Reviews with content warning for Torture - A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire

I didn’t enjoy this as much as the first one, but I did still enjoy it. There are certain parts that felt a bit too drawn out and there are certain things that get repeated too often (gee I wonder what Cas smells like?). But I do mostly like the characters (many more than Poppy and Cas) and I do enjoy the plot. Medium pace fantasy novel with a decent spice level. Interested to see if the third one bounces back for me.

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jen1804's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Eeek, I loved this book! (I’d give it more but there’s too many grammatical/ spelling mistakes to let it slide I’m sorry!) This book has everything you need from a good fantasy romance novel, good guys, bad guys, bad guys who you thought were good guys and good guys who you thought were bad guys, battle, blood, justice, fantastic banter between characters, endearing blossoming relationships, laugh out loud moments, complex character development, a sense of mystery, heavy flirting, arguments between our two MCs, sexy scenes, the list goes on. And boy did I love the strangers, to friends, to lovers, to enemies, to fake relationship, to lovers journey we got to go on with Poppy and Casteel throughout book 1 and 2.
There are parts of this book which felt so reflective for me, the scene with the chamber full of names of the fallen scratched into the walls was haunting. And the overall message of xenophobia throughout this book was deeply harrowing. The way our FMC, Poppy, has the ability to sense others’ feelings and emotions towards her, and the absolute disgust, distrust and hatred she feels just because she was born and raised elsewhere is horrific. Like at one point she gets stoned, and it is AWFUL.
But alongside this incredibly complex plot which keeps you engaged throughout and wanting to learn more about Poppy and her growing abilities, are some fantastically well developed characters. Poppy is so freaking strong, I actually adore her as a FMC. She has such a brilliant personality, unafraid to talk back and unapologetically herself. Casteel is just such a beautiful MMC and I am OBSESSED with their back and forth. Armentrout has created brilliant chemistry between the two of them on the page and I cannot get enough of their constant bickering, flirtatious arguments, Casteel’s dimple smirks and Poppy regularly stabbing Cas because he’s pissed her off, knowing he’ll quickly heal.
And I think the two of them fighting together on the battlefield is one of my fave fantasy couple scenes of all time🙊.
I actually cannot WAIT to find out what happens in the next book because that ENDING!
Satisfactory ending? Yes!

It was the emotion behind the long looks and the seeking touches. The feeling behind the way his arm always tightened around me when we rode together and why he was always messing with my hair. It was the emotion that drove him to draw that line he wouldn’t cross with me. It was why he wouldn’t use compulsion, and it was what allowed him to want to protect me but demanded that he allow me to protect myself. It was how when he was with me, he didn’t think of his kingdom, his brother, or the time he’d been a captive. And it was one of many things forbidden to me as the Maiden. It was love.

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midnacine's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I really just love these books and listening to it this time around was amazing.

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vinnyvee's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional inspiring mysterious sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

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kerttuli's review

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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verk's review against another edition

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dark medium-paced

1.5

No pasa nada durante varios capítulos. Prácticamente durante todo el libro.
Todo se trata de Poppy yendo del punto A al B, preguntándose boludeces entre alguna que otra cosa poco útil cómo vivir admirando los ojos Ámbar de Casteel 😒.
Poppy y Casteel tienen una dinámica horrible como pareja. Con su jueguito de “hagamos de cuenta”…daaaaaaaale! Poppy tiene 20 años pero vos sos un mamerto de 2 siglos, déjame de joder! 😅
Serán unas 600 páginas realmente soporíferas y recién después pasa algo interesante.
Lo único bueno es el final, es lo único que vale la pena.

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sarahsreadinglist's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire picks up right where From Blood and Ash ends. Like the first book, I found many things frustrating, but I still ultimately enjoyed it. It answers some questions from the first book while introducing new and even more mysterious questions, expanding on the rich histories of Atlantia, the Ascended, the wolven, and individuals (e.g. Poppy and Casteel). I found our couple’s relationship development in the second book more interesting and satisfying than in the first, and I’d say fans of enemies-to-lovers arcs will enjoy FBAA’s sequel more than the first book.

Overall, A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire carries the same issues I take with From Blood and Ash, but by this time I’ve mostly gotten used to it and still enjoyed the novel.

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