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Ash Princess Trilogy #1
Ash Princess
Theodosia was six when her country was invaded and her mother, the Fire Queen, was murdered before her eyes. On that day, the Kaiser took Theodosia's family, her land, and her name. Theo was crowned Ash Princess--a title of shame to bear in her new life as a prisoner.
For ten years Theo has been a captive in her own palace. She's endured the relentless abuse and ridicule of the Kaiser and his court. She is powerless, surviving in her new world only by burying the girl she was deep inside.
Then, one night, the Kaiser forces her to do the unthinkable. With blood on her hands and all hope of reclaiming her throne lost, she realizes that surviving is no longer enough. But she does have a weapon: her mind is sharper than any sword. And power isn't always won on the battlefield.
For ten years, the Ash Princess has seen her land pillaged and her people enslaved. That all ends here.
For ten years Theo has been a captive in her own palace. She's endured the relentless abuse and ridicule of the Kaiser and his court. She is powerless, surviving in her new world only by burying the girl she was deep inside.
Then, one night, the Kaiser forces her to do the unthinkable. With blood on her hands and all hope of reclaiming her throne lost, she realizes that surviving is no longer enough. But she does have a weapon: her mind is sharper than any sword. And power isn't always won on the battlefield.
For ten years, the Ash Princess has seen her land pillaged and her people enslaved. That all ends here.
448 pages, Hardcover
First published April 24, 2018
About the author
Laura Sebastian
12 books4,084 followersLaura Sebastian grew up in South Florida and attended Savannah College of Art and Design. She now lives and writes in London, England, with her two dogs, Neville and Circe. Laura is the author of the New York Times bestselling Ash Princess series: Ash Princess, Lady Smoke, and Ember Queen, as well as the Castles in Their Bones series: Castles in Their Bones, Stardust in Their Veins, and Poison In Their Hearts; Half Sick of Shadows, her first novel for adults; and Into the Glades, for middle-grade readers.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 7,235 reviews
April 24, 2018
Is it better to have your life ended by someone who hates you or someone who loves you?
Ash Princess has a heroine desperately trying to reclaim her stolen throne, a mindlessly evil tyrant who stole said throne, and a love triangle... What's that, you say? You've heard this one before? Yeah, me too.
That being said, to give credit where it's due, it stands out for being compulsively readable and entertaining.
Plot and character-wise, it resembles many other YA fantasies. But I was just complaining in my review of Sky in the Deep about how I keep reading a lot of “shallow and emotionless” YA fantasy books, and this happens to be one that breaks the pattern. I can't deny it is very compelling, though it relies heavily on violence, abuse and misery to keep us turning the pages.
I'll spare you a plot summary - you can probably guess it anyway - and just say there's a rightful queen held captive by the conquerors of her kingdom who must assist the underground rebellion and reclaim her throne. Whilst fighting off the hot dudes along the way, of course.
Many are comparing this to Red Queen, which I did think was shallow and emotionless. Instead, I’d compare it to Sabaa Tahir’s An Ember in the Ashes - both books are heavy on the violence, feature slavery as a theme, have a love triangle (sort of) and an evil tyrant driving the drama and action. They are also similarly paced and engaging.
Aside from an awkward infodump in the first chapter, it goes down smoothly. The violence and unfairness make it easy to keep turning the pages. Shortly after the book opens Theo is forced to murder her father, and nothing gets me reading like a nice dose of fury at the injustice of it all. Theo's undercover manipulations are also fun to read.
Some of the major plot aspects seem illogical, such as why the new king (called the Kaiser 🙄) would leave the rightful heir alive. The book tries to explain it away but it doesn't really make much sense. Surely if you want to dampen any hope of reinstating the rightful monarch then you would just kill the rightful monarch.
I should warn that it is at times grim and gory. Slavery is a norm; beatings, torture and rape (non-graphic) are common. The divide between the dark-haired, olive-skinned Astrean people and the pale-skinned, blonde-haired Kalovaxians is clearly along racial lines.
BUT what can I say? It is also an entertaining pageturner. If you have room in your heart (and on your bookshelves) for another fantasy with princesses, evil rulers, rebellion and romance, then you could definitely do worse than this one.
TW: graphic abuse and torture; rape (non-graphic); racism.
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June 14, 2021
I picked up this book because my friends loved it and I wanted to follow their hype! Unfortunately it wasn’t for me. So much of the plot followed the standard YA fantasy checklist without adding anything new. What bumped this down to 2 stars for me is that I couldn’t stand the main character. For someone who has an entire country depending on her to reclaim their land, she does nothing other than act wishy-washy and indecisive. It drove me crazy that she kept on talking about having to kill people without actually doing it because she was stuck in her head so much. Even when it comes to conspiring treason, other characters had to guide her along and make the decisions for her. She played no active role at all, and I was so tired of being stuck in her head. Please, I’m begging you to make a decision for once in your life!!
October 20, 2018
ARC provided by Penguin Random House in exchange for an honest review.
“My name is Theodosia Eirene Houzzara, Queen of Astrea, and I will endure this.”
Friends, I couldn’t put this down. This was such an addicting and captivating read. This was the first book of 2018 that I read in one day, which is saying something because this book is almost 450 pages. I was just so invested with the romance, the rebellion, and the betrayals, that I couldn’t stop turning the pages.
Ash Princess is Laura Sebastian's debut novel, which is a story about a girl named Theodosia (yeah, I’m going to be singing Hamilton all day after writing this review), whose ruling mother was murdered, and their land taken over by another kingdom when she was only six-years-old. the Kaiser allowed her to live, but only so that she could live among them, while they take everything she has ever known away. She is used as a reminder for her people that the Kaiser has enslaved, and when they do anything to rise up, Theodosia takes the punishment. Her back is incredible scarred from the whippings she has had to endure, but the Kaiser also inflicts so much mental and emotional abuse alongside the physical.
“The last person who called me by my true name was my mother, with her dying breath.”
The Kaiser conquered Theodosia’s land because there are caves that run beneath four major temples that her people worship (air, fire, water, earth). And gems come from those caves to give people magic, but they also give people with an affinity for the element(s) a lot of magic. The caves have so much magic inside them, that when Theodosia’s mother would rule, people would go down and stay in the caves, most dying, but some emerging and proving that they are worth the element the god and goddesses gave to them. Now that the Kaiser rules, he forces the slaves down there to mine, but most lose their minds after being around the power(s) for too long, and eventually lose their lives.
Theodosia’s only friend is a girl named Cress, whose father is the one who swiped the blade across her mother’s throat. Inside, Theodosia feels a constant battle about what she can do while feeling so absolutely helpless. Yet, Cress also lost her mother when she was very young, so an unconventional friendship grew from two girls both mourning the mothers they never got to know. I loved seeing their friendship develop and become what it was by the end of the book. But Theodosia is constantly reminded of all the things she lost alongside her mother, but she is forced to do the only thing she can: survive. That is, until one day a boy from her past comes and offers her a way out, and a way to maybe right a few wrongs that have happened to her people.
“A life where a crown—gold or ash—doesn’t weigh heavy on my head.”
As I said above, this is a dark story about a girl who is forced to live among the people who ruined her life and killed her mother. Trigger/Content Warnings for racism, enslaving humans, abuse, torture, graphic beating, humiliation, captivation, gore, murder, death, loss of a loved one, bullying, talk of rape in the past, talk of animal murder in the past, sexual assault (unwanted touching), and rebellion/war themes.
The other thing I’d like to talk about is that the Kaiser and his people are white with light features, where Theodosia and her people have darker features and are said to have a “tawny” skin color. On top of the fact that this is a story about how one empire colonizes another, and puts the remaining population in chains and are force them to work (and die) in the mines harvesting gems.
“Maybe his interest in me isn’t just about saving the damsel. Part of him also wants to be saved. If he’s stained by his father’s sins, then maybe I’m the only person who can absolve them.”
My favorite thing about this book was easily the romance. Now, a lot of books have kind of vague, blurry, love triangles, but Ash Princess just has a blatant one, and I loved it. Theodosia is torn between her childhood friend and first love, Blaise, and a boy whose father has taken everything from her, Søren. It is legitimately friends to lovers and enemies to lovers and my shipper heart was so full of happiness. I personally like the enemies to lovers side of the triangle more, and I was falling off my bed, swooning so damn hard, during the last tunnel scene. Like, that is my romance kink, 100%, and if you’ve read this book you’ll know what scene I’m talking about. The romance in this is perfect, and I will read Lady Smoke at midnight upon release to see how these romances progress, because your girl is invested.
“You could ask me for the ocean itself and I would find a way to give it to you.”
So, you’re probably asking, “Melanie, why did you give it four stars if you enjoyed it this much and won’t stop gushing over it?” And that’s because, I’ll be honest, this story doesn’t bring anything new to the YA Fantasy world. If you read a lot of other reviews on Goodreads, you’re going to notice the same line of “this is nothing new” and it is true. A lot of reviewers are also comparing this to Red Queen and An Ember in the Ashes, but I haven’t read either of those! Basically, this isn’t groundbreaking or even unique, but it’s super well written and crafted and it truly made for an un-put-downable read for me.
Overall, I truly loved and devoured this. This was easily the most addicting thing I’ve read in 2018 thus far, and I completely recommend it with my whole heart. Again, it might not be the most original thing, but that doesn’t make it not worthwhile. I loved the characters, the twists, the plot, the friendship, the perfect romances, the atmosphere, the writing, I loved it all.
“We are not defined by the things we do in order to survive.”
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The quotes above were taken from an ARC and are subject to change upon publication.
March 16, 2019
Edit: I accidentally read this as Ass Princess and that’s what I’ll always see when I look at this title.
This book is everything I wanted Red Queen to be. 👏👏👏👏👏👏👏 What a fantastic debut. I loved this so much, I deadass want to reread it and experience all the feels all over again. It was just so addicting and I was unable to put this down!! I devoured this 400+ page book in two days.
Ash Princess is a trope-filled book with a very common story line. Theodosia, or Theo, was six years old when she witnessed her mother's (the queen) brutal murder and had her country conquered from her. In her country there are magical caves that run underneath the temples. For fire, air, earth and water. These are very sacred and only those who have proved themselves to the gods completely can go and get the magical gems. Now, Theo's people are forced to work as slaves in these mines and dig up the magical stones.
For ten years she has been living under the Kaiser and his brutal rule, living quietly and trying to please him to survive. All of that ends when she's forced to kill someone and her childhood friend comes and offers her an escape and make things right for their people. She's filled with hate and determination to take back her kingdom and avenge her mother and people.
Sounds so common, right? Hmm let's see, it sounds so much like Ruined, Red Queen, Falling Kingdoms (a lot of other YA books I can't think of right now), and the brutal world resembles a lot to An Ember in the Ashes. But, I fucking loved this. In my opinion, this book was so much better than Ruined and Red Queen.
This world is so fucking brutal and violent, a lot like An Ember in ashes. Theo is always whipped publicly whenever her people try to rebel. There is mention of rape, slaves are treated horrible, people are always being killed, like in Falling Kingdoms. But unlike, that book, Ash Princess isn't shit-ily written. People are being experimented on and a lot of gore and bloody things occur. There is horrible enslavement that Theo's people go through in the mines and there is vivid descriptions of the horrific things that go on there.
There is also a lot of racism that happens in this book. The Kaiser and his people are white while Theo and her people have darker skin and described as "tawny." Theo's country is colonized and her people are enslaved and suffer through a lot of horrific shit. Theo is also mentally and physically abused, so trigger warnings for all that.
Theo is a character that I really loved and sympathized with from the very beginning. Her life is horrible. Every day she has to be someone she's not and endure the humiliation and abuse from the Kaiser. She has no privacy of her own (literally, three guards called Shadows watch her 24/7, even when she's changing!!), cannot express her thoughts freely and lives in constant fear of the Kaiser. One wrong move and she'll piss the Kaiser off. Then when that happens and she learns of the horrors her people are going through, she snaps.
She still has to pretend, but this time instead of fear, she's filled with hate. She's taking risks to meet with her people. She has to learn that the only way to win and survive is by hate and violence. She's also have an inner conflict with herself over her close friend in the castle and her growing feelings for the crown Prinz. She doesn't want to kill them, but if she is to take back her home, she's going to have to.
I really understood her constant inner-battle. Her friend, Cress whose father slit Theo's mothers throat and whips her, is someone she's known for ten years in the castle. Cress helped her and stood up for her against bullies and has been nothing but kind to her. And now she's expected to kill her???? what.
Oh no, my guys, this has a LOVE TRIANGLE!!! [cue the groans of every person on the planet] LISTEN, I know y'all hate love triangles and I DO TOO!! but this one is somehow bearable, even though it annoyed me a lot. Theo has feelings for the Prinz and her childhood friend, some dude, whose name I forgot, because I DON'T FUCKING SHIP THEM. He's a really good guy, but Prinz Soren and Theo all the way, bitch. Like, they're both good boys, but idk something about the Prinz, man.
