Helpful Score: 7
I got this as an ARC (advanced reading copy) through Amazon vine program. I love fairy tale retellings, and this book was a re-telling of Cinderella. I really loved this book; it was darker than the Disney version but happier and lighter than the Grimm's version.
If you know the story of Cinderella than you know the beginning of this book; except Cinderella's name is Ash and Ash can enter the fairy realm. There is no fairy godmother, but a darkly dangerous powerful fairy man named Sidhean. There is a prince but he is not the one Ash truly loves. The stepsisters and stepmother are cruel but not crazily so; at points you feel quite bad for them and their lot in life. We also cannot forget the beautiful and graceful King's Huntress, Kaisa.
I loved this book. The writing is beautiful and really creates wonderful images in my mind of the forest and surrounding landscape. I also loved Ash's character, she does nothing outstanding besides take risks and be herself and that is enough to redeem her in the end. In a way she is passive with a core of strength that is admirable.
Some people are describing this as a lesbian fairy tale. I suppose it is in a way, since the two characters that fall in love in the end are women, but I also think that is a pretty narrow label for this story. I think the story is more expansive than that and covers topics about finding out who you are, staying true to yourself in dire circumstances, and believing in magic of many types. I think adults and children alike will love this story. It is not written at an extremely high reading level and the intimate interactions between the characters never go beyond sweet kisses; so it is appropriate for a younger audience. It might even be a good book to introduce younger children to the concept of same sex relationships.
The book overall is very sweet and beautiful. I think anyone who loves their fairy tales will get into this book. I guess if you have an extreme objection to same sex relationships you may want to stay away; as I said though, that topic isn't really thrown in your face in this book...it is dealt with gently and sweetly. The book is more a love story and a story about finding ones self in the world.
I loved it and will definitely check out more of Malinda Lo's books in the future.
If you know the story of Cinderella than you know the beginning of this book; except Cinderella's name is Ash and Ash can enter the fairy realm. There is no fairy godmother, but a darkly dangerous powerful fairy man named Sidhean. There is a prince but he is not the one Ash truly loves. The stepsisters and stepmother are cruel but not crazily so; at points you feel quite bad for them and their lot in life. We also cannot forget the beautiful and graceful King's Huntress, Kaisa.
I loved this book. The writing is beautiful and really creates wonderful images in my mind of the forest and surrounding landscape. I also loved Ash's character, she does nothing outstanding besides take risks and be herself and that is enough to redeem her in the end. In a way she is passive with a core of strength that is admirable.
Some people are describing this as a lesbian fairy tale. I suppose it is in a way, since the two characters that fall in love in the end are women, but I also think that is a pretty narrow label for this story. I think the story is more expansive than that and covers topics about finding out who you are, staying true to yourself in dire circumstances, and believing in magic of many types. I think adults and children alike will love this story. It is not written at an extremely high reading level and the intimate interactions between the characters never go beyond sweet kisses; so it is appropriate for a younger audience. It might even be a good book to introduce younger children to the concept of same sex relationships.
The book overall is very sweet and beautiful. I think anyone who loves their fairy tales will get into this book. I guess if you have an extreme objection to same sex relationships you may want to stay away; as I said though, that topic isn't really thrown in your face in this book...it is dealt with gently and sweetly. The book is more a love story and a story about finding ones self in the world.
I loved it and will definitely check out more of Malinda Lo's books in the future.
Helpful Score: 2
I have to say I was a bit hesitant to read this book with all the references to the lesbian fiction on it and the author is very pro-active in that. With that said, it was a very pleasant book! I thought I would be uncomfortable in reading it but I wasn't. It is a retelling of Cinderella, and yes, much darker than the original Cinderella but I love it so much I am crossing my fingers that there is a sequel! Looking forward to more from this author.
Helpful Score: 1
Before I even picked this book up, I wanted to like it. I heard some great things about it, the excerpt on the jacket was spare and beautiful, and I have a *thing* for huntresses, in general. Also, the cover is great.
I *did* like this book. The writing is neat, occasionally a little terse, but mostly just as spare and lovely as the jacket excerpt indicated. I loved the summer courtship between Ash and the huntress. And I loved the fairytales that were tucked into the story itself, a neat detail.
The main reason I didn't give this book five stars was because I had a huge problem with the world-building.
The world of this book seemed like a mish-mash of Regency England, generic-Irish-fantasy, and the occasional random Asian detail. There is a long and honored tradition of having a huntress lead the king's hunts. Ash's step-mother sells the country estate and they move to the townhouse in the city. Ash's stepsisters are desperate to marry wealthy men, lest they be condemned to a life of drudgery. The prince is decidedly Asian, but there is a profusion of Irish names.
I had no frame of reference for this kind of contradiction within a fantasy setting, and it was a nagging disorientation the entire time I was reading. But this was a purely personal objection.
In spite of my reservations regarding the world-building, I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys YA fantasy/romance.
I *did* like this book. The writing is neat, occasionally a little terse, but mostly just as spare and lovely as the jacket excerpt indicated. I loved the summer courtship between Ash and the huntress. And I loved the fairytales that were tucked into the story itself, a neat detail.
