"Someday we will be more than words in the dark." -Snow Like Ashes by Sara Raasch

10 out of 10. Jellybean land. A+. This book is fast-paced, action-packed, and so much fun to read. The sequel is coming out in October, so read this now!

It’s been only sixteen years since Winter fell. Since Spring attacked the capital Jannuari, killed thousands, imprisoned many more, broke the locket that gives Winter magic in two, and couldn’t catch the twenty-five escapees. An orphaned refugee, Meira is one of the few that managed to flee, and she has sworn to protect the heir to Winter’s kingdom, Mather. And with only eight of the twenty-five survivors left, scouring the continent for half of the locket, Meira would do anything to restore the monarchy and free the enslaved Winterians.

Her wish is granted when she manages to steal back one half of the missing locket single-handedly. The remaining Winterian refugees flee to Cordell, and Meira is forced into a world of politics and magic. Her dream of becoming a soldier in the Winterian army is all but crushed, her life has been pre-destined, and Meira is only just realizing that she can’t be the person she imagined.

The beginning starts with a sword fight between Meira and Mather, and the speed just picks up from there. Meira is proficient with a chakram, and she wields it better than a sword which can both be terrifying and awesome as well as problematic. Her character develops expertly, going from reckless and brash to confident and vigilant. Instead of running into battle, Meira thinks ahead.

Mather is the love interest at first. There’s the enticing forbidden love aspect because Meira is a nobody, and Mather is expected to marry a princess. So when Meira is being forced into a marriage to Theron at Cordell, their places have almost completely been reversed. Mather’s character is full of spirit, he loves his country of Winter, and he is quite a warrior. However, Mather tends to be very egotistic when it comes to Winter because his thoughts are only of his dead family. He is not a very dynamic character, and I’m hoping that Ice Like Fire changes that.

Theron, the other love interest, loves reading. Already I relate to him more than Mather. He thinks his father is small-minded and is confident he will make a better king. Meira believes likewise, so Theron doesn’t look quite so big-headed. The relationship between him and Meira is forced, so she doesn’t like him quite as much at first. Theron turns out to be a sweetheart that is fun, cute, sweet, confident, and witty. I wish fictional characters were real.

Sir has this air of mystery. He is so hard and forceful, and he makes the story more questionable. Why does he expect so much from Meira? How come he won’t let Meira fight when it’s obvious she has the skill and stamina? Meira has known him for sixteen years, but she hardly knows what his deal is.

Without going into too much detail, the plot is fast and intriguing and empowering. The balance between action and dialogue and description is flawless. The romance aspect isn’t an annoying large theme like it is in most fantasy novels, which I was so happy about. Instead large themes included family, vengeance, truth, freedom, and loyalty. The story arc was fabulous, and so much information was displayed in such an awesome way.

I absolutely adore stories with magic, but it isn’t uncommon for magic to be similar in each story. What was unique in Snow Like Ashes were the tokens that a person had to possess in order to have magic. It wasn’t like a wand, it was like their source of power came from an object. And if power was used in an evil means, a strange darkness called the Decay could take over. The Decay is really powerful, but if people combined efforts against it, the Decay can be defeated. That involves allying countries, and not a lot of people are up for that, unfortunately.

Read this book before October 13th if possible because you’re going to want to hop on into this story before people spoil any of the plot twists. If you enjoy high fantasy (who doesn’t?) like Throne of Glass, the Queen of the Tearling, Mistborn, or Red Queen, you will definitely enjoy this book. Action-lovers, magic-wielders (yeah right), and people who enjoy surprises will be pleased by this book. This is high-thriller, low-fluff fun. For everyone!

Formula: Magic + Winter + Chakram + Freedom + Revenge = Lost Chasm of Magic

#fantasy #katie #superpowers #plottwist