The best reading order for Jennifer L. Armentrout's 'Blood and Ash' and 'Flesh and Fire' series

• Jennifer L. Armentrout is releasing the sixth "Blood and Ash" book in June 2025.
• Armentrout's "Blood and Ash" and "Flesh and Fire" series are interconnected, which can confuse readers.
• Here's the best reading order for a spoiler-free experience.

As a devoted reader of fantasy and romance books, it's no surprise I binged Jennifer L. Armentrout's New York Times bestselling "Blood and Ash" series. 

I stumbled upon the first book in the series, which is published by Blue Box Press, on Goodreads after finishing Sarah J. Maas' "A Court of Thorns and Roses."

I was delighted to find it scratched the itch for a tension-filled, magical story "ACOTAR" had left in my life.

I've since become a huge fan of "Blood and Ash" and its companion series, "Flesh and Fire," which Armentrout has been publishing since 2021. 

Armentrout released the fourth "Flesh and Fire" novel, "Born of Blood and Ash" in August, and she is set to publish the sixth book in the "Blood and Ash" series, "The Primal of Blood and Bone," in June 2025.

'Blood and Ash' is an ongoing fantasy series about a Maiden questioning her fate

In the first book of the series, "From Blood and Ash," readers meet Poppy, an 18-year-old who is more than just a girl. The gods have chosen her as the Maiden, and when she turns 19, she will be given to them to help turn humans into the Ascended, immortal beings that rule her kingdom, Solis.

Poppy has always known her fate, but living as the Maiden hasn't been easy. She must always wear a veil in public, no one is allowed to touch her, and she spends most of her time alone. So when she meets Hawke, a new guard who treats her like a person instead of a symbol, she finds herself questioning her commitment to the gods.

But the Ascended and Hawke are both keeping secrets, and when Poppy finds out the truth about them — and herself — everything in her life will change.

Armentrout's world becomes a sweeping tale of magic and warring kingdoms as Poppy comes into her power throughout the "Blood and Ash" series, which has five published installments: 

• "From Blood and Ash"
• "A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire"
• "The Crown of Gilded Bones"
• "The War of Two Queens"
• "A Soul of Ash and Blood"

"A Soul of Ash and Blood" technically takes place after "The War of Two Queens," but the majority of the book is told through flashbacks that bring readers back to the timeline in "From Blood and Ash." 

Armentrout is set to release the next installment in the series, "The Primal of Blood and Bone," on June 10, 2025.

Armentrout also created a prequel series to 'Blood and Ash'

Armentrout has published a prequel series to "Blood and Ash" called "Flesh and Fire."

The series exists in the same world as the "Blood and Ash" books, but it takes place thousands of years before Poppy is even born.

Like Poppy, Seraphena Mierel is a Maiden, promised to the Primal of Death in a bargain designed to save her people from a rot spreading across their lands in the first installment in the series, "A Shadow in the Ember."

But Sera is a double agent, and she has trained her whole life in secret as an assassin so she can break down the Primal's defenses and kill him when he's vulnerable. But when she finally meets the Primal, he's nothing like Sera expected, awakening urges in her she didn't know she had. 

Four installments of the series are available to read, as the fourth book was published in August 2024:

• "A Shadow in the Ember"
• "A Light in the Flame"
• "A Fire in the Flesh"
• "Born of Blood and Ash"

Armentrout also published a companion book to both series, "Visions of Flesh and Blood," in February 2024. It's essentially a guide to the "Blood and Ash" universe, providing character breakdowns and histories for both series.

The plots of the two series are interconnected, so you shouldn't read them separately

The events and characters of "Flesh and Fire" overlap with those in "Blood and Ash." In fact, "The War of Two Queens" is difficult to understand if you haven't read "A Shadow in the Ember."

But the "Flesh and Fire" series also contains spoilers about Poppy's adventures, so it doesn't make sense to read them before you start the "Blood and Ash" series. 

Armentrout also said on her website that the series' "two timelines will also merge in the future, bringing the characters together in the 'Blood and Ash' books," so you can't read either series alone. 

Because you'll need to read all of the books from both series to fully grasp either story, I recommend reading the books that are currently published as one interconnected series in the following order: 

• "From Blood and Ash"
• "A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire"
• "The Crown of Gilded Bones
• "A Shadow in the Ember"
• "The War of Two Queens"
• "A Light in the Flame"
• "A Soul of Ash and Blood"
• "A Fire in the Flesh"
• "Born of Blood and Ash"

Basically, you'll read three books about Poppy, and then you'll take a quick break to introduce yourself to Sera in "A Shadow in the Ember." After that, you'll basically be alternating between Poppy and Sera's stories.

This order allows you to enjoy "Blood and Ash" without spoilers and ensures you will fully digest "The War of Two Queens" without feeling confused. 

Plus, "Blood and Ash" can get a little overwhelming as the world becomes larger. The tension between Sera and the Primal in "Flesh and Fire" was a welcome tone shift that made me want to continue reading both series as new installments are released. 

And despite the flashbacks, I wouldn't give into the temptation to read "A Soul of Ash and Blood" in tandem with "From Blood and Ash." It contains too many spoilers about the series to be read right after or in tandem with "From Blood and Ash" despite the fact that it mostly tells the same story as the first installment in the series. It actually works best as a refresher on "Blood and Ash," recentering you in Poppy's world before her story continues. 

You don't have to read "Visions of Flesh and Blood" at all if you don't want to, but don't read it until after you finish "A Fire in the Flesh" if you do decide to add it to your collection. It features several spoilers for both series, as Armentrout notes on her website. 

And if you want advice on how to read Sarah J. Maas' books, you can find out more here.