High stakes, tension and angst. I love myself a good dark fantasy with enemies to lovers and this didn’t disappoint! The atmosphere and world building were phenomenal, and I loved getting so many mythical creatures in the story. I did have a little trouble with the 3rd person povs, as it’s not my fave, but I definitely don’t feel like it took away from the story itself.

I loved this book! I lived for the world building and learning about the different kingdoms. Mal is such a well written FMC, and I love Ash and his stutter. As someone who went to school for Speech Therapy, I think it was written SO well and gave insight into how people with stutters can feel. The jumping perspectives threw me off at first, but then I couldn’t wait to read whose POV I was getting next. This book is a great start to a series that I will be itching to read as the books release.

The book cover is what drew me in and the book did not disappoint. The ending had my eyes bulging out of my head because I didn’t see THAT one coming.

I enjoyed the multiple povs so we could see what each character was up to/thinking/feeling.

Over all a really good read that had my attention the whole time. Can’t wait for the next one to see where this story goes next!

A Kingdom of Shadow and Ash
J.F Johns
Pub May 31 2025

Very enjoyable enemies to lover, slow burn, world building, overall enjoyable fantasy book. A tale with Wyverns, dark magic, and a plot thicker than quicksand.

The mc is well rounded and the story builds and unfolds as you venture through the pages.

A fantastic read for fantasy lovers.

Thank you to NetGalley and Independent(Indie) for giving me the opportunity to read A Kingdom of Shadow and Ash by J.F.Johns in exchange for my honest review.

I’m obsessed! Let’s just start there.

If you’re looking for your next fantasy obsession with a touch of darkness, delicious magic, and dripping with tension, A Kingdom of Shadow and Ash is it. J.F. Johns has crafted an epic tale that ticks every box for lovers of sharp-witted romance, brutal political games, rich world-building, and unforgettable characters.

The premise is already enough to hook you: after a century of silence between the eight kingdoms, following the destruction of the witches' land, Mal Blackburn sets out to end the curse and the feuds by marrying the cruel Fire Prince. But Mal’s not here to fall in love. She’s here to end him. What follows is a whirlwind of betrayal, forbidden magic, and power plays that had me clinging to every chapter.

Mal is everything I want in a heroine—calculated, dangerous, fiercely independent, and unapologetically powerful. She’s got secrets, ambition, and an edge sharp enough to cut through the lies that blanket this cursed world. Watching her maneuver through the political chaos while keeping her cards close was thrilling.

The world Johns created is bursting with energy and danger: wyverns, dragons, giant wolves, ancient blood curses, and kingdoms at the edge of war. The magic system is unique, mysterious, and woven seamlessly into the character arcs and court politics. I especially loved the cursed lore scattered through journal-style entries from Tabitha Wysteria, the witch whose vengeance still shadows the realms. Those entries added a haunting, fairytale texture that elevated the entire book.

Let’s talk romance.

While Mal and the Fire Prince's tension-filled dynamic simmers, it was Kai and Alina who absolutely owned my heart. Their chemistry was addictive, intense, tender, and emotionally raw. Kai, the brooding Shadow Prince, sees Alina, the Fire Princess, not as the puppet princess she was raised to be, but as someone fierce, someone free. Their journey was laced with defiance, desire, and heartbreak. Honestly? I need more of them. Immediately.

Every side character felt like a story waiting to be told. From Vera’s wicked games to Wren’s chaotic ADHD brilliance, from Kage’s quiet intensity to Haven’s tragic beauty—each one left a mark. It’s rare to find such depth and diversity across the cast, but Johns delivered.

The end felt slightly rushed, but the emotional punches still landed. And that ending? Gutted me. No spoilers—but you will not be okay.

The vibrant details about each kingdom’s culture, magic, and customs made each land feel distinct. Even with minimal exposition, the storytelling still painted vivid scenes and gripping conflicts.