The main reason I didn't give this book five stars was because I had a huge problem with the world-building.
The world of this book seemed like a mish-mash of Regency England, generic-Irish-fantasy, and the occasional random Asian detail. There is a long and honored tradition of having a huntress lead the king's hunts. Ash's step-mother sells the country estate and they move to the townhouse in the city. Ash's stepsisters are desperate to marry wealthy men, lest they be condemned to a life of drudgery. The prince is decidedly Asian, but there is a profusion of Irish names.
I had no frame of reference for this kind of contradiction within a fantasy setting, and it was a nagging disorientation the entire time I was reading. But this was a purely personal objection.
In spite of my reservations regarding the world-building, I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys YA fantasy/romance.
ASH is one of those books that I read slowly, savoring each beautifully crafted line. Malinda's sensuous writing brings Ash's world and the characters within to blazing, ethereal life: you can fully tell that you are immersed in a fairy tale world, one that doesn't just satisfy, but leaves you wanting more.
I've often heard ASH described as a lesbian retelling of Cinderella. However, this book is so much more than that. As the story went along, and Ash suffered under her stepmother's rule, then triumphed in her own little ways of grasping happiness, I came to see the novel as a moving tribute to the triumph of human spirit and desire to live in the face of adversity. ASH is a story that anyone can relate to, a story that can get to anyone.
The closer I got to the ending, the slower I read, so badly did I not want the story to end. When the end inevitably came, I was devastated, so moved was I by Ash's development from scared and petulant girl to a young woman capable of living and loving again. What else can I say that would do this novel justice? It has a bit of everything for everyone: a magical world for fantasy lovers, incredible writing for aspiring authors, a moving love story for romantics, and a je ne sais pas that makes it stand out from other books. Enough of this now; read it and experience the magic of ASH and Malinda Lo for yourself.
I've often heard ASH described as a lesbian retelling of Cinderella. However, this book is so much more than that. As the story went along, and Ash suffered under her stepmother's rule, then triumphed in her own little ways of grasping happiness, I came to see the novel as a moving tribute to the triumph of human spirit and desire to live in the face of adversity. ASH is a story that anyone can relate to, a story that can get to anyone.
The closer I got to the ending, the slower I read, so badly did I not want the story to end. When the end inevitably came, I was devastated, so moved was I by Ash's development from scared and petulant girl to a young woman capable of living and loving again. What else can I say that would do this novel justice? It has a bit of everything for everyone: a magical world for fantasy lovers, incredible writing for aspiring authors, a moving love story for romantics, and a je ne sais pas that makes it stand out from other books. Enough of this now; read it and experience the magic of ASH and Malinda Lo for yourself.
This was a really cute story. Entertaining and sweet. I like the idea of a reworked fairy tale. The only thing bad that I have to say is that the ending was a bit weak. I understood what happened, kind of, but I would have liked it to be fleshed out a bit more. Something more solid would have been nice. Instead, it was a few pages and left me unsatisfied. I mean, the story felt done but not enough development at the end.
Reviewed by Samantha Clanton, aka Harlequin Twilight for TeensReadToo.com
There's something about fairy tales that always feel magical. No matter the story, no matter the characters, there is something about them that just makes you feel the magic inside them. ASH makes you feel every bit of that magic, and more.
Just about everyone, everyone female at least, over the age of 13 or so has heard and/or seen the story of Cinderella. Whether it is Disney's version or the classic fairy tale or the Brothers Grimm version or even one of the other hundreds of versions that have been created over the years, we all know it. ASH is a version that I'm sure you've never heard of before, but that you should.
After losing her mother, Ash's father takes a wife, Lady Isobel. Soon after meeting Lady Isobel, her and her two daughters move into the house with Ash and her father and things drastically change. In line with the fairy tale, Ash's father becomes gravely ill and passes away shortly thereafter. Which not only leaves Ash heartbroken, but also leaves her without either of her parents, and stuck with a "family" that doesn't even like to look at her.
This is the beginning that we all know about Cinderella, and while Ash has many aspects that are the same as the original tale, they are not the same in the slightest. Ash doesn't get the typical fairy godmother; she gets something else all together, but something even more powerful than anything in the candy-coated version that is fed to us as children.
Ash gets a fairy, Sidhean, who is even more lethal and dangerous than anything her stepmother or stepsisters could do/say to Ash. But that's masked in an extent by the beauty and the friendship that lies between Ash and Sidhean. And I mean that to an extent far more than the typical connection between two characters; their relationship is more developed and deeper than most would have thought possible in a novel that doesn't even break 300 pages.
But one day Ash's life, and heart, changes forever. She meets Kaisa, the King's Huntress, and there is something between them that's different from the second they meet. Ash begins to stop chasing fairies and starts to live in the world without fairies and the fairy tales, and learns how to hunt and to ride and to track animals. But in this change of life, there is a price for keeping it and for continuing to let it grow.
