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“You’re an absolutely stunning, murderous little creature.”
– Jennifer L. Armentrout, From Blood and Ash
Overview
Penallaphe is the promised Maiden who has been chosen to be given to the gods. She lives like a caged animal, with no friends, no family around her, and certainly no one to talk to. Her outward appearance isn’t all that she is. Known by friends as Poppy, she consistently breaks the rules to gain even a few hours of freedom. Her story changes forever when she runs into a handsome guard at a club in town, leading her on a completely different path.
From Blood and Ash Review
It has been a long time since I’ve read a book by JLA. I bought this book, thinking it would take me probably a week or so to finish (it’s about 600 pages). I read it in 2 days… From the first sentence to the last, I was hooked. I read more in those two days than I worked (sorry work!). The action, the steamy romance, and the conflict were just so well done. While I normally don’t enjoy reading ‘chosen one’ tropes, however, it was done in such a great and unique way. I cannot wait to read the next book in the series. If you’re a fan of action, adventure, some steamy romance scenes, and a little bit of magic, this is the book for you.
Rating
A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire Review
I loved the first book in this series but man this one really dragged in the beginning and really didn’t get going until the middle of the book. There just wasn’t enough action or plot moving in between, it was just a ton of conversations and sexual tension. Once it got going, it was as just as great as the first book. I am still excited to read the next book in the series. I hope it is more like the first book with better pacing.
Rating
The Crown of Gilded Bones Review
Note: This review contains some spoilers!
After the second book, I was wary of the quality of this book and unfortunately, I was really let down. First, Armentrout has a tendency to use conversation to convey history/backstory or explain confusing things. She does this through Poppy asking a million questions, which can seem like a cute quirky trait at first. However, it becomes pages and pages of conversation about topics I’m not sure will be important as the series continues.
Second, there are a plethora of spelling and grammar mistakes throughout the book. This is a book published by a smaller publishing house, but that’s no excuse for these errors. If I’m picking up these mistakes, it makes me think she didn’t have an editor.
Third, just like in the second book, it dragged. About a page of action followed by five pages of conversation. At this point, I found the love between Poppy and Casteel stale and overrated. It just wasn’t enough to keep the story moving with their love and a million conversations.
Rating
Update
After the dismal third book, I decided to stop reading the series. Someone explained that if you’ve stuck through the first three you know JLA’s style by now so you shouldn’t be too disappointed when that’s what you get. I have read other series by JLA and enjoyed them more or less, but the beginning of this series is my favorite by far. I have custom editions of the first three books and I will be keeping them since I loved the first two so much, but it’s hard to continue a series when you no longer enjoy the authors writing style and find the story to be moving too slowly.
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