Frost Like Night

Frost Like Night is the third book in Sara Raasch's Snow Like Ashes series. 

"Angra is alive, his Decay is spreading--and no on is safe.

"Meira will do anything to save her world. With Angra trying to break through her mental defenses, she desperately needs to learn to control her own magic--so when the leader of a mysterious Order from Paisly offers to teach her, she jumps at the chance. But the true solution to stopping the Decay lies in a labyrinth deep beneath the Season Kingdoms. To defeat Angra, Meira will have to enter the labryinth, destroy the very magic she's learning to control--and make the biggest sacrifice of all.

"Mather will do anything to save his queen. He needs to rally the Children of the Thaw, find Meira--and finally tell her how he really feels. But with a plan of attack that leaves no kingdom unscathed and a major betrayal within the ranks, winning the war--and protecting Meira--slips farther and farther out of reach. 

"Ceridwen will do anything to save her people. Angra had her brother killed, stole her kingdom, and made her a prisoner. But when she's freed by an unexpected ally who reveals a shocking truth behind Summer's slave trade, Ceridwen must take action to save her true love and her kingdom, even if it costs her what little she has left. 

"As Angra unleashes the Decay on the world, Meira, Mather, and Ceridwen must bring the kingdoms of Primoria together or lose everything." 

General Thoughts and Plot: Wow that intro seemed really intense. It is the final book in the series and everything comes to a head. In true, "I'm the only one who can do it" fashion, Meira ends up needing to sacrifice herself in order to stop the magic. Not going to lie, I saw the ending a mile and a half away. It was very easy to see where it was going. However, how we got there was pretty neat. Final battle sequence of magically hypnotized armies, travel to find the last few lands we hadn't visited yet because reasons, and somehow saving the world while still looking gorgeous and unharmed. It was a little cheesy with a nice ribbon to tie it all up with, but I guess it gave us what we wanted. 

Theme: The caption above put it in context, a lot of this is about "I will sacrifice myself for the good of my people." Obviously not wanting to die or them to die, but battles must be fought and heroic days must be lead. Again, kind of cheesy, but that's what you get with "end of the world" motifs

Setting: As with before in the series, it's an interesting, if not childish, representations of the four Seasons and four other kingdoms that are easy to get confused.  The labyrinth is pretty cool though. 

Characters: It was cool to get a little more of Angra's backstory, his Angry story. There are so many of those little things where again it almost seems childish. Obviously he's the BBEG, but I like a BBEG who is able to get a little monologuing done so we know his reasonings. I don't think they worked well enough for me though, didn't quiet hit hat power punch that I was hoping for. I did very much enjoy Meira and a certain boy "got back together." Many of the other characters were good too, and I liked the development that supporting cast had, like Theron--though his ending seemed a little... wanting. 

Spice: 3/5 Spicy Chilis. It's been a minute since I've read it and nothing came to mind, so whatever happened wasn't too much that I was disturbed by it. However, other reviews mention things happening, but not explicitly described. So this is where I'm putting it. 

Writing Style: It was alright. Modern, young adult. Easy to read and listen to, but nothing extraordinary.

Overall: It was pretty good. A decent ending for the series. Not my favorite series, maybe top fifteen, but I also read it over a year ago and my feelings probably shifted as parts there weren't as memorable as they could have been. There weren't very many scenes that stuck with me like there were in the first one. There were moments that were good, sure, but I really had to think about this one to remember what was going on. 

Ice Like Fire

 Ice Like Fire is the second book in the Snow Like Ashes series by Sara Raash. 

"It’s been three months since the Winterians were freed and Spring’s king, Angra, disappeared—thanks largely to the help of Cordell.

"Meira just wants her people to be safe. When Cordellan debt forces the Winterians to dig their mines for payment, they unearth something powerful and possibly dangerous: Primoria’s lost chasm of magic. Theron sees this find as an opportunity—with this much magic, the world can finally stand against threats like Angra. But Meira fears the danger the chasm poses—the last time the world had access to so much magic, it spawned the Decay. So when the king of Cordell orders the two on a mission across the kingdoms of Primoria to discover the chasm’s secrets, Meira plans to use the trip to garner support to keep the chasm shut and Winter safe—even if it means clashing with Theron. But can she do so without endangering the people she loves?

"Mather just wants to be free. The horrors inflicted on the Winterians hang fresh and raw in Januari—leaving Winter vulnerable to Cordell’s growing oppression. When Meira leaves to search for allies, he decides to take Winter’s security into his own hands. Can he rebuild his broken kingdom and protect them from new threats?

"As the web of power and deception weaves tighter, Theron fights for magic, Mather fights for freedom—and Meira starts to wonder if she should be fighting not just for Winter, but for the world."

