If you thought An Heir Comes to Rise and A Queen Comes to Power were good, then buckle up.
C.C. Peñaranda knocks it out of the park with these next two. A Throne From the Ashes is probably my favorite book (so far) in this series, and it had me feeling the same way Heir of Fire did the first time I ever read it. But I’ll get more into that in the actual review. Because the way I fell in love with that book…phew.
As for A Clash of Three Courts – I have a lot of feelings. So many. Most are really good as I ultimately loved the book. But there were moments where I wanted to pummel Nik into the ground, because omfg so much could have been avoided if he’d just fucking communicate. But more on that later.
All you need to know is that with each book this series gets better and better and if you haven’t picked up book 1 yet, what the fuck are you waiting for? Seriously, go do it. I promise you won’t regret it.
You can check out the first post of this series here.
Book Review: A Throne From the Ashes (An Heir Comes to Rise #3)
Title: A Throne From the Ashes
Author: C.C. Peñaranda
Pub. Date: February 22, 2022
Pages: 669
Pub: Lumarias Presss
Genre: YA Fantasy Romance
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
As darkness descends, two destinies will merge. But as embers fly, one may rise from the ashes.
A KINGDOM…
Far from the land she knows, Faythe is beckoned toward the secrets of her heritage. Through trials of her name and a challenge to her claim, does she have what it takes to rule? Faythe bears a future that haunts; Reylan harbors a past that lingers. At his side, what ignited in her heart is kindling, but letting her guard fall could break them…or make them stronger.
A QUEST…
Now faced with a far deadlier evil than the king, a higher calling seems determined to turn the hourglass on Faythe’s quest to save Ungardia. But she soon learns time isn’t the only thing working against her. Darkness is rising, history is stirring, and the hunters are about to become the hunted.
A DESTINY…
For fate cannot be outrun. Faythe’s powers are manifesting beyond her control, and if she can’t save herself, no one can. Defying destiny is not without consequence, yet Faythe may be willing to pay the highest price of all to forge a path to true freedom–for her kingdom, and for the ones she loves.
This will be another spoiler free review. Like the first two books in this series, I listened to the audiobook via Audible and absolutely loved it. Definitely recommend.
This is Faythe and Reylan’s book and I loved it so much. So much happens in this book, and it’s kind of insane to wrap my mind around it. But if you want a really good slow burn, building romance, this is it. Who care about anything else that happened in this book, when Faythe and Reylan grow to know each other more, learn about each other, are just there for each other, pining with all this sexual tension…
Like, who cares about end of the world, or quests or literally anything else, when their eyes meet and sparks fly and neither of them really want to admit that they like each other and it’s just like crack and addicting and just inject it right into my veins because I’m obsessed.
Faythe has dealt with so much the last two books – every kind of trial and test she could go through, she did and her journey isn’t anywhere near done…hell, it’s barely even started.
She’s separated from her friends, faced with her past that could become her future. She’s trying to do the best she can, and live up to expectations without crumbling underneath them. Reylan’s there to help, but she’s struggling and being practically alone in a new kingdom, she holds her struggles close to her chest, putting on a brave face and making sure people can’t exploit any weaknesses.
Even though she’s far away from her friends, Faythe finds a few new ones to add to her collection and I loved how they pretty much immediately accepted her and she grew comfortable around them. And I really like how it didn’t feel like, oh she’s the chosen one and therefore needs a support group just because. They accepted her because she’s a good person, and cares for Reylan, who they care about. They see the goodness in her, and are willing to accept her because of it. And Faythe slowly learns to rely on them as well.
Reylan has his own traumas, his own demons and struggles. His past is long and rather dark, and omfg the way it made me love him even more. That kind of sounds terrible, but I’m such a sucker for tragic backstories, and his is fraught.
But seeing him slowly open up, come to rely on Faythe as much as she does him – it’s wonderful. He’s such a strong character, keeping close those he cares about and keeping everyone else at arm’s length, letting reputation precede him.
There are some new characters introduced, and y’all…I’m lowkey obsessed. I really enjoyed these characters, and I like how there seems to be some inner conflict and this idea of nature versus nurture for these characters. For two books we hear about the evil coming, the darkness spreading and we finally come face to face with the faces behind the impending doom.
