King of Ashes by S.A. Cosby
Published by Flatiron Books
Publication date: June 10, 2025
Genres: Fiction, Contemporary, Mystery, Southern Grit, Suspense 
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I’ve been an S.A. Cosby fan since his debut, Blacktop Wasteland so was eager to read his newest novel, King of Ashes. Once again, Cosby settles in the small-town South, this time with a prodigal son forced to return home after his father is in an accident that leaves him in a coma.
Roman Carruthers is adept with numbers, specifically money, and he makes lots of it for his wealthy roster of clients in Atlanta. He’s also adept at the somewhat shadier transactions sometimes needed to keep his high-profile clients out of trouble. When he arrives home in King of Ashes he realizes these specialized skills are the only thing standing between him and the complete destruction of his family. His baby brother has fallen into serious debt with the local crime lords. Roman’s first interaction with them makes it clear they have no patience for the financial promises of some fast-talking Atlanta money man. He’s forced to drop back and recalculate his options, all in a compacted time frame, if he doesn’t want his family killed slowly and painfully.
There is no doubt Cosby can write high octane, white-knuckle fiction. What I appreciated in his second novel is that he began going beyond the testosterone overload into a more nuanced exploration of topical issues around Black life in the South, relationships, and identity. This is not the case with King of Ashes. It’s the most violent and darkest of his novels so far; a pitch-black story without the smallest sliver of light. What remains the same is how confidently Cosby is dialed into his characters and the ease with which he evoked a charred, brutalist landscape, both of which mean this was not a book I could put down. I could do without the gruesome violence and hope it’s not the direction Cosby chooses for his next novel, but King of Ashes is still propulsive reading.
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*I received a free copy of this book from Flatiron Books in exchange for an honest review.*
I felt the same I think. It was a gut wrenching story and I was all in because he’s such a remarkable writer. But I missed the heart in this one. I wanted a character to really get behind but these were all doing such bad things. That darn crematory was just too close at hand.
I hate to be disappointed with Cosby but I was, just a tiny bit.
Exactly. There was no growth from the main characters, just a kind of despair. I really wonder about Cosby’s mindset with this one- is he illustrating the country’s current environment?
I just finished this book last weekend. It was indeed as we say in the south a barn burner! I sped right through it!
We have both read the last 2 books you’ve reviewed on the blog. I’m currently reading Nora Robert’s latest release Hidden Nature, so far so good, I’m about a quarter of the way in.
Wow more violent than Blacktop? I think Blacktop was my favorite of his, lol. King of Ashes might be a bit too much despair for me right now … hmm. We’re already there.
There’s just one particular incident in Ashes that is more gruesome than any I’ve read in a while. Visually haunting.
I’m trying to find happy reading, but it’s not easy to come by-even in fiction.
Every day we sink lower.