Book Review: The War of Two Queens, and Why You Might Hate This Book
Now that the hardback version is finally out, I figured it’d be a good time to share my thoughts on The War of Two Queens, book four in Jennifer L. Armentrout’s From Blood and Ash series. It’s been quite the controversial release on Booktok. I first read the From Blood and Ash series back in December 2020, and even though I had a lot of issues with the grammar and writing style, and still do, the first two books were the beginnings of a fantastic fantasy story. It’s sexy (though occasionally too spicy for me), the villains are well developed and loathsome, and you’re rooting for the love story, while also trying to keep all the interesting creatures and lore straight. However TWOTQ took a major departure from the more traditional love story many were expecting and people were NOT happy (including myself).
First things first. Did I like it? Yes, but also no. As someone who grew up on epic high fantasy, some of the worldbuilding complexity and high intensity battle scenes were great–those last few chapters–so good! I am still excited for the next book in the series because of this ending. What I'm most disappointed with is the potential for this series to be so much better is clearly there, but sometimes the execution isn't the best. Again, art is subjective, so these are my personal feelings, which I understand might not be how others feel.
Overall, people need to remember JLA is a human and while it’s completely valid to critique a book, being respectful about it is also crucial for good discourse to happen. We’re all entitled to our opinions, and yes, I’m incredibly disappointed in some of the choices JLA made to take certain character relationships in, but there were also parts of the book I really enjoyed. If you love the series, I’d still encourage you to read it, and decide for yourself. The ending of this book actually made me excited for the next one–even though there were also things in this book I disliked.
So let's get into it…
You can watch my spoiler-free review on TikTok here:
*******Warning, major spoilers for the series below, so read at your peril!!!*******
I loved that we got two POVs in this book, which she hasn’t done before in this series. However, Casteel, who I have loved so much from the beginning, felt very one dimensional. It felt like his character was reduced to a sexual release for Poppy. Ick. I miss Hawke.
Honestly, I think they were kept apart far too long. We had to wait until 60% of the way through for them to be reunited, which was way too long. This then brings up the shared trauma between Kieran and Poppy. I personally have never seen Kieran as a potential partner for Poppy. It's Cas, and Cas only. So, of course, I wasn't happy to see things head down that road. I have always seen him as family. As the ride or die BFF who will have their backs no matter what. Does he always try to get a rise out of her, or make her uncomfortable? Yes. But did I view it as romantic? No. It didn't bother me that he and Poppy were close because of losing Cas–he promised to protect her, and I really wasn't bothered until the feeding. Showing Poppy the beach memory was so inappropriate. You're gonna show this to your best friend's wife while he's being tortured? Not cool, man.
Now to address the thing everyone is losing their minds over: I had mentally prepared myself that The Joining was probably going to happen in this book (it's definitely been alluded to way too many times in previously books not to), and I knew I would hate every second of it (because I'm an only child and I don't share, ok?). Was I going to let that one thing keep me from reading a book I knew I'd probably enjoy otherwise? No. But I do have to say it was so incredibly awkward for me. The Ritual itself made sense to save Kieran and tie their lifespans together. But what I take issue with, is the prior books created this epic love story between two characters, and centered everything around their love and loyalty for each other, how their marriage was blessed and prophesied, and that they are heartmates (always and forever), which are "so rare", and then Kieran gets thrown in like an awkward third wheel. Wanna run that by me again?! I understand it works for some people, it just doesn't work for me.
I have loved Kieran, and want him to have his own epic love story with his own special person. On a tangential note, they are consent kings in these books, and I do appreciate that.
Moving on to Poppy. I didn't get a lot of character growth from her either. Yes, she's developing into this new being, but she's just able to wield her magic perfectly with no training or difficulty? Just a little feeding here and there, and presto! I wish we could've had her training with the generals or even Kieran. I wanted more from her, and while I love that she's becoming such a badass, I wish we got to see some of that development on the page.
Where JLA excelled was with Isbeth's character. She's a great villain. She’s just about the only multi-dimensional character we see. You hate her, but at the same time she’s not wholly bad. She’s clearly messed up, but there are glimmers of complexity in her choices, and in her own twisted mind, she loves her daughters enough to give up her heartmate.
Reaver is my new favorite side character. His banter was amazing. I found myself laughing out loud multiple times with his quips. Plus, I loved that he knew a lot of the information that we also knew from A Shadow in the Ember, but the rest of the characters had to pull it out of him. The rest of the dialogue though, suffered a lot of the same pitfalls we’ve seen in previous FBAA books. Some repetitiveness and the icky modernisms I personally don’t enjoy seeing in the medieval-like setting she’s created. It’s so jarring for me as a reader and really pulled me out of the story. Some examples:
"I don’t like to think of myself as a snack. More like a whole damn meal”
"Lasagna vs Lasania"
"He peaced out"
Literally using Indiana Jones' line from 'Raiders of the Lost Ark" about the snakes...
"Brace yourself" –If a man ever says, “brace yourself” to me…Immediately no.
Lastly, can we also talk about how almost ALL of the Drakens get taken out at practically the beginning of the book?! What was the point in waking them all up and bringing them to the mortal realm just to kill them off?! This was the problem with a lot of the book. There were a TON of characters introduced, but most on a very surface level, so I couldn't form any real attachments to them. I didn't find myself in an emotional rollercoaster like I usually do. Even Callum, who I can't stand, is still shrouded in mystery, but not in a good way. I also wanted WAY more with Millie and Malik–can't wait for book five, but this book felt a bit predictable in a lot of ways.
Overall, there were definitely some things I enjoyed, and things I was severely disappointed with. I do believe the next book was set up super well, and this felt like a necessary slog to get to that one in some ways. I'm hopeful.
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