Customer Reviews

Ash

5 star:		(43)
4 star:		(42)
3 star:		(22)
2 star:		(13)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

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.

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.

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.

As rapidly becomes obvious when you read this, this is a re-telling of the Cinderella story. But it's not quite the one you remember from Disney.

Aisling (Ash) is our Cinderella, losing her mother at the age of 13, and her father not long thereafter. There is the traditional step-mother of the original tale, but as depicted here she's not quite an absolutely mean-spirited ogre, but rather truly has a reason for treating Ash as she does. Her step-sisters are still pretty addle-pated, obsessed with their looks and catching a man of means as their ticket to the good life, but here again there's a little more meat placed on the bare bones of this story, as it's not just the prince of the realm that they set their eyes on, but includes the possibility of catching a much older man, considering him to be acceptable merely because he has money, regardless of his character or age, and as such provides some commentary on arranged marriages and the self-imposed bind of people trying to maintain their image and rich lifestyle regardless of the cost.

But beyond these minor revisions, there are two major points of departure from the original. The first is the introduction of the fairy elves, a complete culture in their own right, that used to have a fair amount of regular contact with the 'normal' people, and second is the introduction of the King's Huntress, a nice change from the traditional all-male dominated society of most fantasies. These two items provide the focus for Ash's development, first with her attraction to Sidhean of the elves, and second her attraction to the Kaisa, the current Huntress, which is barely acknowledged by Ash at first, but eventually becomes an overriding force in driving the story to its conclusion.

Sidhean is only lightly drawn, remaining pretty much a dark mysterious character, but there are intimations given that fairy-human affairs, while not impossible, are very rare for good reasons, and are not simple in complexion. Sidhean is this story's replacement for the fairy godmother of the Disney tale, and provides a much darker feel to the overall story. Kaisa is also drawn with only light brush-strokes, and this I felt was something of problem with this book, as I felt the developing attraction between her and Ash needed a deeper exposition to be truly believable. While the acceptance of same-gender relationships is admirably portrayed as just a normal part of this society, not worthy of comment, the feelings Ash has towards Kaisa remain too vague, with inadequate development. Rather oddly, I felt that this story needed a little more romantic treatment, some better hooks into Ash's development from a pre-adolescent to a woman, to make it a fully engaging story.

An interesting twist on the original Cinderella, which some good social commentary nicely folded into the story, but not quite as robust as it could have been with some deeper delving into Ash's development.

---Reviewed by Patrick Shepherd (hyperpat)

Lo has created an interesting premise in this reworking of Cinderella's story. There is absolutely no question of that. The problem is that there was too much going on. Was it a faerie story or was it a story about a girl awakening to the fact that she could be in love with another woman? The broad overview of both stories left me feeling as though Ash was disconnected from both potential romances; there wasn't any passion in either. Given that, I didn't feel the conflict Ash was supposed to be experiencing as she worked to decide which life and which partner to choose.

The latter made me wish we'd had a story without that conflict at all; that it was either Ash in the faerie tale or Ash awakening to her lesbianism all the way through. I understood completely the reason for having both in the story but for me that conflict muddled the eventual love story. Particularly since we also dealt with the overpowering step-mother, the annoying plotting step sister, and bits and pieces of the prince choosing his bride from all eligible ladies of the land. As I said, lots going on.

The faerie story aspect was intriguing and beautifully written. Of the whole story it was that area that drew me in as a reader the most. I wanted to know more about it and see more of it. I wanted Ash to tell us more of the history and interact with its inhabitants much more than she did. The sections where Ash was in the Wood and in that faerie land were so vivid I was excited to experience them.

In the end this book may not have been for me but it was none the less a book that I would encourage anyone interested in experiencing a retelling of Cinderella's story to pick up.

The story of Cinderella is a classic story that has been told several ways through the years since it's first telling by the Brother's Grimm's "The Little Cinder Girl" (that I know of) up until present day Hollywood adaption's such as "The Princess Diary's". And now author Malinda Lo has put her own twist to the tale in her book "Ash", let me first say that I loved the idea of a LBGT love story for teens, which puts the discovery of finding love and self-esteem and acceptance in a positive light, in addition to adding a bit of Cinderella style fairy tale to make it all the sweeter, in a real world that is not always accepting, loving or tolerant of Lesbian, Gay, Bi-Sexual or Trans-Gender teens and adults.

