The ​Crown of Gilded Bones

Cas reluctantly explains the messy situation for Atlantia should Poppy and Cas flee and leave his parents with no heir to assume power. Still, he urges Poppy not to feel pressured into the role of queen, stating that she should only choose the position if she desires it. Overcome with emotion, Poppy recognizes that Cas is giving her the freedom to choose her own destiny; this would have been an unimaginable privilege when she was The Maiden. Cas professes a deep-rooted desire to be worthy of Poppy, and his previous actions against her weigh him with guilt. Poppy tries to assuage Cas’s guilt, but he resists the conversation.

Poppy considers accepting the role of queen but recognizes how unqualified she is for the position. She also dislikes the responsibility that would control her day-to-day life. However, she also believes that Cas could teach her to be an effective ruler. She worries about what will become of Atlantia and the current royal family if she and Cas abandon their home. She also believes that her brother, Ian, would be more vulnerable to the Atlantians if he ascended. Ultimately, Poppy feels scared and insecure and is concerned about failing the people of Atlantia. Cas counters that Poppy’s compassion and unmatched empathy make her a natural leader. Their conversation is interrupted when Delano brings news of a panicked father whose young daughter lies fatally injured from a carriage accident. Poppy rushes to help, feeling the panic and grief from the troubled family. Cas, Kieran, and Poppy arrive at the girl’s home just as she nears death. Poppy uses magic to heal the girl and save her life.

Cas walks with Poppy to a private garden. He tells her that she brought the young girl back to life, revealing magic that is unique to Nyktos. Cas and Poppy make love. Afterward, Cas takes Poppy on a tour of Saion’s Cove, showering her with treats and flowers. Poppy asks Kieran and Cas if she sounds awkward when speaking with the town’s residents; as Maiden, Poppy wasn’t permitted to talk with many others. Cas and Kieran reassure Poppy that she sounds perfectly normal. The Crown Guard trails the wolven for added protection, a sign that the king and queen know about Poppy’s abilities and are watching her closely.

To Poppy’s great delight, the trio tours a museum. Several paintings of gods and goddesses, some ancient and completed by the gods, line the museum's walls. Poppy studies all depictions of Nyktos. Though his facial features are obscured, Poppy notices that he is often painted with a wolf, symbolizing his ability to shift into a wolflike creature. Cas shows Poppy an image depicting Nyktos alongside two large felines, which Poppy believes are cave cats. Poppy recalls seeing a cave cat with Ian in Solis. Cas and Kieran doubt the accuracy of Poppy’s memory, and they explain that the cats have been extinct for several hundred years. Cas believes that the images of the cats are symbolic of Nyktos’s consort and his children, of whom he was very protective. Poppy doesn’t understand why the Ascended would lie about a large cat.

Cas and Kieran take Poppy to dinner at a café and then go for a walk on the beach. Kieran invites Poppy to attend a wolven beach wedding. The Crown Guard cannot escort Poppy, but she decides to go anyway, secure in the presence of so many wolven. Poppy dances with Delano and Kieran, enjoying the freedom. The wolven do not feel shame in public displays of affection; several couples and throuples move a short distance away from the wedding to have sex, though they remain within Poppy’s sight. Poppy enjoys watching the various couples have sex, especially Kieran and Lyra, before she and Cas engage in their own sexual activities.

Poppy admits to feeling intimidated by her power; she is concerned that she will interfere with someone’s death when it is their time to cross into the Vale (the afterlife). Cas hypothesizes that Poppy will instinctively know whether it is right or wrong to save a life. The couple visits Kirha, Kieran’s mother, before leaving for the capital. Impressed with the bright, colorful living quarters, Poppy holds onto the image of Kieran sitting with his pregnant mother while helping her roll balls of yarn. She notices that Kieran looks out of place in his black uniform. Kirha speaks highly of Valyn and Eloana and understands Poppy’s apprehension about seeing them again. Kirha reassures Poppy that the king and queen will welcome her with genuine kindness.

Kieran accompanies Cas and Poppy to the Cove Palace. Many residents bow to Poppy during their journey. Poppy finds the palace extravagant. She notices the royal crest, a white banner with the sun in the middle and an arrow and sword crossed at the top. Poppy dislikes that the sword crosses unevenly over the arrow, protruding further and representing an imbalance of power. Cas explains that King Malec designed the crest and wanted to clarify that he was more powerful than Queen Eloana. Poppy wants to change the crest once she is queen; she wants the sword and the arrow to signal equality.

Poppy struggles to read the emotions of Cas’s parents as she enters the banquet hall, but she softens when she sees Eloana affectionately hug Cas. The family immediately argues about Cas’s attempt to save Poppy’s life by ascending her. Eloana fears that false rumors about Poppy being a vampry will spread through Atlantia. Speaking with authority, Poppy dismisses this concern, clarifying that all witnesses (aside from Valyn) are dead, except for select wolven loyal to Poppy. Cas feels insulted by his mother’s line of questioning and believes that she should hold herself accountable for an Atlantian attack against Poppy. Valyn casually calls Poppy “The Maiden,” and the king and queen question Poppy’s intentions. Cas sternly reprimands his father before Poppy clarifies that she never asked to be The Maiden or a deity. She states that her only choice made of free will has been to marry Cas. Cas suggests that he and Poppy leave.

Eloana apologizes, expressing sorrow and guilt for Poppy’s traumatic experiences. She seems genuinely pleased and relieved that Poppy is married to Cas. Kieran remains on guard next to Poppy, refusing a drink as Poppy and Cas summarize Poppy’s abilities. Eloana verifies that deities were known to procreate with Atlantians on occasion, though Atlantians captured and killed all descendants. Those of mixed gods/Atlantian heritage developed into powerful warriors. However, Valyn believes that Poppy’s power is greater than that of the children of gods and Atlantians. Eloana observes a strong resemblance between Malec and Poppy. Between this observation and Poppy’s magical abilities, which are similar to Malec’s, Queen Eloana feels certain that Malec is Poppy’s father.