A Kingdom of Shadow and Ash is a magnetic, high-stakes fantasy with bite. Come for the dragons and curses, stay for the devastating secrets, snarky romances, and a cast of characters who refuse to be forgotten.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5/5)
If Maleficent, Throne of Glass, and Game of Thrones had a wickedly magical lovechild, this would be it. You won’t want to miss this ride—just be prepared to scream into the void, waiting for book two.

This is just sad. I started the book and it was going good but then I checked the authors Instagram and there was nothing related to the cover designer, it clearly feels like AI generated and I am not supporting anything AI because of which I have to dnf the book. I am so sorry, I really wanted to read it.

Thanks to NetGalley for allowing me to read early!

I have very mixed feelings about this read. The original cover (albeit with a note that it was not the final version) had many hallmarks of being produced by AI, which admittedly put me off.

The story itself had a good premise, and promised many of the things I love all in one - romantasy, enemies to lovers, wyverns, magic, etc. Unfortunately, the further I got into the book the more POVs there were and the pace began to drag. Many of the things I'd hoped to see fell completely flat, including the chemistry between the main characters.

Also, this doesn't feel like Fantasy Romance but rather Romantic Fantasy. The marketing may be doing a disservice to the story by targeting the wrong readership.

Eight kingdoms were divided after a war almost 100 years ago, cursed by a witch in mourning.
Now Mal, a girl born with "witches eyes", is believed to be the chosen one. The one destined to lift the curse and save the kingdoms. But ending the curse might not be as easy as she believed.

I absolutely loved A Kingdom of Shadow and Ash. J.F. Johns has written a strong, independent FMC that many can either relate to or look up to. I really enjoyed how there were multiple points of view from many different characters. It really showed that one person alone cannot end a curse, it takes many moving pieces. The character development was strong and I found myself worried for everyone at some point while reading.

I would recommend this book to anyone who loves a story where the woman doesn't need saving, a brooding love interest, and dragons, wyverns and wolves. (oh my!)

Thank you, NetGalley, for the ARC!
***
"Mal Blackburn will end the feud between the kingdoms by marrying the fire prince, known across the lands for being cruel. But Mal is not looking to conquer the cruel prince’s heart. She wants to stab it."
***
Mal is an anomaly. She wasn't supposed to exist...or was she? This book follows Mal's quest to find her purpose, even if that means killing the man she's falling in love with. I did really enjoy the prose and descriptive writing of Johns!
However, I found the chemistry between the main characters lacking and I was more intrigued with the side characters story lines. I also found the plot pacing a tad on the slower side.
***
Tropes:
-Forced marriage
-Forced proximity
-Curse/star crossed love
-Disability rep
-"touch her & die"

review posted to goodreads & tiktok

3 ⭐️

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for sending me this ARC!!

I enjoyed this book for the first 50%. I was very interested in our MFC, Mal. And her MMC, Ash. I liked the enemies to lovers trope. I wanted to connect with them more through more POVs from them. I didn’t enjoy that there were SO many POV’s. I really only wanted to read Mal and Ash’s. I completely skimmed through Wren (I cannot deal with how her speech is written I’m sorry) and Kage’s.
That being said, the world and magic interested me. I think after 50%, everything was starting to get very fast paced, with a lot of information being thrown around from all the different POV’s. I did enjoy the plot twists and the ending. I would read the next book!

Thank you NetGalley & J.F Johns for providing me this eARC!
3 stars ✨ I was captured from the prologue! Was really intrigued with this world, magic system, and creatures. Although there are elements and tropes that we already know and love, this still felt fresh.

There was something about the transitions that didn’t flow right with me, which did take me out of the story for a bit. The pacing would be on point and then we would either slow down or speed things up.

I wish we could’ve developed the relationship with Mal & Ash a little more. The slow burn was SLOW BURNINGGGG but then we hit this plot point and it just did a 180 😭 and all of a sudden they’re in love!? I can def see why the relationship needed to be progressed but just wanted more angst & build up.


