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levitatingnumeral's review against another edition
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.75
Ash is very much a “neither - nor”, on-the fence.
The story itself is bland. It doesn’t succeed in exploring the characters and their relationships nor does it have interesting events going on.
The world-building is lacking: sure, it’s set in a nondescript past, but it fails to portray anything in depth. For example: we know Gwen wants to marry and that is portrayed according to the historical stereotype, but are we going to ignore that women back then probably had personalities, motives, dreams? It’s like every single event or character is a mere caricature or stereotype.
The storytelling heavily relies on telling, rather than showing. Which I dislike, but I could’ve maybe defended with a “well, it’s a retelling of a fairytale, so of course it resorts to telling the facts, as is customary”. Except the book attempts to introduce a more literary twist, using descriptions and a more flowery language (at times). So the book is too long and detailed to be a classic fairytale and too focused on telling to be a well-written novel.
Finally, the author tried to give a feeling of “it’s in the past” through the use of both language (specific words/sentence structures) and figures of speech. However, this is used inconsistently and much too lightly, entirely preventing immersion.
I truly don’t understand the reason for this book to exist. The story is unremarkable, the characters are flat, the writing is underwhelming.
The story itself is bland. It doesn’t succeed in exploring the characters and their relationships nor does it have interesting events going on.
The world-building is lacking: sure, it’s set in a nondescript past, but it fails to portray anything in depth. For example: we know Gwen wants to marry and that is portrayed according to the historical stereotype, but are we going to ignore that women back then probably had personalities, motives, dreams? It’s like every single event or character is a mere caricature or stereotype.
The storytelling heavily relies on telling, rather than showing. Which I dislike, but I could’ve maybe defended with a “well, it’s a retelling of a fairytale, so of course it resorts to telling the facts, as is customary”. Except the book attempts to introduce a more literary twist, using descriptions and a more flowery language (at times). So the book is too long and detailed to be a classic fairytale and too focused on telling to be a well-written novel.
Finally, the author tried to give a feeling of “it’s in the past” through the use of both language (specific words/sentence structures) and figures of speech. However, this is used inconsistently and much too lightly, entirely preventing immersion.
I truly don’t understand the reason for this book to exist. The story is unremarkable, the characters are flat, the writing is underwhelming.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Domestic abuse, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Death of parent and Classism
annorabrady's review
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
I really enjoyed this take on the Cinderella story, especially since it didn't come at the expense of relationship development.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Slavery, Toxic relationship, Grief, Death of parent, and Classism
booksandbesitos's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Death of parent, and Classism
libt11's review
dark
inspiring
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Physical abuse, Death of parent, Abandonment, and Classism
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