BOOK REVIEW - THE WAR OF TWO QUEENS (BLOOD AND ASH, #4) BY JENNIFER L. ARMENTROUT

TITLE: THE WAR OF TWO QUEENS (BLOOD AND ASH, #4)

AUTHOR: JENNIFER L. ARMENTROUT

GENRE: ADULT FANTASY

RATING: ★★★★★

REVIEW:

If you want to read my non-spoiler review you can do so on my Instagram, @thecaffeinatedbookaddict

**CONTAINS SPOILERS**

**SPOILER ALERT!**

This is a 600+ page book and has a lot to unpack and it is also the fourth in a series so I do go into spoilers for this book in this review. 

 

Now, I know we have all seen the drama surrounding this book, which I absolutely do not agree with, we all have our own opinions but just a forewarning don’t come at me in my comments for MY own opinion. Frankly, if you’re going to be rude, I don’t care to hear it, so do what the rest of us adults do, and keep on scrolling!

 

I gave this book five stars. How I base my rating system is how a book makes me feel, the writing quality, and if I can connect with the characters and the story. All these things were checked off for me with this one. The previous book, The Crown of Gilded Bones, felt a little bit slow to me but The War of Two Queens was action packed and full of so much information, and it just had an easy and fast paced flow to me.  

 

Poppy and Casteel being separated for a lot of the book and getting the scenes from his pov while he was being held captive by Isbitch was so heartbreaking to read. You can feel all the emotions and frustration from Poppy, her trying to win the War against Isbith and get Cas back while at the same time trying not to become the monster that her mother is hoping for, and it had me feeling some major emotions and frustration right alongside her. Poppy is such a strong character, but I maaaay have been hoping to see a bit of villainous behavior from her against Isbith, which we do get at the end a little bit, but for the most part Poppy is able to keep her control. I can’t lie, I really enjoy a villainous moment. ;) 

 

I did not anticipate where this book was headed at all. Not the storyline, and definitely not the relationships. Now, we get into the bits that everyone is freaking out over. Poppy, Casteel, and… Kieran. I really did not see this development coming, but in an apparently very unpopular opinion, I love it. All the scenes between Kieran and Poppy while Cas was held captive did not feel disrespectful to me at all and we even get Cas’s pov and how he feels and it’s never negative. He’s just happy that Kieran is there for Poppy when he can’t be, and that just made me love him even more. Nothing ever happens between them before the Joining happens, and after the Joining there is some sparks but to me it feels like a natural progression and not overdone or weird. There has always been a connection between Poppy and Kieran, and even a connection between Kieran and Casteel, that never felt 100% platonic to me.  I don’t have a clue where this is going, because there were hints between the three of them, and there were also hints that Kieran could find someone else in the future. To me, it doesn’t feel like a permanent situation between the three of them, but regardless, I am 100% on board with either direction. I trust JLA’s writing and in all the years that I have read her books, I have never been let down with an ending.  I'm trusting the process.

 

The Joining, I have been on team yes to the joining from the second it was mentioned, but it did not quite go how I imagined. I know JLA said that she didn’t want to be descriptive, but I am a wee bit disappointed in that. It leaves you feeling like you’re not quite sure if her and Kieran actually have sex or not and I really didn’t like that. I would have much more preferred to know who was doing what. It didn’t feel wrong given where the story was headed, the circumstances, and their progression, I was just a little disappointed in the execution. It was just a bit disappointing to me with how descriptive she’s been with Poppy and Casteel in the past, it didn’t really feel authentic to the rest of the book with how steamy and descriptive they have been with Cas and Poppy. I just really feel like she should have gone all out with it, but again that’s just my personal opinion.

 

I thankfully was not spoiled for anything, which is a miracle because it took me about five days to read this book. For once I’m glad I read slowly because I missed these characters and I’m so glad that I got to savor them and this story. I fully enjoyed this book. Kingdom of Flesh and Fire is still my favorite in this series, but The War of Two Queens is a close second. It is action packed, full of emotions, and takes you on a journey full of twists and turns. I am very much excited about where this story is headed, and I cannot wait for the next one!

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