Kingdom of Ash

Love is the driving force behind the armies that Aelin and her allies amass against Erawan: They have “something worth fighting for. No enemy could withstand it” (852).

Aelin’s love for her kingdom and her people is also her inspiration, which gives her the courage and resilience to endure the impossible. During months of torture by Maeve and Cairn, one story keeps Aelin from breaking, and it begins with the line: “Once upon a time, in a land long since burned to ash, there lived a young princess who loved her kingdom…” (5). Committed to her loved ones, Aelin never makes a blood oath to Maeve no matter how many times it’s offered as a way to escape pain or death.

Manon is raised as an Ironteeth witch. While Crochan witches embrace love and compassion, the Ironteeth scorn these qualities. Yet Manon claims to the Ferian Gap’s Ironteeth clans to win them to her side, “I have met kings and queens whose love for their kingdoms, their peoples, is so great that the self is secondary. Whose love for their people is so strong that even in the face of unthinkable odds, they do the impossible” (367). After seeing Dorian and Aelin lead with compassion and open love, Manon learns to do the same.