Ash

Oh, boy. This was … something. It had a lot of great ideas -- a lesbian cinderella retelling with fairies involved! -- but I just couldn’t connect with it … in any way.

Content warnings:
- some very creepy possessive behavior & unequal relationship balances that you think will be the main romance until the second half of the book. Sure, this is spoilers, but it’s so bad that I almost stopped reading.
This first romantic interest knew the MC’s mother and watches the MC grow up. When he’s already an adult (like thousands of years old). It’s yeah … creepy.

After her father dies, Aisling is forced to tend to her stepmother and stepsisters’ every whim (her only joy? Reading fairy tales by the fire; hence the nickname Ash). show more When she takes one too many trips to the Wood, Ash’s wish of being stolen away by a fairy may just come true in the form of one named Sidhean who stakes a claim on her. Will this abusive pedophile be her Prince Charming? Ash seems to be convinced he will be until she meets Kaisa, the King’s Huntress, and they form a connection. Once Ash understands what love really is, will she be allowed to have it?

Listen, I know the point is that this first love interest, the fairy Sidhean, is cursed to realize what he’s doing -- and what he has done for hundreds of years (luring humans to fall in love with him, and then to later have their hearts broken) -- is wrong, and to learn that by experiencing it himself. However, you don’t realize this as a reader until basically page 200 of a 264-page book. Before that it’s really like you’re in a fairy romance novel where the MC is in a relationship with a dude who has watched her grow up, preyed upon her and groomed her into a twisted, possessive, and unhealthy relationship that you, as a viewer, are supposed (?) to find romantic (because the MC does herself: “Why had he not claimed her already? What was he waiting for?”). So, until halfway through the second half of the book, I was absolutely disgusted.

That, unfortunately, kept me from enjoying the book.

But, really, that’s not all that I didn’t enjoy. The writing style is laden with “telling” over “showing” (and I’m not sure if that was a stylistic choice, since a lot of the old fairy tales have same style -- however, for a YA book especially, it’s not a very good choice). Pages 1-13 seem like a summary I’m muddling through on Wikipedia instead of the beginning of an actual book:

”By that time the philosophers had also begun to change their approach to this people. Rather than insisting that there was no such thing as magic, they began to merely suggest that perhaps magic was not as prevalent as it once was. They asked, have you ever seen an elf? Or did you work hard on your own to build your house, to feed your children, to put clothes on your family’s backs? And gradually, the idea took root that magic was merely an old country superstition.” [p.13]

There are also some pages that can be summed up in paragraphs, and others easily woven into the storyline; there’s just clumsy writing and storytelling everywhere. There’s so much unneeded clunky backstory thrown in at random times that it feels like -- when will this story really begin? Every chapter opener (at least in the first half) opens either with tons of summary or in an essay-like format with introduction paragraphs like,

”Everything changed after her father died. Ash had known every inch of her home in Rock Hill; Quinn House was strange and large and cold. In Rock Hill, everyone knew and cherished her mother and father; here, she was pitied by others: Poor girl. Orphan. Though Lady Isobel never treated her with much fondness, now that Ash’s father was gone, she no longer tried to hide her disapproval ….

There’s also continuity errors or weird plot blips like the fairy giving her a medallion, telling her he’ll appear if she ever needs something. But when she does he has the gall to look WEARY telling her the price of the wish like he didn’t want/expect this in the first place by giving her the medallion? And things like Ash being told a page before that she could not go anywhere without a chaperone, and yet the next page she’s out alone with no explanation of how this happened.

What could have redeemed the book for me was Kaisa and Ash’s relationship, but it also lacked … anything. Every interaction was dull, every dialogue between them limited to something like, “How’s the weather? Do you want to ride today?” “Sure,” that I didn’t feel when it crossed over into a love worth fighting a fairy’s claim for.

