Ash

Ash by Malinda Lo is a retelling of Cinderella, with a twist. This novel takes place in the same world as her book Huntress.

After Ash's mother dies, her father brings a new wife home from the City - a new wife with two daughters. Then her father gets sick and they all move to his wife's house outside the city. But the city doctors cannot save him.

Now Ash is an orphan. She is far from anyone she knows and in order to pay off her father's debt, her stepmother makes her into a servant.

Unlike the original Cinderella, Ash does not go to the ball to meet the prince. Ash is more interested in the King's Huntress. And Ash makes a deal with a fairy to be able to escape her stepmother's house to go see her. But wishes granted come with a price.

Lo's recreation of the story keeps the romantic feel of the original tale, but builds a relationship based on mutual interest instead of one dance. A must read for anyone who is a fan of fairy tales but wishes they had more substance.

Lo, Malinda (2009). Ash. New York: Little, Brown & Co.