Total pages in book: 247
Estimated words: 231436 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1157(@200wpm)___ 926(@250wpm)___ 771(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 231436 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1157(@200wpm)___ 926(@250wpm)___ 771(@300wpm)
When the realization hits her that the caged cave cat was her father, she summons the draken and sets off for the mortal realm once more, visiting Tawny and reuniting with others. Returning to Oak Ambler, she meets with Jalara. She tells the King that she has a message for the Blood Queen and then beheads him, using him as the message. She then destroys the Queen’s knights, unleashes the draken, and tells the Revenant to deliver the full message to the Queen, reiterating that she is coming for Isbeth. Her last words ring in the air: “I am the Chosen, The One who is Blessed, and I carry the blood of the King of Gods in me. I am Liessa to the wolven, the second daughter, the true heir, owed the crowns for Atlantia and Solis. I am the Queen of Flesh and Fire, and the god’s guards ride with me. Tell the Blood Queen to prepare for war.”
As Poppy readies herself to rescue Cas and get her vengeance, her powers grow even more, making the trees shake and the weather rage. She takes out the Ascended stronghold at Massene and makes some connections.
Unable to eat or sleep, she keeps rehashing what went down at Oak Ambler and wonders if they have a traitor in their midst—someone other than Alastir.
As the days pass, Poppy and Kieran grow closer in their shared grief over Cas’s imprisonment, and Poppy uncovers something interesting: There is a record of a Rite at the time of the gods, and second and third children in the history books have no death dates. This leads her to the conclusion that the Rite existed before the Ascended but was eventually lost to time until it was bastardized and taken up again by the vamprys.
In talking with Reaver, one of the draken who answered her summons, she finds out they are bonded to her like the wolven, but it’s slightly different. They can’t communicate with her like the wolven can, but they will answer her call. He says it’s always been that way with Primals and tells her she’s not wise.
Reaver clearly has no filter, and I’m not sure Poppy caught that nonchalant drop of her true state—that she’s a Primal.
Reaver then tells her that a god can kill another, and that she—Poppy—is the first female descendant of the Primal of Life, the most powerful being ever known. He says she will become stronger than even her father, Ires, in time.
When she asks for more information about the Consort, whom she now believes is her grandmother, she is told that speaking the Consort’s name is forbidden.
Just as things appear to be coming along, albeit shockingly with all the revelations, Isbeth sends a gift. It turns out to be Casteel’s ring finger, complete with his wedding band. Poppy absolutely loses it and has to be calmed.
Deciding that she can’t—and won’t—wait to go after Cas, she makes plans to leave as soon as possible. Kieran insists on going with her, and she tells him that Reaver needs to come, as well.
That night, she dream walks—also called soul walking, where heartmated souls can find each other, even in dreams—and finds Casteel. Once they reunite, sparks fly as usual with the two of them, and he tells her to find him, bolstering her resolve.
Before she can even make another decision, an unnatural storm rolls in, killing all but three of the draken with her. She realizes it has to be Vessa, the strange woman they locked up when she went a little mad. Poppy ultimately kills her, but not before Vessa insists that Poppy will not harness the fire of the gods and bring war, then claims to serve the True Crown of the Realms. Whatever that means.
Sadly, I found out not too long after…
Reaver then explains how Nyktos is not the Primal of Life as everyone assumes. But Kolis was. He also explains how Kolis was entombed after the war between the Primals and gods and then subsequently erased from history. Reaver also tells her how the Revenants were Kolis’s pet project and explains how mortals were created, going on to further explain why the third sons and daughters are special.
Because Poppy could not bring back the draken who died despite her best efforts, she realizes that she cannot bring back the wolven, either, as they are also of two worlds. This leads to the conclusion that the only way to save Kieran should he be hurt and ensure his continued safety is for Cas, him, and her to complete the Joining, making all of them nearly immortal.
Once they reach Oak Ambler, they encounter a group of citizens trying to leave, most of them grieving lost children who were taken from them. Poppy tells them to go to Massene where it’s safe, then calls to the soldiers, telling them that she’s not the harbinger but carries the blood of the King of Gods in her. She also asserts that the Ascended are their enemy, not her.