Ashes & Rubble” by Dartanyan Johnson – A Thrilling Fantasy Full of Mystery and Action

Dartanyan Johnson delivers an exciting fantasy adventure with Ashes & Rubble, packed with action, suspense, and unforgettable characters. From the very first page, this story pulls you in and keeps you hooked.

What’s the story about?

Prince Aeveus Fehlik has been accused of murdering his own father. The problem? Everyone saw him do it—but he knows he didn’t. Now he’s on the run, trying to find the real killer before the royal guards catch him. His only clue is the symbol of a forgotten territory, but time is running out. If he’s captured before he can prove his innocence, he will be executed.

For Karessa Auruchie, the bounty on Aeveus’ head is a chance to escape the slums and start a new life. She teams up with Clyde, a charming and skilled elven tracker, to hunt him down. But as they get closer to their target, they begin to wonder—what if Aeveus isn’t the villain everyone says he is?

Why should you read this book?

🔥 A great mystery: How can someone commit a crime they didn’t commit? The truth keeps you guessing until the very end.
⚔️ Action-packed and exciting: From dangerous forests to intense battles, the story never slows down.
🖤 Interesting characters: Aeveus is determined to clear his name, while Karessa and Clyde add humor, charm, and tension.
🌍 A rich fantasy world: The kingdom is full of danger, secrets, and political intrigue.
✍️ Easy to read and engaging: The writing is fast-paced, vivid, and full of great dialogue.

Final thoughts:

Ashes & Rubble is a perfect mix of adventure, mystery, and strong characters. If you love fantasy stories with action, suspense, and surprising twists, this book is a must-read. A well-deserved 5 stars!

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. (via Netgalley)

Actual review closer to 3.75 stars. The story itself moved right along for me. I liked the group and their dynamic as they made their journey together. I would have liked to have gone a smidge deeper into the characters and the romance angle been a little more fleshed out.

This book is amazing! The characters are so good and the world building is really awesome. The magic and magical creatures are well written and interesting, and the plot is so interesting, I had trouble putting this one down! If you love fantasy, I highly recommend this one!

I loved it! This book gave me a cozy adventure with a tight knit group of friends. Their dynamic throughout the story was fantastic, with witty banter and humor. The story had great pacing, I was immediately hooked with the prologue and didn't want to put it down! And the action scenes were drawn out so smoothly, I was instantly submerged into the world and didn't want to leave! I'm so super stoked for the next book!!!

Over all, this was a good read. The prologue absolutely sucked me in and got me into the book. I enjoyed the story and had fun along the way. The world building wasn’t to over the top and didn’t leave me confused, which is always a plus. The world was full of different magical beings and magical abilities which was lots of fun.
I found myself getting a bit bored at the start of the book but it did pick up the further you got in.
All in all it’s a fun read that I think many fantasy lovers would enjoy.

Good plot, lots of classic fantasy themes. Interesting world, though I wish there had been more world building and character development.

4.25 stars rounded up. What you’ll get when you read this:

- Battles and Tournaments
- A journey / adventure
- Cool magical creatures
- Murder mystery
- Golden retriever MMC
- Slow burn romance subplot with mild spice

This was super fun. Despite how action packed this was, I personally felt the vibes were very cozy. I had a nice time curling up before bed with this. The stakes never felt so high that I was sincerely stressed, it was just enough to be entertaining.

Johnson really excels with his descriptions of scenery. I felt like I was there, I saw everything so clearly - the taverns, the forests, the battles, the food... it felt real.

I fell in love with the characters, especially Aeveus and his two friends. They were clever, sincerely funny, and had great banter between them. There were lovely found family vibes.

At times when female characters are written by male authors they can be borderline (if not overtly) offensive. That is NOT the case here. Johnson did a great job at making Karessa just another person without centering her sexuality or descriptions of her body. But my one critique is that I didn't find myself connecting with her as much as Aeveus. I just didn't feel like Johnson fully captured the heart and mind of a woman. When reading her POV it sometimes felt as though I was looking at her through Aeveus' eyes.

However, The book is mostly in Aeveus' POV, which I preferred. I think his POV was done exceptionally well. I related to him so much, and I found myself really feeling for him and routing for him to succeed. I enjoyed reading romance from a male POV.

I will 100% be picking up book 2 - because that ending?!? Totally took me off guard, I didn't expect it. I'm so excited to see where this goes!!

This was a pretty dang decent fantasy novel.

I really liked the pacing of the world-building, it never felt info-dumpy to me and it never made me sit there wondering "what on earth are they talking about? I don't know anything about that yet." And I think that says a lot about a fantasy novel and the author. Usually world-building always leaves something to be desired.

This world was cool and had cool creatures (which is always a major selling point for me).

I did wish for a bit more characterization though. I really am such a character-driven reader. You gotta make me fall totally in love with them. Don't get me wrong, these were not flat or boring characters, I just wanted a bit more. Especially when it came to the romantic development. I just wished for a teeny scooch more.

There were times when I could tell it was written by a man (I usually try to stay away from books written by men because they tend to be offensive and infuriating, the girlies know what I'm talking about and the exact kinds of scenes I am referring to - there are entire reddit threads dedicated to it), but this wasn't offensive, just weird at times (that could just be a personal thing).

Thanks to NetGalley for the e-ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review! My Goodreads review is up and my TikTok (Zoe_Lipman) review will be up at the end of the month with my monthly reading wrap-up.