Ash [Hardcover]

Malinda Lo (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 2009

Cinderella retold

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.

Entrancing, empowering, and romantic, Ash is about the connection between life and love, and solitude and death, where transformation can come from even the deepest grief.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 8 Up—Described as "Cinderella…with a twist," Ash is in many ways the familiar fairy tale about a girl's move from comfort to despair to true love (with a little help from fairies and magic). Standard Cinderella images set up the story: after losing her mother and later her father, Ash is treated as a servant in the home of an unkind stepmother and two unfriendly stepsisters. She has ties to the fairy world, attends the royal ball in an enchanted dress, catches the eye of the prince, and finds love by the end of the story. However, while structural similarities exist, ideologically Lo's beautiful and dark tale takes the story to a new place. It is not about Ash being found and saved by a charming prince; instead, it is about her courtship with Kaisa, the King's huntress, a relationship that burgeons over time and is based on more than just initial attraction. Despite Ash's grief, oppressive guardianship, and dangerous flirtation with the fairy Sidhean, who promises to steal her away from her sadness, the protagonist finds her own salvation and chooses to live and love in the real world and on her own terms. Ash will appeal to readers looking for GLBTQ titles, but fans of romance, fantasy, and strong female protagonists will also embrace this fine debut novel.—Jennifer Miskec, Longwood University, Farmville, VA END

Review

"Somber and lovely. ... Ash feels pulled between two worlds -- the fairy realm, where a haughty prince named Sidhean waits for permission to possess her, and the charmed hours she spends with Kaisa." 

--New York Times

"This debut, a retelling of Cinderella in which the heroine falls in love with a beautiful huntress rather than a prince, should establish Lo as a gifted storyteller. ... Lo's prose is beautiful, her descriptions lush."
--Publishers Weekly

"An unexpected reimagining of the Cinderella tale, exquisite and pristine, unfolding deliberately. ... Beautiful language magically wrought; beautiful storytelling magically told." (starred review) --Kirkus

"Part heart-pounding lesbian romance and part universal coming-of-age story, Lo's powerful tale is richly embroidered with folklore and glittering fairy magic that will draw fans of Sharon Shinn's earthy, herb-laced fantasies."
--Booklist

"A rich and darkly moving tale I couldn't put down. Malinda Lo is an exciting and welcome new voice in YA." (Meg Cabot, bestselling author of The Princess Diaries series )

"Cinderella, gorgeously reimagined, captivating and winsome. After you've fallen into the storytelling world of Malinda Lo, the truth of love will transcend the romantic ideal of fairy tales."
(Julie Anne Peters, author of Keeping You a Secret and National Book Award Finalist Luna )

" This lyrically retold Cinderella tale is not just a beautifully updated fable, but an ode to the transformative power of love." (Cassandra Clare, bestselling author of The Mortal Instruments series )

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers; 1 edition (September 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0316040096
• ISBN-13: 978-0316040099
• Product Dimensions: 5.8 x 1 x 8.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (124 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #206,062 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Malinda Lo was born in China and moved to the United States as a child. She grew up in Colorado and has since lived in Boston, New York, London, Beijing, Los Angeles and San Francisco. She is the former managing editor of AfterEllen.com, the largest entertainment news website for lesbians and bisexual women. Malinda now lives in Northern California with her partner and their dog. Ash is her first novel. Visit her online at www.malindalo.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

33 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Gorgeous fairy tale, July 29, 2009

By 

Shala Kerrigan (Anchorage) - See all my reviews
(TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Ash (Hardcover)

(What's this?)

I really love re-tellings of classic fairy tales if they are done well, and this is my favorite since Pamela Dean's Tam Lin.
Ash is the Cinderella in the story, and all the elements are there. Magic, fairies, a wicked selfish stepmother, and a Prince who only figures into the story for a moment.
It's a coming of age story, as Ash, who is alone and orphaned makes friends with a fairy who is fascinated with her for reasons she can't understand and with the Royal Huntress. Her step-mother makes her life miserable and she has her moments of escape and love with her friends until she can finally stand for herself and make the choices to make her life better.
The descriptions are lush, and the dialogue is easy and comfortable. The romance in the story is something that builds naturally out of friendship instead of the big crush/fall in love that's entirely too common in YA romance type novels.
I'm highly recommending it to my daughter to read now that I've finished devouring it in less than an evening. It did grab me that hard, that I didn't want to put it down until I was done reading it.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Young Adult (Girl-Girl) Romance, August 23, 2009

By 

365andMe - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Ash (Hardcover)

(What's this?)

Aisling, who goes by Ash in this book, loses her mother at a young age. If her mother had lived, Ash would have learned of fairies and the ways of the greenwitch. Her father didn't believe in such things and neither did her step-mother, closing the door on that path.

After her father's death, Ash lost her place as daughter and was moved into the servant's quarters to pay off his debt. Her only solace was the woods, but she wasn't really alone. Sidhean, opened up a new world, that of the fairies. She also met Kaisa, the King's Huntress, who opened her heart to love.

Told in a Cinderella theme, this isn't your boy/girl young adult love story, but a love that develops between Aisling and Kaisa. In my opinion, ASH is a book long overdue.

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A fascinating Cinderella retelling, July 30, 2009

By 

lenore531 (Wichita, KS United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Ash (Hardcover)

(What's this?)

After her mother's death, Aisling (aka Ash) is devastated. And she's inconsolable when her remarried father dies, leaving the family with debts that Aisling's new stepmother forces her to pay off with servitude - so much so that she prays the fairies will take her from the human world. That is until she meets Kaisa, the King's huntress. Because Kaisa teaches her to hunt and ride - and most importantly to value life and love again.

I am a huge fan of fairy tale retellings, especially when they follow the recognized formula but bring some sort of new twist to the story. In case you couldn't tell, ASH is a retelling of Cinderella - with more dangerous fairies and a less over-the-top evil stepfamily than the Disney version.

The tale Debut Author Malinda Lo spins is haunting and powerful enough on its own, but she also weaves in various fascinating dark faerie tales that characters tell each other. Much will probably be made of the fact that Aisling falls for a woman instead of the prince, but in the world of ASH's narrative, it feels like the most natural thing in the world and no one even bats an eye.