However, I must say that has a whole the story dragged and went off into so many other fairy tales within the actual fairy tale to explain the actions and beliefs of the characters in the story being told. I found myself getting lost several times in the stories that Ash's or Kaisa would relate to one another of tales they had been told as children to teach them certain life lessons...ect.

At times it reminded me of the Canterbury Tales one story being told to explain another and that irritated me to no end, what made it bearable was that the "fairy tales" within the fairy tale are written well and crafted with great imagination.

I'm not sure at the age of 15 yrs old if this book would have kept my attention because of the multiple and sometimes confusing layers to the story, as an adult I found my attention straying because all through the book I was waiting for an indefinable "something" to happen and it never did.

Here's the deal: I work in a bookstore. As a twenty-something (gay) woman, I more often than not inwardly cringe at the girls who ask me to point them towards new books, and specify that they like things like Twilight. Lo's debut novel, Ash, isn't Twlight. It's the anti-Twilight. And that's exactly why it's so good.

Even though it's a retelling of Cinderella, Ash is more a coming-of-age story than a sappy romance. Torn between the memories of her dead parents and the reality of her cruel stepmother, Aisling finds her escape in the woods she loves and the dangerous fairies that live there. Until she meets Kaisa, the King's huntress, Ash lives as an abused servant by day and a bewitched victim of fairy magic by night.

Now, if this was Twilight, Aisling would fall hopelessly in love with some abusive, mystical stalker who she is "inexplicably drawn to" (I swear, that's the exact wording they use for 90% publisher copies of the YA fantasy-romance dreck pumped out today like candy). But this atmospheric and eerie plot leads to a surprising conclusion -- much different than the classic Cinderella -- but ultimately much more convincing!

The romance in Ash is less purple prose or a storm of clichés and more poignant and touching -- based on friendship, respect and freedom, not an unhealthy attraction to danger. I couldn't put this one down, and I'm glad I didn't: the ending is utterly satisfying and sweet (spoiler: oh, and gay).

As for me, I really enjoy pointing Twilight-addled preteens towards such subversive literature. There's something deliciously ironic with the fact that a healthy, lesbian relationship in teen literature is more controversial than the dozens of abusive, incomprehensible, poorly written "novels" for teens pumped out each day.

Parents: skip Twilight and buy Ash. Unless you'd rather your girls identify with useless empty female protagonists who flirt with death rather than proactive, but gay, female protagonists who find nothing sexy about killing yourself for the sake of boys who equate violence with love.

The Good: Why hasn't anyone thought about this type of retelling before?!? I loved that the author thought outside of the box. Not only is it refreshing to read about a lesbian story, but about the character not falling for the supernatural hottie (though I did like Sidheane, too). The author killed two birds with one stone and that will certainly appeal to many readers.

It really has that whole fairy tale like quality to it. I know that might sound a little redundant, but it's true! I could just imagine it as it's own real life fairytale (like the ones in all those "The Treasury of Fairy tales type of thing). Anyway, my point is: Ash has fantastic writing.

The Bad: It's not awe-inspiring as everyone makes it to be.

I didn't like this book as much as I thought I would, I didn't feel any special connection to it. When I finished it I wasn't like, "Now that was a fantastic book" but rather, "Hm, good. Okay, on to the next book". The storyline was too slow for it to hold my attention and while I did feel sorry for Ash and happy for her when she her life got better, other than that, what I feeling while reading the book was indifference.

While Ash wasn't that boring, it didn't spark anymore interest beyond the premise and that was SO disappointing.

And that sucks because I really did want to love this book.

Overall: Ash is the type of book that must be read slowly to enjoy and while it wasn't the book for me, it was still very interesting to read and a fabulous retelling even though I did have some problems with it.

Grade: B/B-

Ash is that orphaned heroine who runs off into the forbidden wood after achingly handsome fairies. She's that rebellious female who would rather ride a horse than dance with a prince.

A lot of reviewers are insisting they 'have nothing against lesbians' in a way that sounds awfully like 'some of my best friends are gay'. Lo handles the issue persuasively and gives it dignity which reality usually denies it. She presents a fantasy world where lesbian relationships are a fact, not a controversy, and where woman-on-woman action isn't a gratuitous spectacle, and has nothing to do with performing for the male gaze.

This isn't pleading artistic license any more than writing about fairies is. Nor is it deviating from the 'real' story of Cinderella any more than any other modern retelling; they all come with a twist. If there's no twist, what's the point?

