User Reviews
Rating: really liked it
Let It All Burn, by Denise Grover Swank, is book one in the From the Ashes series. At this time this is the only book in the series and can be read as a stand alone. But I’m not giving up hope that there will eventually be more books added because I loved it! This is an Urban Fantasy with lots of snark and a tough heroine that will do anything to protect the people she loves.
Darcie Weatherby is forty two years old, recently divorced from the worst husband ever, and a single mother to a pair of teen age twins and a pre-teen. She has had to go back to work full time as well as helping out her best friend in her coffee shop on the weekends. Add in a crazy grandmother and her plate is full.
“I would get a handle on this, because I had something to fight for. Three somethings to fight for.” Darcie thinks she has begun to experience pre-menopause hot flashes. Only these hot flashes actually cause things to burn, like her bosses house. It was a total accident! Even if she was the absolute worst boss ever! Along with these flame throwing hot flashes, she is experiencing other changes as well. But she had to figure it out because it was scaring her kids and they’d been through enough.
Darcie, along with her cousin and her best friend, try their best to find information on what is happening to her. We are also introduced to the sexy FBI agent, Special Agent Heath Stone, whose intentions at first are a bit sketchy. One thing becomes certain, that Darcie needs to figure this out because this all seems to have an end date, the Founder’s Day Masquerade Ball.
“Destiny was reeling me in.” 
I loved this book. First of all, I loved Darcie and her kids. They were close. The kids protected their mother as much as she tried to protect them. I was sucked right in at the very beginning, going through everything with Darcie while she tried to figure out what was happening. I loved how strong she was, loved her sassiness, and most of all, I loved her fierce dedication to her family. This was a fast paced, fun, suspenseful, adventure that I thoroughly enjoyed. I so hope there might be more books. I need more of Heath Stone most definitely. And I need more of Darcie.
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Rating: really liked it
Denise made MAGIC with this book. I’ll admit I was hesitant about this new genre as I wasn’t sure if I was the “right audience” to enjoy it - I WAS WRONG. It’s an incredibly unique and uplifting paranormal book that speaks about motherhood, female empowerment, and family. It perfectly represents mom guilt, navigating relationships, finding your voice, and working through self-esteem. All while we watch as Darcie becomes the most perfect heroine.
Additionally, I enjoyed that this wasn’t the usual dark and sinister paranormal book. It was light and comedic. The story was perfectly timed, it wasn’t rushed but it seemed to come to a good close. I believe the story and writing will appeal to a lot of readers - young and old, single and married, paranormal fan or not. Do yourself a favor and meet Darcie and her bunch!
Rating: really liked it
My first thought after I finished this book was Holy crap that was awesome!
A story about a woman whose hot flashes start fires. Sounds hilarious right? Well it is funny, but it's so much more! It's about a mother's strength and love. It's about a women's perseverance after having the rug pulled out from under her. It's about women standing together and helping each other. It's about a woman recognizing the strength in herself. I read this while I had the flu and I was miserable. But by the end of the book I was so pumped up and felt stronger than I had even before I got sick. So this is a funny story where some crazy stuff happens to change Darcie's life. And it is so entertaining and gives you a little mystery about her family's history and things are not what they seem. But it's also a story about empowering women. And it's amazing.
Rating: really liked it
Not bad. Better than I expected, though I'm having a tough time putting it in a genre. Darcie is 42 when she begins experiencing "hot flashes". The kind that burn down buildings. So it's supernatural, but it isn't UF or PR and pretty much the entire book is her trying to figure out what's going on while juggling her three kids and a real butt of an ex.
Which sounds like it might be boring, but Swank does a decent job of keeping the pace up and giving us lots of supporting characters to bounce off of. And Darcie engaged me, even if I hate, more than a little, the whole "done wrong in a divorce" thing that romance authors sometimes succumb to. Look, as a woman with primary custody of kids and a cheating spouse, she holds all the cards. And the future of her children is at stake. So yeah, he might be obstreperous and all, but this is mother-bear time. You fight that battle to the wall.
I had a feeling I'd go on that tangent. Sigh. Anyway, since the story is mostly Darcie getting over being a doormat and taking charge, finally, I found her engaging anyway. There were some particularly good stand-up-for-yourself moments in there so some cheering helped offset the disgruntlement left from the background.
The story, once revealed, is a lot of "this is just the way it is and you have to deal with it" but even so, it was interesting. This turns out to be more-or-less a prologue for a series, so I wonder if it'll match the others in tone and pacing. It'd be weird, if so, because things ramp at the end and I can't see going back to status quo.