Overall this was fun! I will definitely pick up book 2 hehe 🙂‍↕️

WOW! I LOOOOVVEEEEE this book! I can’t wait to get the physical copy. Not only is the FMC a real bada** but the supporting characters even had things going on that kept my interest.

I wanted to love this book. The cover is absolutely beautiful, and the premise sounded like a fresh romantasy that would immediately gain traction within the book community. It even featured some of my favorite tropes, so my hopes were high.

For the first 35% or so, I was hooked—I truly thought this would be a 5-star read. The setup was strong, the world-building intriguing, and I was completely drawn into the story. But around the halfway mark, things started to fall flat, and unfortunately, they never really recovered. The pacing slowed, the emotional stakes dropped, and I found myself struggling to pick the book back up each time I set it down.

By the time the major plot twist was revealed at the end, I felt more indifferent than excited. I wanted to be screaming with shock or joy, but instead, my reaction was more like, "Cool, cool."

The story centers on Mel and Ash—the fire prince—who enter into an arranged marriage to help save their kingdoms. That setup had so much potential, but sadly, there wasn’t much development between Mel and Ash throughout the book. For plot reasons, I get it, but it still made their relationship fall flat emotionally. Oddly enough, there was more emphasis on the romance between two side characters, Kai and Alina. It honestly felt like the author enjoyed writing them more, which made Mel and Ash's central storyline seem like a side plot rather than the main focus.

I did enjoy the fantasy aspects, but some sections became long-winded. There were moments that could have been explained with fewer words, and some plot points felt unnecessary or overly drawn out. Also, while I typically don’t mind third-person POV, in this case, it made it harder for me to connect deeply with the characters.

While this book is marketed as romantasy, it leans much more heavily into high fantasy. That’s something to keep in mind if you’re expecting a romance-forward story.

There’s a second book planned in the series, but personally, I don’t feel compelled to continue. I know a lot of readers might still enjoy the world and writing style, but this one just wasn’t for me in the end.

Thank you J.F. Johns and NetGalley for providing me with an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book. It was a lot more epic fantasy based than I expected from a romantasy story and I thought he politics and fantasy element really shone through and the romance side was more a side story… though I enjoyed that too.
The world building was expansive and the characters felt just as developed and I was rooting for them from the get go.
Overall if you’re a fan of fantasy books with a romantic subplot I’d definitely recommend this.

This was a 5 star read from me!
I wasn’t sure what I was going to get in regards to this one, but it went beyond my expectations. It was fantastic and I’m now obsessed,

The MC’s and their families were amazing. Loved how different each of them were but also how they compliment eachother too.

The world was awesome - very unique. Enjoyed the use of the dragons and Wyverns. Felt the MC’s romance wasn’t rushed and came together well.

The storyline itself was paced great and I enjoyed having multiple Povs, really made the story come together.

A great book and I’m sad there’s currently not more to read! Can’t wait to see what happens next.

This one was a wild ride! I am honestly excited to see where the second book goes! Oh, and did I mention there are dragons, wyverns, and phoenixes?

Nearly a hundred years ago, the witches had all but been destroyed over the act of love, fracturing the world. In the aftermath, one of the Witch survivors cast a curse over the eight kingdoms. As the years passed, everyone seemed to forget about the war or the curse as ancient history, a folktale told to scare each other around a campfire.

That is, until Mal Blackburn, fourth born and daughter of the Kingdom of Darkness, was born with the mark of a Witch: violet eyes. Believing in the curse, Mal chooses duty before self and agrees to marry the Fire Prince, Ash, of the Fire Kingdom. However, there's a catch.

Mal intends to kill her future husband before the last of the one hundred years is up, to break the curse once and for all. What she didn't anticipate was catching feelings for the man she planned to kill. What will Mal decide? Love or saving the world?

The moment I read the first line of the prologue, I knew this was going to be a story I would never forget. I was instantly drawn in by the writing style, poetic yet simple. It was such an easy, fun read. The world itself is expansive and very immersive. I was definitely intrigued by all the different Kingdoms and courts and how they interacted with each other. I've yet to read ACOTAR, but based on what I know of it, this story was giving those vibes. I also loved the characters and their personalities. There were quite a few MCs to follow, and honestly, each one felt unique and different, so it was able to differentiate the characters by their distinct qualities.

