A review by geekygraceelyse
The Crown of Gilded Bones by Jennifer L. Armentrout

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

4.5

 
“You will bow before your Queen… Or you will bleed before her. It is your choice.” 
 
The Crown of Gilded Bones is the highly anticipated third novel in Jennifer L Armentrout’s epic high fantasy series, From Blood and Ash. 
 
Poppy never dreamed she would find the love she’s found with Prince Casteel. All she wants is to revel in her happiness but first they must free his brother and find hers. It’s a dangerous mission and one with far-reaching consequences neither dreamed of. Because Poppy carries the blood of the King of Gods within her. She is the Chosen, the Blessed, and the true ruler of Atlantia. 
 
However, Poppy has only ever wanted to control her own life, not the lives of others, but now she must choose to either forsake her birthright or seize the gilded crown and become Queen of Flesh and Fire. But as the kingdoms’ dark sins and blood-drenched secrets begin to unravel, a long-forgotten power rises to pose a genuine threat, and they will stop at nothing to ensure the crown never sits upon Poppy’s head. 
 
But the greatest threat is what awaits in the far west, where the Queen of Blood and Ash has her own plans, ones she has waited hundreds of years to carry out. Poppy and Casteel are now faced with the seemingly impossible task of traveling to the Lands of the Gods to wake the King himself. 
 
As shocking secrets and the harshest betrayals come to light, and enemies emerge to threaten everything Poppy and Casteel have fought for, they will discover just how far they’re willing to go for their people – and each other. 
 
A man who bared his soul and stripped open his heart to me—and only me. 
My first. My guard. My friend. My betrayer. My partner. 
My husband. My heartmate. 
My everything. 
 
I have spent the past four days trying to write this review and just failing to find a way of putting into words just how much I love it that will do it justice. 
 
But I am so pleased to say that the fans of this series are not going to be disappointed in this next instalment in the From Blood and Ash series. 
 
The Crown of Gilded Bones is an action packed, fast paced novel that left me completely speechless. It was everything I could have hoped it would be and I honestly don’t know how I’m going to handle the wait for the fourth book to be released, especially with that ending. 
 
I loved getting to see Poppy and Casteel be so at ease around one another now that they had come to terms with how their relationship started & the betrayal Poppy felt after discovering who Hawke was. It was a nice change of pace from A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire where Poppy spent a lot of the book trying to fight her attraction to Casteel, and process & move beyond his deception. I loved reading that in AKOFAF, but I also really loved seeing them fall into their roles as husband and wife and their dedication & passion for one another without either of them holding back over their feelings of guilt or betrayal. 
 
“I do not want to be party to forcing you into yet another role you did not ask for nor desire. I will not replace the veil you loathed with a crown you hate. If you do not want to take the Crown, I will support you.” 
 
They had such an easy & comfortable emotional intimacy between the two of them, and I just adored that aspect of their relationship. 
 
“Gods, I hope you truly understand how strong you are. I’m constantly in awe of you. I’ve been in awe of you since the night in the Red Pearl.” 
 
I loved that Casteel had moments of vulnerability, where he freely showed his emotions & also opened up to Poppy about the trauma he experienced & still struggles with from being held captive by the Blood Crown. 
 
But I focused on Casteel. His eyes were glossy, and his lashes were wet. 
He was crying. 
Casteel was crying. 
 
After spending so much of her life in isolation, I loved seeing Poppy form friendships, particularly the friendships she formed with Keiran and Delano, while also coming into her own power and sense of self after having her entire world view shattered in From Blood and Ash, and A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire. 
 
“Okay. Just give me a second to concentrate.” 
“You sure you only need a second?” he quipped. 
“You sure you don’t want to find yourself staring down at the hilt of a dagger protruding from your chest?” 
The wolven grinned at me. “That would make it hard to test out whether you can do this on purpose or not.” 
 
Poppy has always been a fiercely strong and resilient character but she reaches new heights and uncovers a new level of strength & assertiveness as The Crown of Gilded Bones progressed. 
 
“…she thinks she can stay my hand. But, sometimes, war cannot be prevented,” 
…There would be no more talks or ultimatums. What was to come couldn’t be stopped. 
It never could be. 
 
 
Jennifer L Armentrout has such vivid world building in this series and I loved getting to learn more about Atlantia and the world in general during The Crown of Gilded Bones. It was such a vivid novel and I getting a lot of questions answered, but also being left with quite a few more. 
 
Due for release April 20th, The Crown of Gilded Bones is a riveting novel packed with explosive chemistry, delightful humour, and thrilling action that will have you utterly enthralled until the very last word and leave you begging for the next book.