Review : Snow Like Ashes by Sara Raasch

Summary (from Goodreads) 

Title : Snow Like Ashes (Snow Like Ashes #1)
Author : Sara Raasch
Publication Date : October 14th 2014
Publisher : Harper Teen
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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.

Personal Thoughts

You know you are reading one of the best books of the year when you find yourself devouring the book and ignoring your daily life (and your family who you only see once a year). Snow Like Ashes, people, was that kind of book, that had me lock myself in a room to finish it. I want to climb up a rooftop and shout out my love for Snow Like Ashes because, you ALL need to read this beauty of a book!

Meira, our protagonist, was such a shining star for me. She was perfectly developed with her strengths and flaws. Part of me was initially wary of Meira because of her impulsiveness, but she was a character that underwent a tremendous amount of growth. Being inside Meira's head was an absolute delight for me because she was easy to connect with. Sara Raasch wrote her character in such a way that her emotions became the reader's emotions. By the end of the book, Meira had turned into a fierce and dauntless character who will inspire awe in many readers. The secondary cast was as brilliant. From Mather to King Noam, they were all well-developed. Mather was especially a character I liked. He was sweet, devoted, but had his fair share of issues. I felt the same way with Theron who instantly connected with Meira because of them being forced into a betrothal. He also had his fair share of secrets and I think he has much bigger role to play in the forthcoming books.  For me what made these characters phenomenal was how none of them were perfect ; they were perfect portrayals of realistic human beings. I wanted to know a little bit more about the villain, not that he was underdeveloped, but I was wildly fascinated by him and I think I might be looking forward to meeting him the most in the next book.

World-building wise, Sara Raasch did not hold back and I loved that! I wholeheartedly appreciated how she did not fall into the trap of only meagerly introducing her world in this first book. She went into the depths and complexities of her book from the very start and that for me, is a sure sign of a talented fantasy author. The world in Snow Like Ashes is divided into different kingdoms, and while that may seem unoriginal at first glance, once you start delving into the world and into the politics that exists in this world, you'll realize that it's unlike anything you've ever read before. Sara Raasch's implementation of magic was absolutely thrilling because it added to the danger and suspense of the book. The plot too was top-notch. Snow Like Ashes started off by thrusting you into the midst of action and never once did it lose its momentum. This might be a long book, but I did not feel disinterested even for a second. As for the romance, there is a love triangle, but honestly I would not worry about it. The romance definitely took a backseat in this novel because Meira had other important things on her mind and that didn't bother me at all. I'm hoping it continues to remain in the sidelines in the upcoming books as well. Even if you don't enjoy love triangles, I think it would be a huge mistake to dismiss this book because there is just so much to love about it.

As you can probably tell, I'm already a huge fan of this series and Sara Raasch. Fantasy lovers, don't even think about not reading Snow Like Ashes because you are going to regret it. It's brilliant in any way and will appeal to every fantasy fan who look for solid world-building and fierce characters.

Rating 

Cover : 5/5
Plot : 5/5
Characters : 5/5
Writing : 5/5

Thank you to Edelweiss and Harper Teen for the e-ARC of Snow Like Ashes.