Nor is there any point in targeting a book like this at people who are already perfectly comfortable with seeing one girl kiss another. It's an intervention, an attempt to make lesbianism more culturally acceptable, by presenting it as a perfectly ordinary romance. I am not in love with every hero of every straight romance I read. It's nice if I am, but it doesn't have to ruin the book. And Lo provides a male fairy for anyone for whom Kaisa is not enough.

The book does, however, have it's problems.

1) It takes itself too seriously. The narration itself is quite poetic without overdoing it, which is a rare balance. But Ash is irredeemably humourless and uptight. She's the sort of girl who won't speak in contractions, even when her friends do. Every 'can not' and 'do not', where any normal person would have just said 'can't or 'don't', rubs you up the wrong way.

2) None of the characters have any personality. The most complex character is Clara, the younger stepsister, because she appears to be part of team evil then turns out not so bad after all. Which isn't saying much, really.

The characterisation relies on unspoken archetypes. The stepmother is evil and manipulative because stepmothers just are (she's given a financial motivation, but really we're meant to hate her because she's a bitch), the huntress is a pretty standard Artemis figure (strong, beautiful, independent, dislikes men), the gossipy maid who marries a young baker is a gossipy maid who marries a young baker.

These archetypes work fine in fairy tales, where their brevity is useful. It's not that simple in novels because novels always entail detail, and detail always complicates characterisation. In this case the detail almost always detracts from the strength of the archetype. We can assume a stepmother is evil. When we see her evilness only weakly realised we stop believing.

3) Ash's struggle is too easy. She bunks off work all the time. Team evil keeps swanning off, leaving her on her own, and she never seems to have anything to do but lie in fields reading books. Every time she needs to do something that she's not allowed to, some magical solution comes along and does it for her; and doesn't go wrong. Ash get's away with almost everything without being caught. On the one occasion she is caught she gets magically rescued. Lo knows full well that the point of magic is that it only comes at a price; this makes up a significant element of the plot. Unfortunately, in the end, the 'price' is easily escaped through the 'magic' of love.'

Even when acting with massive social impropriety, Ash gets away with it because of contacts higher up, who wave it away. Social propriety does not, here, mean kissing girls: Lo makes it clear that that is normal and even expected in the society she invents.



But in spite of the lesbianism, as retellings of Cinderella go, ASH is frankly lacklustre.

As with other complex YA fiction I've read, I'm not entirely sure what to think of this work. Before I damn with faint praise, though, I want to point out that the author - who has quite an excellent pedigree - has a lovely and evocative command of the language. Her desire to create a compelling story that lesbian teens can relate to is wonderful, and I think she has done so without sacrificing an important element of writing - this book isn't just for a young gay woman who feels outcast or unable to relate to straight fiction, it's for anybody.

However, I have problems with the story, nobility of purpose aside. I find the original hook for the story to be a weak choice. Cinderella? Really? A story about a girl who doesn't actually DO anything except rely on somebody else to dress her up, snag royalty and spend a lot of time feeling badly for herself? Why on earth couldn't the author write an original story, instead of utilizing a trope that begins to smack of Hollywood pitchwriting - 'it's like Cinderella, but for gay teens.' Even the blurb on the back of the book aggrandizes the character - it intimates that Ash learns how to 'hunt and track', but all she actually does is ride occasionally with the huntress; there is no real change in her character's actions. Clearly the author invested a lot of time and heart into placing the characters in the world of the story, but at the same time it feels like a gloss on a fairytale instead of a truly original work. I would have been far more compelled by a story where the protagonist was genuinely torn between love and societal mores, even if the societal mores involved the faery world. The slightly underdeveloped world - fantasy needs wholehearted involvement - and the reserve the author showed in really giving the reader richly drawn characters made me feel a little cheated. I wanted to know far more about the lineage of huntresses than I was given. I don't even really know what Ash looks like. And the villains in the story are virtually two-dimensional.

Although I think the writing was beautifully crafted, I also take issue with the trajectory of the book. Part of the problem with writing a faery tale is the sometimes stilted methods of describing time passing, character action, and the like. It's familiar to all cultures, because all myths and traditional stories have the same rhythms - 'time passed,' 'seasons changed', that sort of thing. I think there was a great deal more story that could have been part of the novel that was left out. Fundamentally, I would have liked to have seen more, all around: story, character development, the development of the world.