Snow Like Ashes probably deserves at least 4 stars, but I was only able to read it in short bursts, which I found affected just how invested I was in the story. 
 The absolute best part of this story was the world building. While nothing new, the fantasy world presented here was positively fabulous. I adored it. There are vast expanses and built up cities. All of them are explored in detail that brought them to life and allowed me to vividly imagine them. 
 There are two big twists in the book. One of them was obvious from fairly early on. The other became obvious once enough information was revealed to allow the reader to do the mathematics. 
 I enjoyed Meira's character most of the time - in particular how she simply used resourcefulness to attain her ends, but there were other times when she was being so utterly childish that I could no longer connect with her. 
 All in all, a good first book. I'm interested in seeing where the story will go in the second instalment.