Okay, so this is fucking trope-filled and cliche as fuck so everyone's probably going to hate it but I loved it somehow so please read it!!! :( I'm joking, don't listen to me. Y'all probably gonna hate it LMAO. 😔
I, personally, really loved this trope-y ass book and would recommend it!! Please give it a try!
Pre-review:
I'm only reading it for the gorgeous cover. The plot sounds like 1000 other YA Fantasy books out there, but I still have hope that this'll be badass.
This book is everything I wanted Red Queen to be. 👏👏👏👏👏👏👏 What a fantastic debut. I loved this so much, I deadass want to reread it and experience all the feels all over again. It was just so addicting and I was unable to put this down!! I devoured this 400+ page book in two days.
Ash Princess is a trope-filled book with a very common story line. Theodosia, or Theo, was six years old when she witnessed her mother's (the queen) brutal murder and had her country conquered from her. In her country there are magical caves that run underneath the temples. For fire, air, earth and water. These are very sacred and only those who have proved themselves to the gods completely can go and get the magical gems. Now, Theo's people are forced to work as slaves in these mines and dig up the magical stones.
For ten years she has been living under the Kaiser and his brutal rule, living quietly and trying to please him to survive. All of that ends when she's forced to kill someone and her childhood friend comes and offers her an escape and make things right for their people. She's filled with hate and determination to take back her kingdom and avenge her mother and people.
Sounds so common, right? Hmm let's see, it sounds so much like Ruined, Red Queen, Falling Kingdoms (a lot of other YA books I can't think of right now), and the brutal world resembles a lot to An Ember in the Ashes. But, I fucking loved this. In my opinion, this book was so much better than Ruined and Red Queen.
This world is so fucking brutal and violent, a lot like An Ember in ashes. Theo is always whipped publicly whenever her people try to rebel. There is mention of rape, slaves are treated horrible, people are always being killed, like in Falling Kingdoms. But unlike, that book, Ash Princess isn't shit-ily written. People are being experimented on and a lot of gore and bloody things occur. There is horrible enslavement that Theo's people go through in the mines and there is vivid descriptions of the horrific things that go on there.
There is also a lot of racism that happens in this book. The Kaiser and his people are white while Theo and her people have darker skin and described as "tawny." Theo's country is colonized and her people are enslaved and suffer through a lot of horrific shit. Theo is also mentally and physically abused, so trigger warnings for all that.
Theo is a character that I really loved and sympathized with from the very beginning. Her life is horrible. Every day she has to be someone she's not and endure the humiliation and abuse from the Kaiser. She has no privacy of her own (literally, three guards called Shadows watch her 24/7, even when she's changing!!), cannot express her thoughts freely and lives in constant fear of the Kaiser. One wrong move and she'll piss the Kaiser off. Then when that happens and she learns of the horrors her people are going through, she snaps.
She still has to pretend, but this time instead of fear, she's filled with hate. She's taking risks to meet with her people. She has to learn that the only way to win and survive is by hate and violence. She's also have an inner conflict with herself over her close friend in the castle and her growing feelings for the crown Prinz. She doesn't want to kill them, but if she is to take back her home, she's going to have to.
I really understood her constant inner-battle. Her friend, Cress whose father slit Theo's mothers throat and whips her, is someone she's known for ten years in the castle. Cress helped her and stood up for her against bullies and has been nothing but kind to her. And now she's expected to kill her???? what.
Oh no, my guys, this has a LOVE TRIANGLE!!! [cue the groans of every person on the planet] LISTEN, I know y'all hate love triangles and I DO TOO!! but this one is somehow bearable, even though it annoyed me a lot. Theo has feelings for the Prinz and her childhood friend, some dude, whose name I forgot, because I DON'T FUCKING SHIP THEM. He's a really good guy, but Prinz Soren and Theo all the way, bitch. Like, they're both good boys, but idk something about the Prinz, man.
Okay, so this is fucking trope-filled and cliche as fuck so everyone's probably going to hate it but I loved it somehow so please read it!!! :( I'm joking, don't listen to me. Y'all probably gonna hate it LMAO. 😔
I, personally, really loved this trope-y ass book and would recommend it!! Please give it a try!
Pre-review:
I'm only reading it for the gorgeous cover. The plot sounds like 1000 other YA Fantasy books out there, but I still have hope that this'll be badass.
July 24, 2022
2022 - My reread or relisten took this from 5 to 3 stars. I’m going to unhaul my hardbacks and keep the kindle editions I bought in a kindle sale (this is part of my "unhaul my life" that I’ve decided to do over time with all of my things) Although, I’m unhauling kindle books too. I’ll reread the next two books as well.
Happy Reading!
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾
Happy Reading!
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾
March 19, 2019
3.5 stars
There's no denying:
--This could have been more intricately plotted.
--The characters could have been more developed.
--Some of the violence, because there are repeated beatings, could have been written with more emotional and physical impact
--There is a half-hearted triangle. (sorta? Maybe more of a red herring.)
--After 400+ pages, I'm still not entirely sure how all the magic works.
And yet...I enjoyed it! It doesn't hurt that the book starts off with a doozy of an act, one that clearly shows you the girl you are dealing with. The measured way Theodosia makes decisions and feels about her relationships makes me like her a lot, particularly in how she deals with her parents and her old Astrean friends, and maybe above all, in the tenuous bonds she's formed with the Kalovaxians who enslaved her people. The country is at war, and Theodosia is at war with herself over how she feels about her friend Cress. But she is clear-eyed about Cress loving her in return as she would a favored pet, and about her romance with Soren being untrustworthy, because he doesn't truly know her. I also like that the book is honest about how a person in Theodosia's position would use whatever means she has, including her feminine wiles, to gain advantage and to deceive, without making her lose integrity or the reader's trust.
I found this to be compulsively readable and I was eager to get back the audio version every time I took a break. Saskia Maarleveld's narration also sounds very much like Eva Green as Vesper Lynde in parts, which is incredibly seductive to listen to. She gives each character subtle inflections and shading, and her performance was highly enjoyable to me.
If you swooned over The Winner's Curse as a whole or responded with excitement to the action elements of The Valiant (or maybe even the action parts of An Ember in the Ashes), this is definitely worth a read.
An audio review copy was provided by the publisher.
Screw it, I'm rounding up because I enjoyed it.
There's no denying:
--This could have been more intricately plotted.
--The characters could have been more developed.
--Some of the violence, because there are repeated beatings, could have been written with more emotional and physical impact
--There is a half-hearted triangle. (sorta? Maybe more of a red herring.)
--After 400+ pages, I'm still not entirely sure how all the magic works.
And yet...I enjoyed it! It doesn't hurt that the book starts off with a doozy of an act, one that clearly shows you the girl you are dealing with. The measured way Theodosia makes decisions and feels about her relationships makes me like her a lot, particularly in how she deals with her parents and her old Astrean friends, and maybe above all, in the tenuous bonds she's formed with the Kalovaxians who enslaved her people. The country is at war, and Theodosia is at war with herself over how she feels about her friend Cress. But she is clear-eyed about Cress loving her in return as she would a favored pet, and about her romance with Soren being untrustworthy, because he doesn't truly know her. I also like that the book is honest about how a person in Theodosia's position would use whatever means she has, including her feminine wiles, to gain advantage and to deceive, without making her lose integrity or the reader's trust.
I found this to be compulsively readable and I was eager to get back the audio version every time I took a break. Saskia Maarleveld's narration also sounds very much like Eva Green as Vesper Lynde in parts, which is incredibly seductive to listen to. She gives each character subtle inflections and shading, and her performance was highly enjoyable to me.
If you swooned over The Winner's Curse as a whole or responded with excitement to the action elements of The Valiant (or maybe even the action parts of An Ember in the Ashes), this is definitely worth a read.
An audio review copy was provided by the publisher.
Screw it, I'm rounding up because I enjoyed it.
January 19, 2020
EVERYONE NEEDS TO READ THIS BOOK. IT IS PHENOMENAL.
Theo is so strong, and actually a normal character who relates to things normally which i loved, felt i could relate to her a little better. Magic, kings, war and spying. i could barely put it down! I'm so excited for the sequel already and i can't believe i have to wait another year!
And I know it had a love triangle, but it was so believable for me.
And the struggle, omg. And the humiliation. Jesus Christ.
Theo reminds me a little of Tris from divergent but she is such a strong young woman.
Theo is so strong, and actually a normal character who relates to things normally which i loved, felt i could relate to her a little better. Magic, kings, war and spying. i could barely put it down! I'm so excited for the sequel already and i can't believe i have to wait another year!
And I know it had a love triangle, but it was so believable for me.
And the struggle, omg. And the humiliation. Jesus Christ.
Theo reminds me a little of Tris from divergent but she is such a strong young woman.
February 16, 2022
“Because that’s how water works. The river flows, pushing against a stone, even as it knows it won’t move it. It doesn’t have to. Enough currents go by, over enough time, and even the strongest stone gives in. It might take a lifetime or more, but water doesn’t give up.”
~ Rating- 3 stars ~
Content/ Trigger warnings- Beating, Blood, Captivity, Emotional abuse, Gore, Human experimentation, Inappropriate and unwanted touching, Mass killing, Murder (brutal), Physical abuse, PTSD, Racism, Rape (mention), Slavery, Starvation, Trauma, Whipping {Source}
-No mention of these in the review-
Ash Princess by Laura Sebastian is a very hyped up book. It's also one of my close friends Nashita’s favourite series. That was the reason I wanted to pick this book, to see if it was worth it.
I would say this is the kind of book I would have adored had I read it a few years back, but now... not so much. There isn't anything in this book that makes it unique, and I think that is why it falls flat. But, I didn't completely hate this book.
The plot
When Theodosia was six, her mother, The Fire Queen, was murdered right in front of her eyes. On that day, The Kaiser took her land, her title and her name. Theodosia is forced to endure the ridicule and abuse of the Kaiser and his court- and is crowned Ash Princess, a title of shame.
“You’re a lamb in the lion’s den, child. You’re surviving. Isn’t that enough?”
But when the Kaiser forces her to do the unthinkable, Theodosia plans to strike. She plans to take over the kingdom, and bring The Kaiser to ruins.
“I was a princess made of ashes; there is nothing left of me to burn.
Now it’s time for a queen to rise.”
I was not a huge fan of the plot of the book. It was extremely predictable, to the point where I knew what would happen at ch 3 itself. There is nothing in it that will keep you at the edge of your seat, yet it is not so painfully boring that you wouldn't want to read further.
It is basically a cookie cutter YA, and I was surprised it came out in 2018 as I thought the book was older while reading it.
I did find a few plot holes , and questions we don't get proper answers to. Why is the Kaiser keeping Theo (Theodosia) alive? The reason we get is so that he can oppress her, but wouldn't the people be more shattered if their only hope was dead?
Another thing is that Theo was only 6 when her mother died, and that is heartbreaking for a child, but how is it that she has so many clear memories of her past? How does she remember almost everything? That didn't make much sense to me.
I think this book started out strong, and ended strong, but the middle was more of a filler. Regardless, I still liked it a bit.
The world building
I liked the concept of the gem stones in this book, but I didn't like execution so much. There wasn’t much of an explanation regarding its usage, and how exactly do Guardians work.
There are so many unanswered questions: How many Guardians are there? How are they trained? What are their abilities? Where are they trained? Does each one have a different ability? And a lot more.
I think the word was the only unique aspect to this book, but even that wasn’t explored in detail which was sad to see.
The writing
I personally did not like the writing. From a 400+ page book, there were a few quotes here and there that I enjoyed but otherwise it wasn’t that great.
We have everyone’s favourite sentence
“I let out a breath I didn’t realise I was holding.”
And we have A LOT of repetitions of words. I made a huge list in the comments, as everything won’t fit here, but a few for now-
Smile
“I’m fine,” I say instead, forcing a smile she sees through immediately.
“You’re right,” I lie with a smile.
“I tell her with what I hope passes as a demure smile.”
“I paste a smile on my face as well.”
“Crescentia adds with a dimpled smile.”
“I give her a reassuring smile as Søren helps her off the ship.”
“I don my most innocent smile and link my arm through Erik’s.”
“Kaiser’s orders,” he says with a tight smile. “I’m sure he has his reasons.”
“He always does,” I reply, hoping my smile looks more natural than it feels.
“I force a high, false laugh, keeping my smile frozen and speaking in Astrean for extra measure.”
Elpis is bewildered. “Smile,” I tell her"
“I look up at the guard and give him my sweetest smile, though it doesn’t seem to do much good. His face remains frozen.”
