As someone who grew up watching movies like Barbie and the Three Musketeers, Cinderella, and the Princess Bride, I am naturally a fan of the “disguise” trope in books. Blade of Ash has this concept… in a completely different way than I’ve ever seen before. In a world where only the king can see his sorcerer’s face, it makes sense that conflict would occur. Let’s talk about this twist on a classic trope!
A cursed king. A hunted sorceress. A mad plan for survival.
Newly crowned, Red blames one person for his father’s murder: the secret sorceress sworn to protect the king.
Alyana Barron, Royal Sorcerer to the throne of Tandera, has been hiding from a dangerous enemy bent on destroying her magic–and Red’s rash behavior has just told her enemy where to find her.
When Red activates a hidden curse, he must rely on Aly for survival, but Aly’s magic is tied directly to his wellbeing. As the curse drains his life, it weakens her magic as well.
Fighting for survival, their lives entwine in ways neither of them expected. To find a cure, they must put aside their mutual distrust and work together, but the closer they get to a solution, the nearer they step toward death, for the path to the cure is as dangerous as the curse itself.
World, Characters, and Plot
The world this book is set in has many new concepts. While I thought that they were creative, sometimes I felt like the story spent too many long paragraphs explaining them to the reader. I found myself setting the book aside when I got too bored with the details, and in some cases, even skipping over paragraphs I deemed unimportant completely.
Red is your classic fairy tale prince, with all the duty and responsibility that ensues. I can’t say that much made him stand out from this traditional role, but this 2D approach did not take away from the overall story. On the other hand, Alys was a great female character. She had some really strong dynamics and emotions that I was excited to delve deeper into throughout the story. Although I felt she was sometimes too emotional for what a situation might call for, her position as the first female sorcerer was unique and fun to read about.
The overall plot had some really unique concepts, like a sorcerer who keeps their face hidden from all but the king. There was a great setup for a tense enemies-to-lovers relationship; and, while Red and Alys did start out strong, their relationship slowly morphed into something more akin to insta-love. The transition from their hatred to their friendship was rocky and did not make a whole lot of sense. Even so, I enjoyed the concepts introduced by it.
PAGED IN: There is no profanity in Blade of Ash. Additionally, there is no innuendo of any kind. Biblically, Blade of Ash delves into the deep concept of fear and the process of overcoming it. 2 Timothy 1:7 tells us this: “For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.” The characters in the book had to learn not to rely on themselves to overcome fear, just like we have to learn to put our trust in God when we are scared.
Conclusion
Going into this book, I had little to no expectations. I wasn’t even entirely sure what the story was about. Although the exposition was slow, once I got about a third of the way through, I found myself enjoying the plot and message of the overall book. There were several really fun chapters and concepts, despite the quick turnarounds and lengthy explanations that slowed the story down. I would describe Blade of Ash as a solid three star read, perfect to fill reading time for one or two nights before bed.
You can buy Blade of Ash here.
Marie