FRAGMENTS OF ASH
by KATY REGNERY
From New York Times bestselling author Katy Regnery comes a dark and twisted retelling of the beloved fairytale, Cinderella!My name is Ashley Ellis…
I was thirteen years old when my mother – retired supermodel, Tig – married Mosier Răumann, who was twice her age and the head of the Răumann crime family.
When I turned eighteen, my mother mysteriously died. Only then did I discover the dark plans my stepfather had in store for me all along; the debauched "work" he expected me to do.
With the help of my godfather, Gus, I have escaped from Mosier's clutches, but his twin sons and henchmen have been tasked with hunting me down. And they will stop at nothing to return my virgin body to their father
…dead or alive.
REVIEW: 2 FRUSTRATING STARS
There is nothing more frustrating than reading a book that you were really excited about reading and it flopping for you. I honestly don't know how or where to start with this one, and I know that this review will come from a place of frustration. The sad part is, I don't know where the frustration should stop and the anger starts. But it should never be that way, right? I mean, the eye-rolls were abundant with this one and I am very upset because this series is my favorite of Katy's. This book touched on so many points on my "I hate seeing this in a book" list that it just rubbed me all wrong. I just never thought I'd feel this with one of her books and it really upsets me. I guess I just expected more from this one. But, CLEARLY this is a me issue since so many are loving it, but I sighed so much....
I will say this FIRST: the storyline of this book was a good one. It was very page-turn-worthy in the very beginning, but then it just fell apart for me. And fast. The love between Julian and Ashley is obviously one that fairytales are made of and Katy always does a love justice with her words, once we got to that point - it was just getting there that was the uphill battle for me. But I think this is where the love for the book ended. I'm so sad.
First off, a family that is so over the top rude to each other is a BIG, huge, massive NO in my book. I literally cannot handle those - especially when it involves a kid. That doesn't make me feel bad for the kid, it pisses me off about the story. This book hit that nail three different times. I can understand being upset at family, I totally can. And yes, having a baby out of wedlock is frowned upon in some cultures, and I get that 100%. But the way the 'mother' (I use that term verrry lightly) treated her and the way the grandparents treated her as well? NO. By this point, I'm pissy moving along in the book, so clearly it didn't start off on a good foot.
Immaturity in the characters? I don't read a lot of YA for this very reason. They are supposed to be young and immature, so I really try to avoid those as much as I can. I know my limitations, ok? But at what age do you stop snooping in rooms? BOTH of these characters did that to each other....one after the other. Umm....really? NO. For being so religious and supposedly one that has to follow all the rules, you're snooping? Really? I don't understand why there is a pick and choose option as to what vein of meek/weak we are going to follow, or what level of good and pure we are going to pretend to be, or what strength and curiosity side of life we are going to explore...so that made it frustrating. If you are going to follow a set pattern or a rule, you're usually consistent and this book just wasn't on so many levels.
I didn't understand why Ashley was torturing herself with her mother's diary....either rip off the bandaid and read the damn thing, or go through life wondering. But to read a page or two, whine and cry about it and then ask a ton of questions that you can easily get the answer to, whyyyy?? Why? Why. That was so aggravating!!! Get your answers and then work through whatever emotional trauma you are going to inflict upon yourself because your mother was a horrid specimen of life, your grandparents are a laughable excuse for grandparents, and your "stepfather" is the dictionary definition of nasty. By doing this, this created a lot of unnecessary drama for the sake of drama...and there was already enough drama as it was. All it did was drag the story along. I sound angry, but I promise you I am not. I am so very upset that it took this route.
So we have a very shy and timid heroine, and we have a very gruff, rude, and very over the top mean Hero. Like, he's so mean to her face, but then he talks about how his "cock [will] twitch" for the "waif" upstairs. I just didn't feel any love towards him and he was just a jerk. I have no other word to call him. Was there a reason? Of course there was....there's always a reason, but I think his anger was a lot more embellished than it needed to be. I had this discussion with a friend the other day, but there is a point of being rough around the edges and being a straight up jerk. And for the way Julian treated Ashley, I cannot even begin to fathom how they fell in love. I can't. I just can't.
I was so excited for this one. I freaking love Cinderella!!!! I saw where she was taking it and I understood and loved that aspect of this book. Her living in the attic, doing the cooking/cleaning/household duties. It all fell in line so perfectly. I could just cry....I really can. I am so upset. I will still give away a copy because I reviewed this as an ARC, and I stand behind my promises, but this one just didn't work for me. I know that this comes across as mean, and I don't mean for it to sound that way, but I guess I feel so let down. I have never read a book this crass from Katy. Her words were so harsh compared to her others and her storyline was a sweet and lovable ending, but the words she used were at odds with the emotions she was trying to express. It didn't work for me when I am so used to the perfection she has always given me.
I'm going to stop right here because all I'm doing is getting upset even more. Frustrated is the name of the game today, and I hate feeling that way about a series I hold near and dear to me. I just need to walk away.....with my head down.
I'm just going to hinge my bets that this was a me thing and that Swan Song is going to turn my world upside down with the HERO being the Ugly Duckling of the story. I just know it. At least, I'll cross my fingers for so....
~BEE
PURCHASE
~ABOUT KATY REGNERY~
Katy Regnery, award-winning and Amazon bestselling author, started her writing career by enrolling in a short story class in January 2012. One year later, she signed her first contract for a winter romance entitled By Proxy.
Now exclusively self-published, Katy claims authorship of the multi-titled Blueberry Lane Series which follows the English, Winslow, Rousseau, Story and Ambler families of Philadelphia, the four-book, bestselling a modern fairytale series, the standalone novel, Playing for Love at Deep Haven and a standalone novella, Frosted.
Katy’s first modern fairytale romance, The Vixen and the Vet, was nominated for a RITA® in 2015, and four of her books: The Vixen and the Vet (a modern fairytale), Never Let You Go (a modern fairytale), Falling for Fitz(The English Brothers #2) and By Proxy (Heart of Montana #1) have been #1 genre bestsellers on Amazon.
Katy lives in the relative wilds of northern Fairfield County, Connecticut, where her writing room looks out at the woods, and her husband, two young children, and two dogs create just enough cheerful chaos to remind her that the very best love stories begin at home.
~CONNECT WITH KATY~
ARC REVIEW
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COPY PURCHASED FOR GIVEAWAY
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