From Our Ashes: Book Two

Fire Between Us #2

by Alex Cross

They burned everything down.

Four years ago, Sebastian Langley walked away from the only man who ever made him feel real. He told himself it was for Ethan’s good. For his future. For all the reasons that made sense in his head, even if they shattered Ethan’s heart.

Now Ethan is back… whether Sebastian is ready for it or not.

Ethan has learned how to survive without him. How to be sharper. Stronger. How not to fall apart every time Sebastian Langley’s name crosses his mind.

But some things don’t stay buried.

The pull between them is still there. So is everything that was left unsaid. Between complicated families, buried resentments, and lives that have only grown more tangled in their absence, loving each other isn’t just about what they feel. It's about what it costs.

These second chances won’t come gently. They will come with truth, reckoning, and the risk of losing everything again.

From Our Ashes is the emotional conclusion to Ash and Ethan’s story, a second-chance MM romance about love, regret, and choosing each other when the world around you is still on fire.

Genres: M M Romance, Second Chance, Romance, Found Family, Forced Proximity, Slow Burn, Spicy

416 pages, Paperback

First published May 4, 2026

Reviews

[Laura Jane ♡ · Rating 5 out of 5]

”hello darling”

my booksta edit/review

i read the end twice through my puddles of tears. i love them so much you don’t understand 😭
my heart aches and feels healed all in one.
i don’t know how alex does it but the way she wrote ash and ethan makes me feel so much, they are real to me and i feel blessed to have witnessed their second chance and hard fought road back to each other.
everything about this story and their ending was absolute perfection. no notes. just perfect in every way possible.

ethan brought a whole new game to this one. all that time and boy did he grow, evolve and develop into a fierce and head strong man. i loved seeing him go for what he wanted but still exploring his vulnerability. oh and he had ash on his kneeessss!!!

ash, ugh, i just want to hug him and cry. he finally learnt how to let his walls down, face his fears and let himself fully love, be loved and accept support from his people.
there is a moment in this that has me bawling, it was always ethan for him 😭

their banter, chemistry and undeniable tension was still so tangible & electric the whole way through. the slow burn and heated sexual energy had me GAGGED. they are so hot together. alex writes immaculate spice.
but their tenderness and devotion never stop seeping through, and everything they went through together & individually was so worth it because through all the stubbornness, the doubts, the pain and the highs - they always knew their end game was with each other 🥺

i’m beyond words and beyond happy they got their happy ending, like i genuinely miss them so much already. i know im going to have to reread these two books very soon because i feel like im missing a piece of myself without them.

special mention to ethan and henry’s friendship. one of the most beautiful dynamics of unwavering platonic love and loyalty. i need henry’s book more than air because my sweet angel has so much to deal with 🥺

i have SO many highlights and quotes, it’s so hard to pick a few!
alex has put me through every emotion possible and all i can say is thank you!!! thank you for one of my new favourite couples i’ve ever met 🥹
god tier couple. god tier duet. GOD TIER MM!!!! ash and ethan are my everything. i literally miss them so much, i’m genuinely so sad its done. i need a novella 😫

some quotes

A quiet breath left me before I could stop it, and despite everything pressing in around me, I found myself smiling back. He’s here.

That shy smile he gave me, caught between genuine pleasure and mischief, felt powerful enough to tilt the world on its axis.

“I’m sorry for ever making you feel like I don’t. That’s the biggest lie I’ve ever told.”

I used to wonder what it was about him. Why he had this effect on me. Why he made me feel seen and… safe. Of all the people in my life, why him? I’d asked myself that question for years…. And somehow, in the middle of everything falling apart, he made the chaos feel fucking beautiful.

It felt like impact—like collision—like every second I’d spent holding myself back finally snapped. His breath left him in a broken sound against my lips. I kissed him like I needed to feel it in my bones. Like it had to hurt a little, just to know it was real.

“Slow, my darling,” he murmured against my shoulder. “Let’s fuck so slow we burn this bed to the ground.”

“but dinner is still served” when you know, you’ll know 😛😛😛😛😛😛

[Ecd · Rating 3 out of 5]

From Our Ashes — a long review no one asked for:

I love this universe. The Langley Brothers, the Bennett siblings, the company drama—all of it. I’ve loved spending time in it. And Ethan Bennett is one of my favorite characters I’ve ever read, top five all time. So when I say this sequel doesn’t work, I’m not nitpicking for the sake of it. I’m frustrated because I care.

When We Ignite was one of those rare, lightning-in-a-bottle romances for me. The pacing, the emotional build, the way Ash and Ethan’s relationship unfolded through small, meaningful interactions: it all felt intentional and earned. By the end, they chose each other with full awareness. That’s what made it so powerful.

Which is exactly why this sequel doesn’t work the same way.

The biggest problem is that From Our Ashes spends most of its runtime undoing emotional ground already covered. Ash’s arc in the first book was about letting go of control and allowing himself to feel. We watched him arrive at that realization in real time. Retreading the same journey across hundreds of pages doesn’t feel like growth. It feels redundant.

Structurally, this reads like two different books stitched together. The first half drags: artificial distance, repetitive reminders that Ash is a “control freak,” and a long Luca detour that stalls the relationship at the story’s center. Then the second half suddenly works. The pacing tightens and you can see clearly that the author still knows how to write these characters. Which only makes the first half more frustrating, because it proves the detour wasn’t necessary.

Ash’s characterization is where the book loses me most. His arc is framed as growth, but what we actually see through the first half of it is the same patterns: control, avoidance, not showing up emotionally when Ethan needs him most. His development is mostly tied to external events rather than the deeply relational growth he’d already started in book one.