Through her relationship with Kaisa, Ash finds what it means to grow and what it means to let her heart guide her and, in that realization, she also finds a new capacity to live. Ash prefers the company of the Huntress to the company of the Prince, and that makes this story even more powerful. Malinda Lo has created a world that is magical and finds its own footing in a world where fairy tales are viewed as being for children and has given the older crowd a fairy tale of their own.
This is some of the most beautiful, lyrical writing I've seen in a long time and that is so refreshing. The imagery just blows me away and it's like you're standing right there with Ash through everything, whether it be pain, joy, adventure, or terror. It would kill me to see this story get cast aside and labeled a "lesbian retelling of Cinderella," because it's so much more than that. It's a beautiful story that anyone could relate to and that everyone could take something away from.
I found myself hoping for a sequel in a story that doesn't need one, just because I wanted to spend more time with the characters in this world that Ms. Lo has created. It's beautiful, it's magical, and it's a story that, until now, I didn't know could even exist, but it does, and it needs to be heard. Not to mention, look at the cover. It is so beautiful! This is easily one of my favorite stories this year and I hope that if it's given the chance, it can become everyone else's.
There's something about fairy tales that always feel magical. No matter the story, no matter the characters, there is something about them that just makes you feel the magic inside them. ASH makes you feel every bit of that magic, and more.
Just about everyone, everyone female at least, over the age of 13 or so has heard and/or seen the story of Cinderella. Whether it is Disney's version or the classic fairy tale or the Brothers Grimm version or even one of the other hundreds of versions that have been created over the years, we all know it. ASH is a version that I'm sure you've never heard of before, but that you should.
After losing her mother, Ash's father takes a wife, Lady Isobel. Soon after meeting Lady Isobel, her and her two daughters move into the house with Ash and her father and things drastically change. In line with the fairy tale, Ash's father becomes gravely ill and passes away shortly thereafter. Which not only leaves Ash heartbroken, but also leaves her without either of her parents, and stuck with a "family" that doesn't even like to look at her.
This is the beginning that we all know about Cinderella, and while Ash has many aspects that are the same as the original tale, they are not the same in the slightest. Ash doesn't get the typical fairy godmother; she gets something else all together, but something even more powerful than anything in the candy-coated version that is fed to us as children.
Ash gets a fairy, Sidhean, who is even more lethal and dangerous than anything her stepmother or stepsisters could do/say to Ash. But that's masked in an extent by the beauty and the friendship that lies between Ash and Sidhean. And I mean that to an extent far more than the typical connection between two characters; their relationship is more developed and deeper than most would have thought possible in a novel that doesn't even break 300 pages.
But one day Ash's life, and heart, changes forever. She meets Kaisa, the King's Huntress, and there is something between them that's different from the second they meet. Ash begins to stop chasing fairies and starts to live in the world without fairies and the fairy tales, and learns how to hunt and to ride and to track animals. But in this change of life, there is a price for keeping it and for continuing to let it grow.
Through her relationship with Kaisa, Ash finds what it means to grow and what it means to let her heart guide her and, in that realization, she also finds a new capacity to live. Ash prefers the company of the Huntress to the company of the Prince, and that makes this story even more powerful. Malinda Lo has created a world that is magical and finds its own footing in a world where fairy tales are viewed as being for children and has given the older crowd a fairy tale of their own.
This is some of the most beautiful, lyrical writing I've seen in a long time and that is so refreshing. The imagery just blows me away and it's like you're standing right there with Ash through everything, whether it be pain, joy, adventure, or terror. It would kill me to see this story get cast aside and labeled a "lesbian retelling of Cinderella," because it's so much more than that. It's a beautiful story that anyone could relate to and that everyone could take something away from.
I found myself hoping for a sequel in a story that doesn't need one, just because I wanted to spend more time with the characters in this world that Ms. Lo has created. It's beautiful, it's magical, and it's a story that, until now, I didn't know could even exist, but it does, and it needs to be heard. Not to mention, look at the cover. It is so beautiful! This is easily one of my favorite stories this year and I hope that if it's given the chance, it can become everyone else's.
So good! So gay! This is a reimagining of the Cinderella (called Ash here) fairy tale, and Im a sucker for that kind of thing. Lo manages to combine the really recognizable elements of the original tale (the evil stepmother and stepsisters, the ball that she has to rush out of at midnight, etc) with her own world building. The result is a super awesome new story.
And did I mention the love interest just happens to be a woman? So cool! Books where the young protagonist realizes and comes to terms with her sexuality and deals with coming out are important, dont get me wrong. But I also think its important to have stories where its not some big struggle and being gay is shown as no big deal and just how some people are. And here, the main focus of the story is on Ashs struggle with her stepfamily and her dealings with the fairy world and falling in love. The fact that Kaisa is a woman is justno big deal. And I loved that!
And did I mention the love interest just happens to be a woman? So cool! Books where the young protagonist realizes and comes to terms with her sexuality and deals with coming out are important, dont get me wrong. But I also think its important to have stories where its not some big struggle and being gay is shown as no big deal and just how some people are. And here, the main focus of the story is on Ashs struggle with her stepfamily and her dealings with the fairy world and falling in love. The fact that Kaisa is a woman is justno big deal. And I loved that!