“Søren grimaces, but his eyes are smiling”
“I tighten my smile so that it looks vaguely forced”
“All it takes are wide eyes, tentative smiles, and a wolf at my heels.”
"I shrug, but my smile is feral."
"Her eyes linger on me a moment longer before her mouth curls into a tight smile and she clasps her hands in front of her.
“Her smile is wan.”
“Her mouth twitches into something that might be a smile.”
“but he was a gangly boy with an easy smile.”
"I smile pleasantly at the barrage of courtiers”
“I say, forcing a smile.”
“Blaise must see where it’s going, because a grim smile stretches across his face.”
“The thought of it causes a smile to rise to my lips."
"I smile.”
“I give Elpis a smile of thanks”
“Cress smiles, relief flooding her face”
“Have you ever seen him smile?”
“My father doesn’t smile much either.”
“I force a smile.”
“Her smile is sweet but false.”
“Her words rankle, but I try not to show it, forcing a smile instead."
“Her smile grows somewhat warmer as she calls for Elpis to come dress her hair.”
“She glances at the pin in my hair, set with simple pearls, lips pursing thoughtfully.”
"I add with a smile.”
“He smiles, relieved.”
“With a gracious smile...”
“her eyes boring into me no matter how many reassuring smiles I give her."
"but I force a smile and try not to let him see it.
He manages a smile, but he still doesn’t look at me."
“but he catches my look and smiles.”"
"He shakes his head and smiles. It’s the first time I’ve seen him really smile,
“He shakes his head and forces a smile."
"Søren softens, a small smile tugging at his lips.
“He smiles and passes me the fork.”
but Crescentia’s smile”
“Her smile faltered.”
“but I resisted and after a moment she nodded.”
“I smile at her”
“I don’t answer him except to nod.”
“If I were alone, I might smile.”
“I say, hoping for a smile.“
“she says with a smile so sweet I know it must be fake.”
“Art’s smile turns feral”
“Her smile is cruel and mocking.”
"“but I get the feeling he’s nodding.”
“giving him a dimpled smile here”
“... watch Crescentia as she gives the Kaiser a dimpled smile”
“Crescentia turns our way and her blinding smile grows wider.”
“I tell her with a forced smile I hope seems natural.”
“she replies with a smile that feels like a blow to my heart.”
“her mouth is smiling as she nudges me toward him."
"She smiles slightly, her shoulders relaxing.”
“... taking my hands in hers and smiling.”
“She gives me a smile so sad...”
“... fair eyebrows arched over a bemused smile.”
“An uncertain smile tugs at her lips...”
“Her smile lingers for a moment...”
“She has the same smile as Søren.”
"Elpis gives me a small smile.”
“.... she murmurs, her smile rare and wide.”
“... I say, smiling.”
“Her smile is genuine, relieved.”
“After a second, she gives me a smile”
“Cress’s smile softens into something more natural.”
“I ask with a bland smile...”
“I glance up at him through my eyelashes and summon my sweetest smile.”
“His smile broadens and he leans back in the chair, which creaks under his girth."
"Søren’s open smile on the boat"
“I can’t help but smile."
"A small smile works its way to Elpis’s mouth,
“He breaks into a lopsided smile when he sees me.”
“Even with the wall between us, I know she’s smiling.”
“I nod, fighting a smile.”
“Cress’s smile is beatific as she does just that, picking up the book of Elcourtian histories.”
“I’m going to miss her smile.”
“Her smile is a brittle.”
“She smiles and gives my hand a squeeze before releasing it."
"She smiles, relieved.”
“She looks back to me, pale eyebrows raised, smile tentative.”
“I try to smile at him”
“He means it as a comfort and I smile at him and pretend to be comforted,"
“I am rage and hurt and hatred, but I force that aside and give him a small, tentative smile,”
“He smiles like a wolf closing in on its prey”
“...and I will smile”
“... and though he flashes a smile at Søren”"
“I say with a half smile.”
“Heron smiles”
“When I comply, a smile ghosts across his face.”
“ She was smiling bigger than I’d ever seen her.”
“She smiles and it is wild and triumphant, despite everything.”
“Crescentia was pretty and sweet and always smiling.”
“I say, twisting my mouth into a cruel smile.”
“Her mouth tightens and she mirrors my mockery of a smile."
“I hope my smile looks more real than it feels.”
“I can’t help but smile.”
“... my smile slides away.”
“and he almost smiles."
“He’s smiling"
“he says with a tired smile”
“Then wave, at least, and smile”
“... it doesn’t have the warmth my mother’s smile always held.”
“I tell her, pasting on the fake smile I always wore at court.”
“We do,” she says, matching my smile.
“... her smile has gone feral.”
You can tell with this that, Ash Princess needed a ton of editing. I know it is a debut, but this is too much for me to excuse. This was only ‘smile’, there are a lot more words, some I marked below and some I lost patience for.
I understand it’s difficult to completely avoid this, BUT so many repetitions in the same book? I find it annoying.
The characters
Theodosia
“My name is Theodosia Eirene Houzzara, Queen of Astrea, and I will endure this.”
I liked Theo a bit as a character. We do see her face a lot, and I found her reactions to everything reasonable.
“I am angry.
I am hungry.
And I promise myself that one day I will watch them all burn.”
But I have a feeling her POV would have been a lot more impactful if it was from third person. Even then, I think her character was alright.
Søren
I honestly found Søren’s character to be a bit unrealistic. He is a Prinz (yes, it’s spelled that way) and he doesn’t act like one.
“I know who I am because of it; I know what matters to me and what I’m willing to fight for. Can you say the same?” [Theo to Søren]
I found him to be very unsure of himself, and he seemed very willing to do whatever was told. He was far too trusting for a prince, and just too kind. There was no one to teach him kindness.
I felt like he should have grown a backbone, I hope that happens in book 2.
The Kaiser
I was quite indifferent towards the Kaiser. What he does to Theo is evil, but as a ruler he never intimidated me.
“My father wants things and he takes them,” he says. “Everyone else be damned.”
He seemed like an old man sulking on the throne and getting everyone else to do his work, which made me not have any emotions for his character. I wish he was more of a stronger villain, as that would have made this book more complex.
Cress
I think Cress was an ok character, and surprisingly I liked her a bit. She isn’t fully fleshed out, but she wasn’t all bad either.
“That’s the difference between us, I suppose: Crescentia yearns for love, and I prefer destruction.”
I think a lot of people will be irritated by her character, but I feel her arc will play a major role in the rest of the series.
Art
Now Art is the character I am actually invested in.
“We are not defined by the things we do in order to survive. We do not apologize for them,” she says quietly, eyes never leaving mine. “Maybe they have broken you, but you are a sharper weapon because of it. And it is time to strike.”
I will definitely love to read a book from her PoV!
Blaise
Blaise is Theo’s childhood best friend, who she never mentions till he randomly shows up.
I don’t really have anything to say about him. He was just there.
The romance
*sighs*
There is a love triangle, which is full of insta-love. I don’t like any of the love interests. That’s all I can say spoiler free.
I have quotes regarding it which are spoilers, so I’ll put in tags.
Why did I rate it 3 stars?
Despite the many flaws in this book, it was not so bad that I didn’t want to finish it. I am still going to continue the series to see where it goes.
Final thoughts
I felt Ash Princess could have been a very powerful book, had the love triangle not existed. We see Theo's struggles and it would have been empowering for her to face the Kaiser independently, without her decisions being impacted by the love interests.
This book had a lot of potential, but unfortunately it did not deliver. However, I would still recommend it if this is the kind of book you are looking for. I hope the rest of the books are better.
Edit-16/2/2022
I decided not to finish this series as I've lost interest in this entirely. I don't want to spend time reading something I don't want to. Sorry.
“I should not be calm, but I am. There is one path ahead of me now, and I can see it clearly lit. It is an awful path, one I hate. I will never forgive myself for walking down it. I will not come out the other side the same.
But it is the only path I can take.”
Thank you to Maddie for buddy reading it with me! (Click on the link for her review)
Note- My status updates have mild spoilers. Do not see them if you haven’t read the book.
Review written on 9th April, 2021.
Storygraph Review. Storygraph. Spotify. Youtube. Pinterest. Linktree.
DISCLAIMER- All opinions on books I’ve read and reviewed are my own, and are with no intention to offend anyone. If you feel offended by my reviews, let me know how I can fix it.
How I Rate-
1 star- Hardly liked anything/ was disappointed
2 star- Had potential but did not deliver/ was disappointed
3 stars- Was ok but could have been better/ was average / Enjoyed a lot but something was missing
4 stars- Loved a lot but something was missing
5 stars- Loved it/ new favourite
............................................................................
This is definitely a 3 star.
It has a lot of issues, but I still wasn’t completely bored with it. The beginning and ending were strong, but it felt flat in the middle.
It has a fairly predictable plot line. I saw everything coming, nothing surprised me. Even then, it wasn’t all bad.
Detailed review to come!
December 31, 2018
So earlier this year I took a trip to the south of France, notably the Périgord, which is filled with lovely relaxed people with sun-kissed skin and floaty skirts, a nice contrast to my jumpy pasty ass (I was in the middle of an existential crisis and musing over whether or not to quit my job and become a starving artist, and The Results May Surprise You!).
While I was there I went to this antiques shop filled with retro fridges and dusty comics and amazing vinyl albums from the 80's, from before I was even born, my dudes, which makes me look like a foetus or whatever. Anyway, I was agonising over this fucking incredible standing lamp with an old aged leather lampshade, teeth clenched over the €150 price tag, but... Okay. Let me paint you a picture, here. The lamp was about my height, and the lampshade was at the top, of course, but it was balanced on this handmade ye olde globe, and the globe was being held up by a faux-gold almost-life-sized sculpture of Atlas. It was like a blend of everything I love: good light to read by, inaccurate old-timey maps, and Greek mythology. I was just standing over this lamp, a thread of drool wetting the front of my sweaty t-shirt (it was upwards of thirty degrees all week, and that's not safe for a pale Celtic weirdo like me), trying not to reach into my purse for my credit card.
Eventually, I talked myself out of it. Okay, that's a lie. I tore myself away from it, like one might tear a glob of gum from their hair, because that lamp would look so fucking good in my flat, next to the K-2SO figurine and the red thread pinned into the plasterboard and the giant snail in the tank in the living room. I kept cursing it, cursing how poor I am, until I came across a cardboard box full of - no, not false nails or chicken feet. No. It was full of carnivale masks.
They weren't the lamp, but they were pretty cool. I dithered between two of them, one with a big velvet ruff and covered in bells, and another smaller one with a salty little smirk on her face. I eventually chose the one with the bells, and it was only like €15, which was... acceptable. Jesus Christ, it wasn't the damn lamp, but it would do. I liked it.
It took me a while to get the mask home, because there wasn't enough room in my luggage, but some weeks later I was balancing on the back of the ugly pink armchair, one eye on the TV watching Kurzgesagt and trying not to press a push pin through my finger. Then the mask was up, and it looks cool, and but le sigh. I'll never forget about the lamp. It will live on in my heart forever.
So here's the thing. When you read this next part, you'll probably envision me tapping away at my crumb-filled 2012 MacBook next to my giant snail, surrounded by crystals and dusty ornaments and sporting a tin-foil hat, and save for the tin-foil hat, you're not wrong. The point is that on the Ghoul Boys scale, I'm not a Boogara, but nor am I a Shaniac. I'm sort of in the middle, and I have my own theories, and all I'm saying is HEAR ME OUT.
It started on the day that the mask arrived in my home. On that day, I experienced my very first lucid dream. It was one of the most terrifying things I've ever fucking witnessed and someday, if anyone's interested, I'll talk about it. I took notes down on my phone the second I woke up, but I needn't have bothered: I remember the dream so vividly, and I also remember the absolutely paralysing fear that I experienced. I know it was a lucid dream, and within the dream I was aware that I was dreaming; I said the words to myself inside my head: I am in a dream. But it was baffling, visceral, and indescribably frightening. I woke up feeling like I had already lived through a day. The full story is for another time but that's still notable.
Something changed when the mask went up on the wall. I was sitting in the living room, watching Friends and drawing with my crusty old tablet, and I heard the shoeboxes in my bedroom stir, like they were being shuffled around. My flat is fairly small, and the front door opens out to a short hallway with the bedroom to the left and the living room to the right; the noise was therefore loud enough for me to hear over my roaring laughter at the timeless joy of everyone's favourite 90's sitcom and two (albeit open) doors. An important thing to note here is that there are only two shoeboxes and they're fairly big, so it's not easy for them to topple.
I texted my sister about this, and she seemed spooked. At the time, surprisingly, I wasn't worried. I also woke up the morning after the shoebox incident with blinding lateral foot pain that was so bad I couldn't walk, though I had run 4km the day prior to that so I put it down to overexercise. Though I should mention that I had completed that same 4km run many times before with no trouble and had also been exercising quite diligently for weeks before that, so... Make of it what you will.
