* There may or may not be spoilers depending on how you read the review. Proceed at your own risk.
It's not not formulaic, but there are enough differences that I still enjoyed reading Snow Like Ashes. The fantasy world is pretty unique, and yet the ways she incorporates our world's elements of seasons and uses them as important plot points was tight (that was my attempt to be cool). There was a great plot twist, which I can see the teen's mind being blown away by, even though I wasn't completely shocked because of the formula. Here's what I'm talking about: young girl finds out she has a super power, ends up getting into castle, falls in love with prince who hates reviled regime and the two save the world. That should sound familiar, but Snow has enough differences to make it fresh again. The protagonist finds her meaning in the world just like the reader would. Her struggle is real. I like that. The timing of the formula is also tweaked for a unique approach. So, maybe I'm biased because I met the author the other day and she is pretty amazing, but I liked it even before then.