Frost Like Night (Snow Like Ashes #3)

                Hello Happy Readers!  So I had been waiting for this book,  Frost Like Night (Snow Like Ashes #3) for a long time.  It is the final book by Sara Raasch is the final book in the series.  I had started reading this series (Snow Like Ashes / Ice Like Fire) and really enjoyed it but more than that I was nervous to see how they were going to wrap it all up.  I finished the series some time back but as I was going through and making my 2018 goals I realized there were several books I read in the last year or so that I never did review and I set to rectify that.  I had the pleasure of receiving an advanced copy of this book through No BS Book Reviews and the original review is posted there but this one was too good not to share on here as well. 

Rating:  5 Stars

                I read the first two books in this series earlier in the year and was blown away.  I could not wait for the final book to see how things would wrap up and if I would be right about a few things I had predicted.  OMG was I stoked to get my hands on this one! 

                So excited to dive in and see how it ends….and also not wanting to all at the same time.  I didn’t want it to end.       I managed to push though that last part clearly and now I know how things end and WOW! 

                We left our gang last time split up.  Angra is alive and the Decay is spreading.  Meira split off to go to Paisly to learn from the Order to use her magic and stop Angra while Mather is to free her people that he can, his Thaw.  Still given the past he is unable to not go after her again.  Half of their world is fighting to save their people while the other half seem to have given into Angra by will or force.  It’s a final battle for everything and no one is safe. 

                I LOVED IT! 

                Everything is happening very quickly in the book.  There is constantly something happening and it really adds the feel of imminent threat to the characters we love.  Even more with the dual POVs when one character is doing something that takes some time another character is handling something pressing.  It also manages to weave in the bits of happiness and romance amongst all the pain and tears we are faced with. The way Raasch manages to combine all the different emotions and make them feel natural is stellar work.  The bits of happiness that made me squeal weren’t out of place in the middle of war but written in such a way they are curtail and not just because I want to know if Meira and Mather will ever have their moment or if Ceridwen will find happiness but because like life there is always bits of everything mixed in.  Hope in the dark.

                Magic takes on a larger role in this one.  Meira really begins to understand.  We begin to see magic for what it truly is and I enjoyed the way it was further explained both good and bad.  The way the Decay worked was really rather fascinating, never knowing 100% if it’s the person's true desires being amplified or simply being weaker willed and easily controlled.  With the Decay it's hard to know who can be trusted, even yourself.  I loved that no one was really truly immune.  Also as Meira learns more about her own magic it really moved things along, not just in giving her a real show against Angra but in how it was centered around her emotions.  It was really empowering seeing her go from shut off and somewhat broken to facing what is on the other side of her mental walls and accepting it good and bad. 

                We also talk a lot about sacrifice.  It's been a theme for sure but now we come to what it will truly take.  I enjoyed how it was huge and important but it also wasn’t beaten into the ground.  It's discussed and thought about often but in small parts, as one might assume it would be.  Sacrifice is also seen in other ways as well and I enjoyed the other aspects of it, how it's about letting yourself be open even if it makes you vulnerable and may hurt you in the end. 

                Now I have to talk a moment about Mather.  So I was always a Mather fan.  I was a bit mad at him at times, like when he went to go marry her off and all that when he was king to name one but while I had moments and enjoyed Theron in parts I always had a bit of me rooting for Mather.  It was so nice to see them spend time together in this book where they spent most of the other book apart.  I enjoyed that reconnecting and seeing the connection they shared from growing up together and knowing one another so well.  He is devoted to her not just as her warrior but as her friend.  I also loved that while he would defend her with his life he also knows she is a warrior herself and wouldn't try to see her as anything less. 

                There is just so much happening in this book. It's the end.  Things wrap up and for me I was happy.  Some things broke my heart and I hated the book for those moments but then after I had a few tissues I had to keep going to know, what next?  It has it all, a real roller coaster of emotion.  We got to know some characters more fully flushed out, Ceridwen for one might be my favorite addition to book two and having so much from her perspective wonderful. 

                I was sad to see it end but I'm so fulfilled it's all good.             

