In 2009, the anthology The Eternal Kiss was released and included a story by Karen Mahoney called Falling to Ash. I loved the whole premise of it and was really hoping it was a setup to a new series. Three years later and it’s happening. The first full length novel featuring Moth, Falling to Ash, will be released on September 21st. To get everyone as excited about it as I am, I thought I would report my original review of the short story Falling to Ash, so here it is.
This is the first story I’ve read by Mahoney and I have to say I’m intrigued by her character Moth who is still in the early stages of life as a vampire. She’s only been a vampire for 10 years and she’s still coming to terms with it. She comes back to her hometown at the request of her sire/maker and to visit her mother’s memorial service. During her visit, some ugly truths are revealed and Moth must learn to adapt or to deal.
Honestly, Falling to Ash is the perfect setup for a new YA series and I’m really eager to find out if there is going to be more of Moth later on. The connection she has with her family is dyfunctional enough to be entertaining; her relationship with her sire/maker is vague enough that I get the feeling there’s more to that story and I would love to know what it is; and the introduction of a vampire hunter’s progeny, Jace, allows for a lot of teenage turmoil in the future. Maybe I’m hoping and wishing there’ll be more of Moth and her friends later on, but isn’t that the point of a short story? To get you intrigued enough to pick up a full length novel?
Overall, for Karen Mahoney’s first publication, she scored big with me with Falling to Ash.
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It’s a short story, so it’s a short review. This story has popped into my mind off and on since I read it and just re-reading my review has made it appear even more vivid in my mind. I can’t wait to see what happens between Moth and Jace, plus what is going on with Theo. I’m hoping we’ll get more answers, but if not, I have a feeling I won’t be disappointed with what we do get from Moth, Jace and Theo. So I hope you’re ready for a little Falling to Ash…
You can’t choose your family… living or dead.
Trapped between two very different worlds, newly made vampire Moth is struggling to find her place in either. Not only does she have to answer to her strict Irish-Catholic Dad, but her over-protective maker, Theo, is intent on making her the star attraction in his powerful Boston vampire clan. Moth will have to pull off the double-act of the century to please both of them…
Adding to her problems is the dangerously attractive Jason Murdoch, a trainee vampire hunter who loves to play cat and mouse in his spare time (Jace = cat; Moth = mouse). But when the teenagers of Boston’s wealthiest families start to disappear, it forces Moth and Jace into an uneasy truce. Will they be able to solve the mystery behind the disappearances—before someone winds up undead?
Wait a minute…Falling to Ash will definitely be out in the UK, Australia and New Zealand, but I just noticed that it isn’t up on Amazon US yet and according to Karen’s website, it’s not available in the US yet! I’ve been told Random House UK has the rights, but we might not see it in the US until 2013. That is sad, but we can still get it from the Book Depository, which I suggest many do.
