From Blood and Ash
By: Jennifer L. Armentrout
"A Maiden…
Chosen from birth to usher in a new era, Poppy’s life has never been her own. The life of the Maiden is solitary. Never to be touched. Never to be looked upon. Never to be spoken to. Never to experience pleasure. Waiting for the day of her Ascension, she would rather be with the guards, fighting back the evil that took her family, than preparing to be found worthy by the gods. But the choice has never been hers.
A Duty…
The entire kingdom’s future rests on Poppy’s shoulders, something she’s not even quite sure she wants for herself. Because a Maiden has a heart. And a soul. And longing. And when Hawke, a golden-eyed guard honor bound to ensure her Ascension, enters her life, destiny and duty become tangled with desire and need. He incites her anger, makes her question everything she believes in, and tempts her with the forbidden.
A Kingdom…
Forsaken by the gods and feared by mortals, a fallen kingdom is rising once more, determined to take back what they believe is theirs through violence and vengeance. And as the shadow of those cursed draws closer, the line between what is forbidden and what is right becomes blurred. Poppy is not only on the verge of losing her heart and being found unworthy by the gods, but also her life when every blood-soaked thread that holds her world together begins to unravel."
The description of the book is a bit of foreshadowing in itself because it's just about as long-winded as the novel. That's not to say I didn't enjoy it, but boy or boy there was a lot of information tucked into the beginning of this book. Sadly, throughout all of the details there weren't very many mentions of food or drinks. Never fear though, Ms. Armentrout did give us a few things to work with.
"Bran, why don't you pour us some of the whiskey."
Whiskey was mentioned several times in From Blood and Ash and I think it captures the mood of the novel. I wish I could give you recommendations on a good whiskey to enjoy with this book, but I don't typically drink whiskey so if you have a favorite grab that!
If you find yourself in the I-Don't-Typically-Drink-Whiskey boat too, why not try this Whiskey Mocktail from Optional Kitchen. Now, I just wish I had a neat decanter to set the stage, but this glass will have to do!
To help soak up the whiskey, we have a hearty beef stew.
"A fire was lit, and the food, a rich and savory beef stew, had come before the hot water. I ate every drop of the stew and the accompanying biscuits, and would've probably licked the bowl clean if it hadn't been for the small army of servants commanded by Magda."
I gave this Beef Stew recipe from Once Upon a Chef a try. I omitted the wine and added extra broth, thyme, and Worcestershire. It was hearty and comforting and the leftovers are just as good. Next time I think I will make the biscuits she recommends pairing with it!
From Blood and Ash: ★★★☆☆
I picked this book up because it won the Goodreads Choice award for Romance in 2020. It has such a high review (currently, at the end of 2021) on Goodreads, but I'm sorry to say at least the first quarter, if not the first half, of this novel was pretty boring. I think this would have been a 4 star read for me, if I hadn't been so bored during the beginning. There were a lot of info dumps and repetitive dialogue. I love when books foreshadow events to come, but I felt like this one told me over and over what to expect.
The second half was much more exciting and it leaves the reader on a pretty good cliffhanger so I will be picking up the second book soon. I'm really, really hoping that we'll be jumping back into the action.
The second half was much more exciting and it leaves the reader on a pretty good cliffhanger so I will be picking up the second book soon. I'm really, really hoping that we'll be jumping back into the action.
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