From Blood and Ash

From Blood and Ash is a romantic fantasy by American author Jennifer L. Armentrout. Published in March of 2020, From Blood and Ash is the first installment of her Blood and Ash series, which includes, among others, A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire (2020), The Crown of Gilded Bones (2021), and A Soul of Ash and Blood (2023). Armentrout has also published a series of prequels to the Blood and Ash series, known as the Flesh and Fire series, which begins with A Shadow in the Ember (2021). From Blood and Ash was well received, winning the Goodreads Choice Award for Best Romance and gaining popularity among the BookTok community. The story follows Penellaphe Balfour, the Maiden who is destined on her 19th birthday to “Ascend” as a gift to the gods, becoming part of the elite royalty that rules the kingdom.

From Blood and Ash depicts the power of self-exploration and the importance of autonomy and individualism. Armentrout exposes the potential pitfalls of a society dominated by a single ruling class who uses fear to control the populace.

Plot Summary

Penellaphe is the protagonist and first-person narrator. The healing of Kingdom Solis depends on Penellaphe, the Maiden, who is meant to initiate the first Ascension since The War of Two Kings, elevating Lord and Ladies in Waiting and herself to a higher social status. During the war, the Kingdom Solis triumphed over the Kingdom Atlantia. Residual anxiety and political strife still plague the kingdom, as Descenters believe Prince Casteel of Atlantia, or the Dark One, is the rightful heir to the throne. With only one year until her Ascension, Penellaphe wants to experience life. In disguise, she visits the Red Pearl, a decadent nightclub, where she meets Hawke Flynn, a Royal Guard. Hawke, not knowing who Penellaphe is, kisses her. Penellaphe sneaks back to the castle when Hawke leaves the room.

Penellaphe has “the touch,” a power that allows her to feel the physical and emotional pain of others. With her heightened sense of empathy, she questions the ethics and morals of the Ascended, who rule over the numerous jurisdictions of Kingdom Solis. Penellaphe and Vikter, her guard and mentor, illegally participate in death with dignity, a group of people who believe that those who dedicate their lives to the Rise, where creatures called Craven lurk, should die in peace. Should a Craven bite a mortal, the mortal is cursed to become a Craven. Penellaphe uses her gift to ease these cursed men’s pain while euthanizing them with her bloodstone knife.

Penellaphe lives under the Duke, a cruel Ascended who teaches Penellaphe “lessons” through abuse. The Duke summons Penellaphe and reveals that Hawke will be her new personal guard. He is allowed to behold the Maiden unveiled. Hawke tells Penellaphe that she, even scarred, is beautiful and vows to protect her. Despite having protection because of her status, Penellaphe is an adept fighter, as Vikter taught her how to wield her bloodstone knife.

During final Rite before Penellaphe’s Ascension is underway, all third sons and daughters of the citizens are presented; their family is required to give them in service to the gods. Afterward, Penellaphe asks Hawke to escort her to her chambers. The two pass the Queen’s Garden, and Hawke asks Penellaphe to join him under the weeping willow. Penellaphe wonders why Hawke acts so familiar with her and fears that such behavior will deem her unworthy of Ascension. Hawke replies that her title means nothing to him; all he cares about is who she is on the inside. Vikter encounters them in the garden and becomes infuriated. Penellaphe retaliates, stating that her whole life she has been forced to live in solitude and confinement. She proclaims that she does not want to Ascend.

Screams sound from the Great Hall, and Penellaphe finds the Duke’s bloodied body hanging from the Rite banner. The red cane he used to beat Penellaphe is stabbed through his heart. Chaos ensues as windows begin to shatter and Descenters storm the hall. Penellaphe manages to find refuge in a side room with her maid Tawny, Vikter, the Duchess, and Lord Mazeen. Penellaphe and Vikter fight until the Descenters withdraw. Vikter turns to tell Penellaphe he is proud of her, when a sword is thrust through his chest. Lord Mazeen, another of Penellaphe’s abusers, jokes about Vikter’s death. Penellaphe, overcome by anger, decapitates Lord Mazeen and stabs him multiple times.

Worried that Penellaphe is no longer safe at the Castle Teerman, the Queen summons the Maiden to the Capital. Hawke, along with other Royal Guards, accompanies Penellaphe on her journey. As she watches the castle shrink in the distance, Penellaphe vows to believe in herself and her abilities instead of the gods’ will. The group travels through the deadly Blood Forest until they come to New Haven.

Hawke comes to check on Penellaphe at the New Haven estate, and the two talk about her special gift. Hawke and Penellaphe have sex. The next morning, Penellaphe declares that she is no longer the Chosen One but “Poppy.” She decides that Ascending is not in her nature, and that she has finally found love. Just as she decides to inform Hawke of her decision, Phillips, a guard, rushes into her room. He is convinced that Hawke and Kieran have led them into a trap. The two encounter Kieran in the corridor, who transforms into a wolven—a long-thought extinct werewolf-like creature.

Phillips and Penellaphe race toward the stables, and Hawke kills Phillips. Hawke is really the Dark One, Prince Casteel Da’Neer of the Atlantians. He has captured Penellaphe to use her as ransom for his brother, Malik, who is enslaved by the Ascended. Hawke reveals that the Ascended are vamprys—once mortals who drank the blood of an Atlantian and now thirst for the blood of mortals. When an Ascended feasts without draining a mortal, it results in Craven. The third children of the villagers are their victims. The Ascended enslave Atlantians to use their blood for ascending other mortals into vamprys: the eventual fate of the Maiden and Ladies in Wait.

Penellaphe is quickly overcome by a rebellious faction of Casteel’s party, and she sustains a fatal wound. Casteel has her drink his Atlantian blood, saving her. Penellaphe is overcome with the revelations and Casteel’s betrayal, and she stabs him with her bloodstone dagger and tries to run away. Prince Casteel catches her, stating that Atlantians do not die from a stab to the heart. He bites Penellaphe, tasting her blood, and realizes that she is half Atlantian.

Prince Casteel informs Penellaphe and the Descenters that he plans to take Penellaphe back to Atlantia and marry her.