Poppy was raised by a woman named Coralena Balfour, Queen Ileana’s most trusted handmaiden. At the moment, Valyn and Eloana surmise that Coralena fornicated with Malec. They also believe that Coralena must have been Atlantian or some other non-mortal. This theory feels wrong to Poppy, though she can’t place why. When Cas realizes that his parents knew about Poppy’s abilities and conspired with Alastir to have an innocent killed, he becomes overwhelmed with rage. Valyn asserts that if Cas and Poppy intend to assume the role of king and queen, they must make difficult decisions in impossible situations that will torment them for eternity. Cas swears never to hurt a child.

Valyn and Eloana explain how they hunted Malec down and entombed him using the same bone handcuffs that Alastir used on Poppy. Although they believed they left him for dead, they now think the Ascended discovered Malec and raised him. After centuries of entombment, Malec would have become a monster with excessive bloodlust, but Valyn and Eloana believe that this is the only explanation for Poppy’s power. They think her existence is proof that Malec still lives today.

This theory suggests that Poppy is a lesser deity, not a goddess. Queen Eloana asks Poppy to accompany her for a walk, during which they discuss Poppy’s time as The Maiden to the Ascended. Eloana apologizes to Poppy for her suffering, legitimizing her adoptive parents and validating their love and care. Queen Eloana refers to Queen Ileana as the “Queen of Blood and Ash” (380).

Confused, Poppy believes that the moniker “Blood and Ash” belongs to Atlantians. Queen Eloana clarifies that the Blood Crown of the Ascended initially used the “Blood and Ash” title before the Atlantians rebranded it to signify their desire to rise from all that the Ascended destroyed. The women talk about Malec, and Eloana explains that her first husband wasn’t always cruel, and she never considered him a monster. Eloana doesn’t justify or excuse Malec’s violence or the creation of the first Ascended, but she understands how he became the entity he is now. She observes a sharp moral contrast between Malec and Cas, though both men ascended their lovers out of desperation.

Queen Eloana questions Poppy about her and Cas’s plans to free Malik, Eloana’s oldest son, from the Ascended. Poppy clarifies that she also intends to free Ian, her brother—though she is aware that he is possibly only her brother through adoption. If Ian has ascended and lacks morality, Poppy plans to “give him peace” (385) with a quick death. Poppy reassures Eloana of her genuine, intense love for Cas. Their partnership and marriage grew from the common goal of saving their respective brothers, and although Poppy doesn’t condone Cas’s earlier betrayals when they first met, she does understand his actions, and they have moved on as a couple.

Eloana becomes emotional, believing that if Malik is still alive, he has been deprived of Atlantian blood for decades, and his bloodlust will be unsurmountable. Eloana wishes peace for her son, thinking it would be better for him to  die than to suffer. The conversation turns to Poppy and Cas’s political agenda. They plan to demand the release of Malik and discontinue ascensions. They will also demand more land and require the execution of the King and Queen of the Blood Crown. (The Ascended rule by using their religion and deceit as a means of control. Poppy once served as part of that control as The Maiden. However, by threatening to reveal the truth about the Ascended, Poppy is sure that the Blood Crown will relent or face a mutiny.) Eloana clarifies that Valyn and the Council of Elders (the elected Atlantian leaders) desire Ascended bloodshed and revenge. She summarizes years of plans and armies already in place to wage war against the Ascended to destroy the entire race.

Queen Eloana speaks of a failed attempt to negotiate peacefully with the Ascended. Poppy dismisses Eloana’s claims of compromise and accuses her and Valyn of remaining complicit while the Ascended grew in numbers and terrorized mortals and Atlantians for centuries. Poppy knows that civilians will suffer the most should a war occur, and this is her greatest concern. Poppy believes that the Ascended can control their bloodlust and rule Solis without tyranny.

Eloana specifies that the decision to go to war with the Ascended is as good as done, for the plans are already in motion. Eloana states that Cas and Poppy can stop the war if they take control of the throne, but she doesn’t want Poppy to feel coerced into the role. She wants Poppy to become Queen of Atlantia because she loves the people and country. She requests that Poppy and Cas take a week to travel through Atlantia and speak with as many Atlantians as possible.

Vonetta, Kieran’s sister, appears with Cas and Valyn, interrupting Poppy and Eloana’s conversation. She brings news: A convoy of Ascended, including Ian, has arrived in Spessa’s End, hoping to speak with Poppy and Cas.

Vonetta confirms that she could sense that Ian is Ascended. This news devastates Poppy, who becomes overwhelmed with rage and a desperate need for destruction. Kieran and Vonetta can feel Poppy’s intense anger. As Poppy unintentionally calls the wolven, Kieran asks her to calm down. Poppy holds onto the hope that Ian can control his bloodlust and serve as an example for a peaceful future between Ascended and Atlantian.

Poppy prepares to meet her brother, wanting to receive the message from the Blood Crown about preventing a war. Cas supports Poppy’s decision, but Valyn and Eloana firmly protest, believing that the new couple is walking into a trap. Kieran arranges for dozens of wolven to accompany them, including Jasper, even though his mother, Kirha, is very close to giving birth. Cas dismisses Poppy’s concerns about Jasper, Kieran, and Vonetta accompanying Poppy and Cas. He reassures her that Kirha still has weeks left in her pregnancy.