toointofiction's Reviews > A Soul of Ash and Blood

“I knew this was real. What was between us. What she felt for me. What I felt for her. This. It was real.”

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Spice Meter: 🌶️🌶️

❗This review may contain some minor spoilers❗


I remembered just how much I loved Casteel when he was Hawke with this book. It goes without saying that From Blood and Ash is a magnificent book. Literally, all it needed was to be written again from Casteel's point of view. My favorite thing in literature is to read a whole book all over again through the love interest's narrative. That is to say, this book does not only include the events of the first book, it also follows the events of the last one, The War of Two Queens, and therefore, should definitely be read in publication order. I loved how JLA merged the past with the present by having Casteel recount his own experiences of how he and Poppy met and fell in love and everything in between by telling her the story while she is in stasis after completing the Culling. There are also several chapters scattered throughout the book that are set in the present and give some necessary and shocking information on the ongoing plot. There is even important development that will be addressed more in the next book and has completely blown my mind. Besides, that ending, specifically, has me pulling on my hair and screaming into the void. I need answers right now!

Moreover, I will never fall out of love with Casteel Da'Neer, period. He is a magnificent specimen of a man, and no one can compare to him. Despite his determination to see through his plans to save his brother and avoid war, he has a lot of conflicting feelings about what he sets out to do. However, none of those feelings prevent him from doing what he must, until he meets Poppy, that is. In addition, he finally gets the character arc he deserves, as this isn't just the story of how he meets Poppy, but also how he deals with the trauma he is left with being captured by the Blood Queen for five decades. Also, we finally receive more information on what kind of torture he went through while he was that bitch's captive, although we already know the gist of it, how he coped with it after his escape, and how it still affects him decades later. He has been through so much and must put himself through so much more until he accomplishes his task. Besides, one thing that I noticed is that, while I began feeling annoyed at parts of his behavior in the last two books, specifically the way he would get an erection every time Poppy breathed, it didn't bother me at all in this one. I think it's because it feels more like revisiting a past story rather than reading the same things all over again in every book.

Furthermore, I also loved reading about Poppy and the way Cas sees her. As he gets to know her he sees her as the wonderful, beautiful badass that she is and falls helplessly in love with her, even though he can't bring himself to admit it. Poppy is such a powerful driving force in his life, affecting his every decision from the moment they met in The Red Pearl until the present, and she didn't even know it. Also, it was interesting to experience her presence from someone else's point of view, especially someone who loves her as passionately and unconditionally as Casteel.


In addition, their relationship is still as magical from Casteel's point of view as it is from Poppy's. Experiencing the beginning of their relationship again left me with the same warm feelings I had when I read it the first time. Also, it isn't like we hadn't already known that Casteel falling in love with Poppy was inevitable, but reading it firsthand makes it all the more special. It is nice to know that Casteel's physical reactions to Poppy have always been as uncontrollable as he makes them out to be, even though one has to wonder if the guy has some sort of medical issue. It's just not normal to have so many erections so often. I understand that Poppy is beautiful inside and out, but damn.

Lastly, Kieran Contou is obviously just as delightful as Poppy and Casteel. I especially loved his presence in this book as he doesn't have much of it in the first one. Unsurprisingly, he is as wonderful as he has ever been. He is so supportive and understanding of Casteel, even though he doesn't agree with his crazy schemes and tries to advise him against them. He is also a calming force and an anchor, especially after Casteel's imprisonment.

Besides, Malik and Millicent make an appearance in this book as well. They aren't active in Casteel's storytelling, of course, but appear in the present. Both are fascinating characters, not just individually, but as a pair as well. There isn't enough information on what happened between them that is keeping them apart, other than Malik trying to kill Poppy that is, but they are heartmates and I want them to be together. It is a bit funny to me that Casteel and Malik, two brothers, fell in love with Poppy and Millie, two sisters, but it isn't unheard of and doesn't bother me at all. I am fully invested in both Malik and Millie's relationship with each other and the relationship they have with their respective siblings. If their relationships aren't solidified by the end of the series there will be protests. Fair warning: I can be incredibly annoying!

Additionally, while having to read through characters like the Ducke and Lord Mazeen and being absolutely disgusted and disturbed, thankfully other characters like Delano, Naill, Emil, and many more take part in the story as well. They are all so precious and wonderful, my eyes turned into hearts just by looking at their names on the page. Elijah also appears in the story, but his presence is as painful as his death in A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire.

Thank you for reading!