Then there’s the reasoning behind the separation. We’re supposed to believe that Ash loved Ethan so deeply that he bought a ring, decided Ethan was too young, walked away “for his own good,” and left him to years of doubt, all while getting into labeled relationships with other people and planning to return when Ethan was “ready.” That’s not selfless or even tragically misguided. It reads as control that goes beyond a character trait and turns into something that geniunely caused harm. You don’t get to decide someone’s life for them, leave them to suffer the consequences, and frame it as love, especially when the story ultimately circles back to the same endpoint anyway.

The introduction of Luca only amplifies this huge imbalance. It creates unnecessary comparison and tension. Ethan, who has already gone through so much, is put in a position where he’s being measured against someone else—while Ash gets to maintain emotional distance.

And here’s what makes that decision even harder to accept: the story needed a reason for it to feel pressured and complicated, something that would make a man like Ash, with all his control and complexity, feel genuinely trapped into making that choice. Luca is the cheapest possible answer to that problem. There were so many more interesting ways to explore this. Instead the narrative reaches for the easiest external variable available and calls it depth.

The “characters make messy decisions because they’re human” defense is the most common response to this kind of criticism, and it’s worth addressing directly because it’s not a defense of craft. It’s a deflection from it. The question was never whether Ash could make a terrible decision. The question is whether the reader is given enough interiority to understand, feel, and ultimately forgive it alongside Ethan.

And the answer is no, because we’re handed summaries instead of scenes.

“I was ruined without you” is a conclusion. It’s not an experience. We never live inside Ash’s regret the way we live inside Ethan’s pain. We never spend a night with him staring at the ceiling thinking about what he did. We never feel the weight of his guilt accumulating in real time. Instead we get sentences that are expected to carry his entire internal conflict, and they fall short because the groundwork was never laid. So when he gets on his knees to ask for forgiveness and another chance, it doesn’t stick. Not because the moment isn’t written with intention, but because you can’t cash a check the story never deposited. His biggest punishment being the absence of Ethan from his life is told to us. It is never shown. And that gap is where the emotional payoff collapses.

There’s also a larger issue with the reader contract, and I want to be specific about what I mean, because this isn’t puritanism.

The first book doesn’t just tell a love story. It actively trains the reader to understand Ash and Ethan as emotionally and physically exclusive, even without a label that requires it. That wasn’t incidental. It was the foundation the story was built on, and it worked precisely because of it. You felt the weight of what they meant to each other through that exclusivity. It was the whole point.

So when the sequel introduces external distractions to manufacture distance, it doesn’t just create conflict. It breaks the illusion retroactively. Suddenly the reader is being asked to recontextualize a relationship they already understood, already invested in, already loved, on terms they never agreed to.

Romance readers self-select for exactly these dynamics. Staying away from certain books and seeking out others isn’t purity policing—it’s how the genre works. The first book made a specific promise about what kind of story this was. The sequel changed the rules after the reader was already in.

What makes this harder to dismiss is that the author’s own social media announcement flagged the cheating element before the book released. Which means she knew it was a big departure. And while that disclosure is appreciated, it also confirms that this wasn’t a natural evolution of the story. It was a choice, made knowing it contradicted what book one established. You can respect the choice and still feel like you didn’t sign up for it.

The jealousy that should hit hardest ends up being the lowest-stakes version. When Ash finally makes his feelings visible in the club scene, the reader already has full visibility into the dynamic he’s reacting to and knows there’s nothing there. The tension is defused before it even lands. But Luca creates the opposite problem. With him, there’s genuine ambiguity about what he and Ash actually are to each other, which puts the reader in Ethan’s exact position: uncertain and unable to get a clear read. Except instead of building charged tension, it just creates noise. Luca doesn’t carry enough narrative weight to make that uncertainty feel meaningful. So the moment that should have been explosive is muted, and the dynamic that could have created real tension just irritates. The jealousy payoff lands in entirely the wrong place.

The big reveal at the end is supposed to reframe everything and make the first half worth it. It doesn’t. Ethan’s anger resolves too quickly, the payoff isn’t adequately set up in the first half, and the reveal doesn’t justify the detour that preceded it.

The handling of accountability in this book follows a pattern that becomes impossible to ignore. Every adult in this story makes catastrophic decisions that damage Ash and Ethan, and almost none of them are held to meaningful account.

Ash’s father, whose actions were central to the damage in book one, gets a hospitalization that sends Ash rushing to his bedside, spending the night consumed by regret over how things were left between them. It’s an emotionally manipulative shortcut that reframes the father as someone to be grieved over rather than someone who owes his son a real reckoning. The harm he caused doesn’t get confronted. It gets quietly dissolved by a health scare. Ethan’s parents fare no better. Even Henry, who actively contributed to the fallout, is positioned as reasonable rather than responsible. It creates a pattern: the people who cause the most harm face the least direct consequences.

And yet when it comes to Ethan’s mistake (the cheating storyline), the narrative suddenly finds its moral backbone. Everyone clutches their pearls. It becomes the confrontation the book has been building toward. The tonal whiplash is staggering when you line it up against everything that preceded it without consequence. It reads less like earned storytelling and more like a public service announcement: cheating is bad, you must own it, no justifications accepted. Sure. In a universe where a 39-year-old man unilaterally decided the course of two people’s lives, ruined four years of Ethan’s, and faced no equivalent reckoning from anyone else but Ethan (which wasn’t strong enough in my opionion).