There were a few things that didn't hit for me, though. While I loved the characters, I feel like the main MCs, Mal & Ash, got a little lost and fell behind more as side characters in their own story. I wanted to see their relationship unfold more, but there was a bigger focus on a different romantic couple, which I did love.

Because of this, I felt like the pacing for 3/4 of the story was slow, and when the action hit toward the end, it almost felt a little rushed in the last half. I am also the "show, don't tell" type of reader who enjoys a little more freedom with the imagination. But that is more personal preference, and didn't detract from the story itself.

Overall, this story is perfect for readers who love ACOTAR, ToG, and Fourth Wing, as well as enemies-to-lovers, fated mates, slow burns, dark magic, and prophetic curses. 3.75 stars (rounded up to 4).

DNF at 70%

When I first picked this up I was super excited, I really loved the cover and the story concept, I had enjoyed reading it up until I got to about 40%, where it felt like it was just kind of not really moving anywhere major and was a bit slow. I hit 70% and it still felt the same.

I thought the world building was good. I did really like that the Author had given some background lore into each house that got introduced throughout the story. I liked Mal, Alina and Kai’s character a lot, they were written well. I also liked that the writing was descriptive/poetic.

But the pacing was incredibly slow, so I sort of lost the excitement to go back and read it sometimes and it almost felt like a chore. I’m a fan of multiple POVs and third person, but sometimes I got a bit confused.

I found that the FMC who is Mal, And the MMC Ash, there was no connection between them at all, even for a slow burn I felt it lacked a lot of anything, compared to Alina and Kai, I was more looking forward to reading their POV as there was evident chemistry between the characters.

I did really like the idea of the concept with the different houses, the mounts they had and also the lore about the witches etc. So I think at a later date I’ll try to finish it but for now I need to chill from it.

I do not have too much to say about this one. First of all the cover is gorg I love how spooky it looks lol.

The world building in this book was pretty easy to grasp. I also appreciated that she had a list of characters and a map at the beginning of the book, since that was a big part of the work building. The plot was pretty straight forward for the most part, but also there were a lot of different views of the curse so it kept you guessing which one was accurate. I was also surprised with the little plot twist at the end too.


As for the characters I did enjoy our main ones, and I am so glad it was multi-POV. There were also a few side characters I really did enjoy and it was nice getting to see their little adventures and romances throughout the book as well.

Some parts did feel slow for me though. I feel like not much happened to keep the plot going until like the last 100 pages. But as I said the ending was pretty good so im interested to see what happens in the next one !

Thoroughly enjoyed, it took me a little while to get fully immersed but once I was in I was hooked. Will be keeping an eye out for all future releases!

I want to first thank the author and netGalley for the eARC.

This book is a whirlwind. It starts off a bit slow while it establishes the character and the world but you get to explore one of the few loving families in a fantasy novel. I found Mal's family so sweet and loving in their own unique way. Very much reminded me of the Adams family.

Her betrothed is so interesting too. He is not your typical love interest and I loved him all the more for it. Their dynamic was so sweet and wonderful together, my biggest complaint was just wanting more of them as a couple in the book.

I was surprised at how well rounded a lot of the minor characters were. They each had a unique personalities and the lore for all the kingdoms made me want a million spinoffs.

I found myself struggling to enjoy Alina but somehow enjoying her PoV because it was so different from the other characters. Kai was a total standout character too.

This book is so entertaining I was up late reading and read the whole thing in a day. By the time you hit the 20% mark, you are interested, by the time you hit the 50% mark....good luck putting it down. No spoilers but there was a twist at the ending that genuinely surprised me (actually a couple).

This is one of my favorite reads of the year so far. So much more complex and well written than a standard fantasy romance. I am eagerly awaiting the next book in the series and will be putting this author on my watch list for anything she writes.