Rating - ⭐⭐⭐1/2
"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."
From Blood and Ash is the first installment in Jennifer L. Armentrout's new adult fantasy series Blood and Ash.
This book, while I kind of enjoyed it, had varying degrees of disappointment.
Right out of the gate I was slapped in the face with new people and terms with no explanation of who or what they are. Now don't get me wrong, I usually like info-dumping, but this just did not work for me.
This book didn't really throw in anything surprising except for the stupidity of the characters' actions. The twist of the book also was surprising because you could see it coming from a mile away (and Poppy didn't even suspect a thing).
As for the romance, I will give the author some brownie points for fully committing to the sex scenes (and actually mentioning prep and protection which most authors don't and it drives me nuts). The actual romance though, was, well, a bad idea. But, you know, plot development is needed in a way and this is just what the author went with. You also know going into this that this is going to be a fantasy that relies heavily on the romance. As a new adult book though, I was expecting the romance to be a bit spicier.
The icing on the cake for me that highly decreased the likeness that I will pick up the books in the rest of the series was the ending. I have pretty much no hope for Poppy and Hawe's relationship, and if I don't care about them, then there is really no reason to continue on.
Overall, I do think the book is worth a shot even if I won't be continuing the series because I didn't hate reading this.
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