         

Ice Like Fire (Snow Like Ashes #2)

                Hello happy readers.  Another wonderful Friday!  This is my weekend off and despite the tons of things I need to accomplish to be a productive human being I don’t want to do much more than watch some shows, sleep, and read.  Hopefully, I’ll get some good reading time in because I have a million things to read and never enough time.  Today though I wanted to share my thoughts and feels on Ice Like Fire, book two in the Snow Like Ashes trilogy by Sara Raasch which I reviewed here.  There will be spoilers to the first book in this review.

Rating:  5 Stars

                We last left Meira, soldier turned queen of Winter, as she with the help of Cordell’s army freed her people from Spring and defeated their oppressor.  Or so they hope.  Because having learned things about magic no one else had learned, that she didn’t need a conduit but instead IS the conduit, destroying the Spring conduit might have created the same of Angra, though his disappearance is cause for hope that he was defeated.  Still while Winter might be free of chains from Spring she is not yet free.  Winter owes a debt to Cordell, and continues to incur debt as they start to rebuild their lost land.  Meira isn’t happy with the king of Cordell, Noam, and his constant press for more of her land than she wants to give.  He didn’t help out of the goodness of his heart, or because his son Theron cares for it’s queen, but because he wants access to their mines to try and locate the lost chasm of magic.  When the chasm found but secured sets Meira and Theron on a journey of opposing purposes and force Meira to make some tough decisions.

                We get a dual POV in this one both from Meira and Mather.  This is great because we get to see so much more of Mather and what he feels given that the last story one of his short comings in the romance department is he was too good at hiding his emotions but being in his head you see it all.  This also allowed us to see a different part of the new Winter now that Meira is the queen and expected to handle the political aspects, wheeling and dealing as it were, and Mather is down in the grit of it.  They’ve swapped roles in a way.  Also nice seeing the contrast in how she adapts to being a simple soldier to the queen and him from king to simple lord.  The dynamic was interesting to see.  Meira struggling to hold in her impulsive act first talk later kick ass self at bay and be more queenly was interesting.  She isn't used to thinking in terms of politics and her strategies had always been more of the physical kick butt kind.

                We also got a ton of new characters and traveled to different kingdoms.  We had the chance to see into Summer (not a fan), Yakim, and Ventralli as well as seeing Winter which we only saw in glimpses and at the end of the last book.  Ceridwen was a favorite new addition for sure, she is sassy and determined which I admire.  She reminded me a bit of the old Meira before she had such responsibilities edging in on her.  William in this took a bit of a turn for me, while I wasn't always his biggest fan I always respected his choices or the reasons behind them anyways.  He went a little weak to me in this and it was very sad to see, especially the relationship between him and his son. 

                Another character who lost some points for me in this one is Theron.  Now at the end of book one I was undecided on which ship I wanted to ship.  I liked Mather and their past history for sure but I had some issues with how some things were handled.  Then meeting Theron he seemed too good to be true and I genuinely liked him and was almost shipping for him after he came to rescue her.  In the end I wasn’t sold 100% on picking a ship though I swayed more towards Theron.  This book and having Mathers POV among other things swayed me to declare Team Mather!  Still Theron while I respect his hope and optimism he starts out the back irking me almost reverting on everything I loved about him before.  He's pushy and determined to have things his way and doesn't treat Meira as an equal which now technically she out ranked him.  Some things can be explained but the overall items that got to me seemed more in line with his true nature.

                The story was intriguing and while there wasn't as much action, or at least it didn't feel like there was as much, there was so much happening plot wise that it moved along nicely for me.  Trying to figure out the best options alone with Meira while making a list of characters I wouldn't mind seeing killed.  Hey they list got kind of wrong.  There's one quote which kind of sums up so much.

 

                I finished this book excited and ready to go onto the next one but sadly I have to wait.  I'm itching to get my hands on Frost Like Night ASAP because the end of this one is definitely a cliffhanger and so much new stuff has come to light and others we have yet to scratch the surface of.  I wasn't sure where this book was going to go when the last one ended on freeing Winter but it has surpassed my expectations.  I'd love to hear your thoughts and feels down below.  What guy do you think is best for Meira?  Tell me in the comments below. 

                Until next time…