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Out of the Ashes

Asheville Arcana #1, Dreamspun Beyond #1

by Ari McKay

Out of the Ashes - Ari McKay
Part of the Asheville Arcana series:
Editions:Paperback - First Edition: $ 9.99
ISBN: 163533795X
Size: 4.20 x 7.00 in
Pages: 220
Kindle - First Edition: $ 3.82
ISBN: B073SQ4S4V
Pages: 168
Audiobook - First Edition: $ 19.95

Alpha werewolf Eli Hammond returns from a fishing trip to discover a nasty surprise—five members of his pack murdered and the rest missing. He needs help locating and rescuing his pack mates, but the supernatural council in Asheville, North Carolina, turns him away.
Except for one man.
As they work together, Eli is stunned—and not especially thrilled—to discover half-elf Arden Gilmarin is his destined mate. But as Arden and his friends struggle to help Eli in his quest, Eli surrenders to the demands of his body—and his heart. They’ll need to bond together, because the forces opposing them are stronger and more sinister than anyone predicted. The evil has its sights set on Arden, and if Eli wants to save his mate and the people he is entrusted with protecting, he’s in for the fight of his life.

This book is on:
  • 3 To Be Read lists
  • 4 Read lists
Reviews: Anne Shure on Amazon wrote:

When I see Book 1 in a title, it makes me think that Book 2 will pick up where the first book left off. As far as I can tell, this is not the case with the Dreamspun Beyond series. Books 2-5, according to their blurbs, are about people who don’t appear in this book, plus none are written by Ari McKay. I want a second Asheville Arcana book that continues the demon story presented here, and includes Whimsy finding his mate, with a side helping of Arden and Eli, Julian, and the werewolves of Asheville. Ari McKay, can you help me out with that?

Don’t get me wrong, I still enjoyed this book, and I’m happy I read it. The whole fated mate trope was tempered bit by Eli’s reluctance and Arden’s initial ignorance, which made the story rise above the usual insta-love and added some “will they or won’t they” tension. (Although, really, we all know they will.) I liked the tertiary characters, especially Arden’s parents, and the world-building, while not too different from our own, was done well. It was well written and the copy editing was nearly flawless.

But I was left wanting more, without any promise of a true sequel, thus my four-star rating. I can recommend this book, but only with the caveat that it’s a stand-alone—at least for now. (Hint, hint!)

Update: As Kira so kindly pointed out in her Comment, there is another Asheville Arcana book, Forged in Fire (Dreamspun Beyond Book 19). I really enjoyed it!


About the Author

Ari McKay is the professional pseudonym for Arionrhod and McKay, who have been writing together for over a decade. Their collaborations encompass a wide variety of romance genres, including contemporary, fantasy, science fiction, gothic, and action/adventure. Their work includes the Blood Bathory series of paranormal novels, the Herc’s Mercs series, as well as two historical Westerns: Heart of Stone and Finding Forgiveness. When not writing, they can often be found scheming over costume designs or binge watching TV shows together.

Arionrhod is a systems engineer by day who is eagerly looking forward to (hopefully) becoming a full time writer in the not-too-distant future. Now that she is an empty-nester, she has turned her attentions to finding the perfect piece of land to build a fortress in preparation for the zombie apocalypse, and baking (and eating) far too many cakes.

McKay is an English teacher who has been writing for one reason or another most of her life. She also enjoys knitting, reading, cooking, and playing video games. She has been known to knit in public. Given she has the survival skills of a gnat, she’s relying on Arionrhod to help her survive the zombie apocalypse.