I’m sorry, this is really so harsh. This book really does have a lovely concept; I just didn’t love much besides that. I probably missed the point of this entire novel, but I rated this on my personal enjoyment, and everything's subjective. show less

it took me a little while to get past the language - it's a fairytale retelling so there are elements of that in the writing, which is fine, it just took me a couple of days to shift my head enough to get past the first 20 pages. but once i did it was smooth sailing and lovely the entire way. i especially loved how matter of fact the bisexuality was; it wasn't even mentioned, it was just clear that she could be falling in love with him or with her or with both and the gender wasn't even a factor. very nicely done. (although he kind of creeped me out the entire time, whereas she was a total gentle but strong and amazing character.)

i wasn't a kid who was into fairytales or animated/disney movies, so i might not notice where this retelling show more dovetails, but it seems to more or less follow the traditional cinderella story (with some gender switches) until the end. (was there a hunter in the original? i'm not sure if that was an addition of lo's or not. i'll probably skim cinderella to find out.)

i really liked the two main characters - especially kaisa, it's no wonder there's a sequel focusing on her - and overall thought that this was really good.

i do feel like it's lacking in the same way that fairytales often are, and why fairytales always leave me less satisfied than i could be. they often aren't stories with a lot of rich detail (although she had some in this one) and we don't peel way down into the characters like i always want to. so that's my main complaint here, as well as the trouble i had just getting into it. but i liked how she took it once it got going, and i give her big props for the bisexual representation and the way she handled it.

for whatever reason i really liked this part:
"'Have you ever wished to be a princess?' Ash challenged her.
'That depends,' Kaisa said.
'On what?'
'On whether I would have to marry a prince,' she said, and her tone was lighthearted, inviting Ash to share her smile."

i'd been looking forward to reading lo for a while and i'm glad i finally did. i'll definitely be reading her again to see what else she does. show less

Rating: 3.5 of 5

I loved that Lo named her Aisling instead of some typical variation of Cinderella. I loved that the story included old school fae, not the typical pretty little flying Disney fairies who live to grant humans' wishes. The worldbuilding and setting had the familiar feel of old tales, yet still felt fresh. The twist in the romance department was refreshing, especially since Lo allowed the relationship to build in a subtle way, not with flashing lights and bullhorns; Ash's feelings were a discovery, an awakening.

It wasn't a perfect book, though, only skimming the surface of its thought-provoking themes for young people, such as grief, individuality, and sexuality. And the aforementioned relationship was almost a little too show more subtle - it would have been nice to see into each of their hearts and minds a bit more before the book ended. Ash could have gone much deeper in that respect, which is why I didn't give it the full four stars.

I look forward to reading another book by Lo. show less

The transformative power of love triumphs in this melodious YA about awakening to one’s own power. Ash is a sensitive and intricately plotted and characterized retelling of the Cinderella legend.
As in the fairy tale, Aisling’s widowed father leaves her to the machinations of her stepmother. Not so much mindlessly cruel as taking advantage the only way an unmarried woman can, she installs Aisling – known as Ash - as an unpaid servant to work off her father’s debt while the stepmother concentrates on marrying off her two daughters.
Beloved of a(n almost mythical and palpably dangerous) fairy, Ash attends the ball – but not before participating in a hunt, with the King’s Huntress. She discovers a connection with the huntress show more that both confuses and exhilarates the young woman.
A fast-moving ending celebrates Ash’s quick-thinking solutions to a series of problems, with an underlying theme about discovering and creating family. show less

Everyone is familiar with the sadness of the Cinderella story: Cinderella's father is dead, or isn't around to defend/protect her from her wicked stepmother and stepsisters; said steps treat her cruelly and force her to be a servant; they don't let her go to the ball. But Ash is soaked with grief from beginning (we open on Ash's mother's funeral) to almost the end. Grief and a desire to escape is the constant throughout the story. An explanation is given for the stepmother forcing Ash to be a servant: Ash's father saddled the family with his debt when he died. The numbness from grief and depression explains why she stays and doesn't fight back. Ash does feel grief about her father's death, but it's more about losing the last bit of show more childhood safety and security that she had. If her grief for her father's death is a lake, her grief for her mother's death is the ocean.

