Scan barcode
A review by ngreads
Ashes of the Sun by Django Wexler
5.0
This was everything I never knew I wanted in a book.
A bit earlier this year, I DNF'd a book that had promised me a story about two siblings, one on either side of a war. It failed the concept on such an epic level that when I saw that Ashes of the Sun had that same concept, I jumped at the chance to read it, figuring that at least it couldn't be any worse than the book I had DNF'd.
This book executed the concept so perfectly that I couldn't stop thinking about it.
So, let's get into the good, because I find little fault in this book, and don't want to just attempt to nitpick to try to find flaws.
THE GOOD!:
- As said earlier, the concept of two siblings on opposite sides of a war is one that really interests me, and Django Wexler does a perfect job of it here. I honestly loved reading from both POVs throughout the book - which was surprising, since I usually connect to one character more than another. Going into the book, I personally thought I would like Gyre more than Maya, since I have a soft spot for rogues with tragic backstories, but I loved both characters equally. Gyre had the tragic rogue and clever rebel side that I always love, and Maya was such a fierce and personality-filled girl that I couldn't help but root for her.
To make matters better, both of them had valid arguments to their side. Neither one was clearly on the good or bad side - both of them had fantastic conviction in their views, and I look forward to seeing where their conflict goes in the future.
- I really like how Django writes relationships. The chemistry between the various pairings was fun and dynamic, the sex scenes never felt like they went into too much detail aside from a bit of foreplay and flirting (which I personally prefer, since I get a sense of who the characters are in their relationship without getting into details that I would prefer to not know.) The sex scenes also came at points where they felt like a natural step in the relationship, rather than something that author forced in.
- The worldbuilding was awesome. I'm really coming to love the trend of a Sci-fi/fantasy blend in high fantasy books, where it's a high fantasy world with ancient high-technology, especially when it relates to the magic system. Django really does a seamless job of blending sci-fi and fantasy, making the world feel full of history and mystery alike. The cultures all felt fleshed out, the geography unique and interesting, and everything just fit together in a wonderful way.
SOME NIFTY DETAILS THAT BROUGHT ME HAPPINESS!:
- I need to know: were the loadbirds, swiftbirds, and warbirds inspired by chocobos from the Final Fantasy franchise? The moment I saw that there were giant, emu-like birds that act as mounts brought my nerdy, Final-Fantasy-loving heart joy. Even on top of all the other things that had already sold me on the book, the birds made me want it even more.
- I've grown to love horror aspects in fantasy novels, and this one delivers. The plaguespawn are freaking creepy, reminding me of something out of Dark Souls or Bloodborne. They gave me the proper heeby-jeebies, and I like me some heeby-jeeby-giving monsters.
- The city of Deepfire was just plainly cool. That's it. That's the point.
OVERALL:
This is a book I'm really happy to have on my shelves, and I'm really excited to see where these characters, this plot, and this world will take me in the future. Here's hoping it keeps up the momentum.
A bit earlier this year, I DNF'd a book that had promised me a story about two siblings, one on either side of a war. It failed the concept on such an epic level that when I saw that Ashes of the Sun had that same concept, I jumped at the chance to read it, figuring that at least it couldn't be any worse than the book I had DNF'd.
This book executed the concept so perfectly that I couldn't stop thinking about it.
So, let's get into the good, because I find little fault in this book, and don't want to just attempt to nitpick to try to find flaws.
THE GOOD!:
- As said earlier, the concept of two siblings on opposite sides of a war is one that really interests me, and Django Wexler does a perfect job of it here. I honestly loved reading from both POVs throughout the book - which was surprising, since I usually connect to one character more than another. Going into the book, I personally thought I would like Gyre more than Maya, since I have a soft spot for rogues with tragic backstories, but I loved both characters equally. Gyre had the tragic rogue and clever rebel side that I always love, and Maya was such a fierce and personality-filled girl that I couldn't help but root for her.
To make matters better, both of them had valid arguments to their side. Neither one was clearly on the good or bad side - both of them had fantastic conviction in their views, and I look forward to seeing where their conflict goes in the future.
- I really like how Django writes relationships. The chemistry between the various pairings was fun and dynamic, the sex scenes never felt like they went into too much detail aside from a bit of foreplay and flirting (which I personally prefer, since I get a sense of who the characters are in their relationship without getting into details that I would prefer to not know.) The sex scenes also came at points where they felt like a natural step in the relationship, rather than something that author forced in.
- The worldbuilding was awesome. I'm really coming to love the trend of a Sci-fi/fantasy blend in high fantasy books, where it's a high fantasy world with ancient high-technology, especially when it relates to the magic system. Django really does a seamless job of blending sci-fi and fantasy, making the world feel full of history and mystery alike. The cultures all felt fleshed out, the geography unique and interesting, and everything just fit together in a wonderful way.
SOME NIFTY DETAILS THAT BROUGHT ME HAPPINESS!:
- I need to know: were the loadbirds, swiftbirds, and warbirds inspired by chocobos from the Final Fantasy franchise? The moment I saw that there were giant, emu-like birds that act as mounts brought my nerdy, Final-Fantasy-loving heart joy. Even on top of all the other things that had already sold me on the book, the birds made me want it even more.
- I've grown to love horror aspects in fantasy novels, and this one delivers. The plaguespawn are freaking creepy, reminding me of something out of Dark Souls or Bloodborne. They gave me the proper heeby-jeebies, and I like me some heeby-jeeby-giving monsters.
- The city of Deepfire was just plainly cool. That's it. That's the point.
OVERALL:
This is a book I'm really happy to have on my shelves, and I'm really excited to see where these characters, this plot, and this world will take me in the future. Here's hoping it keeps up the momentum.