This was the first book by Patricia McKillip I've ever read, and the first fantasy novel I've read in quite a long time. I was impressed by how evocative McKillip's writing was; there was a sense of "place" that was both dream-like and tangible. I identified with her protagonists' sense of never quite belonging as well as her inexplicable yearning for something she couldn't quite name. The intricacy of the family relationships, particularly between Rose and her sister, were also well done. Somehow, she manages to create a narrative that gets away with weaving between the "real world" and something like a waking dream without coming across as too hallucinatory. This was a novel that made me remember why I love fantasy so much. ( )

an eerie fairy tale that mixes dreams, magic, and different worlds into something haunting and mysterious. at times, i wasn't quite sure what was going on - but the story has some elements of the folktale tam lin that oriented me somewhat, in that the main character, rois, falls in love with a man, corbet, who seems caught between two worlds, the human and the fairy (or something like fairy). her efforts to save him, herself, and her sister, who falls in love with corbet, follow a tangled, tortured path back to humanity which at one point includes rois trying to "hold onto" corbet no matter what form he takes. some of the language and images were striking and beautiful, but i couldn't really engage with the characters. i don't know if it was the strangeness of the story, or its rather open ended aspect and conclusion, but i felt distanced from its events and people - except for the relationship between rose and her sister, the only thing relatively solid and clear amidst a landscape of shifting dreams and realities. not that i don't appreciate a book that leaves much to speculation and questions, but unfotunately the questions i had after reading winter rose left too conspicuous gaps that got in the way of understanding the characters at least on same basic level of connection. ( )

In this beautifully written short novel, Rois, a young woman known for her unconventional ways (she wanders the woods barefoot, seeking healing herbs for her potions), falls in love with the strange young man who suddenly appears in the village. Is he a ghost, returned from the distant past? Or a true heir to the estate bordering Rois' home? To complicate matters, he falls in love with Rois' staid sister, and she with him. The story is developed through an odd mix of fantasy and realism--a dream world or visions (caused by wine? drugs?) cross over into reality, and it's difficult to know which is which. Beautiful writing, but the story isn't always easy to follow. ( )

Winter Rose is more of a fairy tale than an ordinary fantasy novel. It's about two sisters, one wild and free, other steady and stable, whose lives are changed by a new neighbour, Corbet Lynn. He returns to the family mansion where his father slayed his grandfather. The grandfather, a rather nasty person really, cursed his son on his last breath. But what was the curse about, exactly, and is Corbet threatened by that curse? Nobody seems to remember the exact words.

Rois, the wild sister, is enthralled by the curse and the mystery Corbet represents. Laurel, steady and to be married soon, falls for Corbet in different way. It's a busy autumn that eventually turns into a long, dark winter, with ill consequences. Patricia McKillip has weaved a beautiful story, perhaps a tad slow for my tastes, but very atmospheric nonetheless. Like I said, Winter Rose owes a lot to fairy tales and legends (Tam Lin is an important reference). Beautiful words, but I wouldn't have minded a slightly swifter plot.

(Original review at my review blog) ( )

An amazing book. I first read this book as a teenager and even now fall completely into it every time I read it. It's just mesmerizing. The story of a girl who falls in love with someone who may or may not be mortal in a winter that seems to never end. ( )