Review: A Shadow in the Ember by Jennifer Armentrout

Born shrouded in the veil of the Primals, a Maiden as the Fates promised, Seraphena Mierel’s future has never been hers. Chosen before birth to uphold the desperate deal her ancestor struck to save his people, Sera must leave behind her life and offer herself to the Primal of Death as his Consort.   

However, Sera’s real destiny is the most closely guarded secret in all of Lasania—she’s not the well protected Maiden but an assassin with one mission—one target. Make the Primal of Death fall in love, become his weakness, and then…end him. If she fails, she dooms her kingdom to a slow demise at the hands of the Rot. 

Sera has always known what she is. Chosen. Consort. Assassin. Weapon. A specter never fully formed yet drenched in blood. A monster. Until him. Until the Primal of Death’s unexpected words and deeds chase away the darkness gathering inside her. And his seductive touch ignites a passion she’s never allowed herself to feel and cannot feel for him. But Sera has never had a choice. Either way, her life is forfeit—it always has been, as she has been forever touched by Life and Death.

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MY REVIEW

Sera’s future has never been hers. Chosen before birth to uphold a desperate deal her ancestors struck, Sera must become the consort to the Primal of Death. She may not be a well protected Maiden, but rather an assassin with one important mission. Make the Primal of Death fall in love with her, become his ultimate weakness, and end him. If she fails her mission, her kingdom will be doomed…

When we first meet up with Sera, we discover that she’s never been treated like a member of the family. She’s just a means to an end that had no choice but to fulfil her destiny. Nothing she did was ever good enough and when things don’t go as planned, life gets progressively worse for Sera. That is until a mysterious man enters her life. Immediately drawn to one another, their explosive chemistry will leave readers dying for more.

Sera is one awesome heroine. She takes no prisoners and isn’t a damsel in distress. She’s loyal to a fault and while trouble seems to follow her wherever she goes, she’s doing the best she can with all that life has thrown at her. Then we have Nyktos AKA the Primal of Death AKA Ash. Not only is he a God, but he plays a pretty heavy roll in Sera’s destiny. He is one tough character with the alpha tendencies we’ve come to know and love from this author. Together these two have terrific banter and a slow burning romance. And if you follow my reviews regularly, you’ll know that I’m not the biggest fan of slow burns, but JLA, sure made it work with this book.

A Shadow in the Ember is an intriguing read from beginning to end. With addictive writing and a compelling storyline, A Shadow in the Ember will keep readers on the edge of their seat and keep them guessing the entire time. This story has wonderful characters that pull you into their story instantly and leave you desperate to learn more. There’s romance, intrigue, and fate. There’s lots of world building and questions for the reader. There’s a ton of action and betrayal lurking around the corner. I loved all the twists and turns. It seemed like there were a ton of surprises just lurking around the corner. And just when I thought I had a handle on things, the carpet was pulled out from under me and I was left with one thrilling cliffhanger.

A Shadow in the Ember is an excellent companion novel to the Blood and Ash Series. This story left me spellbound and utterly captivated. I have a ton of questions and can not wait to find out all of the answers. JLA has pulled out all of the stops with this book. And in the end, all I can say is “Hold on readers! You are in for one heck of a ride.”

*I was provided an ARC copy of this book, in exchange for an honest review.*