A Crown of Gilded Bones is a romantic fantasy by American author Jennifer L. Armentrout. Published in September of 2020, The Crown of Gilded Bones is the third instalment of what is a six-book series, titled The Blood and Ash Series.
From bestselling author Jennifer L. Armentrout comes a new adult fantasy novel series, Blood and Ash. The third novel in the series, The Crown of Gilded Bones, brings us back into the world of strife and drama!
If romance, political intrigue, discrimination, and high-end magical fantasy is your thing, then this novel should definitely be on your list! Perfect for fans of Sarah J Maas’ A Court of Thorns and Roses, or Holly Black‘s The Folk of the Air series!
Table of Contents [CLICK HERE TO OPEN]
Official Description
The Crown of Gilded Bones
Bow Before Your Queen Or Bleed Before Her…
“You are the foundation that helps me stand. You are my walls and my roof. My shelter. You are my home.”
Jennifer L. Armentrout, The Crown of Gilded Bones
Full Description
She’s been the victim and the survivor…
Poppy never dreamed she would find the love she’s found with Prince Casteel. She wants to revel in her happiness but first they must free his brother and find hers. It’s a dangerous mission and one with far-reaching consequences neither dreamed of. Because Poppy is the Chosen, the Blessed. The true ruler of Atlantia. She carries the blood of the King of Gods within her. By right the crown and the kingdom are hers.
The enemy and the warrior…
Poppy has only ever wanted to control her own life, not the lives of others, but now she must choose to either forsake her birthright or seize the gilded crown and become the Queen of Flesh and Fire. But as the kingdoms’ dark sins and blood-drenched secrets finally unravel, a long-forgotten power rises to pose a genuine threat. And they will stop at nothing to ensure that the crown never sits upon Poppy’s head.
A lover and heartmate…
But the greatest threat to them and to Atlantia is what awaits in the far west, where the Queen of Blood and Ash has her own plans, ones she has waited hundreds of years to carry out. Poppy and Casteel must consider the impossible—travel to the Lands of the Gods and wake the King himself. And as shocking secrets and the harshest betrayals come to light, and enemies emerge to threaten everything Poppy and Casteel have fought for, they will discover just how far they are willing to go for their people—and each other.
And now she will become Queen…
Our Overview of Crown of Gilded Bones
Penellaphe has just destroyed the people at the temple, bringing in a contingent of Wolven, and the Royals. She is shocked by the proclamation of Queen Eloana that she, Poppy, is the true heir to the throne of Atlantia. Casteel attempts to make his way up to her to check if she is hurt.
A group of people led by Alistair, shoot down Casteel and Kieran, Casteel’s friend, and Wolven. Poppy, thinking they have died, lashes out with her powers but is kidnapped nonetheless.
While in captivity, Poppy finds out that Casteel is indeed alive and that the Captain of the Guard from Masadonia is a changeling. He was the one who took the face of Beckett, the young wolf-pup and took her to the temple right before she had been stoned and lost control of her powers. Captain Jansen had also killed Beckett. The initial plan is to take Poppy to a town in Solis and give her to Queen Ileana.
Before the exchange is made, Casteel and Kieran show up with their own army and try to rescue Poppy. Poppy takes a jagged arrow into her chest. Casteel decides to Ascend her in order to save her life despite it being forbidden.
Poppy wakes up several days later and almost eats Kieran before Casteel shows up. She isn’t a vampry, but they don’t know what she is. Alistair is not dead, he is being held captive so he doesn’t tell his mother what Casteel did. Shortly thereafter, they visit King Valyn. He relaxes when he sees Poppy isn’t a Vampry. Later that night, Alistair is executed.
Eventually, they travel to a city in Alantia where they meet up with the King and Queen. After Ascending, Poppy finds that her powers are much stronger. She then discovers that Poppy is the daughter of a deity. The Queen then reveals that they had amassed an army ready to attack Solis, and the only way out is for the King and Queen to stop it: Casteel and Poppy must become King and Queen if they want to stop it.
Poppy believes after meeting some people, that not every Vampry is bad and doesn’t want to start a war. After a long deliberation, Casteel and Poppy agree to take on the Crown of Atlantia.
They return to the capital city and tell King Valyn and Queen Eloana of their intentions. Poppy and Casteel are crowned: the first new crowns in four hundred years. Poppy and Casteel encourage the council to hold back the armies. Going into the tunnels to the way to Iliseum, Poppy has to use her powers to kill snakes and skeletons. Nytkos tells the dragon within the tunnel to watch Poppy’s friends while they talk. He tells her that he won’t help, but she already has everything she needs already.
