A Viking Romantic Fantasy, Book of the Ashen Series by Demi Winters
Author: Demi Winters
Series: The Ashen Series, Book 1
Release Date: June, 27th 2023
Genre: Fantasy
My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice Level: 1.5
Official Description:
Silla Nordvig is running for her life.
The queen of Íseldur has sent warriors to bring Silla to Sunnavík, where death awaits her. When her father is killed, his last words set Silla on a perilous quest: travel the treacherous Road of Bones–a thousand-mile stretch haunted by warbands, creatures of darkness, and a mysterious murderer–and go to Kopa, where a shield-house awaits her.
After barely surviving the first stretch of road, a desperate Silla sneaks into a supply wagon belonging to the notorious Bloodaxe Crew. To make it to Kopa, she must win over Axe Eyes, the brooding leader of the Crew, while avoiding the Wolf, his distractingly handsome right-hand man. But the queen’s ruthless assassin has other plans and hunts Silla obsessively.
Will Silla make it safely to Kopa? Or will she fall prey to the perils of the Road of Bones?
Warning : This article contains spoilers !!
#1: First thoughts the road of bones demi winters
What a beautiful surprise! I have been in a reading spree since October and was really struggling to find a new book that has a fresh storyline (not the typical hidden fae / mortal is being sold to the king, arranged marriage trope) and my oh my was I happy when I stumbled upon this treat on Kindle Unlimited (for once a good recommendation by their algorithm ).
The book is being teased as a Viking romantic fantasy, but except the nordic-sounding names, I haven't really had the impression that the plot plays with viking folklore. The book started off really strong, giving a great introduction into the world without me having to power through 200-300 pages on descriptions alone. I was immediately captured by the mystery of Silla, who has been running away with her father, never staying in once place for too long. Why or who have they been running from? This, it seems, wasn't even clear to our protagonist until they were caught and she realises that she has been living a lie, not really knowing who she or her father is. But one thing seems clear - she is being hunted and there is much more to her background that she thinks.
I was really impressed by the writing, especially since this is a debut novel. It had a lot of funny and clever moments with a good amount of tension - exactly how I like it. The book is written in different POVs which I find sometimes difficult. Once I am invested in a character, I don't necessarily need to see it from the point of view of the villain, but well.
It hits a few of the common tropes such as enemies to lovers, slow burn, found family or forced proximity. One trope that I am always struggling with is betrayal - it's just so difficult to stomach, especially when it's being done by a character you started to like. And this book definitely contains quite the betrayal. But that also shows how great this book is because I haven't seen it coming AT ALL.
Usually at some point you just know how the book is going to evolve. Let me tell you: that is not the case here. There were so many clever plot twists, the evolution of characters were at times completely unexpected and the ending just very well done, because now I am craving for more.
#2: Characters
I really hated the villainous characters which I guess is the point, right? We are being given some chapters in their POV but for some reason, I tend to skip those, I just can't be bothered. That being said, I can well imagine that we might be given more information in future instalments as to why they have gotten to that point. But for now, I don't feel that invested in their evolution.
Apart from that and the main protagonists (Silla and her 2 MMCs) who I will speak about more in the next section, I really wanted to mention Hekla. I love how as a member of the Bloodaxe Crew she is shown as an equally as strong and as competent warrior as her male crew members without being forced to give up her feminine side or being exploited for it by her colleagues. Instead of approaching Silla as an enemy and mistrusting her when she joins the crew, she goes out of her way to help her. Finally a moment between women depicted in fiction, where their relationship doesn't immediately go towards jealousy and "catfighting" - instead we see women supporting women. I love that.
#2: Romance & Steam
Sooo we have ourselves a little love triangle here. In the beginning I couldn't really decide who to root for but once Jonas showed his possessive side, I just couldn't feel for him anymore. Both MMCs, Jonas and Rey, are broody, alpha males. While one is falling bit too quickly in love and becomes possessive, the other is more calm and mysterious, more protective without suffocating - nevertheless he seems to harbour a lot of secrets that I can't wait to find out about more.
I loved the banter and slow-burn, forced proximity and the gentleness of Rey.
On the spice level I would give it a 1.5 🌶️.There was good build up and tension and once we got to the point there were 1-2 great steamy scenes. I didn't mind that there wasn't more just because the story evolution didn't allow for it. I can well imagine though that this will pick up in future instalments.
If you liked this review of The Road of Bones or have any questions or comments, let me know ! And don't forget to check out the review of Kingdom of Claw, sequel to the Road of Bones here.
Disclaimer: I have added an affiliate link for your convenience so you can directly purchase the book if you are intrigued. This also means that I will receive small commission. This does not affect inclusion in my reviews or the overall rating of the book.
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