Book Review; Snow Like Ashes by Sara Raasch

Summary:
A heartbroken girl. A fierce warrior. A hero in the making.

Sixteen years ago the Kingdom of Winter was conquered and its citizens enslaved, leaving them without magic or a monarch. Now, the Winterians’ only hope for freedom is the eight survivors who managed to escape, and who have been waiting for the opportunity to steal back Winter’s magic and rebuild the kingdom ever since.

Orphaned as an infant during Winter’s defeat, Meira has lived her whole life as a refugee, raised by the Winterians’ general, Sir. Training to be a warrior—and desperately in love with her best friend, and future king, Mather — she would do anything to help her kingdom rise to power again.

So when scouts discover the location of the ancient locket that can restore Winter’s magic, Meira decides to go after it herself. Finally, she’s scaling towers, fighting enemy soldiers, and serving her kingdom just as she’s always dreamed she would. But the mission doesn’t go as planned, and Meira soon finds herself thrust into a world of evil magic and dangerous politics – and ultimately comes to realize that her destiny is not, never has been, her own.

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Sometimes You

I don’t remember when I heard about this book bit I do remember being incredibly excited about it. And then all the raving reviews appeared and I got even more intrigued about it. Thus, when I finally wrapped my hands around it, I had to start it straight away. Now that I’ve finished it, I am so glad that I read it as it is a book that I truly loved. In fact, it is a book that gave me a book hangover as I keep wanting to return to the world and read more about what will happen. Therefore, I am excited to hear there will be a sequel. Lord knows the wait will be difficult but I’m sure I’ll manage it.

Have To

I loved the concept of this book. In this world there are eight kingdoms all with a ruler (four male, four female). Four of the kingdoms are called Rhythm kingdoms, the other four are Season kingdoms. Those in the Season kingdoms have the traits of their kingdom (i.e. Winterians have white hair and feel most comfortable and relaxed in Winter). Those in the Rhythms also have their own traits, such as artistic. It is such an interesting world that Sara Raasch has created and I really just want to return. I also found the plot to be really compelling. I was captivated by how the events occurred and I constantly wanted to know what would happen next. It was quite difficult to put the book down and carry on with life knowing that the book was just waiting for me.

Fight For

I’m starting to think I feel this about every book I read but my favourite character in the book was the protagonist; Meira. At the beginning of the book she read as a very naive character, but as the story progressed, she definitely came into her own. She was strong, caring, protective, fierce and loyal and I just loved everything about her. I admired watching her journey and I really want to read more about her. I also loved Mather. He was very intense and interesting but I have to admit that when Theron was introduced, I had to re-think my thoughts on Mather. But aside from these, my second favourite character was Neeva. You don’t get to see a lot of her so I’m really hoping she crops up in the next book. All of the characters in the book were well thought out and great to read about.

Your Kingdom

While so far my review reads like this book was glorious and fantastic, there were a few issues that I had with the book. As such some of the writing style irked on me. There were quite a few repetitions of things that I didn’t think were necessary and it bugged me but, fortunately, the story was strong enough to skim over it. This wasn’t the only issue for me but I don’t want this review to get too negative but I will say that despite the problems, I still really enjoyed this story, would read it again and definitely cannot wait to get my hands on the sequel. All in all this book is one that surprised me in the best way and reminded me why I love reading so much. It is one that is full of interesting things, amazing characters, and will make it very difficult for you to put the book down.