If you like moral conflict, loyalty, tough choices and more sexual tension – I think you’re going to enjoy these new additions.
Literally 10/10 for this book, I loved it so much, and I really need to dive into book 5 to find out what happens next. And if you’ve already read book 4, you know why I say that.
Book Review: A Clash of Three Courts (An Heir Comes to Rise #4)
Title: A Clash of Three Courts
Author: C.C. Peñaranda
Pub. Date: September 6, 2022
Pages: 568
Pub: Lumarias Press
Genre: YA Fantasy Romance
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
In the bestselling An Heir Comes to Rise series comes the gripping fourth instalment from C.C. Peñaranda. A trial of the heart, a test of reign, follow Nik and Tauria as their story continues where it left off in A Throne from the Ashes.
In a war of hearts, fates will be sealed. But in a battle of thrones, no bond may be truly unbreakable.
A COURT…
To reclaim her throne, Tauria leaves behind her safety to travel across courts. A marriage alliance with the prickly Prince of Olmstone could grant her the power to fight for her kingdom . . . or inspire a monarch’s deadly vengeance that threatens all she holds dear.
A BOND…
No amount of distance can make Nik forget his desires, but caught in a torturous conflict of heart against duty, he’s at risk of losing both. Now is the time to choose. Claim the bond and accept the prophesy that kept him from her all this time . . . or set his aching heart—and hers—free once and for all.
A DARKNESS…
But peace is never promised when the shadow of war looms, and Tauria’s harrowing discoveries foretell a damning fate of evil to all those who bear a crown. To love may be to condemn, but to deny would be a far deadlier curse at the hands of the sinister forces intent on taking them down.
This will be another spoiler free review. I did this book on audio via Audible as well, and just like the first three, I definitely recommend.
So, if you’ve done the Throne of Glass Series, then you can kind of understand the pain this book caused me. This is the equivalent of Tower of Dawn. Now, I fucking loved that book, and this one was fantastic as well. But with the way A Throne From the Ashes ended, you get the pain, because it’s the same type of heart wrench, soul shredding ending Empire of Storms unleashed upon readers.
That being said, I really liked this book, I liked seeing what was happening back with Nik, Tauria, Jakon and Marlowe. We saw Faythe’s journey, and now it was time to see what the other half were doing.
But for as much as I loved this book and seeing what everyone else was doing, I spent so much fucking time utterly annoyed at Nik. And I’ll give props to C.C. Peñaranda for writing such a fantastic book that it was me near raging, but omfg that boy needed to be smacked upside the head and taken by the shoulder and shook until some sense was knocked into him.
Like, okay, I get why he sucked at communicating, but he literally had me not rooting for him.
Tauria on the other hand is a badass, willing to do whatever it takes even when she feels like her heart is breaking.
But back to little dumb ass Nik. I’ve loved him since the beginning, but OH BOY he had me so annoyed. I was literally shipping Prince Tarly with Tauria over Nik. Granted I’m a sucker for emotionally broken princes in need of a hug, so Tarly was a pretty big weakness for me, but Nik literally pushed me right into his arms! Nik’s actions and inactions had me so annoyed – but I think that’s a good indicator of C.C. Peñaranda’s writing ability. Because as much as he annoyed me, I felt for him. Truly.
I felt for Tarly and his life in his kingdom. He hasn’t had it easy and he honestly tries his best. But he’s had to be so guarded his whole life, he struggles to find a way to open up. His relationship with Tauria was actually one of my favorite parts of this book, their slow building of trust and acceptance. He was deeply flawed and she was dealing with her own stuff, but they had such a promise for a really strong foundation.
Plot wise – so much happens in this book. It takes place at the same time as everything going on in book 3 (a little before the events and a bit afterwards) but it was interesting watching how things lined up, and how they impacted the world around them. I really loved that even though the main friend group is separated right now, they’re still working towards finding helpful insights and information.
And the ending…and everything leading up to the ending…phew. I really can’t wait to dive into book 5 – I’m tempted to go grab the ebook and start, but I’m kind of obsessed with the audio, and then there’s going to be a wait for the next two books, so am I really in a rush? I’m dying to find out what happens next, but if I inhale it the way I did the first four, then I’m stuck waiting and I don’t know if I can deal.
If you’re looking for a new high fantasy romance read, you absolutely need to check out this series.
Writing The Universe 