Review copy was received from Publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
The Beautiful Ashes by Jeaniene Frost Series: Broken Destiny #1
Published by Harlequin on August 26, 2014
Genres: Fantasy Romance
Pages: 298
Format: Paperback
Source: Publisher
Goodreads
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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 and Adrian on the other. And nothing but ashes in between…
ICYMI is a post from my early days of blogging at Yummy Men & KickAss Chicks. You can see the original review here. It is currently in the Audible Romance package.
The Beautiful Ashes is the first book in the new adult, Broken Destiny series by Jeaniene Frost. I’ve enjoyed everything I’ve read by Jeaniene Frost previously so I was happy to get this to review. This series is to be a trilogy with the next books one year apart.
I’m not always a fan of demons and angels so I am glad to say I liked this. In many books, gargoyles are fascinating and charm me. It’s true again, but the jury is still out on the hell hounds here.
Ivy is a strong woman. Her foster parents, who have raised her from when she was a baby, have just died in a car crash. Her sister, Jasmine, texted “help” and disappeared. Now the alternate views to reality she has seen her whole life are becoming more realistic. Then she gets kidnapped by Adrian. She is dealing with a lot.
Ivy has struggled with seeing things others don’t see her whole life. This has given her a weird reaction to what she considers normal. Only her sister, Jasmine, always believes in her. So she will do what it takes to find and save Jasmine. She will even work with Adrian. She is awesome and stronger than she believes. She cares about others. She’s even rather honest with herself. I like her.
Adrian is a tortured hero. I have to say it bothers me when smart, strong, sexy guys are so blind about themselves. Of course, it is nearly impossible to be objective or honest about oneself. That is why I admire it so much when characters are. Sadly, Adrian is not. He believes he will be stuck in fate’s destiny for him. Ivy thinks differently and HELLO – the name of the series is Broken Destiny. So I have hopes.
Even with horrible things going on and bad monsters trying to kill people, there is humor in this book. And I love it. There’s plenty of action and interesting adventures. I felt a little fuzzy going along, since we are learning, along with Ivy, how things work in this “new to her” world. I never wanted to stop reading this book and was crabby when I had to go do some real life things.
Because this is urban fantasy, the story and the relationship are not over. The Beautiful Ashes finished at the logical first phase but the ending gave the twist which sets things up for the next two books. I connected more with Ivy than Adrian. I look forward to reading on in this series and seeing more development of their characters and relationship. There’s more to learn about the world and other characters, too. For me, it was a solid start to the series.
Giggle worthy quote –
“He was giving me a choice. Or at least, the illusion of one. If I ran, we both knew he could catch me.
The car’s interior light showed a hint of stubble trying to break through the smooth skin along his jaw, shadowing it in a way that was far too attractive. His exotic accent wasn’t helping, either. If I was ever kidnapped again, it had better be by an old, ugly guy. That would be less confusing to my emotions.
And less embarrassing. What idiot got caught lusting over her kidnapper? No wonder he’d asked me out. He must have thought I gave “easy” a whole new definition.”
About Jeaniene Frost
Jeaniene Frost is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of paranormal romance and urban fantasy. Her works include the Night Huntress series, the Night Prince series, the Broken Destiny series, and the new Night Rebel series. Jeaniene’s novels have also appeared on the Publishers Weekly, Wall Street Journal, ABA Indiebound, and international bestseller lists. Foreign rights for Jeaniene’s novels have sold to twenty different countries.
Jeaniene lives in Maryland with her husband Matthew, who long ago accepted that she rarely cooks and always sleeps in on the weekends. In addition to being a writer, Jeaniene also enjoys reading, writing, poetry, watching movies, exploring old cemeteries, spelunking and traveling – by car. Airplanes, children, and cook books frighten her.
I read all types of books but my favorites are urban fantasy and romantic suspense.I like some romance and some action / adventure / mystery in everything.I like sex in my books but please, only between TWO people.Intimate conversation is equally important to the sex in a book.It lets me see the characters.The other thing I enjoy is humor.
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I enjoyed this one, too, and really need to get back to the series. Wonderful review, Anne!
I had high hopes for this trilogy and this was pretty good. Sadly, the rest of the books were disappointing.
I really enjoy her other series, I should try this one
This one was a solid beginning. I’m a big fan of Jeaniene Frost
I enjoy books with demons and angels, even some romance. But I usually delve into the horror or dark fantasy realm with them. I’ve read some fun light fantasies though.
That could be my issue. I think angels \ demons are my least favorite supernaturals. There are some series I really love which have them but I tend to avoid them somewhat. Maybe they seem less real to me?
I listened to this trilogy. I think I gave this one three stars. I just couldn’t seem to click with the trilogy as much as I did her other books.
Yes I wish I had been able to but Laura pointed out something I hadn’t thought about before. Maybe it is the angel\demon thing. But I know there are some other aspects. I listened to the next 2 books on audio. I just didn’t like the characters enough.