A generation past, the western realms were embroiled in endless war. Then the Destroyer came. From the blood and ashes he left behind, a tenuous alliance rose between the barbarian riders of Parsathe and the walled kingdoms of the south. That alliance is all that stands against the return of an ancient evil—until the barbarian king and queen are slain in an act of bloody betrayal. Though …
Though forbidden by the alliance council to kill the corrupt king responsible for his parents’ murders, Maddek vows to avenge them, even if it costs him the Parsathean crown. But when he learns it was the king’s daughter who lured his parents to their deaths, the barbarian warrior is determined to make her pay.
Yet the woman Maddek captures is not what he expected. Though the last in a line of legendary warrior-queens, Yvenne is small and weak, and the sharpest weapons she wields are her mind and her tongue. Even more surprising is the marriage she proposes to unite them in their goals and to claim their thrones—because her desire for vengeance against her father burns even hotter than his own…
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Love everything this author writes!
Incredible World Building and Absolutely Amazing Characters!
I’m torn about whether this story is 4 or 5 stars. It was an enjoyable reading experience and everything about it was well done, but I didn’t devour it like most books. I was content to read it at leisure. And that didn’t fit the tone of the journey. They were on a vengeful quest and running for their lives so I feel like I should have been more on the edge of my seat unable to put it down. At the same time it was a long journey and a cunker of a book soooo taking the time to savor it makes sense too. Either way it’s a great book.
The depth of the world building is epic giving you many layers without going overboard or info dumping. The Characters are so multidimensional watching our hero grow was heart warming. The loyalty of his people overwhelming. The strength and determination of our heroine is awe inspiring. I can’t wait for the next book.
Ok this was such a refreshing read for me. The tone, the world building and just the fact I haven’t read too many dark (even though it wasn’t THAT dark for me lol) barbarian stories. What’s even more exciting is the blurb for A Touch of Stone and Snow book 2! I also love both of these covers. I’m also curious as to now I would like to check Meljean Brook’s other works as I have heard great things!
I received this book at my request and have voluntarily left this unbiased review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
I really enjoyed this book. I loved that the heroine wasn’t some beautiful warrior princess but an abused prisoner who used her cunning and wits to reach her goals. Yvenne didn’t let her crippled knee or physical weakness get in the way of seducing Maddock. The sex scenes were steamy and the world building was excellent. The book was a fun combination of fantasy, adventure and romance. Highly recommend it!
If you would of told me one of my favourite reads this year would be a Barbarian Fantasy romance, I would have kindly told you to move along. But alas, here we are.
As a novice to fantasy A Heart of Blood and Ash came out of the blue but left a mark that has remained long after reading. The blurb alone was enough to pique my interest but it was the epic and wondrous story that kept me hooked.
It’s a tale of vengeance and bloodshed driven by Maddek’s need for retribution for the unlawful and treacherous murder of his parents. His plan to exact his revenge is to capture Yvenne who is the daughter of his enemy. Yvenne is not what he expected in the least, she looks sickly and but her spirit is strong. What she lacks in strength she more than makes up for in resilience and fortitude. Their alliance is the turning point of the story and really spoke to me as a lover of romance.
Milla Vane’s novel made for compelling reading and really welcomed me into a genre I have previously shied away from. I’m awaiting the next novel with baited breath and can’t wait to once again back in the gathering of Dragons.
Wow. This book was so unlike anything I’ve ever read before. Barbarians on horseback, dark magics, lies, and truths, and pain, and love. I was utterly captivated the entire time I was reading, though there were many parts that were painful.
Maddek is the alliance council’s military commander, and his parents were the rulers, or Rans, of his homeland, Parsathe. But, they were recently murdered, and falsely accused of treachery, by the corrupt king of a fellow alliance nation. He swears he will seek vengeance, but the council forbids him to harm the king, or his sons, two of whom sit on the council. His trusted Parsathean countryman on the council cautions him against any rash decisions, as it’s likely he will be voted the new Ran. So, he must head home to Parsathe, to join his people for the vote on their new ruler, while plotting how to get his revenge. Unexpectedly he learns that the king has a previously unknown daughter, and that she is the one who wrote to his parents, luring them to their deaths. He plans to kill her in retaliation, but he’s shocked by her actions, and her proposal, when he finds her.
