Today's review will be about:
THE SUMMARY
A LIGHTNING-FAST TALE OF LOYALTY,
LOVE, AND FINDING ONE'S DESTINY.
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 rebuild the kingdom ever since.
Orphaned as an infant during Winter's defeat, Meira has lived her whole life as a refugee. Training to be a warrior - and desperately in love with her best friend and future king, Mather - she would do anything to help Winter rise to power again. So when scouts discover the location of the ancient locket that can restore their magic, Meira decides to go after it, only to find herself thrust into a world of evil magic and dangerous politics - and to realize that her destiny is not, never has been, her own.
LOVE, AND FINDING ONE'S DESTINY.
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 rebuild the kingdom ever since.
Orphaned as an infant during Winter's defeat, Meira has lived her whole life as a refugee. Training to be a warrior - and desperately in love with her best friend and future king, Mather - she would do anything to help Winter rise to power again. So when scouts discover the location of the ancient locket that can restore their magic, Meira decides to go after it, only to find herself thrust into a world of evil magic and dangerous politics - and to realize that her destiny is not, never has been, her own.
MY REVIEW
There is one thing that I need to tell all of you before I start this review: (ahem) I love Winter. I love the snow, the ice, the hot cocoa, making snowmen and snow angels, and most of all the peppermint and its cool feeling. I get very excited when I see a single flake of snow falling to the ground. Now that you know that, you understand my beginning interest in this series.
Beside all of that, I was really interested in the type of magic that the back of the book described, magic that could heal the wounded, make land rich and fertile, that could make soldiers confident and courageous in the face of battle. We get a lot about them in this book, a lot of history that makes the story inside it even more real, more immersive, and gives you a different look at magic itself. In summary, every kingdom's monarch has a different magical item, or conduit, that is only usable by the royal line's male or female heirs. However, conduits can only be wielded by an heir of the same sex as the first monarch, so if they were male, the conduit would only work if you were male too. I would love to talk about this the entire blog, but I can't tell you much more about it because of spoilers. So, let's take a look at the setting.
In this world, there are two types of kingdoms, the Seasons, which only go through one season (Winter is full of lots of snow and ice, Spring is littered with tons of blooming flowers, etc.), and then there are the Rhythm Kingdoms who, just like us, go through each season every year. In the middle are the Rania Plains, a hot wasteland where everything is hard to grow except for the sun-scorched plants that already live there, which is where we find our main gal at the beginning of the book.
What I really love about Meira, the main character in this book, is no matter what obstacle she is pushed towards during the book, no matter how many people tell her "you can't do that", she fights back just as fiercely and ends up finding a way to do what she wants, and to be herself. There is a flame of hope in her that is never truly extinguished, which makes her a lot of fun to read. I know that a lot of you were a little thrown out of interest when the back said "desperately in love with her best friend and future king, Mather", but if you aren't into the kind of lovey-dovey books, there is still at least seventy-five percent of the book to enjoy, and their forbidden love doesn't come up too often.
I know that a lot of you will want to know more about Meira's love interest, but I'm afraid that saying any more would lead to unforgivable spoilers, so if you're that interested I'd recommend just reading it.
All in all, if you love a book filled to the brim with vivid history, beautiful scenery, awesome magic, and a plot with a lot of twists and turns, what are you waiting for? Pick this up and start the adventure!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Sara Raasch has known she was destined for bookish things since the age of five, when her friends had a lemonade stand and she tagged along to sell her hand-drawn picture books too. Not much has changed since then: her friends still cock concerned eyebrows when she attempts to draw things, and her enthusiasm for the written word still drives her to extreme measures. Snow Like Ashes is her debut book. It does not feature her hand-drawn pictures. (Awwww...) She can be found on the web at www.sararaasch.tumblr.com and on twitter at @seesarawrite.
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| Fan art by rozette28 on tumblr "Even the strongest blizzard starts with a single snowflake." -Sara Raasch, Snow Like Ashes |
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| A map of Primoria, where the books take place. |
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| This is a picture of a Chakram, a weapon with origins in India, and Meira's weapon of choice. It also takes a very special place on the cover of the book. |
I know that a lot of you will want to know more about Meira's love interest, but I'm afraid that saying any more would lead to unforgivable spoilers, so if you're that interested I'd recommend just reading it.