The plot with the fairy Sidhean is interesting. The fairies of this book and its stories are the dangerous, alluring fairies of Irish (and other) folklore. They spirit unsuspecting or enthralled humans away, steal babies and leave changelings, time in fairyland is different than time in the human world, and they are said to be found in the deep forest. Ash returns to the forest again and again for this reason. Her life is so miserable that she'd prefer to be taken by the fairies, and wonders if they took her mother.

Ash's relationship with Kaisa, the King's huntress, grounds her and gives her hope. While Sidhean represents the deep, dangerous, and dark part of the forest, Kaisa is the normal, light-filled, nature part of the forest. Ash has been cooped up in the house and walked constantly in the dark of the forest, hoping to be taken, but Kaisa brings light into her life, offering her kindness and friendship to Ash. Kaisa teaches Ash to ride a horse. Ash goes to the royal hunt and the ball to see her. It may seem to most readers that less time and effort is spent on developing or depicting the relationship between Ash and Kaisa, that it lacks the spark that Ash and Sidhean have, but it's important that love is shown as not the flash of attraction, but as a quiet, steady thing you build together over time.

Read the full (spoilery) review, including trigger warnings, at https://fileundermichellaneous.blogspot.com/2022/06/book-review-ash-by-malinda-l... show less

Is this the best retelling of Cinderella?

I mean- it might be. This is a beautifully crafted world with a lovely queer cast and a different take on the Fairy Godmother-trope. Ash is a dark fantasy that really reminds you how heartbreaking the tale of Cinderella is- the abuse, the pain, the hopelessness... I started and finished this book in one night, sitting outside, freezing- but not wanting to stop for even a second to go inside.

The cold toes were absolutely worth it.

ASH was a beautifully told story and one that will live on in the memories of its readers for quite a while. Our heroine, Aisling, or Ash for short, is our Cinderella in this twist on the classic story of struggles overcome to find true love. Ash is an easily relatable character, which is part of what makes this story so attractive. She is a shy girl, but not overly so. She has her opinions and will let them out when needed. I think that many girls will be able to connect with ASH and her realistic personality.

Of course, we can’t have a romance without another party to join Ash. In this retelling of Cinderella, Ash’s Prince Charming actually comes in the form of the King’s Huntress, Kaisa. Wealthy and regal in her position by the show more King’s Side, Kaisa is a beautiful woman and full of life. She befriends Ash, despite the difference in their stations and shows our timid heroine how to truly live.

When Ash’s father dies and leaves her alone with her stepmother and stepsisters, life seems to be pretty much over for the young girl. Much like the classic Cinderella story, Ash’s stepfamily treats her poorly and it isn’t too long until she becomes a servant to her family. The similarities between the age-old princess story and MALINDA LO’S wonderful work of art pretty much end here though. To escape from the darkness of her days, Ash travels into the Wood near her house, despite the age old warnings that the Wood holds strange magic.

It wouldn’t be a complete romance if there weren’t some form of suspense thrown into the mix. Sidhean, a beautiful man who is anything but human, is an integral part of the story that really helped to make ASH a true tale rather than just another bedtime story. When Ash catches his eye, everything changes. Sidhean hides a secret from Ash and as time goes on it becomes more and more unclear whether Ash is safe with Sidhean or not.

In all, I would have to say that I absolutely loved ASH. There have been very few books that have made me say, “Wow,” and turn back to the first page to start the story all over again. I can honestly say that this was a book I could not put down and one that really had my mind turning. It’s as much of a romantic story as it is a suspenseful one. The imagery within the pages was spectacular and the book was filled with such color that I’m amazed a little sparkle didn’t fall from the pages as I was reading. MALINDA LO has created an immediate fan in me and I wait anxiously for her next work. show less