I wish I could give half stars because this would be 4.5 stars. It was a truly enjoyable read (read it all in one day). This is the first debut novel by Sara, and considering that, she is truly talented. Sara weaves a beautiful tale, in a world run by the seasons, with Spring on a serious power trip to overrun all of the other seasons. Having already wiped out Winter, enslaved its people and on the hunt for its Prince, Spring is planning the ultimate coup. Too bad that the night Winter fell, 25 Winterians escaped. Our Heroine Meira is raised side by side with the royal prince...the Heir to the Winter throne and its magic. Their small group is led by Sir, and they live out in the Reina Plaines, living nomadic lives the let 16 years, chasing after the medallion that will restore Winters magic and the King's rightful place. Meira is tired of running rations and food missions and when the opportunity arises for her to go after half to the necklace herself, her best friend and King, Mather feigns a sprained ankle, which lets Meira go on the mission herself. A mission that almost gets her captured.The story unravels quickly after she's able to retrieve the the first half, the group of now 10 seek out help to retrieve the other half from Angra, the man responsible for the displacement and enslavement of their people, the ruler of Spring. When they seek out the help of Cordellans, she is shocked to find she's been handed over like a mule to marry the Cordellan's prince Theron.. the only way their king will help out Meira and her band of refugees. This book amazed me with how the scenes came to life. The characters were ones you could fall in love with, and I did. They were real, fought real emotional turmoils, and the fight scenes were believe and absolutely kick ass. Meira is not just a girl, she's a warrior who will do anything for those she loves. The landscapes are breathtaking, and the way that Sara writes her descriptive landscapes, had me transported to a fantasy world so real, I felt like i was there. So why is it only getting 4.5 stars instead of 5? Well I figured out the secret from the very beginning. It's one of the more typical ones seen in novels, but she still manages to do it very well, and even though I knew it was coming (the big reveal), I did still enjoy the journey it took to get there. And secondly, Meira gets a little too "why me ... I can't do this ... Im a nobody..." type of character near the end. Here she is all book kicking mad ass, and suddenly she's this weak whiny girl ... thankful it doesn't last more than two or so chapters, and she's back to her kick ass self, but that's the type of stuff you typically see in the beginning of a book, not near the end. Still, it wasn't super annoying like some authors make their characters, but it did irk me a tad, and had me skipping a couple of paragraphs here and there. Overall, for a first novel, it was beautiful written and I can't wait for the second installment. If you're reading this book with the premise of venturing into another love story, please close it now. Without revealing anything, please be advised that this book is about a teenage girl finding her self and her place in her world. It's definitely high fantasy with only Meira's character holding true to everything teen. So you will see her doubt herself, even be disillusioned with invincibility staying true to hardheadedness and such. You will be annoyed at her brashness and sassy remarks. Might even be put off like me. But what teen is not brash and doubtful and questioning? So be cautioned this girl will be a teen all throughout the book and that's okay. It's an almost perfect portrayal of a teen in search of herself. That most of us will be able to connect to.
Do You like book Schnee Wie Asche (2000)?
Raasch has created a strong character in Meira. I can't wait to read the rest of her story!
—Kaj
New favorite book ever. Absolutely spectacular.
—staisha