A couple of days later I was lying in bed at about 9am* scrolling through Tumblr, and I heard a funny clattering in the bathroom, like something being knocked by an elbow. Now, my bathroom is stacked absolutely full of useless crap, including but not limited to empty toothpaste boxes, empty shampoo bottles, face masks, 40 vol bleach bottles, a dying orchid, and like eight pairs of sunglasses (???) so it's easy to turn around and knock stuff over. I glanced at the door, then went back to scrolling on Tumblr. Whatever, dude.
*Don't hate me, but I tend to write off any paranormal experiences that start with "I had just woken up". Sleep messes with your mind, guys. Stuff like false awakening and sleep paralysis can seriously dick around with your perception of reality. I've experienced false awakening before and later discovered after some extensive research that what I thought was a crazy paranormal experience was just my brain tricking me into thinking I had three arms. I'm always open to suggestion but I tend to take anything that happens just after waking up from REM sleep with a big, big pinch of salt. What makes me pause on this is that I woke up at 8am and had been solidly awake but lying in bed for about an hour, scrolling through social media, when this happened.
Last night, just after I had settled down to sleep, I heard what sounded like the fridge door closing. This gave me pause, because before I go to bed I obsessively check the locks on the door, check to make sure the sockets are off at the wall, check to make sure the taps are off, and check to make sure the fridge and freezer are shut. This is a ritual, because if I haven't double, and sometimes triple, checked these things then I lie awake all night getting anxious about it. I did these checks, of course, and then the fridge door shut. Okay.
My flat has been sweltering all summer. It's still warm outside. My flat is now cold. Throughout the entire summer, whenever I opened a window, flies and bees and wasps always buzzed inside and annoyed the crap out of me. The windows have been open every day since the mask entered my home and I have not seen a single bug. There are creaks and small movements in the night. I wake every now and again at between 3 and 5am, though I usually sleep like a corpse.
Am I imagining it? Probably. But I've seen and heard enough creepy shit in my life to believe that there's more out there than what we can see. And I had prepared, throughout my years, for something of this ilk to happen to me - I had imagined what it might be to live alone and wonder if maybe I wasn't really as alone as I thought. Every time I pictured it, I saw myself terrified and unable to sleep and back in my old childhood home where I could not shake the feeling of being watched.
But the thing is that I just honestly don't give a damn. I'm stressed and trying to break into publishing is a fucking disaster and I'm just, like, okay. Whatever. You can haunt my home if you want to, as long as you stay in your corner and I stay in mine. Just don't break anything and we're cool. I can sit at my weird hoofed coffee table and write and this thing, whatever it is, if it even exists, can pulse away inside that mask that feels like it's staring at me, as long as it doesn't scare my friends or pick at the wallpaper. It's cool. I'm fine with it. Let's just both move on with our lives and coexist.
You were wondering where the book comes in, right?
I feel the same way about this book as I do about the mask. The book's very pretty, but its contents aren't to my taste. That said, I don't harbour any ill feeling towards it. Some years ago I'd have hissed and spat at this book for being so simplistic and depressing and at the same time boring and expected (elemental magic? Really? Come on. It's 20gayteen) but now, as a grown woman, I'm fine with it. It's whatever. It was very, very standard YA fare and I doubt I'll remember it in 6 weeks' time. It'll sit on my book...shelf, no, not a shelf, just a stack on the floor, and as long as it doesn't fall and crush my toe or anything, then it can do its thing and I'll do mine. I can move on from it and forget about it and lament nothing about my time with it. It was blah and thinner than rice paper but I really can't force myself to care.
Maybe I should be more pissed off about the book than the ghost, but the ghost cost €15 and the book only set me back like £7.99. The ghost is a better investment, probably, but given the barren fucking wasteland that is my life right now, I'd say they're both equally irrelevant. The only thing I'm cheesed about is the collective £21.35 I paid for a very low-key haunting and a long eye roll. Thanks, Brexit.
While I was there I went to this antiques shop filled with retro fridges and dusty comics and amazing vinyl albums from the 80's, from before I was even born, my dudes, which makes me look like a foetus or whatever. Anyway, I was agonising over this fucking incredible standing lamp with an old aged leather lampshade, teeth clenched over the €150 price tag, but... Okay. Let me paint you a picture, here. The lamp was about my height, and the lampshade was at the top, of course, but it was balanced on this handmade ye olde globe, and the globe was being held up by a faux-gold almost-life-sized sculpture of Atlas. It was like a blend of everything I love: good light to read by, inaccurate old-timey maps, and Greek mythology. I was just standing over this lamp, a thread of drool wetting the front of my sweaty t-shirt (it was upwards of thirty degrees all week, and that's not safe for a pale Celtic weirdo like me), trying not to reach into my purse for my credit card.
Eventually, I talked myself out of it. Okay, that's a lie. I tore myself away from it, like one might tear a glob of gum from their hair, because that lamp would look so fucking good in my flat, next to the K-2SO figurine and the red thread pinned into the plasterboard and the giant snail in the tank in the living room. I kept cursing it, cursing how poor I am, until I came across a cardboard box full of - no, not false nails or chicken feet. No. It was full of carnivale masks.
They weren't the lamp, but they were pretty cool. I dithered between two of them, one with a big velvet ruff and covered in bells, and another smaller one with a salty little smirk on her face. I eventually chose the one with the bells, and it was only like €15, which was... acceptable. Jesus Christ, it wasn't the damn lamp, but it would do. I liked it.
It took me a while to get the mask home, because there wasn't enough room in my luggage, but some weeks later I was balancing on the back of the ugly pink armchair, one eye on the TV watching Kurzgesagt and trying not to press a push pin through my finger. Then the mask was up, and it looks cool, and but le sigh. I'll never forget about the lamp. It will live on in my heart forever.
So here's the thing. When you read this next part, you'll probably envision me tapping away at my crumb-filled 2012 MacBook next to my giant snail, surrounded by crystals and dusty ornaments and sporting a tin-foil hat, and save for the tin-foil hat, you're not wrong. The point is that on the Ghoul Boys scale, I'm not a Boogara, but nor am I a Shaniac. I'm sort of in the middle, and I have my own theories, and all I'm saying is HEAR ME OUT.
It started on the day that the mask arrived in my home. On that day, I experienced my very first lucid dream. It was one of the most terrifying things I've ever fucking witnessed and someday, if anyone's interested, I'll talk about it. I took notes down on my phone the second I woke up, but I needn't have bothered: I remember the dream so vividly, and I also remember the absolutely paralysing fear that I experienced. I know it was a lucid dream, and within the dream I was aware that I was dreaming; I said the words to myself inside my head: I am in a dream. But it was baffling, visceral, and indescribably frightening. I woke up feeling like I had already lived through a day. The full story is for another time but that's still notable.
Something changed when the mask went up on the wall. I was sitting in the living room, watching Friends and drawing with my crusty old tablet, and I heard the shoeboxes in my bedroom stir, like they were being shuffled around. My flat is fairly small, and the front door opens out to a short hallway with the bedroom to the left and the living room to the right; the noise was therefore loud enough for me to hear over my roaring laughter at the timeless joy of everyone's favourite 90's sitcom and two (albeit open) doors. An important thing to note here is that there are only two shoeboxes and they're fairly big, so it's not easy for them to topple.
I texted my sister about this, and she seemed spooked. At the time, surprisingly, I wasn't worried. I also woke up the morning after the shoebox incident with blinding lateral foot pain that was so bad I couldn't walk, though I had run 4km the day prior to that so I put it down to overexercise. Though I should mention that I had completed that same 4km run many times before with no trouble and had also been exercising quite diligently for weeks before that, so... Make of it what you will.
A couple of days later I was lying in bed at about 9am* scrolling through Tumblr, and I heard a funny clattering in the bathroom, like something being knocked by an elbow. Now, my bathroom is stacked absolutely full of useless crap, including but not limited to empty toothpaste boxes, empty shampoo bottles, face masks, 40 vol bleach bottles, a dying orchid, and like eight pairs of sunglasses (???) so it's easy to turn around and knock stuff over. I glanced at the door, then went back to scrolling on Tumblr. Whatever, dude.
*Don't hate me, but I tend to write off any paranormal experiences that start with "I had just woken up". Sleep messes with your mind, guys. Stuff like false awakening and sleep paralysis can seriously dick around with your perception of reality. I've experienced false awakening before and later discovered after some extensive research that what I thought was a crazy paranormal experience was just my brain tricking me into thinking I had three arms. I'm always open to suggestion but I tend to take anything that happens just after waking up from REM sleep with a big, big pinch of salt. What makes me pause on this is that I woke up at 8am and had been solidly awake but lying in bed for about an hour, scrolling through social media, when this happened.
Last night, just after I had settled down to sleep, I heard what sounded like the fridge door closing. This gave me pause, because before I go to bed I obsessively check the locks on the door, check to make sure the sockets are off at the wall, check to make sure the taps are off, and check to make sure the fridge and freezer are shut. This is a ritual, because if I haven't double, and sometimes triple, checked these things then I lie awake all night getting anxious about it. I did these checks, of course, and then the fridge door shut. Okay.
My flat has been sweltering all summer. It's still warm outside. My flat is now cold. Throughout the entire summer, whenever I opened a window, flies and bees and wasps always buzzed inside and annoyed the crap out of me. The windows have been open every day since the mask entered my home and I have not seen a single bug. There are creaks and small movements in the night. I wake every now and again at between 3 and 5am, though I usually sleep like a corpse.
Am I imagining it? Probably. But I've seen and heard enough creepy shit in my life to believe that there's more out there than what we can see. And I had prepared, throughout my years, for something of this ilk to happen to me - I had imagined what it might be to live alone and wonder if maybe I wasn't really as alone as I thought. Every time I pictured it, I saw myself terrified and unable to sleep and back in my old childhood home where I could not shake the feeling of being watched.
But the thing is that I just honestly don't give a damn. I'm stressed and trying to break into publishing is a fucking disaster and I'm just, like, okay. Whatever. You can haunt my home if you want to, as long as you stay in your corner and I stay in mine. Just don't break anything and we're cool. I can sit at my weird hoofed coffee table and write and this thing, whatever it is, if it even exists, can pulse away inside that mask that feels like it's staring at me, as long as it doesn't scare my friends or pick at the wallpaper. It's cool. I'm fine with it. Let's just both move on with our lives and coexist.
You were wondering where the book comes in, right?
I feel the same way about this book as I do about the mask. The book's very pretty, but its contents aren't to my taste. That said, I don't harbour any ill feeling towards it. Some years ago I'd have hissed and spat at this book for being so simplistic and depressing and at the same time boring and expected (elemental magic? Really? Come on. It's 20gayteen) but now, as a grown woman, I'm fine with it. It's whatever. It was very, very standard YA fare and I doubt I'll remember it in 6 weeks' time. It'll sit on my book...shelf, no, not a shelf, just a stack on the floor, and as long as it doesn't fall and crush my toe or anything, then it can do its thing and I'll do mine. I can move on from it and forget about it and lament nothing about my time with it. It was blah and thinner than rice paper but I really can't force myself to care.
Maybe I should be more pissed off about the book than the ghost, but the ghost cost €15 and the book only set me back like £7.99. The ghost is a better investment, probably, but given the barren fucking wasteland that is my life right now, I'd say they're both equally irrelevant. The only thing I'm cheesed about is the collective £21.35 I paid for a very low-key haunting and a long eye roll. Thanks, Brexit.
November 16, 2022
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In YA, everyone piles onto the bandwagon of the latest trends. A few years ago it was dystopian fiction but now we've a glut of fantasy on our hands. As someone who loves fantasy, this should be a good thing, but the YA machine keeps churning out subpar, derivative works that are less good world-building and action-heavy plots than wallpaper fantasy settings for tepid romance.
In this regard, ASH PRINCESS is no exception.
I'm really annoyed about that because the book started out really good. Theodosia is the ex-princess of a country that has been invaded by conquerors. All of her people are slaves but for some reason they keep her around as a court mockery, forcing her to wear an ash crown that stains her clothes, while mocking her and subjecting her to public beatings for her people's infractions.
Obviously this means that when rebellion inevitably stirs from resentment about the genocide and the slavery and the torture, Theodosia is going to be chosen as the figurehead. And her jaded bitterness in the beginning gave me hope that despite the stupid names for everything (kaiser and prinz, seriously? why German names if it's not a German-inspired country? did you just choose foreign words for ruler than sounded "exotic"), I was hoping that this would be a fantasy novel cast in the mold of THE WINNER'S CURSE, my ultimate favorite.
