Rising from Ash

Forged by Fire, Book 1

De: Jax Meyer

Narrado por: Susan Knight

Phoenix Murray has had enough. Enough of her incompetent boss. Enough of her addict father always asking for money. Enough of the struggle to survive. So when her aunt offers her a job as a cook at the South Pole, she jumps at it. Even when she’s asked to avoid casual sex to keep the peace in the tiny community.

Astrophysicist Ashley Bennett can’t wait for her year at the South Pole. Not only will it allow her to focus on her PhD research, it’s a key step in her plan to become a Mars colonist. Avoiding the complications of dating in a society that doesn't understand asexuality is a bonus.

When Phoenix and Ash meet, they can’t help but push each other’s buttons. Phoenix doesn’t understand that her confident sexuality puts Ash on edge while Ash’s curt formality triggers Phoenix’s insecurities about her upbringing. But living at the bottom of the world means there’s nowhere to run, and as they find common ground, their differences aren’t nearly the hindrance they thought.

Rising From Ash is the first book in the Forged by Fire series, a slow burn contemporary lesbian romance that shows the power of intimacy to form a new life.

Note: While Rising from Ash features a character on the asexual spectrum, the story does include physically intimate scenes. However, none are gratuitous.

©2019 Jax Meyer (P)2024 Jax Meyer

Love on "the ice"

This is one of the best books featuring a demisexual character that I’ve read. Representation is so important and Jax does a great job of giving voice to the asexual spectrum in a way that is both informative and entertaining.

Phoenix is a cook with terrible parents who constantly harass her for money. She struggles to cut them off completely, but when offered a chance to be a cook for a year at the South Pole research station, she takes it. Her aunt, who is responsible for staffing the South Pole station, recommends that she stop womanizing down there since she will be in a closed community for a year - this is the only downside Phoenix can see to the job.

Ash is an astrophysicist who is working on her PhD and doing her second stint “on the ice”. She is demisexual (on the ace spectrum - only feels physical attraction after having emotional intimacy) and has had problems with past partners due to this. She is not looking for any kind of relationship - she is content to do her work and write some Buffy ace fanfic (which I would love to read!).

The pairing of a very sexual woman with a demisexual person was a great set up for this book. It was not immediately obvious how it would work out, especially initially, but it offered so much opportunity to show the vast gray area between those two identities. I loved being on the journey with Ash and Phoenix as they got to know each other and moved from kind of a disastrous first meeting to friendship, to figuring out what more looked like between them. Both women worked to overcome their past relationships, both familial and romantic, and were able to learn how to be together and be there for each other. The book ended while they were still on the ice, so I would categorize it as a “happy for now” which feels totally appropriate.

I enjoyed the narration, but but there were times it was hard to tell who was speaking and overall there was a lack of subtly to the performance.

Great story; narration could be better

The story is really good and very informative. The author paints Ash and Phoenix’s relationship in a realistic and romantic way. I learned a LOT about asexuality and the ACE spectrum. I wasn’t expecting a book with an asexual MC to be so full of tender moments and intimacy, but it was really nice to see the relationship develop and grow.