Anyway, this is 3½ stars that I'll round up on where Darcie ended up by taking action and making strong choices (like (view spoiler)
[choosing to remain herself when transformation time came (hide spoiler)]). I'm not sure it actually deserves that given the weird genre-middle-ground it'll occupy or weak bits with background and mythology (so much is just "these are the rules, deal with it"). But I'll probably pick up the next if it materializes.
A note about Chaste: Darcie is divorced and she's not especially dating. There's a guy who might be a long-term romance interest. I kind of hope so. But in this story, we only have a kiss or two.
Rating: really liked it
This story was AMAZING and nothing that I was expecting.
I didn't read what this story was about on purpose so I could really be surprised by it, and I am so glad I did this!
It starts out with a 42-year-old recently divorced mother of three at a wannabe Tupperware party. It seems like a story that is going to be about divorce and raising three kids on her own.
Then.... plot twist!
WHOA! I was not expecting this! I love how the background was built little by little, and the character relationships were revealed in the meantime. I love how the story flowed naturally and didn't seem forced. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the "paranormal" storyline! It is VERY interesting!
The only part of the story I hated is the ex-husband. That guy was a jerk and I really hope we get to see karma at its finest by the time this is over. I also was curious how the investigation for Nikki's house was going to work out? It seemed like a big plot and then nothing?
The bottom line, as a 40-year-old woman myself, I related to this story so well. I felt like the main character, Darcie, could have been a friend of mine. I was rooting for her the entire time. I LOVE how assertive she is, LOVE that she is drama-free and makes decisions that MAKE SENSE. I LOVE her Nana Stella, I hope I am like her when I am in my 80s.
I am looking forward to seeing how the story goes from here because honestly, I have never read anything quite like this story! I highly recommend this book!
Rating: really liked it
This book is on 🔥Wow!! Yet again I have been sucked into another amazing book by Denise Grover Swank. Every time I feel like I have found my favorite series by her she writes another book that I fall in love with.
The start of what I hope is another new series. We meet Darcie. A working mother of 3 who is doing it all on her own and rocking it. While she seems like a pushover, we get to watch her grow into a confident no sh*t taking women. All while dealing with the dreaded aging process of a women over 40. Hilarious, fast paced book with anything any reader would want. From humor, to real life, to paranormal elements, to what looks like romance it has it all.
No matter what genre you usually read, I believe any women would love this book.
Rating: really liked it
Wow! Yes, Wow! I'm still in awe! Let it all burn - literally! This was not only the first book of a new series but starts absolutely brand new genre where the main character is woman over 40! I was pulled into new amazing magical world Denise Grover Swank builds for us. Paranormal comedy at the beginning leading to really serious one.
Darcie, now single mother of three,in her 42 starts having hot as hell hot flashes, which leads to ... you have to discover this by yourself,- already strong but growing even stronger each passing day character, I just love her personality. Love her kids, Nana Stella - OMG I'd love to be like her in my 80's! Paranormal abilities, mystery, hint of romance, mother love and strength, amazing friends, women empowering - this and much more you will find in this amazing book. This is definitely my new favorite series and I can't wait for the next book!!!
Rating: really liked it
This is such a great read!! Let it All Burn introduces Darcie, a 42 year old mother of 3, that recently had to start her life over. She starts off a little too nice, a little too accommodating, and reading this amazing story of her rising to every challenge and becoming so much more was so inspiring and wonderful. The cast of characters were interesting, each contributing in their own way to the story, making each important. The paranormal aspects were incredibly creative and original. This story captivated me almost immediately and I really had a blast solving the mystery alongside Darcie and her crew that's more like family. I hope we get more Darcie in the future as I will be thinking about her over and over for a while. She sticks to you like that. Great read, great writing, 5 stars!
Rating: really liked it
Let it All Burn ended up just being an okay read for me. Overall the book didn't work for me and felt is squandered some great potential. I was never fully connected to the story and it was easy for me to lose focus while I was reading.
What I did like:
-I enjoyed how this story centered around Greek mythology
-I really liked how the heroine (Darcie) is over 40 and the book dealt with real issues relating to that age. I was also excited that when the heroine goes through her rebirth she chooses to stay her age instead of taking on a younger self
- Darcie and her family are the best part of the book. It had great intergeneration family drama with fully fleshed out and complex characters. I wished the book focus more on the family and dealing with Darcie's transformation
What I didn't like:
-This book felt all over the place and lacked cohesiveness. I felt some of the storylines and characters were used for filler and were not necessary to advance the plot. This whole book would have worked better if it focused on Darci and her family. I also felt to many supporting/main characters felt like caricatures and not fully fleshed people, especially the villains (more of the mustache-twirling variety).
I do think there are some good bones to this new series and hope to see the author focus more on Darci and her family in the next book.
***Author provided a review copy****
Rating: really liked it
Such an amazing book! I couldn’t put it down, I was reading at work, at my children’s activities, while making dinner, everywhere!