The problem occurs when Theodosia is supposed to seduce the - cringe- "prinz," Soren, in order to get information about his people and their future plans for conquering before killing him. She drops that jaded bitterness right quick and Bella Swans it up, despairing about how much it'll hurt to kill such a cute boy when she betrays him, conveniently forgetting about all her people dying in slave mines. Similar whining occurs when she realizes she may have to kill her best friend, the daughter of the evil kaiser's closest adviser and the man who whips her before everyone to punish her.
Great choice in friends.
The other side of the love triangle is Blaise, one of her own people who is involved with the revolution. She's known him since childhood, although she never mentions him until he shows up on the scene bringing tidings of revolution. Go figure. I didn't really care for him, but after I found out that Prinz Soren is a cat murderer, he could never redeem himself for me. I guess I don't find wishy-washy heroes who can't stand up to their tyrant fathers and kill small animals attractive?
Theodosia does, though. She hardly bats an eye at the cat murdering bit.
I'm giving this 2.5 stars because it was entertaining and the concept of elemental "Spiritgems" giving people powers over fire, air, water, and earth kind of sounded like something straight out of one of those JRPGs, specifically the Mana series (in fact, if you haven't watched it already, I recommend that you check out CollegeHumor's "Every JRPG Ever." It's weirdly appropriate for this book). The world really should have been developed more, and Theodosia should have had more of a spine (and less of an, "oh, woe is me! I'm in love with two boys!" attitude). You know a heroine's in hot water when your sympathies lie with the people telling her to get her act together and not with the heroine herself. Like, "Yeah, get your act together! You're an effing princess! Stop dallying around!" But then again, this is YA fantasy and at this point, I pretty much come in expecting to be disappointed.
Thanks to Netgalley/the publisher for the review copy!
2.5 stars
June 28, 2018
--2.5 stars--
This book was... fine. It wasn't horrible, it wasn't particularly great, it was just okay. It reads like literally any YA fantasy book you've ever read. If you're looking for something groundbreaking or innovative, then there's nothing to see here. It felt like the author had a YA Fantasy 101 handbook to refer to during the writing process. Like, there isn't a single thing I can think of about this book that gives it its own identity. Feels like it was made by a machine that figured out the algorithm to create the perfect cookie cutter YA fantasy novel, marketable and safe.
I find it hard to believe that this is a 2018 release. This book would've been somewhat interesting if it was released, like, 2013 or something. Are we really still doing torn-between-two-guys love triangles in this day and age? Like, come on. Next thing you know, they're gonna be revealed to be brothers or some shit. I know in this book's case that's literally impossible, since the two love interests are of different ethnicities, but hey, it's YA. The two guys always end up miraculously being brothers lol.
Honestly I really wanted to DNF this book but I powered through it cause I wanted to see how it would end. I wanted to see if this book had something that would surprise me, but nope. Nothing. I'd suggest skipping this if you're looking for something new and refreshing. If you wanna read more of the same, though, look no further. This is about as basic as it gets.
This book was... fine. It wasn't horrible, it wasn't particularly great, it was just okay. It reads like literally any YA fantasy book you've ever read. If you're looking for something groundbreaking or innovative, then there's nothing to see here. It felt like the author had a YA Fantasy 101 handbook to refer to during the writing process. Like, there isn't a single thing I can think of about this book that gives it its own identity. Feels like it was made by a machine that figured out the algorithm to create the perfect cookie cutter YA fantasy novel, marketable and safe.
I find it hard to believe that this is a 2018 release. This book would've been somewhat interesting if it was released, like, 2013 or something. Are we really still doing torn-between-two-guys love triangles in this day and age? Like, come on. Next thing you know, they're gonna be revealed to be brothers or some shit. I know in this book's case that's literally impossible, since the two love interests are of different ethnicities, but hey, it's YA. The two guys always end up miraculously being brothers lol.
Honestly I really wanted to DNF this book but I powered through it cause I wanted to see how it would end. I wanted to see if this book had something that would surprise me, but nope. Nothing. I'd suggest skipping this if you're looking for something new and refreshing. If you wanna read more of the same, though, look no further. This is about as basic as it gets.
January 4, 2021
WOW. That was EXCELLENT.
Everyone who compared this to the Winner’s Curse was pretty on the money, except that it was reversed. It’s as if we’re following Arin’s story, rather than Kestrel’s.
Me likey. I can’t wait to start Lady Smoke!
Everyone who compared this to the Winner’s Curse was pretty on the money, except that it was reversed. It’s as if we’re following Arin’s story, rather than Kestrel’s.
Me likey. I can’t wait to start Lady Smoke!
August 16, 2021
Edit: If I read this now, I would probably give it two stars. But I read it over a year ago when I was basically a walking dumpster. Hence the high rating.
Theodosia, called Theo by most, is a princess of a forgotten land, Astrea, whose inhabitants are now slaves to Kalovaxia. She is imprisoned in the Kalovaxian castle, where she is forced to wear a crown of ashes as a sort of subtle threat to the Astreans.
You can probably guess what happens next.
Theo teams up with a group of rebels, they set up some complicated schemes, she escapes the castle, they gather an army, et cetera. Couldn't get more basic than that.
This was derivative, basic, cliche, and cringeworthy at times, but I still had a good time reading it. It was a lot fresher than a lot of YA fantasy (except for the love triangle, kill me now). It definitely wasn't a masterpiece, but it was mindless fun, and sometimes I need that in my life.
Ash Princess, while riddled with plot holes, was actually a lot more realistic than other books I've read. It never sent the message that you can always get everything you want, which is a pet peeve I have with a lot of books. I'm tired of things ending up happy in the end, or even worse, if the aLmIgHtY lUrV solves everything. Theo loses Soren, Crescentia, and her entire way of life. She's in a pretty tough situation by the end.
What I hated most about this book was theabsolutely horrid, unnecessary, cheesy love triangle. We have Blaise, the Childhood Friend. We have Soren, the Cute New Mysterious Guy With a Soft Heart. Who will Theo choose??
Um.
No.
CHILDHOOD-FRIENDS-TO-LOVERS IS NOT COOL. You knew each other when you were little and now you're in lurvvv??? One, it's concerning that an adult fell in love with the child version of their friend. Two, I don't buy it.
You know what's worse? Instalove-childhood-friends-to-lovers. Or "I've loved you since I first laid eyes on you." No. That's just weird.
Besides the pointless love triangle, the plot had more holes than Swiss cheese:
1. Spiritgems are jewels that give the user powers, which are dramatically increased if you know how to use them properly. The Kalovaxians have no idea how to do so. Conveniently, Theo does. According to her, Fire gems can easily destroy the entire palace. There are hundreds of Spiritgems in the castle. Theo can easily swipe one. She's done so before. So why isn't she?! If you have Spiritgems, use them. And what's her argument against it? She doesn't want the gods to damn her in the afterlife. She has thousands of Astreans relying on her! At this point, she doesn't even believe in the gods. So why is she holding back? She could use a Fire gem, burn down the palace, and her problems would be solved. Her people are no longer slaves, her enemies are all dead, other kingdoms are free from Kalovaxia. It's not that hard.
2. Why is Theo still alive? There doesn't seem to be a reason. Apparently, the Kaiser is using her to keep the Astrean rebels under control, but it's clearly not working. Besides, why should they care about this one girl trapped in a castle, doing absolutely nothing to help them? It's not like they even hear about her torture. Plus, Theo is definitely not being treated like a prisoner, apart from her punishments. She lives in luxurious rooms and wears gorgeous clothes. She's even allowed to make friends with nobles. This isn't a great way to run your country, Kaiser. She's doing nothing except amusing him occasionally. Even for the Kaiser, that isn't a good enough reason to keep her alive. She's just a risk to his carefully crafted empire.
3. Soren is way too nice to be a Kalovaxian Prinz. From what we've seen of the other nobles, there's absolutely no one to teach him to be this kind. They're all spoiled, entitled, or just plain cruel. I doubt his mother would have the guts to be a good role model, anyway. So where does he get this strange kindness? If you grow up around brats with no other exposure to anyone else, you're going to become a brat, too. This isn't rocket science.
This was a good guilty pleasure read, but it definitely had a lot of flaws. I probably won't read the sequels. But it was a pretty decent book.
3 stars
Theodosia, called Theo by most, is a princess of a forgotten land, Astrea, whose inhabitants are now slaves to Kalovaxia. She is imprisoned in the Kalovaxian castle, where she is forced to wear a crown of ashes as a sort of subtle threat to the Astreans.
You can probably guess what happens next.
Theo teams up with a group of rebels, they set up some complicated schemes, she escapes the castle, they gather an army, et cetera. Couldn't get more basic than that.
This was derivative, basic, cliche, and cringeworthy at times, but I still had a good time reading it. It was a lot fresher than a lot of YA fantasy (except for the love triangle, kill me now). It definitely wasn't a masterpiece, but it was mindless fun, and sometimes I need that in my life.
Ash Princess, while riddled with plot holes, was actually a lot more realistic than other books I've read. It never sent the message that you can always get everything you want, which is a pet peeve I have with a lot of books. I'm tired of things ending up happy in the end, or even worse, if the aLmIgHtY lUrV solves everything. Theo loses Soren, Crescentia, and her entire way of life. She's in a pretty tough situation by the end.
What I hated most about this book was the
Um.
No.
CHILDHOOD-FRIENDS-TO-LOVERS IS NOT COOL. You knew each other when you were little and now you're in lurvvv??? One, it's concerning that an adult fell in love with the child version of their friend. Two, I don't buy it.
You know what's worse? Instalove-childhood-friends-to-lovers. Or "I've loved you since I first laid eyes on you." No. That's just weird.
Besides the pointless love triangle, the plot had more holes than Swiss cheese:
1. Spiritgems are jewels that give the user powers, which are dramatically increased if you know how to use them properly. The Kalovaxians have no idea how to do so. Conveniently, Theo does. According to her, Fire gems can easily destroy the entire palace. There are hundreds of Spiritgems in the castle. Theo can easily swipe one. She's done so before. So why isn't she?! If you have Spiritgems, use them. And what's her argument against it? She doesn't want the gods to damn her in the afterlife. She has thousands of Astreans relying on her! At this point, she doesn't even believe in the gods. So why is she holding back? She could use a Fire gem, burn down the palace, and her problems would be solved. Her people are no longer slaves, her enemies are all dead, other kingdoms are free from Kalovaxia. It's not that hard.
2. Why is Theo still alive? There doesn't seem to be a reason. Apparently, the Kaiser is using her to keep the Astrean rebels under control, but it's clearly not working. Besides, why should they care about this one girl trapped in a castle, doing absolutely nothing to help them? It's not like they even hear about her torture. Plus, Theo is definitely not being treated like a prisoner, apart from her punishments. She lives in luxurious rooms and wears gorgeous clothes. She's even allowed to make friends with nobles. This isn't a great way to run your country, Kaiser. She's doing nothing except amusing him occasionally. Even for the Kaiser, that isn't a good enough reason to keep her alive. She's just a risk to his carefully crafted empire.
3. Soren is way too nice to be a Kalovaxian Prinz. From what we've seen of the other nobles, there's absolutely no one to teach him to be this kind. They're all spoiled, entitled, or just plain cruel. I doubt his mother would have the guts to be a good role model, anyway. So where does he get this strange kindness? If you grow up around brats with no other exposure to anyone else, you're going to become a brat, too. This isn't rocket science.
This was a good guilty pleasure read, but it definitely had a lot of flaws. I probably won't read the sequels. But it was a pretty decent book.
3 stars
March 27, 2023
This was really good!! 🤩🤩 It definitely had its issues, but I could mostly ignore them bc I just had such a good time reading it 💜
“We are not defined by the things we do in order to survive. We do not apologize for them,” she says quietly, eyes never leaving mine. “Maybe they have broken you, but you are a sharper weapon because of it. And it is time to strike.”
Ash Princess follows Theodosia, who is the princess of a magical kingdom- but then the Kalovaxions invaded, murdered her mother and took her captive. Theo now lives as a captive, ridiculed and abused by the Kaiser and his court. But after 10 years, Theo is tired of taking it lying down- she is finally ready to stand up and fight, save her people, and reclaim her crown.
“I was a princess made of ashes; there is nothing left of me to burn.
Now it's time for a queen to rise.”
Tbh I have seen quite a few negative reviews for this, so i wasn't sure if I would like it or not- but I actually ended up enjoying in!! It's a very enjoyable YA fantasy ✨
Starting with the characters!! I really liked Theodosia as our protagonist- she is the classic 'strong female' YA protagonist, but it honestly never gets old. Loved seeing her finally stand up and fight back and I was rooting for her 🙌 Otherwise, tho, the characters were kinda bland... They were all a bit underdeveloped tbh 😬😬 But I did find Crescentia, Theodosia's friend at court, to be a very interesting character with complicated motivations. She definitely had lots of layers.