The Luca apology mention makes this even harder to take seriously. We’re told Ash was upfront with everyone he was with, that they all knew his heart belonged to someone else and he couldn’t promise anything beyond the physical. If that’s true, then Luca walked into that situation with open eyes. So the framing of Ethan’s apology as this significant moral moment doesn’t hold up against Ash’s own stated reasoning. It actually contradicts it. A half-line acknowledgment that Luca told him to fuck off and he deserved it is not the same moral weight as what everyone else in this story walked away from without consequence.

The book is harder on Ethan than on anyone else, and he is the one who was wronged the most.

Which brings me to Ethan himself, because I need to say this clearly: he is extraordinary. After the scandal broke, he went to his classes anyway. He aced his way through his education while people whispered behind his back and mocked him to his face. He lost his entire trust fund to his own father, a man he had wanted desperately to believe was on his side, only to get blindsided and financially destroyed by him. He loves fully and without reservation, even after being let down in the most painful ways by exactly the people who were supposed to protect him. And at the birthday party, after Ash had broken his heart for what felt like the millionth time, he still dropped everything when Ash got the news about his father, because that’s who Ethan is. Once he’s in, he’s in.

He was never immature. He was never “acting his age.” He was a person who had earned every single one of his reactions. Suggesting otherwise, especially coming from Luca, who entered a situation he fully understood and then had the audacity to call Ethan “desperate” and imply he was being ridiculous for having feelings about a man who had been rewriting his entire life without his consent, is one of the most frustrating moments in the book. Luca doesn’t know him. Even from Ash’s POV during the breakup scene, the narrative doesn’t push back nearly hard enough.

Even the intimacy loses something along the way, and I want to be specific about what, because this isn’t about explicitness or frequency or structure.

From the very beginning of book one, the physical was never just physical with these two. A thumb tracing over bare skin at a dinner table, nothing more than that, and the page was on fire. What made it work wasn’t the touch itself. It was everything underneath it: Ethan’s body betraying him while his words said the opposite, Ash reading him completely and calling it out with quiet, unhurried confidence. The goosebumps weren’t just physical. They were the moment Ethan’s defenses started losing. Every touch carried psychological and emotional weight specific to these two people and where they were with each other in that exact moment.

Even the messy, laughing pantry scene near the end wasn’t really about the sex. It was about watching Ash become unguarded, the walls finally down, everything Ethan had ever wanted reflected back at him in one open expression. The intimacy was always a vehicle for revelation.

The sequel loses that. And the deliberate withholding of their reunion until seventy percent into the book makes it worse, because it actively works against the specific chemistry that defined them from the start. Ash and Ethan were never restrained or calculated with each other. Even when Ash was in his “control freak” era. They were urgent. Spontaneous. The kind of desperate, every-second-without-touching-you-is-unbearable energy that didn’t wait for the right moment because every moment felt unbearable without it. That urgency wasn’t separate from their emotional connection. It was an expression of it.

So when the reunion is stage-managed and withheld until it can be delivered as a set piece, it can’t feel spontaneous anymore. It feels like a transaction. Here is the scene you have been waiting for. Here is your payoff. And then the scene arrives and the language reaches for sensation rather than interiority. Bodies moving. Lines describing the surface of the experience rather than what it means to finally have each other back after four years of loss and damage and longing.

That reunion should have been the hottest thing in the entire series. Not despite everything they went through, but because of it. Two people who loved each other that much, finally on the same page, no more walls, no more uncertainty, no more distance, nothing left to hide behind. That should have made even the simplest touch feel like it could burn the whole page down, the way a thumb on bare skin did when they were still strangers who hadn’t even admitted anything yet. The emotional weight of that moment was the highest it had ever been. The physical should have reflected that completely.

Instead the pressure just dissipates. Quietly. Without the explosion it had spent two books earning. And after all that buildup, that’s not just a missed opportunity. It’s the emotional climax of the entire story landing without the weight it was supposed to carry.

The core is still there. But instead of building on what made the first book exceptional, this one loops back, stalls, and re-derives what we already knew.

I didn’t need them to rediscover their love. I wanted to see what happens after they already knew.

[369Pages · Rating 5 out of 5]

5⭐️
Hello, darlings, and welcome to my long-ass review of From Our Ashes. This duology is absolutely god-tier for me!
Ever since reading When We Ignite (book 1) last year, I’ve been in love with Ethan and Sebastian. Like, I read hundreds of books a year, but they were the one couple from last year that really STUCK with me. This book is the epic conclusion to their love story, happening 4 years after the scandalous beginning in book one.

This book has tropes like:
-second chance
-age gap
-boss/employee
-cheating (not between MCs)
-yearning (but in a very dramatic way)
-family drama (but I love the family sooo much)

Guys, this one made me cry. Like, mostly in a good way. Alex Cross’ writing is honestly exceptional.
Pacing? Excellent.
Story? So intriguing, exciting, and dramatic.
Writing style? Gorgeous.
Characters? Flawed, but developed SO well and SOOOO lovable and well done. Even random side characters make you love them.

This series is masterful. Like, how are you going to take elements like bad communication, cheating, and family drama, which I usually hate, and make me obsessed with it??? Fantastic.

The character writing is so good too. Ash and Ethan are so similar in so many ways, yet also foils for each other. They learn important lessons from each other, and their HEA made me cry happy tears.

Ethan! That man GREW UP! I’m so proud of him. Truly he found his spark. I was proud of him… and he’s a fictional character. Why am I proud of a fictional character?? Anyways he studied Bitchology between book one and book two because he was SERVING the whole book and I was loving it. It was so much more than this though, but I don’t want to spoil!

And Ash?? I’m maybe even prouder of him? He learned how to let people in, and he truly got the arc he deserved.

