Review: The Crown of Gilded Bones by Jennifer L. Armentrout
“I will not replace the veil you loathed with a crown you hate.”
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The Basics
Title: The Crown of Gilded Bones (Blood and Ash #3)
Author: Jennifer L. Armentrout
Published: 2021
Publisher: Blue Box Press — Evil Eye Concepts
Pages: 645
Format: Paperback
Genres: Fiction — Fantasy, High fantasy, Paranormal, Romance, Fantasy romance, Paranormal romance, New adult
Book Synopsis
Picking up where A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire left off, Poppy has learned that the blood of the king of gods flows through her veins, and as a result, she is now the rightful queen of Atlantia. But the people of Atlantia are still wary of her, and she is unsure if she wants the burden of the crown. War with Solis, however, is looming, and Poppy and Casteel might be the only ones who can prevent it…that is, if Poppy accepts her birthright and claims the throne.
My Review & Overall Thoughts
TLDR: Not as good as the previous two books in the series.
The Crown of Gilded Bones is a decent book, but it is nowhere near as captivating as the previous two books in the series. It suffers from pacing and plot issues, as well as writing that frequently comes across as amateurish. It does, however, expand our knowledge of the characters and the world in which they live, so it is not without merit.
Hands down, The Crown of Gilded Bones’ greatest flaw is its pacing. The beginning and end are fast paced and filled with plenty of action and suspense, but the middle of the book is another story. Not much plot wise happens in this section; it primarily consists of a series of sex scenes. Some smut in a romance is generally a good thing, but when the sex scenes are nearly constant, as is the case with The Crown of Gilded Bones, they stop having any effect and actually start to detract from the book’s enjoyability. Honestly, I struggled to make it through the middle of the book, which is in complete contrast to the prior books, where I was fully engaged from beginning to end.
My other gripe with this book is its writing. I am fully aware that the writing in the previous two books is not exactly award winning, but the writing in this book feels worse. The dialogue is often cheesy, and the language used by the characters can feel anachronistic, not quite lining up with the time or fantasy setting.
The good
The Crown of Gilded Bones answers a lot of the questions that we were left with after A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire. We discover who Poppy is, as well as learn about the extent of her powers. There are a number of shocking reveals, as well as a couple of twists.
Another highlight of this book is the banter between Poppy and Kieran. It is always entertaining, often eliciting a laugh or at the very least, a smile from me. Poppy and Casteel also share some funny moments.
The Crown of Gilded Bones also features a lot of character development for Poppy. Over the course of the book, she learns to embrace who she is, and in doing so, she becomes even more of a force to be reckoned with. I personally enjoyed this more confident and fearsome version of Poppy.
Lastly, the ending does a good job of laying the groundwork for the next book without leaving you hanging too much. Based on the ending, I will be continuing the series.
Overall
The Crown of Gilded Bones is an okay book, but as a sequel to A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire, it is somewhat disappointing. Nonetheless, I like The Crown of Gilded Bones more than I dislike it, and since it reveals a lot of information about Poppy and Solis, it is worth reading if you have already read the previous two books.
Have you read The Crown of Gilded Bones? If so, let me know what you thought of the book in the comments section below!