The main character is a middle aged women suffering from hot flashes with a twist. I really appreciated the main character being in her 40s rather than 20s. She has a great circle of friends and family to support her and help dig up the truth. The supporting characters were just as great as the main. I was really able to feel the emotions of all the characters.
I was hooked within the first chapter and I highly recommend this book!
Rating: really liked it
Okay so WOW just doesn’t seem strong enough to fully express how truly amazing this story is...
I never have expectations when it comes to a book by Denise Grover Swank because she has never written anything I didn’t absolutely love and this book was no different, okay well yes it was it was so much more than I could have ever dreamed of I mean the heroine Darcie omg she is amazing and I seriously can;t wait for more from her and her family this story just has so much potential and I know it’s all part of a co-authored world and seriously if this is just one book in that world I am so excited for all the other stories...
I’m not doing spoilers even though I really want to gush about everything that’s how much this story captured my imagination and just when I thought it couldn’t get any better omg it truly did and the ending wow the descriptive writing omg so seriously you just have to read it for yourself.
If you love a bit of magic, a dash of supernatural, an air of mystery and a cast of amazing characters this book is an absolute must read.
Rating: really liked it
This new book is amazing!! It had a bit of everything in it!!
I laughed so much while reading, “Let it All Burn” by most of the characters. I mean laugh out loud laughing in public.
I love Darcie, Nana Stella and the kiddos. While the main character was a older character, I was still able to connect with her. Darcie is a phenomenal character, and I love how she evolves to being her own, strong, empowered role model to her family in the first book! I’m honestly still reeling from everything that I learned. I’m looking forward to reading the next installment!!
Rating: really liked it
What just happened? That is what I asked myself at the end of this book. I love when Denise writes a "MOM" book. She knows how to pull those heartstrings together.
Darcie is like most mom's trying to get by and raise her kids to the best of her ability. All though she has some obstetricals that make it hard for her to do that. Being one a big butt head of a ex-husband. He never gets it. Everything seems to go right over his head. Another thing is the changes she is going through. I mean she does give new meaning to hot flashes. She has a team of great people that step up to help figure things out. Even some cute guy hotness. Yes, I said cute guy hotness.
Denise has a great way of writing that makes you feel like you are apart of the story. You feel the words. There are some funny parts. So you are going to have some laugh out loud moments. That loosens up the hard shell of seriousness you feel when she is trying to figure out if she going to catch fire.
This book is about a woman over 40 who can and will kick some paranormal butt. I am excited about this new age group of woman that is going to take the reading world by storm. I hope everyone picks up this book and reads it. It has something for everyone.
Rating: really liked it
I was both, excited and scared when I started reading this book. Excited because it looked like a very interesting paranormal comedy, scared because other romantic comedies I’d read from this author were more suitable for a younger audience. Or so I thought. I’m no lo longer looking for syrupy sweet readings.
And it wasn’t. The sense of humor was delightful, centered on a 42-year old main character with an ironic self-perception and an undisputable fierceness to tackle life. Thus, it never looks like the author is making fun of a stereotyped, cartoonish middle-aged woman (I’d have abhorred that), but more like a real character (excuse the oxymoron) who is a witty woman in an unassuming sort of way.
But wait. No, I mean it, wait. You’ve got to wait until the end of scene 1 to get hooked. It’s not much, and it’s really worth the waiting. After that, the plot really unfolds and you get to laugh and giggle while Darcie goes through her hot flashes, which are hotter than hell.
To the third-quarters of the book, the pace and tone change and the novel goes from paranormal comedy with hints of romance to full suspense and thriller at the end. Those of you who follow this writer will know that she’s a master in mystery/suspense stories with strong emotional backgrounds. Now she’s combined those abilities with a paranormal comedy that sets this great new series apart from her other works but equally as high quality.
Rating: really liked it
DGS does it again! Where does she come up with these stories?! Being of similar age to the main character, I totally get the pressures of raising three kids, trying to make ends meet in a dead end job and dealing with a newly ex-husband. This story alone, was relatable and I was enjoying the book - BUT, when Darcie, (the leading female), begins to experience "the change" I could NOT put this book down. The stories of the additional characters, her best friend Cyd, Cousin Ella, Nana, and her mother were all a wonderful family dynamic. Add in a mysterious love interest by a younger colleague and an FBI agent (I wasn't sure to trust) and this is a great story. THE BEST PART - I am not even HINTING at the BEST PART! Talk about a kick butt story of a strong woman who is fully into her own and not only excepting life changes but tackling life balls to the wall - THAT is Darcie! If you love to read books with great characters, storyline, a little love interest, and strong empowering females.... you MUST read this book!