And don’t get me started on Henry!! What an amazing character. I can not WAIT for his book.

Anyways, this is the best MM duology ever and I’m willing to die on that hill.

Go read When We Ignite right now so you can read this when it comes out in May!!!

[Livvvvvvvv · Rating 5 out of 5]

like fucking fire

this book, this duet, these fucking characters.

and ethan—god—ethan was air.

ethan and ash are perfect. their story told over these two books is heartbreaking and frustrating at times, i felt myself wanting to shout at them to get it together, but i knew they had to learn how to communicate, how to let go and how to love at their own pace. it was worth it because the pay off at the end was everything.

the world should have annoyed me, rich business men? a family dynasty? private fucking jets? money, and so much more money? it's kind of everything i hate about the world, but the way alex brought it to life left me wanting more and for once i didn't roll my eyes at these men. they weren't stereotypical, they had energy, humor and they were divine. all three of the boys and the thawing of the father towards the end of this second book was so lovely to read. their relationships cracking and rebuilding on the pages, because at the end of the day, nothing is more important than fkin family.

“do i fuck like an angel too?”
"no... you fuck like a god"

i'm not even going to spend much time of this, but the spice/smut was some of the best i've ever read, the chemistry between ethan and ash had me giggling like a freak. i am in awe at what was written, it wasn't overly cringe, it wasn't completely overty dirty talk, it was perfect. it was so, so hot. i was screaming, crying, blushing, swooning, EVERYTHING.

we rose from our ashes together, ready to set the whole damn world on fire.

EDIT: i have now been told that henry is getting his own book which i kinda called when i was reading it hence the below!

my only tiny thing was i felt like henry's arc (youngest brother) and character wasn't explored fully, he was such a wonderful part of both books, a guiding and stabilising force in both ethan and ash's lives and the snippets of his trauma and childhood were so desperately sad that i just wished it wasn't such a side part of the story. it was said that he was going to therapy, but that was it and then his relationship with mateo was glossed over.

my hope for this is that henry will get his own book, i would love to see his story and his thoughts come to life and i know alex will take so much care with him and his heart. i want him to have happiness, real happiness, and i want to know what's going on in his head (and also we'd get more ethan and ash snippets hehe).

i devoured these books, the angst, the love, the fucking. everything. perfect.

add them to your tbr. read them. love them. and shout about them to me. please

and somehow, in the middle of everything falling apart, he made the chaos feel fucking beautiful

[Sandy Kay]

Not a duet for me. Spoilers, per other reviews.

After 4 years separation (which sounded bad already, the older hero deciding for both of them to split up end of book 1) the older hero spends about half this book dating someone else, despite the younger hero begging him to break up with the man and, here's the kicker...the older hero already has a ring and plan to *someday* get the younger one back and propose. But meanwhile...he's been having actual relationships with other people, just telling them they're placeholders and don't get too attached. And yet does not break up with his current placeholder when his "future husband" or whatever moves overseas to town to reunite with him??? AYFKM? What kind of hero is this?! 😂😂 I cannot take him seriously. (Lest anyone think I'm being unfair...the younger one has been hooking up casually during separation too, which also...too much "healthy reality" for me as well.)

Not for me, not romantic. WTF. Why do people find this romantic? Someone feel free to school me/shout at me in the comments, I can take it. I know I am weird.

If I sound pissy it's because I've read bits of the author's work and they are FANTASTIC at creating emotions. I desperately want to read something of theirs that would work for me. But their romance choices leave me shaking and upset. Sigh. Oh well. Just not for me.

MANY people love this duet, far more than don't, so as I said about book 1, do not let MY issues stop you. You might too! Talented writer.

[Marci · Rating 5 out of 5]

A billion stars for this duet. LOVED LOVED LOVED it. Ethan Bennett (this duet) and Noah Rossi (Echoes of Us duet, also by Alex Cross) are two of my favorite literary characters of all time. This was perfect to me and it’s going in my personal hall of fame where I loved a second installment as much as I did the first one in a series. That so rarely happens for me. But alas…the immense power of Alex Cross! ✨ Also I need that Henry and Mateo story!!!! 👀 Really enjoyed the snippets of them. I love complicated characters and emotions and difficult situations and fucking up and drama and soul mates and toxicity but we’re doing better now and it’s always been you, how could you ever doubt that and obsession and fire and metaphorically burning the world down for the other and sweetness and growth and care and unconventional proposals and love and love and love.❤️

Being with him felt like finally exhaling after holding my breath for years.

[Mirian · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was so fucking good!!!!! Leagues better than the first installment. I was really craving drama, and from the very beginning this book delivered exactly that. The tension, the angst, the unresolved feelings, the messiness of Ash and Ethan reconnecting after everything, UGHHHH

[AnnaKitt · Rating 5 out of 5]

“I don’t know if this is how love is supposed to work—but it’s how they work. And the only thing I can think of when I see them together is fireworks. Fire. Explosions. And somehow… perfect control.”

I was really lucky to have read quite a few brilliant books lately, but this..
I didn’t just read it, I BREATHED Ash and Ethan. My poor heart still feels like it went through a meat grinder. Books that make you feel so much and so strong are rare.

This story is not unexpected, four years have passed - second chances, new boyfriends, work challenges.. So it’s not really about some plot-related novelty.
But the CHARACTERS, ohmygod, the way Alex writes her characters is magical. Combined with some exceptional writing it creates something really special.
Their every emotion, every doubt, pain and indecision is so powerful you feel it in your bones.

