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adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Mental illness, Sexual content, Violence
Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual violence
dark
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I am a HUGE fan of the blood and ash / flesh in the fire series. The prequels have by far been my favorites so I went into this book with high expectations. What I thought would happen: huge plot points about lore, questions answered on how things came to be for the future story, a big war.
What most of the story was: Sera dealing with the trauma of being captured by Kolis and adjusting to her new role.
Now I didn't have an issue with this for the most part I thought the trauma was handled incredibly well and gave so much love to survivors. It just wasn't what I was expecting. Which I think skews my reading experience.
The lore dumps were few and far between and didn't really start happening until 65% through the book (a book that is almost 800 pages). For that reason I think there was a pacing issue. That made it hard for me to stay engaged. Especially since I knew where so much had to go because of the ending of the original series. Unfortunately this led to feeling disappointed in where and how the story ended. I didn't feel like we the readers, got the pay off of what the prequels were building too. The tension just fell flat.
And speaking of falling flat my biggest complaint and area I have the most problems with is the assination of Ash's character. Ash has always been one of my favorites. He was complex and beautifully written. By the end of this book he felt truly like a Cass copy and paste. Horny and 2 dimensional. There is a time and place for spice and this book missed everytime. It honestly felt like the editors told her to hit a quota of sex scenes.
Overall though I thought the story was good, the writing was gorgeous--especially with how she dealt with victim-survivior trauma-- and I'm so excited to read Poppy's next installment!
What most of the story was: Sera dealing with the trauma of being captured by Kolis and adjusting to her new role.
Now I didn't have an issue with this for the most part I thought the trauma was handled incredibly well and gave so much love to survivors. It just wasn't what I was expecting. Which I think skews my reading experience.
The lore dumps were few and far between and didn't really start happening until 65% through the book (a book that is almost 800 pages). For that reason I think there was a pacing issue. That made it hard for me to stay engaged. Especially since I knew where so much had to go because of the ending of the original series. Unfortunately this led to feeling disappointed in where and how the story ended. I didn't feel like we the readers, got the pay off of what the prequels were building too. The tension just fell flat.
And speaking of falling flat my biggest complaint and area I have the most problems with is the assination of Ash's character. Ash has always been one of my favorites. He was complex and beautifully written. By the end of this book he felt truly like a Cass copy and paste. Horny and 2 dimensional. There is a time and place for spice and this book missed everytime. It honestly felt like the editors told her to hit a quota of sex scenes.
Overall though I thought the story was good, the writing was gorgeous--especially with how she dealt with victim-survivior trauma-- and I'm so excited to read Poppy's next installment!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, Sexual assault, Violence
Moderate: Death, Emotional abuse, Torture, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment
Minor: Rape, Vomit, Abortion, Murder, War
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, Sexual harassment
Moderate: Body horror, Bullying, Confinement, Death, Genocide, Gore, Slavery, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, War, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Child death, Misogyny, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Suicide attempt
adventurous
emotional
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
Potential spoilers in content warnings!! Only look at warnings if you're willing to be spoiled. They're there to prevent someone being harmed from the content of the book.
There aren't many books that have torn my soul out so hard that it caused me to sob uncontrollably but this book can be added to that list.
I had my doubts about how JLA was going to be able to wrap up such a complicated and convoluted story while maintaining the beauty of the relationships in these books. As usual though, she pulled through and it was done beautifully.
My only complaint with the book was just how spice heavy it was. I love spice as much as the next emotionally stunted millennial, but it was so much it almost detracted from the plot. This was the first Flesh and Fire book that I caught myself, like in the Blood and Ash world, actually thinking 'OMG. We're really fucking again?' Past that, I had a fabulous time. Even when sobbing my head off..
Some of the new characters and creatures absolutely stole a bit of the show and I love love love more lore. I don't mind plot holes and unanswered questions as long as the rest of the book is still a good time. This book was a wonderful send off for Sera and Ash, as much as I wish this wasn't goodbye and we got to spend another 8 books with them. It reignited my interest in the next Blood and Ash book, which I haven't really cared about since TWOTQ first came out. Now, I absolutely cannot wait.
There aren't many books that have torn my soul out so hard that it caused me to sob uncontrollably but this book can be added to that list.
I had my doubts about how JLA was going to be able to wrap up such a complicated and convoluted story while maintaining the beauty of the relationships in these books. As usual though, she pulled through and it was done beautifully.
Some of the new characters and creatures absolutely stole a bit of the show and I love love love more lore. I don't mind plot holes and unanswered questions as long as the rest of the book is still a good time. This book was a wonderful send off for Sera and Ash, as much as I wish this wasn't goodbye and we got to spend another 8 books with them. It reignited my interest in the next Blood and Ash book, which I haven't really cared about since TWOTQ first came out. Now, I absolutely cannot wait.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Violence, Grief, Death of parent
Moderate: Sexual assault, Murder, Sexual harassment, War
Minor: Fatphobia, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy