Good ( )

Really liking this series. This particular book threw us out in the wild and introduced us to Autumn, snarky fellow. We traverse the US and gather as much intel as we can to tackle the problem of the Others. I look forward to the next book, can't way to see how this all folds out. ( )

After reading Whispers in Autumn, which I liked, I was a little bit wary of picking up the sequel. The sequel could really go any number of directions, some of which I really would not have been happy with. Thankfully, Leigh quickly assuaged my fears. From the very beginning, I found myself even more engaged in Winter Omens than I was with Whispers in Autumn. Also, I'm warning you know that the rest of this review will have spoilers for Whispers in Autumn.

Where Whispers in Autumn focused a lot on establishing the world, Leigh now really fleshes out the characters, adding real depth and emotion to the story. Althea and Lucas escaped at the end of the first book, but were separated. This is the best thing that could have happened for me as a reader, and, I think, for Althea as a character. Thus far, I really don't like Lucas a love interest; he runs a bit too much to the overprotective, boring side of the hero spectrum. Some time away from him gives both Althea and the reader a chance to get to know Althea as an individual.

Trisha Leigh also introduces a couple of new characters, both of whom I love to pieces, to journey with Althea. The first one is another Dissident, like Althea and Lucas, named Pax. I love how much Pax is all about his own survival. He's not easily trusting, he's grumpy, and he's a bit of a coward sometimes. While he's more obviously flawed than Lucas, I took to him immediately. Also, I'm adding this series to my list of awesome love triangles, because Althea has very different kinds of chemistry with both boys and I have no clue at this point which one she's going to end up with down the road, though you know which one I'm hoping it will be.

The best character BY FAR, though, is Wolf. He just steals the show and has my heart forever. Wolf is in fact a dog, but Althea, unfamiliar with animals, couldn't initially tell the difference and the moniker stuck. I'm slightly more of a cat person, but, you guys, I want a dog so much right now. If you are a dog lover, you are going to be all over this book. Like all over. Also, Wolf is just about the most useful dog ever. Trisha Leigh obviously loves animals, which means she is super cool in my book.

Some of the elements of the world building that I was previously confused on get a bit more clarified in Winter Omens, though I am still a bit confused about exactly what the Elements are. Hopefully that will be explained down the road. There's some really awesome mental battling that takes place and it gets pretty seriously creepy. Winter Omens actually gets quite disturbing at some points, and I want to know so much more about all of these powers the Others have. The four Dissidents are supposed to take out the Others, and I really do not see how that is possible, but I must know!

With Winter Omens, I am officially hooked and pretty much have to read the last two books in the series. I am now fully engaged in the characters and very curious to discover how the plot will resolve, since the odds these four teens are facing are monumental. This is a great read, and the quality does not suffer at all from having not been traditionally published. ( )

2nd in the fantasy series about children who discover they aren't human, but aren't quite fully Others either. They have powers they've learned to harness, but there's one among them who has yet to be found, and only with him can they save the Earth from annihilation by the Others. ( )

Winter Omens picks up where the first book in the series, Whispers in Autumn leaves off. Althea finds herself alone again after she and Lucas are separated when they are forced to travel to avoid being taken prisoner by the Others. The loneliness seems worse than in the beginning for Althea, threatening to consume her, because she doesn't know how to find Lucas. Knowing she cannot stay in the city, she makes her way to the wilds again, just trying to survive the harsh winter and figure out what to do next and how to find this boy she is coming to love. She finds help in the form of a wolf/dog who becomes in her best friend. When a boy suddenly appears, she notices he seems like her. The boy, Pax, immediately recognizes Althea as being different and wastes no time calling her out on it and revealing what he is. He is a loner, and doesn't plan on sticking around, yet Althea finds herself drawn to him. He is completely different that Lucas and the chemistry between the two is very strong, which makes things difficult for Althea because finds herself caring deeply for both of these boys. The Others are still in hot pursuit of Althea, Pax, and Lucas. As the mind control and the intrusions of the Others heightens, Pax and Althea find themselves in several intense situations.......sometimes the intense situations are just because they find themselves together. The situation worsens, capture is imminent, torture, betrayal, and heartache bombard them, and the strongest emotion of all, love, will have to save them all.

This was a great second book in this series. There was quite a bit more action in this book as Pax and Althea were constantly in danger and being pursued. We also meet some new characters in this book. I enjoyed getting to know Pax in this book, though I did miss Lucas' presence in the majority of the book. Pax has the whole bad boy that every girl loves thing going on. The romance intensifies in this book and a love triangle of sorts is formed. I am interested to see what that develops into, and though I love Pax, I am still loyal to Lucas at this point. Althea really steps up and becomes quite a kick-butt heroine. We also get to see into the inner workings of the mind of the Others in this novel and just how cruel they can be. Loyalties are tested and emotions run high in this novel. The book crescendos on an intense note with these friends barely escaping with their lives. One of them may not make it. As these three dissidents, Althea, Lucas, and Pax, Summer, Winter, and Autumn try to survive, they must find and rescue the missing link, Deshi, who is Spring. I am anxious to see where the journey takes these three next, to find out if they all survive, and to see how their relationships progress. This was another intriguing installment in this series. If you are a fan of dystopia, science fiction, fantasy and romance, you will find all these elements combined in this series. ( )