I really like Laura Sebastian's writing- it was very easy to read and a nice balance between simple and descriptive. It was just very enjoyable and tho it wasn't anything particularly new, I liked it a lot 💜💜
The plot was pretty good, even if it did have a few problems. I really liked the main storyline and it was executed well. Always love a good rebellion story and I was a big fan of all the plotting going on in here ✨ I just love it when characters do lots of scheming- definitely my Kaz Brekker side coming out 😂😂 The climax was always very entertaining and the ending was pretty well done 😁
However, I do think it could be a bit slow at times and there was a lot of sitting around and just talking about what they were gonna do, which did lose my interest at times. Also, I wish the romance was more of a subplot 🙁
Now, onto the romance. There will be definite spoilers in this section, so don't read on if you haven't read this book. Just keep reading after the 'spoilers have ended' sign.
🚨SPOILERS🚨
There were 2 primary romances in here and a little bit of a love triangle going on- and I still don't know how I feel about these romances. I'm still processing tbh. But anyway, starting with the romance between Søren and Theo. At the beginning of the book, when this romance first started developing, I was a fan. Love a forbidden love moment 😍 But then it went downhill... I thought Theo having to kill him would be a great way to build tension and get that Jurdan 'hate and feeling' vibe, but then it started feeling like Theo was just manipulating Søren and that didn't sit right with me 😬😬 I dunno how they as a couple would get redeemed, but they do have chemistry, i gotta admit.
Then there was also that romance with Blaise- I'm honestly not a big fan of this one. It just seems honestly veryy bland to me 🙈 There was no tension and Blaise himself felt like quite a boring character. I think they do have potential as a couple, but right now the tension isn't there for me to be shipping them 😒😒
🚨SPOILERS HAVE ENDED🚨
I also listened to a playlist for this series on Spotify and that really enhanced my reading experience!! So here are a couple of those songs for anyone who's interested.
🎧 Songs 🎧
Human- Rag 'n' Bone Man
Dark Side- Bishop Briggs
Glitter & Gold- Barns Courtney
The Other Side- Ruelle
Walk Through the Fire- Zayde Wølf (feat. Ruelle)
Queen- Loren Gray
Castle- Halsey
“I take one last look at my reflection in the mirror. Ashes already flake down over my cheeks and nose, marking me. The red stain I used on my lips looks like fresh blood. Underneath, I see bits and pieces of my mother staring back at me, but twisted with hate and fury my mother never needed to know.
I'm not sorry for it.
I am angry.
I am hungry.
And I promise myself that one day I will watch them all burn.”
Overall, I had a lot of fun with this! 🤩🤩 I would recommend if you want:
✔ Fun YA fantasy
✔ Rebellion
✔ Love triangle
✔ Fierce female mc
Not sure yet if I'm gonna continue the series, but this was definitely entertaining 💜
~ 3.5 stars
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I really enjoyed this!! 🤩🤩 It wasn't incredible or anything, but I still had a lot of fun reading it ❤❤
“We are not defined by the things we do in order to survive. We do not apologize for them,” she says quietly, eyes never leaving mine. “Maybe they have broken you, but you are a sharper weapon because of it. And it is time to strike.”
Ash Princess follows Theodosia, who is the princess of a magical kingdom- but then the Kalovaxions invaded, murdered her mother and took her captive. Theo now lives as a captive, ridiculed and abused by the Kaiser and his court. But after 10 years, Theo is tired of taking it lying down- she is finally ready to stand up and fight, save her people, and reclaim her crown.
“I was a princess made of ashes; there is nothing left of me to burn.
Now it's time for a queen to rise.”
Tbh I have seen quite a few negative reviews for this, so i wasn't sure if I would like it or not- but I actually ended up enjoying in!! It's a very enjoyable YA fantasy ✨
Starting with the characters!! I really liked Theodosia as our protagonist- she is the classic 'strong female' YA protagonist, but it honestly never gets old. Loved seeing her finally stand up and fight back and I was rooting for her 🙌 Otherwise, tho, the characters were kinda bland... They were all a bit underdeveloped tbh 😬😬 But I did find Crescentia, Theodosia's friend at court, to be a very interesting character with complicated motivations. She definitely had lots of layers.
I really like Laura Sebastian's writing- it was very easy to read and a nice balance between simple and descriptive. It was just very enjoyable and tho it wasn't anything particularly new, I liked it a lot 💜💜
The plot was pretty good, even if it did have a few problems. I really liked the main storyline and it was executed well. Always love a good rebellion story and I was a big fan of all the plotting going on in here ✨ I just love it when characters do lots of scheming- definitely my Kaz Brekker side coming out 😂😂 The climax was always very entertaining and the ending was pretty well done 😁
However, I do think it could be a bit slow at times and there was a lot of sitting around and just talking about what they were gonna do, which did lose my interest at times. Also, I wish the romance was more of a subplot 🙁
Now, onto the romance. There will be definite spoilers in this section, so don't read on if you haven't read this book. Just keep reading after the 'spoilers have ended' sign.
🚨SPOILERS🚨
There were 2 primary romances in here and a little bit of a love triangle going on- and I still don't know how I feel about these romances. I'm still processing tbh. But anyway, starting with the romance between Søren and Theo. At the beginning of the book, when this romance first started developing, I was a fan. Love a forbidden love moment 😍 But then it went downhill... I thought Theo having to kill him would be a great way to build tension and get that Jurdan 'hate and feeling' vibe, but then it started feeling like Theo was just manipulating Søren and that didn't sit right with me 😬😬 I dunno how they as a couple would get redeemed, but they do have chemistry, i gotta admit.
Then there was also that romance with Blaise- I'm honestly not a big fan of this one. It just seems honestly veryy bland to me 🙈 There was no tension and Blaise himself felt like quite a boring character. I think they do have potential as a couple, but right now the tension isn't there for me to be shipping them 😒😒
🚨SPOILERS HAVE ENDED🚨
I also listened to a playlist for this series on Spotify and that really enhanced my reading experience!! So here are a couple of those songs for anyone who's interested.
🎧 Songs 🎧
Human- Rag 'n' Bone Man
Dark Side- Bishop Briggs
Glitter & Gold- Barns Courtney
The Other Side- Ruelle
Walk Through the Fire- Zayde Wølf (feat. Ruelle)
Queen- Loren Gray
Castle- Halsey
“I take one last look at my reflection in the mirror. Ashes already flake down over my cheeks and nose, marking me. The red stain I used on my lips looks like fresh blood. Underneath, I see bits and pieces of my mother staring back at me, but twisted with hate and fury my mother never needed to know.
I'm not sorry for it.
I am angry.
I am hungry.
And I promise myself that one day I will watch them all burn.”
Overall, I had a lot of fun with this! 🤩🤩 I would recommend if you want:
✔ Fun YA fantasy
✔ Rebellion
✔ Love triangle
✔ Fierce female mc
Not sure yet if I'm gonna continue the series, but this was definitely entertaining 💜
~ 3.5 stars
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I really enjoyed this!! 🤩🤩 It wasn't incredible or anything, but I still had a lot of fun reading it ❤❤
April 16, 2018
Ash Princess by Laura Sebastian is the first book in the young adult fantasy series, Ash Princess Trilogy. This is one that is on the darker side with violence, abuse, slavery and a hint of rape so beware to those with issues with these triggers. There is also a hint of a love triangle involved with the main character, a boy from her past and the son (prince) of her captor.
The story begins as we meet Theodosia Eirene Houzzara who by all rights should be the Queen of Astrea. However ten years before Theodosia’s people were overthrown and her mother the queen was killed in front of her. Since that day she has done whatever she can to stay alive despite the torture she’s endured.
When Theodosia’s father who once was a guard in her kingdom is brought into the court for “trial” and sentenced to death at her own hand it sparks something in the fallen princess. She knows that many of her people have died but even if it costs her own life she must do what she can to regain her throne.
I suppose the first thing to say about this one would be that no, it isn’t a highly original tale but more of one done before. However, when they mention a series like Red Queen in comparison I was hesitant to even try this one because of finding that one so slow and dare I say boring. Ash Princess may have hints of the same type of young adult fantasy read as others before it but it was strangely enjoying to me regardless and I felt myself get caught up in the story as it went along.
The writing in here seemed to flow rather easily for such a dark tale and had a compelling feel to it I’ve missed in other books of this type. The stage has been set in this first book and with a somewhat cliffhanger type of ending it seems there are sure to be some big developments to come with the plot so yes, I will definitely continue the series on to see how it goes from here.
I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.
For more reviews please visit https://carriesbookreviews.com/
The story begins as we meet Theodosia Eirene Houzzara who by all rights should be the Queen of Astrea. However ten years before Theodosia’s people were overthrown and her mother the queen was killed in front of her. Since that day she has done whatever she can to stay alive despite the torture she’s endured.
When Theodosia’s father who once was a guard in her kingdom is brought into the court for “trial” and sentenced to death at her own hand it sparks something in the fallen princess. She knows that many of her people have died but even if it costs her own life she must do what she can to regain her throne.
I suppose the first thing to say about this one would be that no, it isn’t a highly original tale but more of one done before. However, when they mention a series like Red Queen in comparison I was hesitant to even try this one because of finding that one so slow and dare I say boring. Ash Princess may have hints of the same type of young adult fantasy read as others before it but it was strangely enjoying to me regardless and I felt myself get caught up in the story as it went along.
The writing in here seemed to flow rather easily for such a dark tale and had a compelling feel to it I’ve missed in other books of this type. The stage has been set in this first book and with a somewhat cliffhanger type of ending it seems there are sure to be some big developments to come with the plot so yes, I will definitely continue the series on to see how it goes from here.
I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.
For more reviews please visit https://carriesbookreviews.com/
Want to read
January 24, 2018Please tell me "Prinz" is a typo in the synopsis and that it's not how they spell prince bc I don't think I could cope with that tbh xD
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pssssstt i know it's german for prince now. thanks(:
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pssssstt i know it's german for prince now. thanks(:
May 18, 2018
So glad I read this book. Really enjoyed the politics, magic and character in this one. I also could not predict what was to happen in the story. Something that is rare for me these days. Regardless if it took me a week to finish I would happily read this one over and over.
January 3, 2019
Yay! First book of 2019! Pretty solid fantasy read. A little bit tropey at times, but it didn't stop me from enjoying the story. I was rooting for this character and I wanted her to make it so badly. The plot kept me invested from start to finish, and I look forward to reading the sequel.
May 14, 2019
She gets to her feet and I know that I should rise as well and curtsy, but I’m frozen in place. “Some advice, little lamb? Next time you close a window, make sure it doesn’t open a trapdoor beneath your feet.”
She’s halfway to the door when I find my voice. “I don’t know what I’m doing,” I admit, barely louder than a whisper.
The Kaiserin hears me, though. She turns and regards me with that disconcerting, unfocused stare of hers. “You’re a lamb in the lion’s den, child. You’re surviving. Isn’t that enough?”
(yes, that chocolate-covered oreo was my bookmark. and no, it didn't last long.)
____
Previously on: How I Met This Book
I didn't know what to read so bae picked this one for me among the books I received last week.
I already told him that if it's not good, he's gonna sleep on the couch. His reply was: "I just randomly picked it, you were the one who bought it and brought it home. Now go read. You know where the couch is, just in case."
So, yeah... I really hope I'll end up liking it lmao
____
Apparently I can keep my bed, 'cause this book was pretty great.
When it comes to what makes a good book a good one, I think smooth writing, relatable and morally gray characters, and a fast-paced plot are probably the three main elements that shouldn't miss, and for me, Laura Sebastian totally hit the point with this novel.
The magic system and the whole story are not of the most originals, but it's fresh and action-packed enough to make you close an eye on it.
Theodosia is not an easy lovable main character. She's very insecure, immature, sometimes a bit of a hypocrite, and the kind of intense that can become too much.
On the other hand, I found that her insecurities and immaturity made her extremely real.
I often read books about teens who are overly good and ready to sacrifice themselves for the rest of the world and, despite how good-hearted a person (fictional, mostly) might be, I see this kind of behavior as too heroic to be 100% true to the gray nature of the human being.
I was glad to read about a character who was, for a change, afraid for her life and ready to be a little selfish in order to survive.
There's romance, in case you're asking. There's some sort of love triangle, too.
I usually get frustrated with this kind of trope, but it didn't bother me at all this time.
The romance is good, it makes sense (a bit too rushed, maybe, but I learnt there's nothing slow about this book), yet I guess I didn't care much who Theo ended up with because I sort of like both boys equally (though Prinz Soren is a cat person and that means he has to be my favorite of the whole bunch) and because I was more concerned about what other madness she was being thrown into by the author.
