Kingdom of Ash: Chapters 35-67

Episode Title: Kingdom of Ash Ch. 35-67: Witch Queens, Water Vaporization, and Horrible Decisions!

Description:

Welcome back to the Romantasy Roundtable! Rick, Amanda, and Kim are diving straight into the second half of Part One in Kingdom of Ash (Chapters 35 through 67), and honey, the trauma is heavy, the soup is boiling, and nobody in Erilea knows how to make good decisions! Aelin is finally reunited with her Shadow Daddy Rowan, but her magic is on ice—or is it? From subterranean glow-worm cave dates and Lorcan swallowing his pride for jasmine Burvas blood, to Manon absolutely annihilating witch matrons to claim her crown, this section is non-stop adrenaline. We are talking major heartmates reunions, chaotic shape-shifting educational moments (looking at you, Dorian), and Elide becoming an absolute legend on a terrifying horse named Farasha. Grab your warm strawberry crisp, settle in, and let us yap about the most epic battles, major betrayals, and whether Aedion wins the award for worst politician ever.

Key Topics Discussed:

• Aelin and Rowan Reunion & The Glow-worm Cave: Aelin makes her grand return, Cairn gets skinned alive (sadly off-screen for Rick!), and our favorite heartmates exchange shiny stolen wedding rings under a cavern full of sparkling cavern worms.

• Maeve is a Valg Queen?!: The Cadre realizes their blood oath was sworn to an ancient demon queen, leaving everyone processing major trauma and a really bad taste in their mouth.

• Manon Decapitates Yellow Legs & Claims the Crown: Manon draws a line in the snow with Wind Cleaver, slays the Yellow Legs matron, and slaps the Crown of Stars onto her own head in the ultimate girlboss move of the series.

• Dorian's Shape-Shifting Adventures: Dorian tests out what it feels like to walk around with breasts, flirts with Manon in ghost form, and then pulls the ultimate ghosting maneuver after a steamy night to sneak into Morath alone.

• Elide, Lorcan, and Farasha the Horse: Elide hijacks Chaol's terrifying horse to rescue a spine-injured Lorcan from a pile of corpses, leading to an emotional confession of love and toe-curling magic healing.

• Aelin's Dark Phoenix Moment: Aelin proves she is the ultimate firebringer by vaporizing an entire 30-foot tidal wave into pure steam with her saved-up magic before taking a well-deserved three-day power nap.

• Lysandra and Aedion Drama: We dissect the toxic plan to fake Aelin's pregnancy, Lysandra's heroic ghost leopard stand on the front lines, and why everybody in Terrasen currently sucks.

• The Great Crochan Beacon Call to Arms: Red-cloaked Crochan witches dusting off ancient swords and mounting brooms across the continent like Paul Revere—easily one of SJM's finest cinematic moments.

• Chaol's Baby Announcement: Chaol finds out Yrene is pregnant... directly from his terrible father over a very awkward chicken dinner.

Closing/Call-to-Action:

Did Lorcan win your heart back, or are you still holding a grudge? Is Dorian walking straight into his demise at Morath? Drop your hot takes in the comments below! Don't forget to like, subscribe on YouTube, and follow us on Goodreads and StoryGraph. Got book recommendations or want to defend Tamlin with Rick? Email us at romantasyroundtable@gmail.com! See you next week for chapters 68 through 99—and remember, do NOT read chapter 100 yet!