Yvenne is a desperate woman, with nowhere else to turn. Mistreated, abused, and locked away by her father, the king, for her entire life, she has sent word to the warrior son of the murdered Rans of Parsathe. Her message is that she is the one who wrote to them, asking them to come. She has shared the details of her caravan with him, with hopes that he will show up to abduct and then marry her. She doesn’t expect that he’ll just want to kill her instead. Though she is thin and frail, her brain is her biggest asset, so she thinks fast and talks him into her plan, taking her to wife instead, in order for them both to get the revenge on her family that they crave. But, he doesn’t trust her, and even though she’s only ever been honest with him, he can’t believe any of her words. So, she bides her time and prays for the day that he’ll let her speak of her time with his parents before their deaths.
Maddek and Yvenne had a strong pull towards each other from the very beginning, but there were just SO VERY MANY obstacles to them truly being together. Of course they were betrothed, with plans to marry, but it didn’t seem there could ever be any real love or trust between them. They were essentially just enemies who happened to be hot for each other, and had a joint purpose, for quite a while. In fact, while Yvenne constantly tried to make inroads with him, Maddek was continually terrible to her. He threatens her from the beginning that if she speaks of his mother, that he’ll rip out her tongue. And he is deadly serious about it. Even once he starts feeling more for her, and believing her about other things, he still won’t let her speak of his mother. It led to a couple of sad, scary encounters between them, and I was constantly worried what might happen. I’m not used to feeling that way about my heroes, but after what he’d been through, and with the information he had, you almost couldn’t blame him for his wariness.
Maddek’s Dragon, or his 6-person personal guard, were delightful, and I loved getting to know them, as Yvenne did, on their journey. They seemed to come to trust and care for her long before Maddek was able to. I enjoyed all the group’s interactions, especially all their constant ribbing of each other, as if they were all siblings. I also loved how male and female warriors were treated equally in Parsathe, and both were equally valuable to the Ran.
This story was quite dark at times, which is not something I typically gravitate to. There was plenty of violence, and bloody skirmishes. The hero and heroine have a couple of physical encounters that are scary and violent, including their first meeting, before they actually manage to fall in love. But the world building was so unique to anything I’ve read before. I think the reason it all worked for me is because it’s a Fantasy/Paranormal romance, and not a contemporary. I would not have accepted as easily many of the hero’s flaws and actions if this had been a modern story. The story felt like an old school romance in many ways, with all the mistrust, miscommunications, and lack of important information shared between the main characters, which often led to angst and heartbreak. But all these elements worked together to keep me hooked on the story, and really pulling for Maddek and Yvenne to get their revenge, and their Happily Ever After.
I’m very excited for this series to continue, even though it looks like we’ll be in a different part of the world for book 2, with brand new characters. I hope that we’ll see the characters from this book again, as I really fell in love with them all throughout the story. I highly recommend this one, if this type of story in any way appeals to you.
Maddek, a warrior prince has just lost his mother and father who were also king and queen and vows to find the reason why they were slain. Yvenne, a king’s daughter is also mourning her mother, but proposes a marriage to this warrior to achieve a shared goal. But can Maddek trust her when he realizes that she may have been part of the king and queens murder?
To say that I loved A Heart of Blood and Ashes, would be an understatement. I immediately fell in love with both Maddek and Yvenne. Maddek who was so strong and had the strength of his dragon (the immediate warriors that he trusts to surround him) and Yvenne who was the opposite – so very alone, weak and yet she was so sharp and had her wits about her. These two were immediately a perfect pair even though it may have taken some time for them to come around to one another.
One of the reasons I really enjoyed this book was the camaraderie between Maddek and his dragon, but also the beliefs that Yvenne has in her people. Even though there are great secrets being discussed in the throne room, the belief that their people are good is what fuels a great king and queen.
The attraction between Maddek and Yvenne was sizzling from the first moment these two met each other. I was definitely not expecting so much heat between these two and Milla Vane surprised me in the best of ways. Maddek and Yvenne are so primal and their attraction to one another doesn’t fool anyone. But it’s what’s beyond just the physical attraction that had me rooting for these two. Once their relationship is established, I loved the intimacy between Yvenne and Maddek. Alongside his dragon I was rooting for Maddek to make Yvenne his queen.
