Ash Princess by Laura Sebastian

Author: Laura Sebastian

Publisher: Random House Children's Books

Date: April 24, 2018

Pages: 448

Format: Hardcover

My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Purchase Links: [Chapters/Indigo] [Amazon]

Goodreads Synopsis:

Theodosia was six when her country was invaded and her mother, the Queen of Flame and Fury, was murdered before her eyes. Ten years later, Theo has learned to survive under the relentless abuse of the Kaiser and his court as the ridiculed “Ash Princess.” Pretending to be empty-headed and naive when she's not enduring brutal whippings, she pushes down all other thoughts but one: Keep the Kaiser happy and he will keep you safe. When the Kaiser forces her to execute her last hope of rescue, Theo can't keep her feelings and memories pushed down any longer. She vows revenge, throwing herself into a plot to seduce and murder the Kaiser's warrior son with the help of a group of magically gifted and volatile rebels. But Theo doesn't expect to develop feelings for the Prinz. Or for her rebel allies to challenge her friendship with the one person who's been kind to her throughout the last hopeless decade: her heart's sister, Cress. Cornered into impossible choices and unable to trust even those who are on her side, Theo will have to decide how far she's willing to go to save her people and how much of herself she's willing to sacrifice to become queen.

My Review:

* Thank you Penguin Random House for sending me a early copy of the book for an honest review *

I am very happy with the results of this book! Ash Princess is essentially a book about oppression and fighting for those who cannot fight for themselves and Laura Sebastian did a wonderful job writing it. The beginning was a bit slow paced for my liking, but it quickly picked up.

The concept of the story is very similar to other books, a rebel princess fighting to get revenge and her home back. Theo has suffered so much at the hands of the Kaiser and becoming submissive to lessen his anger. She has been put through so much mental and physical torture. For ten years waiting and hoping for a rescue but slowly forgetting her true self. After a turn of events Theo realizes that if she wants to be free, she's going to have to save herself.

The main protagonists have a solid character development and also plenty of room for improvement. We don't learn much of the side characters but I'm hoping to see them in the upcoming books. I want to learn so much more about them. I really loved how true the characters felt. They showed true feelings and responses to the situations they were experiencing. Since the book has a similar concept to others, there were some classic YA tropes. One was a love-triangle, which I'm a complete sucker for!

The storyline is full of political intrigue and plot twists! It kept me hooked until the very end! Ash Princess is the first book in a trilogy and I'm looking forward to its sequel!

#AshPrincess #LauraSebastian #4stars