The level of emotional tension, yearning, longing is genuinely ridiculous, I swear my skin was prickling and tingling, and that’s combined with the tears that came around 50% and didn’t really stop..🫠

And yes, there probably are some flaws or imperfections, Ash and Ethan are not - and don’t have to be! - perfect, they are both hurt and this story is about finding a way back to each other.. That is what makes your eyes prickle, because it is raw. Human. Relatable.

Their love is explosive. This book is even more powerful than the first one in terms of emotional depth. The duet is a brilliant masterpiece.
And I really REALLY hope that we are getting Henry’s book, he is honestly one of the best side characters EVER 💗
Also, please, please, THE PLAYLIST is not a drill, it is just so so good ❤‍🔥

[Grace Harper · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5🌟

I love Ethan and Sebastian so much 😭😭😭🫶🏻🫶🏻❤️❤️❤️❤️ so happy they finally got their happy ever after 🥹🥹🥹🥹

I loved seeing how Ethan grew into himself over the last 4 years and how these two found their way back to each other again.

Alex Cross, I will read absolutely anything you write. Literally cannot wait to get my hands on whatever you put out next!!!

I mean it when I say that the characters she writes feel so real. She truly has such a gift for making you feel like you’ve effortlessly joined them on their journey. I adored Ethan/Ash and I can’t wait for Henry’s book 🥹

[Vedeneeva Yulia · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5/5⭐️

Я була безмежно рада повернутися до цих героїв. І я кажу не лише про Ітана та Еша. Генрі, ти мій любімка 🩷
Нарешті я побачила фінал на який вони заслуговують. Я побачила як нарешті руйнуються бар'єри, з'являється довіра, ніжність та потреба бути поряд. Я нарешті побачила зміну. І в першу чергу Еша. Хочете вірте хочете ні, але я його вже просто придушити була готова. Йому, бляха, вже про душу та місце на кладовищі б подумати, а він все мнеться і фігнею страждає. В першій книзі я дійсно його розуміла. Можливо не з усім погоджувалася, але могла зрозуміти. Але в другій... 🤦‍♀️
Щодо Ітана, то він просто мені подобається ще з першої книжки. Цей малий це стихія, це вогонь. Я відчуваю його силу та енергію. Я йому навіть заздрю. В мені цього ніколи не було, навіть коли була набагато молодша. Це дуже підкуповує (ох як я розумію Еша 😄) Я навіть йому пробачаю ту дурнувату поведінку. Бо окрім сили, Ітан ще й мілашка.

І отут питання. Якщо мені сподобалось, то чому не 5⭐️?
По-перше, ну не можу нічого з собою зробити, але перша книга, то любов любовна. І якщо їх порівнювати, то ця для мене слабкіша
По-друге, що це за істерика у першій половині книзі? Що Ітан, що Еш неначе сказилися і виробляли якусь дічь. Не так я уявляла їх зустріч через 4 роки, якщо чесно. Добре, що у 2 половині книжки все вирівнялося і було тим чим мало бути

Але не дивлячись на всі недоліки, це було приємне повернення.
А ще дуже сподіваюсь на приємне продовження про молодшого брата Ленглі. Генрі заслуговує на свою історію кохання 💕

[Daje1968 · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have to admit that I got weird about this book. I read the first part of this duet, When We Ignite, about a year ago. Excellent, smoking hot book, no HEA. I was not happy, but I moved on. Then about a month ago, I decided to reread it because I knew From Our Ashes was coming out, and somehow it gripped me even harder the second time around. And then I got feral.

I have been literally counting down the days to May 4. My Instagram algorithm fully understood the assignment and started tormenting me with ARC readers screaming about this book nonstop. I am sorry to admit that one night I woke up at like 4 a.m. with the genuinely enraged thought: “What do you MEAN Ash has a boyfriend?!?” and could not get back to sleep. True story.

So obviously there was no way this book could live up to the expectations I had built up in my head, right?

Reader, it did.

First, Alex Cross is a truly gifted writer. She has only been publishing for a few years and somehow already writes with the confidence and emotional precision of someone who has been doing this forever. I’ve now read all four of her books, and every single one has been both excellent and emotionally devastating. She does not pull punches.

The funny thing is, I’m not even someone who usually seeks out super angsty books. I SUFFER reading her stories. Yet I love every miserable minute of it. I can’t even fully articulate why except to say she gets deep into the heads of her characters. Her writing never feels paint-by-numbers. It feels more like a mosaic — hundreds of tiny emotional pieces slowly clicking together until suddenly you’re staring at something cohesive and beautiful and painfully human.

Her dialogue is so real. The emotional reactions always make sense for the characters involved. Her plots will enrage you, but she never asks you to suspend disbelief just to force drama. (Okay, fine, nobody needing to speak Spanish while living in Madrid stretched credibility a tiny bit, but honestly, American expats probably do get away with that nonsense.)

Now for the blithering section of the review where I clearly needed a book club and instead decided to emotionally projectile-vomit onto Goodreads.

Okay. I kind of hate Ash. I love him, but I also hate him.

At the art cocktail party, when he deliberately went to flirt with Ethan because he sensed Ethan pulling away after seeing Ash and Luca looking all happy together? Oh my god, CLASSIC shithead dude behavior. That thing where a guy senses someone slipping away and suddenly swoops back in just enough to keep them emotionally hooked? Yeah. That scene unlocked ancient buried memories from my early twenties and I was ready to fight him.

And then Chapter 10 at the club. Ash absolutely had a point about Ethan hurting him especially with his brother, but this line made my skin crawl:

“You know I try my best not to show any kind of affection,” he cut in, dark eyes finally locking on mine. “Not in front of you. I told you I would never do that to you.” Something in his voice made my grin falter. “What are you talking about?” “With Luca.” My stomach dropped. But he wasn’t done. “I don’t do it because I don’t want to hurt your feelings. Because I fucking care about you.”

