From Blood and Ash is a romantic fantasy by American author Jennifer L. Armentrout. Published in March of 2020, From Blood and Ash is the first instalment of what is a six-book series, titled The Blood and Ash Series. From Blood and Ash was awarded Goodreads Choice Award 2020!
From bestselling author Jennifer L. Armentrout comes a new adult fantasy novel series, Blood and Ash. The first novel in the series, From Blood and Ash, sets us into the complex world with delicious amounts of world building and a lot of political strife!
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!
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Official Description
From Blood and Ash
Captivating and action-packed, From Blood and Ash is a sexy, addictive, and unexpected fantasy perfect for fans of Sarah J. Maas and Laura Thalassa.
“In this exciting new novel by Jennifer L. Armentrout, she introduces a fantastical world filled with immense detail, and characters who are poignant and fierce, Jennifer truly has out done herself!”
BookBesties
Full Description
A Maiden…
Chosen from birth to usher in a new era, Poppy’s life has never been her own. The life of the Maiden is solitary. Never to be touched, never to be looked upon, never to be spoken to, never to experience pleasure. Waiting for the day of her Ascension, she would rather be with the guards, fighting back the evil that took her family, than preparing to be found worthy by the gods. But the choice has never been hers.
A Duty…
The entire kingdom’s future rests on Poppy’s shoulders, something she’s not even quite sure she wants for herself. Because a Maiden has a heart. And a soul, and longing. And when Hawke, a golden-eyed guard honor bound to ensure her Ascension, enters her life, destiny and duty become tangled with desire and need. He incites her anger, makes her question everything she believes in, and tempts her with the forbidden.
A Kingdom…
Forsaken by the gods and feared by mortals, a fallen kingdom is rising once more, determined to take back what they believe is theirs through violence and vengeance. And as the shadow of those cursed draws closer, the line between what is forbidden and what is right becomes blurred. Poppy is not only on the verge of losing her heart and being found unworthy by the gods, but also her life when every blood-soaked thread that holds her world together begins to unravel.
“Action, adventure, sexiness, and angst! From Blood and Ash has it all and double that. So many feels and so many moments it made me cheer for the character. Read. This. Book! You’ll be obsessed!”
Tijan NYT bestselling author
Our Overview
The healing of Kingdom Solis depends on Penellaphe, the Maiden, who is meant to initiate the first Ascension since The War of Two Kings, elevating Lord and Ladies in Waiting and herself to a higher social status. During the war, the Kingdom Solis triumphed over the Kingdom Atlantia. Residual anxiety and political strife still plague the kingdom. With only one year until her Ascension, Penellaphe wants to experience life. In disguise, Penellaphe kisses a Royal Guard.
Penellaphe has “the touch,” a power that allows her to feel the physical and emotional pain of others. With her heightened sense of empathy, she then questions the ethics and morals of the Ascended. Penellaphe illegally participates in death with dignity, a group of people who believe that those who dedicate their lives to the Rise should henceforth die in peace.
The Duke rules Penellaphe and teaches her lessons through abuse. Hawke, her personal guard, vows to protect her above all.
During final Rite before Penellaphe’s Ascension is underway, all third sons and daughters of the citizens are presented. Their family must then give them in service to the gods.
Hawke assures her that her title means nothing to him; all he cares about is unquestionably who she is on the inside. Vikter, Penellaphe’s mentor, catches them in the garden and becomes enraged thereafter. Penellaphe retaliates straightaway, her whole life she has lived in solitude and confinement. In any event, she does not want to Ascend.
In the Great Hall, the Duke’s bloodied body is found hanging from the Rite banner. Descenters then storm the hall. Viketer is killed in the brawl. Where then, in a fit of rage, Penellaphe kills Lord Mazeen.
As she moves to the Capital, Penellaphe vows to believe in her abilities rather than in the gods’ will. After a romantic night with Hawke, Penellaphe decides she won’t ascend and she go by Poppy rather than The Chosen One.
It is discovered that the Ascended are vamprys. The Ascended enslave Atlantians to use their blood for ascending other mortals into their coven.
Penellaphe is overcome by a rebellious faction of Casteel’s part and she sustains a particularly fatal wound. Casteel encourages her to drink his Atlantian blood, saving her life. Overcome with the betrayal, Penellaphe stabs Casteel and in the midst of the tussle, Casteel tastes her blood and shortly realises she is half Atlantian.
Prince Casteel then informs Penellaphe and the Descenters that he plans to take Penellaphe back to Atlantia and marry her.
Our Review
To preface this review, we want to warn you that the first portion of this book is hard to follow from time to time! There’s a lot of worldbuilding info to get accustomed to fairly quickly, in due time. If you manage through that, it will all click into place and you’ll soon be quickly absorbed into the world!
This novel hits a lot of gold stars for fans of fantasy romance! We have:
- Firstly, a strong, fierce heroine who decides her own fate
- A swoon-worthy personal body guard
- Steamy romance
- The story is laced with bravery, suspense, vengeance, complicated political strife, and impressively, a generally new take on some fairly classic fantasy elements.
- Lastly, witty and engaging banter with a ton of interesting and fun side characters
If you think you’re ready for this book, think again. Jennifer has successfully knitted together a new fantasy universe with will surely leave you reeling. Filled with action, twists, betrayl and a delicious romance, this novel is undeniably hard to put down!
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 a Amazon Editor’s Pick and iBook Book of the Month.
- Her 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.
- Her 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 From Blood and Ash spicy?
Don’t expect to have to get the electric fan out, but still, From Blood And Ash does have a handful of spicy scenes towards the end of the novel!
Is From Blood and Ash enemies to lovers?
From Blood and Ash has been described as an ‘exciting enemies to lovers romance between two star-crossed souls’. So lovers of the trope should likewise pick this up on their next bookstore haul!
From Blood and Ash appropriate for 13 year olds?
The novel From Blood and Ash follows some themes of abuse, violence and some more nuanced political and social values (as well and the spicy scenes). Therefore, we would probably sit on the side of caution and suggest 13 year olds to wait a couple of years before delving into this novel.
