, mystery, fantasy, magic, action. Ugh. So good.