Review: The Beautiful Ashes [Blog Tour]
In a world of shadows, anything is possible. Except escaping your fate.First Sentence:
Ever since she was a child, Ivy has been gripped by visions of strange realms just beyond her own. But when her sister goes missing, Ivy discovers the truth is far worse—her hallucinations are real, and her sister is trapped in a parallel realm. And the one person who believes her is the dangerously attractive guy who's bound by an ancient legacy to betray her.
Adrian might have turned his back on those who raised him, but that doesn't mean he can change his fate…no matter how strong a pull he feels toward Ivy. Together they search for the powerful relic that can save her sister, but Adrian knows what Ivy doesn't: that every step brings Ivy closer to the truth about her own destiny, and a war that could doom the world. Sooner or later, it will be Ivy on one side and Adrian on the other. And nothing but ashes in between…
I'm twenty, and already, I've got nothing left to lose.
To be completely honest, it took me over the half the book to really get into The Beautiful Ashes because I just did not like the fated destiny/love/betrayal aspect of the relationship between Ivy and Adrian. While I can see how a relationship between the two of them is the obvious route within the plot, I would have liked to have seen it be more based on their knowing each other and then coming to love each other. Sadly though, to me it felt more like a lust driven relationship for 90% of the book.
So, while I found the quick-start relationship between Ivy and Adrian to be lacking on many levels for most of the book- it was unbelievable at first because there were no grounds for them to love each other other than they thought the other was 'hot'. While I was immensely against the romantic portions of the book, at first, as the book progressed and the slowly came to know the story of the other and see the skeletons hiding in each others past, and more importantly, not run from what they saw. I came to think maybe, just maybe, there might be hope for them.
While I still don't agree with the way things started between them, I did enjoy seeing the lengths they went to prove that their paths were not set in stone and that things could be changed. Also, I was not expecting as much romance in the book as there was... *what, a girl can hope for less romance in a book*
As for the rest of the book....
Even though I may not have been too sold on the romance aspect of The Beautiful Ashes, I can say that Jeaniene Frost does know how to weave a pretty interesting story. Having never read anything by her I was really unsure what to expect from her writing style.
My biggest concerns going in were would I a) like the writing since Ms Frost usually writes for adults and because the was a NA title, and b) whether I would like the characters and the way they were portrayed. When it comes down to it, I thought the writing was pretty good. A little more romance based than I had hoped, but when the story focused on Ivy's search to find her sister and to get even with the demons the me so ruined her life, now that was well written and had me sucked into the book. While I would have been happier with less romantic bits, especially since they got together after only (barely) knowing each other.
What I found most interesting about the plot was the opposition between both sides and how Ivy and Adrian were caught in the middle due to their bloodlines. It was interesting because everyone, including the two main characters (at least at first), thought that they were destined to betray one another and yet in their own ways they were both trying to prove history (as the betrayals had happened down through the generations) and those who said otherwise wrong. I enjoyed that because it shows that neither character is willing to take things as they are, which gives them a chance to grow and maybe do things right.
Final Verdict: The Beautiful Ashes- An interesting plot and back-story. Would have been more of a page-turner with less romance.
The Beautiful Ashes earns
About the Author:
This book was received in exchange for honest reviewJeaniene Frost is the New York Times, USA Today, and international bestselling author of the Night Huntress series, the Night Prince series, and the upcoming Broken Destiny series. To date, foreign rights for her novels have sold to twenty different countries. Jeaniene lives in North Carolina with her husband Matthew, who long ago accepted that she rarely cooks and always sleeps in on the weekends. Aside from writing, Jeaniene enjoys reading, poetry, watching movies with her husband, exploring old cemeteries, spelunking and traveling – by car. Airplanes, children, and cook books frighten her.
For information on Jeaniene's books, reading the first 20% of each book free, book trailers, deleted scenes, creature mythology, and more, please visit: www.jeanienefrost.com
You can haunt Jeaniene Frost at-
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