General Thoughts: It has been a little over a year since I read this and when I first realized that this was on the list, I had a hard time remembering what it was about. Upon further reflection, I did remember that it got rather political. Fights between Winter and Cordell, Meira and Theron, Mather getting himself in trouble. It was a good audiobook and an interesting story, but middle books can be hard to make exceptional, or so I've found. 

Plot: I will not end up doing this justice. I simply don't remember much beyond them going to different countries and trying to get people to believe that the BBEG is still around and pulling strings. I do remember some vice between Meira and Theron and that Mather acted like an idiot. I also remember Meira being pulled in many different directions and that her thought process was interesting and I liked how she figured out how to fix her problems. There were a bunch of "must find the thing" moments in each of the cities they visited and she was able to get help along the way. I do remember that the end was really good. With all the puzzle pieces back together and finding out that the BBEG had his fingers in many pies it made for a really good cliffhanger amongst all the blood. 

Setting: The Snow Like Ashes books have a very simple map though an interesting world that has developed from that map. Each country is so different that different cultures have to bloom from them. Summer was very interesting, though I didn't appreciate all of their social norms, though I hope there wouldn't be many who would. Although, the fact that Summer, Winter, Spring, and Autumn are always that season is kind of basic. It is nice that the other non-season countries are different, but it can be confusing especially when they aren't actually in those countries. 

Characters: I don't have anything bad to say about any of them as far as I can remember. There were some that were annoying or I was glad to see die, but as a character that's what they were supposed to do. Meira had many moments of growth and her fight to figure out what "Being Queen of Januari" meant and that fight continued on into the third book, so I believe. Mather goes about learning more about how not to be an idiot, which I'm grateful for. I was rooting for him to win out his love triangle. Theron has his moments, but he starts slipping into an antagonist roll, though not the main antagonist as the BBEG because he is constantly butting heads with Meira though he has sound ideas as well. 

Spice: 2/5 Spicy Chilis. I remember there being more than flirtations, I mean Meira and Theron are/were engaged to be married. I remember them kissing at least once in the first one, I think. As the book goes on, their love for one another dwindles considerably. Mather coming up into this love triangle again doesn't really happen because he's too far away, though he does love her and tries to save her toward the end. There isn't much of any opportunity to show it. 

Writing Style: It is a very modern, young adult book. Simple in writing. Simple metaphor and similes. Not very poetic or lyrical. Nothing particularly stands out compared to other young adult books. 

Overall: It was a decent book, definitely a middle of the series book where there are parts that are easily forgotten. The ending was pretty cool and had some unexpected parts. I probably wouldn't want to reread this one again on it's own. If I was wanting the series, then yes, but there weren't any  moments the I felt I needed to read again because it was just that good. 

Snow Like Ashes

Snow Like Ashes was a great book. I was able to bing the audio book on a road trip and because and the intrigue I was didn't stop to rest as much as I should have. It was so engaging I couldn't stop.

Sixteen years ago, Spring destroyed Winter and many Winterians were enslaved. Now, Meira, and orphan and one of seven refuges after Winter's Fall, never seems to be able to help. With Mather's help she is finally able to go and hopefully do something to help her people. They are forced to flee Summer, again, to the capital of another country where she is suddenly pawned off in hopes that she can "help her country" that way. This isn't what she wants to do. She wants to fight and defend her people. Free them from the enslavement camps that Spring has them in, not prance around in dresses. Things obviously go more and more wrong and it is delicious.

I really enjoyed this book bing and am sad I hadn't read it earlier. I cannot wait for the next book.

Meira is a headstrong girl who just wants to help. She grows in this coming of age novel. Her internal adventure is to find her place in this world where she seems to constantly be on the run. Her tone made this book. She had so many internal jabs at the people around her that I laughed hard enough at to wake my son while we were on our trip. I loved it. I love her.

The world that Sara Raasch created here is great too. She's given attitude and personality to all of the seasons and other countries. Winter, Spring, Summer, Autumn, and the other four countries are all vastly different places with an interweaving history. This obviously makes prejudices and hate as well as friendly-ish allies. Her background and world building was very well done. The setting was well enough done to leave me satisfied.

The magic system was fun too, though I do want more. There wasn't a whole lot of magic, but I can see it being far more prominent in the coming books of the series. What I liked most about the magic is that Sara Raasch gave us a reason and history behind the magic. How it was discovered and whatnot. Not many people do that.

I also have to say that Kate Rudd, the reader for Snow Like Ashes did a phenomenal job and made the book sooooo entertaining. Great job, I'll be looking for other books that you've done.

I don't think I have anything really negative to say about the book. This will be one that I suggest alongside Cinder, Six of Crows, Brandon Sanderson, the Manga I've read, and the other 5 Star books I've enjoyed.

Enjoy it. It was a great read.