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A review by areaderamongthestars
First, Become Ashes by K.M. Szpara
5.0
What if you have lived all your whole life training to fight monsters, to use your magic to save the outside worlds from their influence, only to discover that none of it seems to be true? You go on a quest with the help of a cosplayer that would desperately want for magic to be real, obviously.
First, Become Ashes may seem a fun fantasy novel, and yet it’s way darker, more complicated and unique than what it appears. In fact, few writers can write about feelings, pain and trauma, but also healing, like Szpara does, in a way that feels so realistic it almost hurts.
Thanks to different POVs perfectly intertwined, each giving away a different glance on the story, and an interesting word building constantly on the thin line that separates reality and fiction, where it's never sure if magic is a product of the characters’ imagination or something that actually exists, Szpara creates a story in which is easy to dive in. Everything is handled so perfectly from the beginning to the ending, that wrapped the plot in the most satisfying way.
A little detail that I really liked is how, in a very peculiar way, this book highlights the importance of pronouns, showing how the act of stating them together with our name should be a normal and common practice.
I loved all the characters and their relationships, their interactions, so deeply. There is just something heartwarming in seeing the strong bonds that connect them and how they evolve throughout the story, allowing all those broken children to learn to trust in each other and to find comfort in a pair of friendly arms when everything seems dangerous and full of monsters.
This one is a book I still find it pretty difficult to talk about, and definitely not one I would advise everyone to read, as it deals with a few heavy themes. But if you can stand them, I can’t recommend First, Become Ashes enough: a story about the importance of choosing for ourselves which path to take, finding our own truths among what others taught (or imposed) us and, most importantly, deciding where to stop sacrificing everything for what we believe in.
[ an ARC was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review ]
First, Become Ashes may seem a fun fantasy novel, and yet it’s way darker, more complicated and unique than what it appears. In fact, few writers can write about feelings, pain and trauma, but also healing, like Szpara does, in a way that feels so realistic it almost hurts.
Thanks to different POVs perfectly intertwined, each giving away a different glance on the story, and an interesting word building constantly on the thin line that separates reality and fiction, where it's never sure if magic is a product of the characters’ imagination or something that actually exists, Szpara creates a story in which is easy to dive in. Everything is handled so perfectly from the beginning to the ending, that wrapped the plot in the most satisfying way.
A little detail that I really liked is how, in a very peculiar way, this book highlights the importance of pronouns, showing how the act of stating them together with our name should be a normal and common practice.
I loved all the characters and their relationships, their interactions, so deeply. There is just something heartwarming in seeing the strong bonds that connect them and how they evolve throughout the story, allowing all those broken children to learn to trust in each other and to find comfort in a pair of friendly arms when everything seems dangerous and full of monsters.
This one is a book I still find it pretty difficult to talk about, and definitely not one I would advise everyone to read, as it deals with a few heavy themes. But if you can stand them, I can’t recommend First, Become Ashes enough: a story about the importance of choosing for ourselves which path to take, finding our own truths among what others taught (or imposed) us and, most importantly, deciding where to stop sacrificing everything for what we believe in.
[ an ARC was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review ]