COLD

The snow did not numb Fiammarosa it pricked and hummed and brought her intensely to life This is who I am the cold princess thought to herself wriggling for sheer pleasure in the snow dust this is what I want From one of our greatest storytellers a tale of mythic beauty elemental passion and hope with an afterword by R F Kuang A princess is born in summer Frail from infancy she is cosseted by all who surround her and as she grows is protected from the elements outside One winter s night she escapes into the castle s grounds and discovers that far from the cold being harmful it awakens her She is an icewoman she becomes her true self in the frost and snow But when the princes arrive as princes must the princess awakens a second time Falling unexpectedly for a young glassblowing royal from the hot southern lands she is faced with a choice Should she follow him to the desert and live a life unfulfilled Or remain where she is and live without love FROM THE BOOKER PRIZEWINNING AUTHOR OF POSSESSION PRAISE FOR A S BYATT A storyteller who could keep a sultan on the edge of his throne for a thousand and one nights The New York Times Book Review A master of the short story David Mitchell An exhilarating genius Guardian