Thursday, September 3, 2020

A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire by Jennifer L Armentrout ~ A Kingdom of Feels & Gifs, Review & Giveaway

 



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.




A Kingdom of Feels & Gifs

Val's got the feels on this one.  Gif's by chapter!

As I read the book, I stopped to find a gif that matched my feelings at the end of each chapter.  Here's how that went!


Chapter 1
No words! No one's got any words for Casteel.

Chapter 2
No fear? Hmmm...seriously?  Has me thinking.

Chapter 3
Let me go!  What is that man thinking?

Chapter 4
Craven blood!

Chapter 5
What's in a name?

Chapter 6
There's more to this story...he never says why he wants to marry her.

Chapter 7
bad dreams

Chapter 8
Who has more questions?  Poppy asking Kieran or me just wondering??

Chapter 9
Have you been to the 911 memorial?  I feel like we just visited it.

Chapter 10
Truce?  Right.

Chapter 11&12
We're all happily flamingos' here.  No really!

Chapter 13
BOOKS!

Chapter 14
The ascended have concealed oh so much!

Chapter 15
That was just disturbing 

Chapter 16
This is what I want to do to the ascended.  I do not like them, Sam I am!

Chapter 17
Nothing happening here...in the pantry.  Nothing at all.

Chapter 18
Dimples...


Chapter 19
Yeah, that's about it. 

Chapter 20
Hmmmmm.....

Chapter 21
She has feeling for him.  She can deny all she want, but I'm not buying it.

Chapter 22
When a society has convinced everyone that things are all just fine.  Yeah, it feels a little too close to home.
What just happened?

Chapter 23
Yep. This.

Chapter 24
The whole idea that you, Poppy, are pouty about this makes me all kinds of HAPPY.


Chapter 25
Let's do this thing!

Chapter 26
Swoon!

Chapter 27
Pretend.  So sweet to pretent.

Chapter 28 
Ummm...say what?

Chapter 29
Things just got really interesting...

Chapter 30
Finally!

Chapter 31
All the swoony feels!

Say what?  What did you say?!

Chapter 32
That's my girl! Give them hell!

Chapter 33
Hawke...Casteel - I love him hard.

Chapter 34
This cannot be good.

Chapter 35
Among the mess all around, there's this! YES!

Chapter 36
Something I LOVE about this author, the happy in the middle!

Chapter 37
This is good.  Happy.

Chapter 38
Hate is too mild a word for how I feel about the ascended.

Chapter 39
So much going on and I'm so proud of Casteel & Poppy!

Chapter 40
I don't know what that means but it CANNOT be a good thing!

Chapter 41
This cannot be a good thing.  STRESSED

Chapter 42
Freaky and WHAT just happened???

Chapter 43
Explain...I need to understand! What the actual...

Chapter 44
What the what???

Chapter 45

So um, I'm channeling Poppy here.  I have lots and lots of questions.  What just happened to the last 4 hours of my life??

And put it all together!





That's pretty much what it felt like.

About the author...


#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.


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You need to read this book and when you do, you'll need to clear your schedule.  I have not had time just melt away as I was stuck in book like this before.  It's an almost 500 page book and I read it in about a day and half.  I have no recollection of that time except the story that is this book.  It is that captivating. 

Yeah, I was mad at Hawke at the end of book 1.  He let me (and Poppy) fall for him over a bunch of lies.  But I had the same problem that Poppy did.  I had fallen for him.  I was still mad, though.  So was Poppy.  Until this book.  I was stunned how much I didn't really know him.  But now I do and I gotta say that I'm amazed at this authors ability to leave out details for later that change ones thinking.  Casteel wasn't a name I even wanted to say at the end of the last book but now I care deeply for him.

As for Poppy, she needed to figure things out about herself during this book.  There is a lot to process and deal with as her life has changed so dramatically.  I was proud of her being angry at Casteel.  And then I was proud of how she came to terms with it all.  Lots of character growth for her.  Mostly, I was so very happy that she listened to her heart.  

There was that ending part with Poppy.  That had me doing a double take and re-reading several pages - say what now??  I can't believe what an amazing job this author did of creating a perfect book 2.  There was no middle book syndrome.  There was no real cliff hanger.  There was shock and awe for sure.  I want more like NOW.  I'm so excited for these two and for this people.  I want some ascended behind to be kicked.  There needs to be some questions answered.  Ian.  Malik.  More.  I cannot wait for the next book.

I love this world.  Reading high fantasy doesn't come easy for me.  I prefer the urban fantasy where there is some things I already know.  Otherwise, it feels like work reading it.  This is really the first time I've read high fantasy where I didn't get lost with all the "new", trying to keep everything straight.  This world makes sense to me.  The characters have captured my heart.  The enemies are worthy of death and I'd be happy to help dish it out to them.  So much of my heart is involved in the pages of this book.  It's like nothing I've ever read.

If you haven't read book 1, From Blood and Ash, you will need to reserve a whole week to binge these two together.  These are must reads for JLA fans.  They are also must reads for anyone who loves good high fantasy.  Don't make excuses, just read these two.  You won't be sorry.

 


                                             



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

Open Internationally
Runs 8/28-9/14  (ends at 11:59PM EST on the 14th)



a Rafflecopter giveaway

This is not a Stuck In Books giveaway.  Stuck In Books is not responsible for selecting the winner or delivering the prize.


28 comments:

  1. Val....that was the best review I've ever read! FLOVED it!

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  2. I love this review! I haven't read any of her books or seen the movies but the cover alone makes me want to read this.

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  3. I haven't started them yet but this review has really caught my interest.

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  4. I have not yet had the pleasure of reading any books by this author.

    Nancy
    allibrary (at) aol (dot) com

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  5. i have started this series and very excited for this new book

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  6. "Are you excited for The Queen? Have you started the Summer King novellas? Are you excited for the Wicked movie?" Yes! Alas, no. Yes!

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  7. I'm behind on my JLA reads; I need to start this series! I just got book 1 and am hoping to dive in soon :)

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  8. This is a new series and author to me. Adding to my TBR list. Looking forward to reading the books.

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  9. I haven't started this series yet but I am looking forward to it.

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  10. Love this series and this authors books! Very excited for this book and all of it and cant wait!!

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  11. I’m very excited about the New Series. Thanks!

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  12. I haven't started the series yet. It sounds great.

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  13. Definitely excited for the Wicked movie (have read the three books but haven't read the novellas). By the way, this is a great post--love the GIFs!

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  14. I haven't started these books yet, but I love the name Poppy and for me that is a must. (I know that is shallow, but it's really hard for me to read a book if I am rubbed the wrong way constantly by the main character's name. I've been this way since I was a child.)

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  15. I haven’t started the series just yet but it's on my list.

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  16. I haven't started yet, but they're on my TBR list!

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  17. I'm so super excited for The Queen!! I'm getting ready to start the novellas soon, it's been a busy summer with lots of home renovations. I'm really excited for the Wicked movie too!

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  18. Love it! So excited, already on my TBR! Fingers crossed!

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  19. I'm behind on the reads, but I will catch up as I anticipate The Queen. I haven't watched a movie in forever. Perhaps Wicked will get me started again.

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  20. I have not gotten started yet the movie would be awesome.

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  21. The comment for every chapter is the best!

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  22. Love the comments xD SPOILER ALERT: can u tell me in which chapter Poppy knows that will be a fake marriage?

    Thanks!

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