Review: Ash by Malinda Lo

In the wake of her father's death, Ash is left at the mercy of her cruel stepmother. Consumed with grief, her only joy comes by the light of the dying hearth fire, rereading the fairy tales her mother once told her. In her dreams, someday the fairies will steal her away, as they are said to do. When she meets the dark and dangerous fairy Sidhean, she believes that her wish may be granted.

The day that Ash meets Kaisa, the King's Huntress, her heart begins to change. Instead of chasing fairies, Ash learns to hunt with Kaisa. Though their friendship is as delicate as a new bloom, it reawakens Ash's capacity for love-and her desire to live. But Sidhean has already claimed Ash for his own, and she must make a choice between fairy tale dreams and true love.


Ash is a retelling of the classic Cinderella story. You've got the dead parents, evil stepmother/sisters, and a little bit of magic. But that's where the similarities end. I knew it was based on Cinderella, so I could anticipate what would happen at some parts, but it's different enough to feel fresh. The characters had the potential to feel two dimensional, but for the most part they were very fleshed out. The addition of fairies was interesting, and it works. I do feel that there were parts that could have been explained better, especially as far as the fairies were concerned. It did drag in a few places, but not enough to annoy me. Those two things that bugged me didn't detract from the reading experience at all, and I'd recommend this book to anyone. 
I love the cover, but I don't like the cover model. It looks like it's trying to depict a scene from the book, but the model looks like she's smiling and it bugs me. Otherwise, it's a great cover!


4/5