If I had to compare it to another series, it'll definitely be Falling Kindoms by Morgan Rhodes, though this one is possibly darker, has shorter chapters (bless you, LS), and it's clear that the author here cared deeply for shock value deaths/twists.
Not that I'm complaining, of course, because I think that overall this was a really well done job.
For people like me, who don't always have time to read and have to squeeze their reading breaks between smelly diapers and house chores, but at the same time don't want to give up to the pleasures of an intricate and entertaining plot, this is perfect because it allows you to put the book down and resume reading it without losing both the adrenaline and the threat of the story.
That is, if you're able to put it down.
I know sometimes I couldn't.
I only have a few little 'complaints' that'll make you understand why I didn't give this book 5 full stars, despite liking it deeply:
-I would have find it less cringey if the characters were at least a year older.
I really don't know how to explain this but I felt that the way they speak, act and carry themselves is too mature for characters who are so young, broken and reckless. I get that a tough life makes you wise by default but we're talking about that kind of deep boldness that comes with age and that made Thora and company sometimes look like clichéd caricacatures.
-I ended up loving Thora, but being inside her head all the time was a little hard. Like I said, she isn't a character you fall for instantly and for people like me who are not fond of the first person POV, having to relate on Thora's pov alone and all the time, was somehow stressful.
That's it, so you see, it's really more of a personal matter than this book being somewhat faulty.
Despite these little flaws, I enjoyed every second of it.
Laura Sebastian is an amazingly talented author and Ash Princess is a real page-turner that definitely built up the setting for a new story and a new villain in a sequel that I honestly can't wait to read.
I also can't wait to tell bae about his magical book-picking skills.
Thinking about it...I should let him pick scratch cards, too, from now on...
"Yana Crebesti, remember?" he says. "Will you trust me in this?"
"Yana Crebesti," I tell him, even as it breaks my heart.
ACTUAL RATINGS 4,5/5
May 27, 2018
"We are not defined by the things we do in order to survive."
This book definitely helped pull me out of my book funk, so praise 🙌
*Review to come*
This book definitely helped pull me out of my book funk, so praise 🙌
*Review to come*
August 22, 2021
This review contains no spoilers 💫
Ash princess follows Theo, a girl whose country was colonised by the Kalovaxians. Theo is essentially Queen but since the murder of her mother and a shift in power, she’s been demoted to ‘ash princess’, kept in the same castle where she once was royalty in.
Subjective grade- 85%
Plot - 90%
Writing & dialogue- 85%
Worldbuilding - 80%
Character development - 60%
Character relationships - 75%
Subjective grade:
I enjoyed this book a lot. I thought that the political atmosphere of this book was interesting and Theo was actually an interesting character. Also, the magic system reminded me a lot of Avatar the Last Airbender so that’s a plus.
Plot:
This book touches on a lot of heavy topics like racism, colonisation, discrimination and privilege.
We see elements of privilege in Cress who time and time again ignores the brutality Theo faces because of her race. She basks in her clear privilege and avoids talking about any of these issues because it's too ‘uncomfortable’ for her.
Sound familiar right?
Oh, and how the Kalovaxians move from country to country after looting the last of all its resources.
*ehrm* Britain, 16th century *ehrm*
This book did a great job of discussing all said topics, embedding them in the plot itself. If I had read this book when I was younger, I doubt I would've been able to see the full scope of this book.
Worldbuilding:
Political environments play a large role in worldbuilding and I really enjoyed the politics in this book. Which is to say I liked the world-building quite a bit. The magic system was explained to some extent but it wasn't elaborated on. This is hella irritating because half the book I was there like "Oo, shiny rock that has firepower. Oooo shiny rock that makes people pretty, nice."
Character development:
Theo’s development felt extremely rushed. It didn’t make much sense that she went from doing nothing for her people to putting her life on the line in a matter of a few chapters. I get that the story only really starts after she’s decided to stand up for herself and her people but if the author had taken a little more time elaborating on Theo’s inner conflict, it would’ve felt more realistic.
Character relationships:
Where things fell a bit short was the romance. Why oh why was Blaise even there? Theo x Blaise is giving major Katniss x Gale vibes and I’m not here for it. But Theo and Soren....
amazing.
They are what Cal and Mare wish they were.
I said what I said.
Cress and Theo’s friendship is extremely toxic. Cress is a clear example of a bystander and that in itself is bad, but it gets worst. Theo thinks that she should be happy that Cress had befriended her so she doesn’t speak out about everything clearly wrong with how she’s treated by Cress. And I had a strong impression that Cress had only befriended Theo so she could have someone to rant to without having to deal with their issues as well. A one-sided friendship.
Overall, this book did have its ups and downs but I did enjoy it a lot so 4.3 stars!
September 17, 2019
My 500th! Yay!!
August 4, 2018
4 stars
"Now it's time for a queen to rise."
I'm gonna be honest: This was better than Red Queen
I know, I know, that's such a bold claim to make. But I stand by it. Ash Princess was a surprisingly good read. I knew it had the same tropes as most YA fantasy does: Rebellion, princesses, love triangle, etc. But I was invested in the story as well as Theodosia's character development.
This took me a while to read not because it was boring, but because of finals. I read in-between studying but once finals were done, I power-read the hell out of this book.
Ash Princess is the story of Theodosia living in her country Astrea that has been invaded by the Kalovaxians. The Kalovaxians have completely colonized Astera, taking away all of the cultures of Astera as well as killing off a good chunk of the Asteran population. Theo witnessed her mother getting killed at the age of 6 and has been living as a token to the Kaiser. Theo wants to fight for her freedom and for Astrea. When the opportunity comes in the form of a rebellion, she knows joining the rebellion is the only way to take back Astrea.
There is context warning I want to put out as this series does have some troubling aspects. Those include Slavery, torture, violence, abuse, mention of rape.
As mentioned earlier, Ash Princess does carry the same trope as many other fantasy novels out there. I was not impressed with the idea of a love triangle because I feel like most fantasy/dystopia have love triangles and I'm sick and tired of seeing them. Along with that, there's also rebellions and princesses fighting for what is right, etc. It's all formulaic, but I didn't mind that in Ash Princess. Still didn't like the love triangle, but I did have a good time reading Ash Princess.
The Pros:
I very much liked Theo as a character. She is the reluctant protagonist who is very determined to get back her country and avenge the death of her mother. She wants what's best for herself and her people. I really sympathized with Theo with all she had to go through. What with her mother's death and the abuse she goes through, she comes out still determined to fight for her country.
The world building, while shallow, is interesting because of the many countries the Kalovaxians have invaded. Ash Princess has a map and seeing all the other countries and possible exploring makes me giddy to see more of the world.
This is a dark book, especially for a fantasy. I know the issues of abuse has been in different fantasy stories, but I like how Laura Sebastian didn't hold back because this made the story all the more entralling.
The Cons
There is a love triangle here and I didn't hate it, but I definitely thought it was unnecessary. This is something I fail to understand why so many authors include a love triangle in their fantasy/dystopia books. Can't we just have a novel where our protagonist has ONE love interest instead of two? Because having two people pinning after you sounds tiring.
Verdict
Ash Princess, while bringing nothing new to YA fantasy, was a great read. If you do enjoy novels where there are rebellions and lies with an engaging plot, then Ash Princess is definitely the book you want to read. I'm really looking forward to the next book in the series.
Thanks for reading my review!
-Cesar
"Now it's time for a queen to rise."
I'm gonna be honest: This was better than Red Queen
I know, I know, that's such a bold claim to make. But I stand by it. Ash Princess was a surprisingly good read. I knew it had the same tropes as most YA fantasy does: Rebellion, princesses, love triangle, etc. But I was invested in the story as well as Theodosia's character development.
This took me a while to read not because it was boring, but because of finals. I read in-between studying but once finals were done, I power-read the hell out of this book.
Ash Princess is the story of Theodosia living in her country Astrea that has been invaded by the Kalovaxians. The Kalovaxians have completely colonized Astera, taking away all of the cultures of Astera as well as killing off a good chunk of the Asteran population. Theo witnessed her mother getting killed at the age of 6 and has been living as a token to the Kaiser. Theo wants to fight for her freedom and for Astrea. When the opportunity comes in the form of a rebellion, she knows joining the rebellion is the only way to take back Astrea.
There is context warning I want to put out as this series does have some troubling aspects. Those include Slavery, torture, violence, abuse, mention of rape.
As mentioned earlier, Ash Princess does carry the same trope as many other fantasy novels out there. I was not impressed with the idea of a love triangle because I feel like most fantasy/dystopia have love triangles and I'm sick and tired of seeing them. Along with that, there's also rebellions and princesses fighting for what is right, etc. It's all formulaic, but I didn't mind that in Ash Princess. Still didn't like the love triangle, but I did have a good time reading Ash Princess.
The Pros:
I very much liked Theo as a character. She is the reluctant protagonist who is very determined to get back her country and avenge the death of her mother. She wants what's best for herself and her people. I really sympathized with Theo with all she had to go through. What with her mother's death and the abuse she goes through, she comes out still determined to fight for her country.
The world building, while shallow, is interesting because of the many countries the Kalovaxians have invaded. Ash Princess has a map and seeing all the other countries and possible exploring makes me giddy to see more of the world.
This is a dark book, especially for a fantasy. I know the issues of abuse has been in different fantasy stories, but I like how Laura Sebastian didn't hold back because this made the story all the more entralling.
The Cons
There is a love triangle here and I didn't hate it, but I definitely thought it was unnecessary. This is something I fail to understand why so many authors include a love triangle in their fantasy/dystopia books. Can't we just have a novel where our protagonist has ONE love interest instead of two? Because having two people pinning after you sounds tiring.
Verdict
Ash Princess, while bringing nothing new to YA fantasy, was a great read. If you do enjoy novels where there are rebellions and lies with an engaging plot, then Ash Princess is definitely the book you want to read. I'm really looking forward to the next book in the series.
Thanks for reading my review!
-Cesar
May 9, 2018
This dark YA fantasy is the debut novel of Laura Sebastian, it is the first of a planned trilogy. 16 year old Theodosia Houzzara has suffered the nightmare of 10 long years as a prisoner of the Kalovaxians and the tyrant King Kaiser. Her mother, the Queen, was murdered in front of her eyes when she was 6, the country was conquered, land taken and resources pillaged. Theo is shamefully known as the Ash Princess, and her people have been enslaved, any murmurs or acts that challenge the dismal misery of the Kaiser's rule results in Theo being cruelly punished, torture has left her body with a mass of scars. Theo has put up with the horror that is her life, but when she is forced into unspeakable territory by Kaiser, it is the last straw. She has had enough, there has to be more to life than this, and even though she knows she could die, she finds the backbone to resist and fight back. She is smart and intelligent, this will take her far, and she is not alone, there are others who will do anything to remove the violent oppression under which they live.
Sebastian does some intricate world building, and within the kingdom there are powerful caves with magical gems, although one has to earn the ability to use the gems. Rebel leadership takes its toll on Theo, she experiences inner turmoil as to the price and consequences of her actions and decisions. It is not surprising after the life she has led that she should struggle, not to mention that she is young and facing a steep learning curve, and there are expectations of her that she has to mentally sort through. This is a story of intrigue, betrayal, gods, loss, brutal savagery, friendship, magic, war, complicated romantic entanglements and unbearable injustice. The narrative travels a well trodden path with its established fantasy tropes, but the tale is told well, well plotted and packed with twists. I found it a compelling and atmospheric read with its wide cast of characters. I should warn readers that there is abuse and rape in the novel. Many thanks to Pan MacMillan for an ARC.
Sebastian does some intricate world building, and within the kingdom there are powerful caves with magical gems, although one has to earn the ability to use the gems. Rebel leadership takes its toll on Theo, she experiences inner turmoil as to the price and consequences of her actions and decisions. It is not surprising after the life she has led that she should struggle, not to mention that she is young and facing a steep learning curve, and there are expectations of her that she has to mentally sort through. This is a story of intrigue, betrayal, gods, loss, brutal savagery, friendship, magic, war, complicated romantic entanglements and unbearable injustice. The narrative travels a well trodden path with its established fantasy tropes, but the tale is told well, well plotted and packed with twists. I found it a compelling and atmospheric read with its wide cast of characters. I should warn readers that there is abuse and rape in the novel. Many thanks to Pan MacMillan for an ARC.
January 30, 2021
“I was a princess made of ashes; there is nothing left of me to burn.
Now it's time for a queen to rise.”
★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・���・・★
A great surprise!
I didn’t expect much from Ash Princess when I bought it for 99 cents a couple of weeks ago. So I am all the more pleased to be able to say that I really liked it.
The story itself is not very imaginative, but I think the character development during the course of the book is very well done. At first glance, princess Theodosia Eirene Houzzara is like any other female protagonist; stubborn, strong-willed, a bit annoying and unaware of the fact that she's, guess what, The Chosen One.