I think I was maybe supposed to feel empathy for him, but personally? I had smoke coming out of my ears. That somehow felt both patronizing and weirdly manipulative at the same time. Like, thank you for graciously hiding your affection for your boyfriend from the guy you know is in love with you? It also heavily implied that he was affectionate with Luca behind closed doors, which made the whole thing sting even more. Ash has this tendency to treat Ethan like someone fragile he needs to manage emotionally, and sometimes it made me want to throw my Kindle across the room.

That said… the chemistry between them is genuinely insane. The steam takes a while to arrive, but when it does? FIRE. I honestly cannot remember the last time I read two characters with this much tension and emotional gravity pulling them together. Every interaction felt loaded.

Also, anyone who loves groveling? Congratulations. This book delivers. And as it should, because Ash, respectfully, you are a massive pain in the ass.

Let’s also talk about Henry being the omniscient truth-teller in the club scene. Every single thing out of his mouth was correct. I need his book immediately. Mateo seems cool enough for him, and frankly I am already deeply invested. I can’t leave this review without shouting out Henry and Ethan’s beautiful friendship. I’m sure there were times when Henry was sick of playing Miranda to Ethan’s Carrie Bradshaw going on and on about Big, but he was also such a supportive champion of the relationship. And the whole “babe” thing? It was a small detail but felt so real. I can almost imagine the night they started using it.

On to another monologue, about Ash and his relationship with Oliver and his father. I never thought Ash was in the wrong regarding the family situation from When We Ignite. His father was awful to him in a cold, humiliating, late-stage-capitalism kind of way that genuinely made my chest hurt. Oliver was put in a terrible position, yes, but he was still sneaky and dishonest about what he knew was happening. Why exactly is Ash carrying all the guilt here? Even Ash being so deeply torn up about his father’s health issues in this book surprised me a little because let’s be so for real here, his dad was a dick.

And I’m sorry, but Charlotte and Oliver occasionally annoyed me with their perfect little marriage and moral superiority floating around in the background. Happy for you guys, but maybe climb off the pedestal for five minutes.

Also — and this is the tiniest spoiler reason for using the spoiler tag — THANK GOD they don’t want kids. Let these men live their fabulous gay lives in peace screwing to their hearts’ content without hammy little cockblocks getting in the way.

Anyway. If you somehow stumble across this review having never read Alex Cross before, PLEASE go read When We Ignite and then immediately read From Our Ashes. When you’re done, come back and thank me so I can feel validated in personally spreading the Alex Cross agenda.

She is that good. Absolutely worth the suffering. Absolutely worth the wait.

And Mateo better have been at that wedding with Hennie or I swear to god.

[Jenni · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this duology back-to-back, so maybe that’s why it really stood out how similar this second book was to the first—plot-wise. I mean, again, the forbidden aspect, Ethan and Sebastian flirting and playing that game of chase, a bit of toxicity thrown in, Sebastian being a workaholic, and the little squabbles with the brothers.

But in a way, did it matter that we got the first book but with a different setup? Not at all. I still enjoyed it. And yes, there was a bit more to it. There was also character development, which was good.. but then again, unpopular opinion, but I liked them and their dynamic more in book 1. Also, I didn't necessarily like how Luca/that whole situation was written into the story.

This didn’t keep me as hooked as When We Ignite and I wasn’t deeply emotionally invested, but it was still a good time.

To quote Henry, whom we all love:
”Watching this love story unfold has been absolute fucking chaos. It’s been anxiety-inducing, hilarious, and heartbreaking. But it’s also been beautiful.”

❤️‍🔥

”Ash?”
”Oh my fucking god.”
“What— Oh boy.”
”Ash. Ash, pull it together.”
”What?”
”He’s getting closer. Pull it together. Pull it together. Pull it together. Okay—fine. Then at least close your mouth?”

“And you’re going to admit you fucked up. With me. With all of it. But you’re not doing it like this. You’re going to do it on your knees, Sebastian. I want you to crawl to me. I want you to beg.”
Where was the crawling part??😒😂


“I just… I just don’t want people to have a reason to leave me.”


“Sometimes I need you more than air. Like right now. I’m sorry for ever making you feel like I don’t. That’s the biggest lie I’ve ever told.”

[Sofi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Full RTC

I need a moment because… god, this was messy, complicated as hell, but so, so freaking beautiful. Ash and Ethan have my heart, and I will indeed be dramatic about them.

I also have to say, this author’s words are just… WOW. There’s something about her writing that never fails to hit me, so now I have like half the book highlighted, and I don’t know how to choose the perfect quotes because there are so manyyyy. Beautiful writing, beautiful character growth without forgetting human mistakes… I just love this series.

[Royesha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Colossal Disappointment

Ugh, the level of disappointment I have in this book is unreal. To me, this was the first book all over again except in a different country and a pointless extra relationship thrown in. And I do mean POINTLESS! I loved Ethan in book one, I even loved Sebastian in book one. But the way she wrote both of them in this book completely ruined their characters for me.

Ethan was DESPERATE, selfish, and straight up mean. The way he behaved towards Luca was despicable. This was a cheating trope done absolutely wrong. And Sebastian, at the big age of 39 you can’t just say what you want? You can’t open up to the only person you’ve ever supposedly loved? This first 53% of this book was BS and pointless.

