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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
This series just keeps getting better and better!, August 15, 2007
I'm not going to recap the storyline since the above reviewers have taken care of that. However, I am going to say that this book is the best one yet. This story is full of twists and turns that had me catching my breath in surprise.
Carrie and Nathan's already complex relationship deepens and intensifies. Max and Bella's interaction takes some unexpected and delightful turns and the Soul Eater is back and creepier than ever. Ms. Armintrout has the ability to not only humanize the "monsters" but to reveal the monsters within humanity. Do NOT miss this book!
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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
5 stars, August 5, 2007
Carrie and Nathan's have been far from any sort of happily ever after scenario. In the short months that they've known each other, he has re-sired her as a vampire, they have been put under the scrutiny of the Voluntary Vampire Extinction Movement for various crimes, people they care about have died, not all of them have stayed dead, bounty hunters have pursued them, they've betrayed each other, and all that pales in comparison to what is on the horizon. The Soul-Eater is still out there forming his evil plans, but now, he is working both with and against the Oracle, an ancient being whose lust for revenge is millenia old. For the sake of the world and for each other, Carrie and Nathan have to stop them, and that means putting aside old grudges and jealousy. Therefore, Cyrus is needed, and he, too much set aside hatred. However, before Carrie can gain his help, things change again and she is forced to do something that will make both men she loves hate her. The story is just beginning then. From there on out, the complexity and emotional action only get more intense.
***** This series is one that only gets better. Readers should be prepared to be taken on a journey that will make them weep, yet want the story to never end despite or because of that. The ending is heart-shattering, yet I am already looking forward to the next story. *****
Amanda Killgore
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Love, Loss. Second chances and common ground., September 25, 2007
Quite a bit of Ashes to Ashes is about second chances. The characters from the previous books return here and if you are new to the series you will really want to start at the beginning with The Turning (Blood Ties, Book 1) and Possession (Blood Ties, Book 2) because a lot of time was spent in those books developing the characters and their convoluted relationships. If you start here you will get that fact that Carrie, Nathan, Cyrus, Max and Bella are all damaged in some way, but it is more of a superficial understanding than you'd have if you'd watched the events unfold.
All are needy and in search of love, but not all of them are truly ready for it. The triangle with Carrie, Nathan and Cyrus continues, in fact the author even indulges in a menage dream sequence. But the dynamics between them shift as events take the three of them through changes. Reasons holding back not just those three, but Max and Bella too, from giving their love disappear. Events occur between Cyrus and Carrie that allow Cyrus/Carrie and Nathan/Carrie to approach each other from common ground. Max and Bella especially find a new beginning, as they undertake what looks like a fatal journey, when they acknowledge love inspite of their fear of rejection or loss. All these changes make for second chances for those that can survive.
Ashes to Ashes carries forward the plot and the relationships from the previous books, but offers only a little in resolution. It turns out that there will be a fourth book in the series, All Soul's Night, out in June of next year. There's some setup for that here, as a character from the past reappears. One enemy is vanquished and another remains to be defeated next time. I couldn't find the page to quote it exactly but in this book, Bella says that every one has scars, and it is how one goes about trying to heal that matters. It will be interesting to see how the Bella, Max, Nathan and Carrie move toward healing in the next book.
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