But the more you read, the more you realize that she actually has some depth and a very good and realistic personality. Theo is clever, shows compassion when others do not and actually has a guilty conscience over betraying someone she likes, even if this person is an enemy of her and her people. She also doesn't jump the gun when dealing with decisions affecting the lives of others, especially those of innocent Kalovaxians (which, at the end of the day, are still her enemies). A quality a good queen needs.
All in all, the characters were very well written in my opinion, the only exception being Blaise. I really can't stand his guts. He reminds me a lot of Gale Hawthorne from The Hunger Games - another guy I'd like to push down a cliff. I'm not going into too much detail because the ranting wouldn't stop, but let me just tell you that he's nothing, absolutely nothing, compared to Søren or my precious litte buttercup Heron. Oh, Heron. I really hope you get the happy ending you so much deserve.
Anyways, I'm really hooked now and can't wait to continue with this series! Give it a shot and let me know if you've enjoyed it as much as I did.
Thanks for reading, lovelies!
★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★
July 11, 2022
✅ Pace
✅ Gorgeous cover
✅ Politics and betrayal
✅ Magic
✅ Main character
✅ A few twists
✅ Kiss of distraction
✅🆗 Plot (good, but mostly predictable)
🆗 Secondary characters
🆗 Kind of love triangle?
❗️❗️ Trigger warnings: physical abuse, torture, and mention of rape.
Ash Princess is not an epic story, but it is a good YA fantasy book with a fast pace that makes it a real page-turner. It reminded me a little bit of a reversed version of The Winner's Curse.
After witnessing her mother's murder when the Kalovaxians invaded her country, Theodosia, the rightful heiress of the kingdom of Astrea, became a captive of the Kaiser. She’s been held in a golden cage for the past 10 years and has almost become complacent. She tries to please the Kaiser to stay alive and lives a quiet submitted life... until she can't anymore.
There is deception, betrayal, love, and a few twists in this book. Slavery and abuse are major themes in this story and it gives Ash Princess a darker note that I liked. It shows the reality of war prisoners and the fate of conquered people being forced into slavery. The world-building is well done, and I liked the magic system. Some people have elemental affinities, and they can use their powers if they have a Spiritgem. Each type of magic and gem gives a different set of affinities, going from being super strong to being able to craft illusions or heal. We did not see much of the magic though in this book, and I wish there will be more of it in the rest of the series.
Theo is a good main character, even though she feels a little juvenile (it is a YA after all), and I am curious to see how she will mature in the next books because there is definitely room for growth for her and the other characters too. She is still young, and while she was a prisoner of the Kaiser, she also was sheltered from the harsh reality of her people for the past 10 years. Some of the characters are average, and they could have been a little more defined. I did not really get attached to Theo’s Shadows, and her relationship with Prince Soren was not surprising or unexpected at all, but I did enjoy her conflicted feelings for Cress.
Theo starts as a complacent prisoner and she grows into the would-be queen that is ready to start a rebellion and die in the hope of freeing her country and helping her people. I understand why she was so complacent at first, especially since she had no hope of escaping the Kaiser, but I much prefer the strong and determined Theo that we get to see in the second half of the book.
There is a kind of love triangle between Theo, her childhood best friend, and the kind prince that I did not enjoy that much. I don't really get why it was added to the story, maybe it will become clearer in Lady Smoke. As I said, I do not care much for Blaise, Theo’s childhood friend, and if given a choice, I would go with Prince Soren, but after the way this book ended, I’m assuming that romance will not be as simple as Theo choosing one of the guys and live happily ever after.
While being a captive in the palace, Theo befriended Cress, the daughter of the Kalovaxian General who killed Theo’s mother. Their relationship is a complex one that is not as simple as them finding an unexpected friend in each other. We can see as the story progresses that Cress sees Theo more as a friend that she can control, than a real friend. Cress does care about Theo, as long as Theo doesn't get in the way of Cress’ ambitions and plans. Theo cares about Cress because she is the only being who showed Theo kindness and tried to make her feel better, but she comes to realize that what they share is not a real friendship. There is definitely a lot of tension between them at the end of the book, and I can’t wait for them to face each other again in the next book.
The fact that the rightful and only heir to the throne was kept alive and paraded in court (even if she was a prisoner) did not make that much sense either, in my opinion. It would have been easier to kill Theo and remove any threat of rebellion, but it was necessary for the story to keep her alive I guess.
The ending is promising, with a new shocking character being introduced, and I am also hoping for some pirate and sea adventure vibes in Lady Smoke. Overall, Ash Princess is well developed, and honestly, even though this book is nothing out of the ordinary and has a common storyline, it is a page-turner and a quick and entertaining read.
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✅ Gorgeous cover
✅ Politics and betrayal
✅ Magic
✅ Main character
✅ A few twists
✅ Kiss of distraction
✅🆗 Plot (good, but mostly predictable)
🆗 Secondary characters
🆗 Kind of love triangle?
❗️❗️ Trigger warnings: physical abuse, torture, and mention of rape.
It’s safer to live only in the present, to be a girl with no past to yearn for and no future to have ripped away.
Ash Princess is not an epic story, but it is a good YA fantasy book with a fast pace that makes it a real page-turner. It reminded me a little bit of a reversed version of The Winner's Curse.
“We are not defined by the things we do in order to survive. We do not apologize for them,” she says quietly, eyes never leaving mine. “Maybe they have broken you, but you are a sharper weapon because of it. And it is time to strike.”
After witnessing her mother's murder when the Kalovaxians invaded her country, Theodosia, the rightful heiress of the kingdom of Astrea, became a captive of the Kaiser. She’s been held in a golden cage for the past 10 years and has almost become complacent. She tries to please the Kaiser to stay alive and lives a quiet submitted life... until she can't anymore.
Is it better to have your life ended by someone who hates you or someone who loves you?
There is deception, betrayal, love, and a few twists in this book. Slavery and abuse are major themes in this story and it gives Ash Princess a darker note that I liked. It shows the reality of war prisoners and the fate of conquered people being forced into slavery. The world-building is well done, and I liked the magic system. Some people have elemental affinities, and they can use their powers if they have a Spiritgem. Each type of magic and gem gives a different set of affinities, going from being super strong to being able to craft illusions or heal. We did not see much of the magic though in this book, and I wish there will be more of it in the rest of the series.
“The hope inside me is not smothered yet. It is dying, yes, with only a few embers left. But I’ve seen fires rekindled with less.”
Theo is a good main character, even though she feels a little juvenile (it is a YA after all), and I am curious to see how she will mature in the next books because there is definitely room for growth for her and the other characters too. She is still young, and while she was a prisoner of the Kaiser, she also was sheltered from the harsh reality of her people for the past 10 years. Some of the characters are average, and they could have been a little more defined. I did not really get attached to Theo’s Shadows, and her relationship with Prince Soren was not surprising or unexpected at all, but I did enjoy her conflicted feelings for Cress.
I will not anger the Kaiser and he will keep me alive. This is the rule I’ve learned to follow.
Theo starts as a complacent prisoner and she grows into the would-be queen that is ready to start a rebellion and die in the hope of freeing her country and helping her people. I understand why she was so complacent at first, especially since she had no hope of escaping the Kaiser, but I much prefer the strong and determined Theo that we get to see in the second half of the book.
There is a kind of love triangle between Theo, her childhood best friend, and the kind prince that I did not enjoy that much. I don't really get why it was added to the story, maybe it will become clearer in Lady Smoke. As I said, I do not care much for Blaise, Theo’s childhood friend, and if given a choice, I would go with Prince Soren, but after the way this book ended, I’m assuming that romance will not be as simple as Theo choosing one of the guys and live happily ever after.
While being a captive in the palace, Theo befriended Cress, the daughter of the Kalovaxian General who killed Theo’s mother. Their relationship is a complex one that is not as simple as them finding an unexpected friend in each other. We can see as the story progresses that Cress sees Theo more as a friend that she can control, than a real friend. Cress does care about Theo, as long as Theo doesn't get in the way of Cress’ ambitions and plans. Theo cares about Cress because she is the only being who showed Theo kindness and tried to make her feel better, but she comes to realize that what they share is not a real friendship. There is definitely a lot of tension between them at the end of the book, and I can’t wait for them to face each other again in the next book.
You’re a lamb in the lion’s den, child. You’re surviving. Isn’t that enough?
The fact that the rightful and only heir to the throne was kept alive and paraded in court (even if she was a prisoner) did not make that much sense either, in my opinion. It would have been easier to kill Theo and remove any threat of rebellion, but it was necessary for the story to keep her alive I guess.
The ending is promising, with a new shocking character being introduced, and I am also hoping for some pirate and sea adventure vibes in Lady Smoke. Overall, Ash Princess is well developed, and honestly, even though this book is nothing out of the ordinary and has a common storyline, it is a page-turner and a quick and entertaining read.
“I was a princess made of ashes; there is nothing left of me to burn. Now it's time for a queen to rise.”
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June 9, 2018
*I was given a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review from the publisher (macmillan)*
*This does not affect my views or opinions*
To start off with, the writing was wonderful. It was so well written, it flowed so well, was descriptive, but not overly so. The pacing was spot on, and the world building was wonderful. The characters were all well developed too, and I liked them and had interest in whether or not they survived from pretty early on in the book.
However, the thing is, it all felt familiar. The characters all felt like ones I'd met before, and the story felt like one I'd already read many times. The general feel of the book was very stereotypical of a YA fantasy, and had elements that I've read in a lot of other YA fantasy. There just wasn't really anything unique or different about this particular book. The Magic system was the only thing that had slight difference, but it wasn't enough to make this book unique, or make it stand out from all the other YA fantasies out there.
Hopefully the story will develop more, and become more unique in the following books, because I really enjoyed the writing, but unfortunately, the plot was just too samey for me to rate it any higher than I have.
Rating breakdown:
Plot: 2/5
Characters: 4/5
Writing: 4.5/5
*This does not affect my views or opinions*
To start off with, the writing was wonderful. It was so well written, it flowed so well, was descriptive, but not overly so. The pacing was spot on, and the world building was wonderful. The characters were all well developed too, and I liked them and had interest in whether or not they survived from pretty early on in the book.
However, the thing is, it all felt familiar. The characters all felt like ones I'd met before, and the story felt like one I'd already read many times. The general feel of the book was very stereotypical of a YA fantasy, and had elements that I've read in a lot of other YA fantasy. There just wasn't really anything unique or different about this particular book. The Magic system was the only thing that had slight difference, but it wasn't enough to make this book unique, or make it stand out from all the other YA fantasies out there.
Hopefully the story will develop more, and become more unique in the following books, because I really enjoyed the writing, but unfortunately, the plot was just too samey for me to rate it any higher than I have.
Rating breakdown:
Plot: 2/5
Characters: 4/5
Writing: 4.5/5
June 29, 2018
2.5/3 stars
This wasn't horrible but the similarities to Ruined by Amy Tintera are so much that I am side-eyeing a bit. The plots and characters were almost identical.
The romance played a big part in this book and it was so bland I ended up skimming those scenes.
I probably won't continue this series since it added nothing new to so many YA fantasies I've read before.
This wasn't horrible but the similarities to Ruined by Amy Tintera are so much that I am side-eyeing a bit. The plots and characters were almost identical.
The romance played a big part in this book and it was so bland I ended up skimming those scenes.
I probably won't continue this series since it added nothing new to so many YA fantasies I've read before.
January 27, 2020
Three words: REALLY. FUCKING. ANNOYING.
This book has a lot of potential (which is why it gets 2 stars instead of 1), but it’s so poorly written that all potential is thrown right down the drain, garbage disposal on. The narrator repeats herself so often, that after awhile I legitimately just started skipping paragraphs when I could sense she was about to soapbox about the same things again.
The other thing the writing will do is info dump CONSTANTLY. And for NO REASON. The narrator will be having a conversation with someone and then suddenly she will tell you all about her completely irrelevant memories of hanging out with this person. It goes on and on and on. I skipped a lot of that too.
So, as you can see, I skipped quite a bit of this book AND WAS STILL NEVER LOST. That’s how pointless a lot of this is.
This book has a lot of potential (which is why it gets 2 stars instead of 1), but it’s so poorly written that all potential is thrown right down the drain, garbage disposal on. The narrator repeats herself so often, that after awhile I legitimately just started skipping paragraphs when I could sense she was about to soapbox about the same things again.
The other thing the writing will do is info dump CONSTANTLY. And for NO REASON. The narrator will be having a conversation with someone and then suddenly she will tell you all about her completely irrelevant memories of hanging out with this person. It goes on and on and on. I skipped a lot of that too.
So, as you can see, I skipped quite a bit of this book AND WAS STILL NEVER LOST. That’s how pointless a lot of this is.
June 25, 2018
3 1/2
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