Alex had the opportunity to really do this couple justice. They could’ve reunited and worked through the traumas of the past four years on page, shown their familial struggles and mending or permanently walking away from burned bridges. Instead, we get Ethan acting like a desperate selfish brat and Sebastian just being an idiot for over half the book. Once they finally got together, I didn’t even want to read anymore. It was pointless to me. And most of the side plots, that would’ve been great to dive into sooner to help the momentum of the book were completely glossed over in the last three paragraphs. This was such a colossal disappointment and ruined this duet for me. 10/10 do not recommend.

[Anna · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought, after the 3 or 4 year break the two MMCs would be a little bit more mature. But nope.
The biggest turn-off: obviously they confess their love to each other (FINALLY). But tell me why Ash has this full explanation that he even bought an engagement ring and that he knew Ethan would be endgame, but in the first 50 FUCKING % of the book he couldn’t break up with his boyfriend?!? The „boyfriend“ who was clearly in the way between him and Ethan. Make that make sense.

[Alisia alis_reads_ · Rating 4 out of 5]

4🌟2.5/3🌶️Loved them soooooo much!!

Ahhh this was great! Alex, I love you for writing my these characters and their stories!!

Second chance
Book 2
Slow burn
Flipping scene 🤤
Cheating
age gap

Obviously book 1 was my favorite but I’m really proud of Ethan in this book. Like soooo proud of him. He really came into himself in this book and he’s one of those characters I wish was real so we could hang cuz we’d have the best time. I’m off to fantasize a friendship with him now.

[⛧ cal ⛧ · Rating 1 out of 5]

I just feel so fucking bored. No excitement. Never ending push and pull when they did all of this already in book 1. A forty year old man STILL not knowing what he wants in a romantic partner. I need a break. Romance books suck ass.

[k · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was pretty bad in terms of plot. If a second book was planned and the entire plot is both mcs wanting each other but one of them in a 2 (TWO) month relationship for like 1/2 the book then just don’t bother writing another book!

It’s was so trashy to make it a cheating thing like what’s the point and why tf would ash not break up with a guy after only two months come on it was trashy, lame writing and just character undevelopment for BOTH characters.
Then the dad has a heart attack and suddenly it’s all sunshine and roses and omg I love you Ethan my gosh.

I think the whole cheating plot was a really really weak point and it could’ve been really good if they just got to Spain together and just slowly got back together but clearly not.

Yeah the second half was better but at that points it’s just like the previous book a bit so why even need this book

[handy.hannahbookishrecs · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 ⭐️

Oh Ethan and Ash I missed you. This one was such a painful, slow burn, but worth it. Both of these characters had to do a lot of work on themselves and overcome their internal hurdles in order to be together. When Ash finally let go of his control and let Ethan in and Ethan learned how to speak up and say what he wants they finally burned so bright together. If you love that push and pull dynamic that feels almost toxic at times and really good family drama, and an age gap I highly recommend this duet. You’re gonna suffer you’re gonna wanna yell at the characters, but I promise it’s worth it in the end.

[Kim Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

I said it once, I say it 200 times - Alex Cross is one of the most underrated, superb authors to write stories and this book proofed that again ❤️‍🔥

The way I jumped when I received this arc copy 🤭 I've been anticipating this release like crazy since I finished the first book.

Ethan and Sebastian have one of these complicated relationships. You know, a 15-year age gap and the fact that they are brothers-in-law. Oh, and Ash moving to another country after some things happening what were definitely not planned 😭

These two are messy and for sure will make you laugh, then cry, then swoon. You truly will feel all the feelings, cause Ethan and Ash feel them, too.

I love, LOVE them. They are my roman empire.

Oh, and Henry's speech? Described the relationship perfectly and really knocked the breath out of me. I love him so much, he is one of the best brothers/best friend someone could ever ask for. Just beautiful 🤎

[M · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was one of my most highly-anticipated books of this year. I even went back and reread book 1 to prepare myself, and I loved it even more on the second reading, but this one just didn't hit the mark for me. And maybe it's suffering because of my expectations, or maybe the strength of book 1 was in the taboo nature of their relationship, but I found that this book really dragged for me.

We pick up almost four years after the chaos and abrupt ending of book 1. Sebastian is in Madrid running his own business, and then suddenly Ethan walks back into his life. Ethan, now a more mature 23 and a grad student, has his sights set on Ash and rekindling their romance. And the chemistry is still there, but Ash is in a relationship and somehow Ethan didn't anticipate this. More than half the book is spent in the back-and-forth between these two as Ethan flirts relentlessly and Ash tries to resist. It went on for so long that I genuinely lost interest. They kept having the exact same interactions and conversations, and it was really frustrating because we all know where this is going. Why did it take us 70% of a >400 page book to get there?

We get lots of business drama and lots of family drama on both the Bennett and Langley sides. We see Ash being a shit communicator and Ethan behaving like a baby. And to be fair to then, they do grow and develop as people. Ash learns to lean on other people and Ethan learns to ask for what he wants instead of throwing a tantrum.

Eventually we do see them together, obviously, that's the whole point. But so many other distracting things happen before we get the pay-off that I found myself feeling pretty apathetic when it happens. I found myself skimming the last quarter or so, even though that's where all the spice happens. Speaking of which, this book was not nearly and breathlessly hot as book 1, which is its own disappointment.

I don't know, I'm probably being too harsh, but I was really looking forward to this book and it just didn't really hit the spot for me. I'm glad they get their happy ending, but I wasn't nearly as invested as I wanted to be.

[Papie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this was going to be 5 stars, but here we are.

