Why ‘A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire’ is My New Favourite Read of the Year

Why ‘A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire’ is My New Favourite Read of the Year
A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire blog tour banner

Many thanks to the author and the publisher for the advanced reader’s copy of A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire in exchange for my honest review.

A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire book cover

Spoiler warning: If you have not read the first book, some content in this review might be spoilers to you.

A Betrayal…

Everything Poppy has ever believed in is a lie, including the man she was falling in love with. Thrust among those who see her as a symbol of a monstrous kingdom, she barely knows who she is without the veil of the Maiden. But what she does know is that nothing is as dangerous to her as him. The Dark One. The Prince of Atlantia. He wants her to fight him, and that’s one order she’s more than happy to obey. He may have taken her, but he will never have her.

A Choice…

Casteel Da’Neer is known by many names and many faces. His lies are as seductive as his touch. His truths as sensual as his bite. Poppy knows better than to trust him. He needs her alive, healthy, and whole to achieve his goals. But he’s the only way for her to get what she wants—to find her brother Ian and see for herself if he has become a soulless Ascended. Working with Casteel instead of against him presents its own risks. He still tempts her with every breath, offering up all she’s ever wanted. Casteel has plans for her. Ones that could expose her to unimaginable pleasure and unfathomable pain. Plans that will force her to look beyond everything she thought she knew about herself—about him. Plans that could bind their lives together in unexpected ways that neither kingdom is prepared for. And she’s far too reckless, too hungry, to resist the temptation.

A Secret…

But unrest has grown in Atlantia as they await the return of their Prince. Whispers of war have become stronger, and Poppy is at the very heart of it all. The King wants to use her to send a message. The Descenters want her dead. The wolven are growing more unpredictable. And as her abilities to feel pain and emotion begin to grow and strengthen, the Atlantians start to fear her. Dark secrets are at play, ones steeped in the blood-drenched sins of two kingdoms that would do anything to keep the truth hidden. But when the earth begins to shake, and the skies start to bleed, it may already be too late.

Content warnings: assault and abuse (memories/mention), blood, death, drug and alcohol use, kidnapping, sexual content (frequent, detailed), violence (graphic)

section header

I read Book 1, From Blood and Ash, as soon as Jenn did her surprise release and I loved it! I was so excited for Book 2 and I preordered everything! Then imagine my surprise when I got the chance to read an ARC and review it! But like all highly anticipated reads, I was so worried that I would hype myself up way too much and everything would just fall flat, but OH. MY. GOD… was I so wrong.

Also, I’ll be working with Jennifer to host a release giveaway in this post, so make sure you read till the end to check out this giveaway!

section header

A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire picks up the literal second that From Blood and Ash ended. To be frank, I have no idea how to summarise this book without spoiling it, but here goes:

AKOFAF built on all the plot twists that FBAA ended with. There are questions answered, mysteries solved, and more questions and mysteries that pop up as well! Poppy and Casteel learn to navigate through their new worlds and circumstances while they fight through a rising war and their own personal conflicts.

Think that did alright? I hope so because the last thing I would want to do is disappoint this book!

section header

I loved Poppy in FBAA but I got so deeply invested in her in AKOFAF! Since Poppy pretty much shed the Maiden from herself, we see a lot of Poppy being Poppy in this book. And it is glorious! I cannot rant enough about how much I loved Poppy in this book! I would normally get annoyed with MCs very easily at times throughout a series, but Poppy’s character was so well fleshed out that I just found her insanely relatable! I loved every quote, every comeback and every moment with her!

I was worried that Casteel will feel like a stranger in AKOFAF following all the plot twists in FBAA, but I shouldn’t have worried. Casteel just got better and greater for me in AKOFAF because we see so many facets of his personality. He is quite possibly the hottest MC I have read in a long time and I’m giggling writing this so that speaks volumes!

AKOFAF had many new characters. If FBAA had a limited cast, AKOFAF had sort of an ensemble cast.

The Atlantians were such an amazing lot! I didn’t realise how bad I needed to meet these characters until I read AKOFAF! My favourite Atlantian at this point is Kieran! He’s such a great character with a great dynamic with the MCs. I just want so much more of him!

The Ascended made a lot less frequent appearance here but the few times they did, they made an amazing impression! It added so much substance to the story and fleshed out so much of the plot!

scetion header

I found AKOFAF to be a lot more eventful than FBAA. I could literally feel the story building up momentum with each chapter. Obviously I cannot talk a lot about the plot without spoiling stuff, so all I am going to say is PLOT TWISTS! AKOFAF is like Jenn’s masterpiece of plot twists! There is no such as too many plot twists in this book because she made everything work! I am just awed by Jenn’s plot mastery in this book!

section header

I loved that we still saw everything through Poppy’s POV because I felt it is very essential and much more engaging than explaining everything to the audience through third-person engagement. I was hooked on every bit of new information we got dished out, just like Poppy was.

The book really encompassed the concept of high fantasy, surpassing even its predecessor. World-building would have been crazy hard in setting the story and history in this book, but I believe Jenn tackled it so well. I am so excited about the map that came out too, because that just gave the story so much more substance.

Once thing that I loved about Jenn’s new world is the wonderful mix of modern and historical. For the sake of avoiding spoilers, I do not want to elaborate on this too much, but I was pleasantly surprised by this. I just expected everything to be sort of Game of Thrones I guess, but this was a very nice surprise! Chef’s kiss!

section header

The theme that really stood out for me was cultural genocide. In this case, it was more about the Ascended erasing the Atlantians. I was fascinated by how the author incorporated real-world strategies into her story because it made it all the more believable.

A main part of AKOFAF was Poppy rediscovering herself apart from her role as the Maiden. So, self-discovery played a huge role as Poppy tried to integrate her true self with her interactions and relationships. I am just so proud of my girl Poppy for how far she came in this personal journey because it was just so relatable sometimes.

Lastly, can I just say the romance level in this book was off the charts! Steaminess, chemistry, banter, everything! Be warned that this is adult fiction, so yes, we do have a handful of sexy scenes that are spaced out throughout the book. But guys, the romance in this book is OFF. THE. CHARTS! I was just so invested in Poppy and Casteel by the end of the book I am just bursting with feels even writing this!

section header

A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire blew me away! I am actually waiting for my upcoming exams to finish off so that I can just read through my preordered copy. And this time I will play each chapter’s playlist because OH MY GOD IT’S AMAZING!

GIVEAWAY DETAILS

Prizes:

  • $100 Gift Card to The JLA Shop
  • FIVE Signed Paperback copies of FROM BLOOD & ASH

Rules:

  • Open Internationally
  • Runs 8/28-9/14  (ends at 11:59PM EST on the 14th)
  • Enter the Rafflecopter giveaway below or at this link
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Author Bio

#1 New York Times and #1 International Bestselling author Jennifer lives in Shepherdstown, West Virginia. All the rumors you’ve heard about her state aren’t true. When she’s not hard at work writing. she spends her time reading, watching really bad zombie movies, pretending to write, hanging out with her husband and her Border Jack Apollo, six judgemental alpacas, two rude goats, and five fluffy sheep. In early 2015, 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, among other complications.  Due to this diagnosis, educating people on the varying degrees of blindness has become of passion of hers, right alongside writing, which she plans to do as long as she can.

Are you reading A Kingdom Of Flesh And Fire right now? Let me know in the comments below! And make sure you sign up for the giveaway!

Back to top