If you are at all interested in Fantasy or Romance, more specifically Paranormal Romance, I urge you to drop what you’re currently reading and pick up From Blood and Ash. Fair warning: this is the first in a series with no anticipated release date for book 2. **Edited to add that book 2, A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire, is set to release September 1, 2020!
Jennifer L. Armentrout has crammed everything I love into one book: intrigue, action, captivating characters, and, of course, ROMANCE. This is a slow burn (which I personally adore), but we get a hint of what’s to come in the first chapter and it was just enough to get me hooked.
The tension in this book is delicious and it stems, not only from the MC’s love interest and adversaries, but also from the looming threat of Poppy’s fate. For one deemed “the Maiden”, Poppy is far from what you’d expect. She’s a strong-willed, tough-as-nails warrior in her own right, willing to defy the rules and reluctant to accept the status quo. I love her journey through the story as she grows in confidence and questions everything.
The supporting characters are thoughtfully developed and purposeful to furthering the plot. I admire Armentrout’s ability to sow false seeds of mistrust in so many characters. Ultimately, I expected the betrayal and even correctly guessed the true identity of our instigator, but was surprised by the reasoning and complete twist of world-building.
This book is a thrill from page 1 and, though it is over 600 pages, I could have continued reading this tale for much longer. I highly recommend it for everyone, but particularly for fans of Sarah J Maas, Laura Thalassa, and Danielle L. Jensen.