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| The next book in the series; Ice Like Fire. |
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
A LITTLE EXCERPT
"The rays of the sun prickle my skin as I stare up into the blue sky, wincing at a particularly sharp stone under my back. This is the fourth time in the last twenty minutes that I've ended up on the ground, watching stalks of prairie grass billow around my head. My lungs heave and sweat beads down my face, so I stay on my back, basking in this moment of peace.
Mather bends into my line of sight, upside down over me, and I hope he attributes the sudden heat in my cheeks to exertion. No matter how many times he puts me on the ground, he never looks anything but handsome. He's the kind of good-looking that makes me physically ache, makes me stumble for chairs when I'm caught unawares. A few pieces of his white Winterian hair dangle by his cheek, the rest of the shoulder-length strands held together by twine. The leather breastplate stretched over his chest highlights the fact that he's spent most of his life using those muscles in combat training, and his arms are lean and uncovered but for brassards. Freckles trail all along his pale face, his neck, his arms, a testament to the blinding sun of Rania Plains.
"Best six out of eleven?" The hopeful note in his voice, as if he honestly believes that I have a chance at beating him, makes me cock an eyebrow.
I groan. "Only if the next six events can be ranged."
Mather chuckles. "I'm under strict orders to get you to win at least one sword match by the time William and the rest return."
I narrow my eyes and try to swallow the longing that rushes at me. Sir left with Greer, Henn, and Dendera on a mission to Spring while the rest of us stayed behind: Mather, the future king (who gets to go on the more dangerous missions because he's been trained since birth in the art of fighting); Alysson, Sir's wife (who has never shown the slightest skill in fighting); Finn, the other able-bodied soldier (Sir's rule - Mather always has to have a capable fighter to back him up); and me, the perpetually in-training orphan girl (who, despite six years of sparring practice , still "isn't good enough" to be trusted with the important assignments).
Yes, I've had to use some of my skills on food-scouting assignments, to fight off the occasional soldier or disgruntled citizen of one of the four Rhythm Kingdoms. But when Sir arranges missions to Spring, missions on which we'll be directly benefiting Winter instead of simply bringing back supplies for the refugees, he always has an excuse for why I can't go: the Spring Kingdom is too dangerous; the mission is too important; can't risk it on a teenage girl."
Mather bends into my line of sight, upside down over me, and I hope he attributes the sudden heat in my cheeks to exertion. No matter how many times he puts me on the ground, he never looks anything but handsome. He's the kind of good-looking that makes me physically ache, makes me stumble for chairs when I'm caught unawares. A few pieces of his white Winterian hair dangle by his cheek, the rest of the shoulder-length strands held together by twine. The leather breastplate stretched over his chest highlights the fact that he's spent most of his life using those muscles in combat training, and his arms are lean and uncovered but for brassards. Freckles trail all along his pale face, his neck, his arms, a testament to the blinding sun of Rania Plains.
"Best six out of eleven?" The hopeful note in his voice, as if he honestly believes that I have a chance at beating him, makes me cock an eyebrow.
I groan. "Only if the next six events can be ranged."
Mather chuckles. "I'm under strict orders to get you to win at least one sword match by the time William and the rest return."
I narrow my eyes and try to swallow the longing that rushes at me. Sir left with Greer, Henn, and Dendera on a mission to Spring while the rest of us stayed behind: Mather, the future king (who gets to go on the more dangerous missions because he's been trained since birth in the art of fighting); Alysson, Sir's wife (who has never shown the slightest skill in fighting); Finn, the other able-bodied soldier (Sir's rule - Mather always has to have a capable fighter to back him up); and me, the perpetually in-training orphan girl (who, despite six years of sparring practice , still "isn't good enough" to be trusted with the important assignments).
Yes, I've had to use some of my skills on food-scouting assignments, to fight off the occasional soldier or disgruntled citizen of one of the four Rhythm Kingdoms. But when Sir arranges missions to Spring, missions on which we'll be directly benefiting Winter instead of simply bringing back supplies for the refugees, he always has an excuse for why I can't go: the Spring Kingdom is too dangerous; the mission is too important; can't risk it on a teenage girl."
pages 2-3
Well, that's all for now!
See you next time!
~Sea-Solo
EXTRA! EXTRA!
See which season you are in this Epic Reads quiz!
See which Rhythm Kingdom you are in this Epic Reads quiz!
EXTRA! EXTRA!
See which season you are in this Epic Reads quiz!
See which Rhythm Kingdom you are in this Epic Reads quiz!
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