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Ashes

Ashes Trilogy, Book 1

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Ashes

By: Ilsa J. Bick
Narrated by: Katherine Kellgren
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Summary

It could happen tomorrow....

An electromagnetic pulse flashes across the sky, destroying every electronic device, wiping out every computerized system, and killing billions. Alex hiked into the woods to say good-bye to her dead parents and her personal demons. Now desperate to find out what happened after the pulse crushes her to the ground, Alex meets up with Tom, a young soldier, and Ellie, a girl whose grandfather was killed by the EMP. For this improvised family and the others who are spared, it's now a question of who can be trusted and who is no longer human.

Author Ilsa J. Bick crafts a terrifying and thrilling novel about a world that could be ours at any moment, where those left standing must learn what it means not just to survive, but to live amidst the devastation.

©2011 Ilsa J. Bick (P)2011 Audible, Inc. Action & Adventure Dystopian Fantasy Fiction Horror Literature & Fiction Science Fiction Science Fiction & Fantasy Survival Stories Scary Survival
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Critic reviews

"For fans of postapocalyptic and horror fiction, Bick has created a story of equal parts intrigue and gore…Katherine Kellgren narrates the tension-filled action at a lightning pace…The author’s frenetic characterization of Alex is tempered by Kellgren’s ability to draw the listener into each scene." (Audiofile)
2012 Audie Award Nominee, Female Solo Narration
All stars
Most relevant
The semi-hysterical, high-pitched tones of the narrator at any moment in the book where the action picks up makes this an uncomfortable listen.

Good story spoilt by narrator

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did however not like the reader, there were times she was grating on the ears, shame

fascinating story line

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What did you like about this audiobook?

Very possible plot

How has the book increased your interest in the subject matter?

Next book added to my wish list

Does the author present information in a way that is interesting and insightful, and if so, how does he achieve this?

Very imaginative description

What did you find wrong about the narrator's performance?

Why would there be anything wrong.

Do you have any additional comments?

This is described as young adults. I would say that any adult who likes fantasy would like this.

Beware. Something like this could really happen

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Would you consider the audio edition of Ashes to be better than the print version?

Havent read the print version

Who was your favorite character and why?

Alex a feisty female seemed to lead the way and the story followed her actions and thoughts.

What about Katherine Kellgren’s performance did you like?

I don't often read this type of genre but was interested in the thoughts and ideas she put forward. Never certain about why the zombie concept is created. However the scenario around why the end of the world as we know it evolved through discussion between Alex and Tom was well managed

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

There were some great relationship developing moments between the main characters

Any additional comments?

Not a book for the faint hearted. It is very gory in places. however I like the pace and I kept listening

Fast paced action that is quite gory

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When I first picked up this book I did so because I'd seen a few good reviews of it around and about and I was enjoying the fab little trend of dystopian fiction that is still running its course in YA at the moment. However, my hopes weren't huge because I'm one of those despicable human beings who judges books by their covers. This cover was just a bit...is “80s” the right term?...for me.

Well give me a sturdy slap on the wrist, I must learn to obey old clichés as this was a book that I should not have judged by its cover. And I should not have expected it to fit into the sometimes (though not always) sanguine niche that YA can be. Don't bite, I said it can be!

For me, Ashes was a book that provided plenty of the darkness and grit that its title suggested. When an EMP causes all electronics to faulter and also interferes with the teeny tiny electrical pulses in the brains of humans, a whole heap of...poop...hits the fan! Only the very young and very old survive intact...save for a few exceptions such as Alex, the protagonist. Others survive, but as maddened inhumane creatures, similar to the "sickos" in Charlie Higson's The Enemy series, or the raging "infected" in 28 Days Later.

The idea of the masses succumbing to a force that leaves them insane and blood thirsty is not new. The dystopian premise of technology falling down around our ears is not new either. So what about this book made me love it as much as I did? It was a combination of things really. I loved Alex as the protagonist. She goes to the mountains to bury her past and to admit that, due to a brain tumor, she has no future. Instead it is her tumor and the treatments she's had for it that saves her from the EMP and allows her to begin her story. These are things you find out in the first pages so I don't think I'm spoiling anything for you.

I'm thoroughly looking forward to the sequel to this (already on my Goodreads Wishlist) and finding out how Bick tortures her protagonist further.

Review: "Ashes" by Ilsa J Bick

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