King of Ashes: A Novel

A 2026 Audie Awards finalist for Audiobook of the Year!

“Narrator Adam Lazarre-White masterfully voices a wide range of characters. Listeners will be captivated by the layered storytelling, morally complex characters, and the powerful interpretation of a narrative steeped in pain, violence, and family loyalty.”—Kirkus

"Narrator Adam Lazarre-White's emotionally rich performance captivates, keeping listeners deeply invested in this tragically grim tale." — Library Journal


Award-winning, New York Times bestselling author S. A. Cosby returns with King of Ashes, a Godfather-inspired Southern crime epic and dazzling family drama.

When eldest son Roman Carruthers is summoned home after his father’s car accident, he finds his younger brother, Dante, in debt to dangerous criminals and his sister, Neveah, exhausted from holding the family—and the family business—together. Neveah and their father, who run the Carruthers Crematorium in the run-down central Virginia town of Jefferson Run, see death up close every day. But mortality draws even closer when it becomes clear that the crash that landed their father in a coma was no accident and Dante’s recklessness has placed them all in real danger.

Roman, a financial whiz with a head for numbers and a talent for making his clients rich, has some money to help buy his brother out of trouble. But in his work with wannabe tough guys, he’s forgotten that there are real gangsters out there. As his bargaining chips go up in smoke, Roman realizes that he has only one thing left to offer to save his brother: himself, and his own particular set of skills.

Roman begins his work for the criminals while Neveah tries to uncover the long-ago mystery of what happened to their mother, who disappeared when they were teenagers. But Roman is far less of a pushover than the gangsters realize. He is willing to do anything to save his family. Anything.

Because everything burns.

"Lazarre-White brings a nuanced portrayal to a full cast of complex characters. The rich details are given depth with Lazarre-White’s lyrical qualities." —Booklist on All the Sinners Bleed (Starred Review)

"Adam Lazarre-White’s Southern drawl drips slow as molasses..." —Library Journal on All The Sinners Bleed (Starred review)

A Macmillan Audio production from Pine & Cedar Books.