If you’re looking for an adventurous fantasy romance then look no further and pick up A Heart of Blood and Ashes. You will be suspended into fantastic world where you will feel the passion as well as the adventure taking place around you. I am so looking forward to the next book in the series!
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher.
This story was years in the making. Meljean Brook-Milla Vane has been talking about her barbarians for years and it shows in this 534 page book! It is violent, steamy, brutal, strategic, scheming and full of larger than life characters. It is an epic fantasy romance saga in a prehistoric like world.
Maddek is the Commander of the Alliance Army, a Parsathean warrior and prince, defending the Alliance’s border. The story opens when he’s called back to Alliance headquarters to learn his parents, the King and Queen of Parsathe have been executed by the Alliance Syssian Regent King Zhalen. At this point Maddek sees red and seeks vengeance as he knows the charges were false. His father would never assault a woman and his mother would not kill a prince of Syssia. He is now King presumptive of the Raiders of the Parsathean Plains. On his trip home where all the tribes are assembling for the vote, he gets intelligence that the last heir of Nyset of Syssia, daughter of Zhalen is caravanning to her betrothed king of Tolehi. Maddek receives a message that it was her who drew her parents to Syssia in an effort to make a marriage alliance to strengthen the Alliance. He sees a way to avenge his parents.
Yvenne is the last heir of Nyset, the greatest queen of Syssia. She has been locked away in a tower by her father since her birth with her mother the poisoned queen and her younger brother Tyzen she helped raise. She was born premature making her small in stature and appear weak. Because of her father’s cruel discipline she has a crippled knee. She was raised by her mother who was blessed with the Moon Goddess Vela’s gift of sight. Before she died her mother taught Yvenne all about the realms, people and the world so Yvenne could become a wise Queen of Syssia as was her birthright. Syssia is a matriarchal society. Yvenne is not blessed with Vela’s sight as her mother was but she knows Vela sees through her moonstone eyes. She has become a master strategist and wise in other’s tactics & motivations thanks to her mother’s sight. She just needs a warrior king to help her extract her vengeance on her father and gain the throne. And so an unlikely alliance is made between these two people, each with strengths very different from the other. I was fascinated how Milla wove these strong personalities together in this book so they eventually came to trust each other and make a complete whole to rule together to strengthen the Alliance. The Destroyer is coming and the Alliance must be strong and united to defeat him and his magic.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced readers copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
– 4.5 stars –
I was excited to read this book ever since I laid eyes on the blurb and cover. When I started reading and saw how long it was I got even more excited. In the fantasy genre, especially if it is the first book in a series, it can get very difficult and sometimes chaotic when introducing a new world to a reader. So I really appreciate it when an author really takes the time to explain everything, but not dumping the information on the reader at once. In the beginning it took me some time to remember the names of characters and tribes. I had to get familiar with everything, but once that was done I was hooked to the story. I love Fantasy Romance novels, and this book was an amazing addition to the genre. Maddek is blinded with the revenge for the deaths of his parents, and can’t see that Yvenne is innocent as well. I fell in love with so many different characters, but Yvenne especially stole my heart with her determination and persistence. She looked small and weak, but inside she was so strong. She did everything in her power to convince Maddek that she isn’t anything like her treacherous family. It wasn’t an easy road, and Maddek broke her heart and soul many times.
However, she isn’t some meek and obedient woman. She was absolutely amazing. She had to overcome so many hardships and learn things that are normal to anyone else. She didn’t give up and also didn’t let Maddek bully her around. She stood her ground and gave him her piece of mind whenever it was needed. The banter and chemistry between Yvenne and Maddek was incredible. The pacing of the story is slow, but it really gave me time to see everything happen in real time. I didn’t mind it at all, and I loved seeing the respect and love grow for each other. They both had to learn many things and were the best teacher to each other. Maddek had to learn to behave and think more like a king, and Yvenne had to became the warrior queen she was destined to be. The side characters were great and I enjoyed getting to know them. The action was also very captivating and suspenseful as well. The author had me on the edge of my seat a couple of times. The romance was perfect, and I loved the attraction and fire between Yvenne and Maddek. A Heart of Blood and Ashes was a complete story, the author took her time to tell it and create a new world. The detailed descriptions were easy to read and really came alive in my mind. This book was a great introduction to the series, and I already look forward to the next book.