Ash

Malinda Lo's "Ash" is a poignant young adult fantasy that reimagines the classic Cinderella story with a powerful queer romance at its heart. Grieving the loss of her father and subjected to her stepmother's cruelty, Ash initially longs for the fairies to whisk her away. She finds herself drawn to the mysterious fairy lord Sidhean, who promises escape but demands a steep price. However, her world truly changes when she meets Kaisa, the King's Huntress, sparking a deep friendship that blossoms into love. The novel explores themes of grief, self-discovery, and the courage to choose one's own path, offering a hopeful and empowering narrative for teens navigating identity and love.

In the wake of her father's death, Ash is left at the mercy of her cruel stepmother. Consumed with grief, her only joy comes by the light of the dying hearth fire, rereading the fairy tales her mother once told her. In her dreams, someday the fairies will steal her away. When she meets the dark and dangerous fairy Sidhean, she believes that her wish may be granted. The day that Ash meets Kaisa, the King's Huntress, her heart begins to change. Instead of chasing fairies, Ash learns to hunt with Kaisa. Their friendship, as delicate as a new bloom, reawakens Ash's capacity for love--and her desire to live. But Sidhean has already claimed Ash for his own, and she must make a choice between fairy tale dreams and true love. Entrancing and empowering, Ash beautifully unfolds the connections between life and love, and solitude and death, where transformation can come from even the deepest grief.