In a world of shadows, anything is possible. Except escaping your fate.
Ever since she was a child, Ivy has been gripped by visions of strange realms just beyond her own. But when her sister goes missing, Ivy discovers the truth is far worse–her hallucinations are real, and her sister is trapped in a parallel realm. And the one person who believes her is the dangerously attractive guy who’s bound by an ancient legacy to betray her.
Adrian might have turned his back on those who raised him, but that doesn’t mean he can change his fate…no matter how strong a pull he feels toward Ivy. Together they search for the powerful relic that can save her sister, but Adrian knows what Ivy doesn’t: that every step brings Ivy closer to the truth about her own destiny, and a war that could doom the world. Sooner or later, it will be Ivy on one side, Adrian on the other, and nothing but ashes in between…
About the Author:
Jeaniene Frost is the New York Times, USA Today, and international bestselling author of the Night Huntress series, the Night Prince series, and the upcoming Broken Destiny series. To date, foreign rights for her novels have sold to twenty different countries. Jeaniene splits her time between North Carolina and Florida with her husband Matthew, who long ago accepted that she rarely cooks and always sleeps in on the weekends. Aside from writing, Jeaniene enjoys reading, poetry, watching movies, exploring old cemeteries, spelunking and traveling – by car. Airplanes, children, and cook books frighten her.
Jennifer’s Review of The Beautiful Ashes
Review (4 Stars): I have always been a big fan of Ms. Frost’s work and I was very excited to read her new book, The Beautiful Ashes, which is the first title in a brand new series. Ivy is on the search for her sister, Jasmine, who has been missing for days and seems to have disappeared off the face of the earth. No one has seen her and Ivy is dealing with her disappearance as well as the death of her foster parents, who were recently killed in a car accident. Ivy has always been a little different, plagued by dreams and visions of horrible things that no one has been able to explain. She soon finds that people are trying to kill her to prevent her from finding her sister and finds an unlikely ally in a young man named Adrian. Adrian may be the only person she can count on in this deadly fight but he may also be the one person that is meant to betray her. She is running out of time to save her sister and she needs to find a historic weapon before it is too late to save them all.
I liked Ivy from the very beginning, she was a strong, independent young woman who was trying to hold it together after the loss of her parents and the disappearance of her younger sister. Ivy has always been plagued by horrifying visions of things that no one else could see but her. During the search for her sister, Ivy can’t find anyone that has seen her and the people that she meets look fine one second, then something out of a horror movie the next. She soon meets up with Adrian, a young man with secrets of his own, where she finds that her visions are real and she is the last descendant of a distinctive bloodline. She has supernatural powers that she has never known about and to save her sister, she must help Adrian find a historic weapon that only she can locate. She also discovers that Adrian is the descendant of another infamous bloodline and it is has been prophesied for him to betray her. She has this love/hate relationship with Adrian through most of the book which dragged on a little but I enjoyed them both together. He was the first person to believe in her and tell her that everything she had been going through was real.
Adrian was definitely a charmer but he was also a bad boy with a tainted past. He was always there by Ivy’s side through everything but sometimes his attitude made me want to reach in and smack him. He was destined to betray Ivy but couldn’t stay away from her no matter what happened. I liked that he tried to redeem himself from the past things that he had done and I’m interested to see how things play out for them in the rest of the series.
I liked The Beautiful Ashes and I think that is a promising start to a new series. It was action-packed from the beginning with a touch of romance to even things out. I’m looking forward to reading the rest of the series to see if the prophecy between Ivy and Adrian actually comes to light or they are able to change their own fates.
I can’t wait to get this one. I want to see what else Ms. Frost has in store for us outside of the Cat & Bones world (though I will miss that world when it completely goes away).