The good
- heartbreak
- emotional rollercoaster
- meant to be, impossible to resist
- 🔥🔥🔥
- Ethan
- Henry

The bad
- Ash is dumb and immature and none of his decisions ever make sense
- the evil dad
- the repented evil dad who is no longer evil
- all the perfect side characters who all end up perfectly happy. 🥱
- it dragged and dragged and dragged. The last 3-4 chapters felt like a super long epilogue and I got so bored.

[-`♡´- · Rating 5 out of 5]

Alex does it again.

[Jen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was amazing! Now let me tell you why...

I actually re-read book one to refresh my memory, in preparation for this. The impression I was left with was that both characters were delightfully flawed. I love them, but they have some personality traits that I dislike and they make stupid decisions that I don't agree with. But I love how realistic that is! Spoilers for this book likely ahead, so read at your own risk.

I was quite happy with how quickly the action started in book two, even if things didn't happen the way I would have liked them to. While I was forewarned, it's still so painful to see Ash with his boyfriend. But Ethan has a lot more confidence now, so he is fierce and savage in his quest to win back his man. His antics were epic! Yes, I also felt really bad for Luca, but it was so satisfying to bask in the egotistical fury of a man scorned. Ethan is clever. He's gorgeous. He knows that Ash is still attracted to him. So he fights dirty, no matter how inappropriate, immature, or cruel he has to be. It was glorious! Also sad though... because Ethan is hurting so much...

It takes a lot longer to work out Ash's deal. There are a lot of pieces to the puzzle, and I still don't completely understand why he stays with Luca so long. But I get why he thought that he was stuck in the rut that he was in, and wasn't allowing himself to be happy. It was still stupid for him to think that, but sometimes we humans think and do stupid things, unfortunately. We're only human, after all.

Obviously, they end up fixing things between them! Yes, having a parental health scare as the trigger is a little trite, but I do think they were headed in the right direction and would have sorted things out eventually even without that. It just would have taken a lot longer. This just forced them to take a shortcut. While the first half was amusing because of the drama, the second half was so sweet and beautiful. They still had some issues to work out, but they were being honest and communicating, and having so much hot sex! Ash holding onto a ring for 4+ years and having this big plan to do all this when Ethan turned 25 seems kind of out of place after all that happened...? But.... I'm gonna just have to chalk a couple of those things up to Ash being stupid, because I just can't make any sense of it. The ending was beautiful though, and I loved it, and I love them! <3

P.S. I also don't understand how Ethan would have ever been so stupid as to give his dad access to his trust fund. Especially after what happened in book one. Especially just because he's tired of having to keep withdrawing money and giving it to him manually? So just cause he's lazy?!

P.P.S. While it was super entertaining to watch, Luca really did not deserve the treatment he received from both Ash and Ethan. So go him for telling both of their apologies to f*** right off! I wouldn't be opposed to seeing him find someone who deserves him in a future book. After Henny and Mateo, of course! =)

[A Low Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

You know, as addictive, well written and deliciously full of romantic tension as that read was, at the end of it, I’m left with one thought: why the fuck doesn’t Ash ditch Luca at the beginning? I kinda can’t get over it, especially with how everything resolved itself in the end. It didn’t bother me at first, but as the groveling commenced, I was like, huh. Yeah, Ash, why DIDN’T you ditch Luca if Elliot was always your end game? And Elliot, why are you ok that you were put in a position to chase this dude when it was really his weird control issues and internal agenda that put you through that? The more the author pointed these things out, the madder I got for Elliot. In the end, it felt like a decision made for the sake of plot, and though I completely enjoyed this read, I’m knocking off a star for it. I think I needed a bit more time and groveling to believe that Ash isn’t going to continue his paternalistic dynamic with Elliot.

[Jessica Swan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a 1 star read until around the 80% mark due to the fact I hate Sebastian more than anyone ever. So immature for being like 40 years old. Fuck that. But Ethan?? Loved him. Precious baby bean. Also I want a Henry book!!!!!!

[Aly · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was perfect. Everything about it. So happy Ethan and ash got their happy ending 😭

[Ev Reads A Lot · Rating 5 out of 5]

Holy shit. Alex really has some great stories. This duet was so compelling. I read both books in 2 days. I was so invested in everything that was going on. The injustices! The interruptions! The controlling parents! I was like “who the fuck is Luca?!” Then “poor Luca”. I felt aaaaalll the feelings with this book. I laughed. I cried. I was heartbroken. And I was so happy about it. Thank you!!! ♾️ ⭐️

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I went into this sequel so excited. I loved the first book, and after a full year of waiting, I had built up so many different ideas of how their story might continue, which definitely shaped my experience with this one.

I really enjoyed being back with these characters. Seeing how much Ethan had grown over the years was one of my favorite parts, and their development felt genuine and earned. The writing was beautiful as always. it was very easy to fall back into this world.

However, I think what didn’t fully work for me was the lack of tension compared to the first book. Their relationship was such a central source of conflict before — especially with the age gap and complicated family dynamic — and I expected that to carry more weight here. Instead, it felt like those issues were resolved quite quickly, which made the emotional impact a bit softer than I had hoped.

At times, it felt like everyone was simply rooting for them, and the obstacles that played such a big role in book one weren’t really present anymore. For example, the shift in Ash’s father’s reaction felt quite sudden to me, and I personally would have loved to see that explored in more depth.

Overall, I did enjoy this and I’m still invested in the characters and the series. I think for me it’s less about the story not working, and more about needing time to adjust to the direction it took, especially after having a year to imagine so many different possibilities.

This is just my immediate reaction after finishing the book, and I could see my thoughts evolving with a bit more time.

[Nico •◡• · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is how not to make a sequel after a good first book, the characters were insufferable in this one