The return to the castle. Poppy meets Gianna, the wolvern that was supposedly engaged to Casteel. Eventually they arrive to the city to meet the queen of Solis. After some mishaps, Queen Ileana arrives and tells Poppy the truth: She is her mother, not Coralena. The Queen reveals that her true name is Isbeth and was Malec’s heart-mate, and when he turned her, since he was a God, she became one. She demands Poppy pledge allegiance to her and settle as a Duchess in Atlantia.
Poppy refuses, and the Queen has Ian killed. All Hell breaks loose. Poppy and the Queen fight which leads Poppy unconscious. When she awakes, she discovers that Casteel was taken prisoner on her behalf.
Poppy returns to the capital city and confronts Eloana about the truth of Isbeth. The former Queen tells her that she didn’t know until Malec had told her the truth all those years ago when she entombed him. Poppy then goes into Iliseum with Kieran and speaks with the dragon-like changeling about her responsibilities. He agrees on behalf of his clan to help ber. He then reveals to her that Malec isn’t her father, but Malec’s twin.
They return to the city where they met with the Queen of Solis. Poppy asked for the Kingdom of Solis to send someone worthy of receiving the Queen of Atlantia, which turned out to be the King of Solis. She kills him, cuts off his head, and hurts the Revenant that they had left behind-telling them to take the King’s head to the Queen and deliver the message that Poppy is coming for them with fury.
Our Review of Crown of Gilded Bones
A truly amazing follow-up to the series!
There’s so much to gush about this novel! This instalment is, in our opinion, much more action-packed than the first. There’s tons of political and royal drama which had us on the edge of our seat the entire read. Not to mention the ending! Poppy really is in her girlboss era.
Poppy’s growth in the series has been remarkable, she comes to terms with some very difficult revelations of her identity and background and takes them head-on. Some may say that she takes it too well, in a way which is borderline inhuman – but we think this is intentional. As Poppy faces more news of her background, she takes it better and better, a reflection on how we discover that she isn’t human at all.
Ugh, and a moment to appreciate the relationship between Poppy and Casteel. They’re endlessly supportive of each other and Casteel getting imprisoned for the safety of Poppy is heartbreaking in the best way!
Overall, another excellent addition to the series. We can’t wait to read onto the next one!
Our rating: ★★★★☆
About the Author
#1 New York Times and #1 International Bestselling author Jennifer L. Armentrout lives in Shepherdstown, West Virginia.
Jennifer was diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa, a group of rare genetic disorders that involve a breakdown and death of cells in the retina, eventually resulting in loss of vision. Due to her diagnosis, she considers educating people about this disorder is a priority of hers which she will promote alongside her writing. Inspirational!
Jennifer has won numerous awards, including:
- 2013 Reviewers Choice Award for Wait for You,
- 2015 Editor’s Pick for Fall With Me
- 2014/2015 Moerser-Jugendbuch- Jury award for Obsidian.
- DON’T LOOK BACK was a 2014 nominated Best in Young Adult Fiction by YALSA.
- Her adult romantic suspense novel TILL DEATH was an Amazon Editor’s Pick and iBook Book of the Month.
- Young adult contemporary THE PROBLEM WITH FOREVER is a 2017 RITA Award Winner in Young Adult Fiction.
- Her novel STORM AND FURY was chosen for the 2020-2021 Florida Teens Read List.
- The adult fantasy FROM BLOOD AND ASH was the 2020 Goodreads Choice Award in Romance.
Check out Jennifer’s author page on her website here!
Frequently Asked Questions
How many books are in the Blood and Ash series?
The blood and ash series currently has 3 books published, with another 3 on the way. The reading order is as follows:
- From Blood and Ash (2020)
- Kingdom of Flesh and Fire (2020)
- The Crown of Gilded Bones (2021)
- The War of Two Queens (2022)
- A Soul of Ash and Blood (Expected 2023)
- (Unconfirmed title)
Following the success of the series, Armentrout began another fantasy book series in 2021 as a companion to the Blood & Ash series.
The Flesh and Fire series is a companion prequel, with two novels.
- A Shadow in the Ember
- A Light in the Flame
Is The Crown of Gilded Bones the first book?
Crown of Gilded Bones is the third book in the Blood and Ash series.
Is The Crown of Gilded Bones a series?
This novel, being the third in the series is titled The Crown of Gilded Bones and is an installment in the epic Blood & Ash series.
Worth the read: The Crown of Gilded Bones?
Definitely! In our opinion, this is the strongest novel in the series. Especially if you’re a fan of action and politics!
