After a year of anticipation, we finally have the concluding part of Kamilah Cole's Divine Traitors duology! When we left the story off in SLTB, Faron accidentally freed an ancient evil set on burning the world for domination, losing her status as the Child Empyrean in the process. Her sister Elara became the new (Maiden) Empyrean to correct her younger sister's mistakes to free her from enemy lines. We continue this drama in the sophomore TEIE.

TEIE's became a very political book. I won't say I had a hard time following the change of events in the plotline, but the focus on trying to save Faron and introducing all of the politics with Elara took away from the story, especially when it was surface-level.

My favorite characters switched in this book, though. When we look at Faron's story, we go through her reckoning of trying to figure out if she is still a hero or a monster. Her sister Elara had a surprising arc from being a nobody to becoming a hated somebody due to the actions of her younger sister. While Faron was my wild child in book one, she became stagnant in her journey, whereas Elara finally had a chance to rise and spread her wings, making her the dominant one in the story.

I expected an outcome like this; I just thought there would be more pizzazz. I'm not fond of the expanded politics, especially since it was surface-level, and the body-snatching throughout Faron's side of the story was starting to confuse me.

This conclusion to So Let Them Burn was absolutely everything that it needed to be! There was no lag in action, my heartstrings were continually tugged, the stakes were high, and the outcome was all I wanted for Faron and Elara.

Cole did such an incredible job of gently reiterating the main plot points in SLTB when needed in Embers that even though I was worried I didn’t have time to reread book one to remind myself of anything forgotten, I never lost track in Embers, and it also didn’t feel wordy or clunky!

Cole truly kept me on my toes wondering what Faron would do next—and that’s honestly just who Faron is, so I felt just like anyone else who interacted with her. Elara grew so much in my opinion, I connected with her better in this book. Reeve is so hard to describe because spoilers, but I adore him, truly. The characterization of Elara and Faron’s friends only makes the events of this book more emotional.

Honestly, my favorite aspect of this book is the allegory and social commentary on history and current events. If you love anti-colonial, anti-imperialist, Jamaican inspired dragon fantasy, absolutely pick up this duology. This Ends in Embers came out on Tuesday and is four stars for sure!

This Ends in Embers
Kamilah Cole

This one is a YA fantasy and the final book in the Jamaican inspired duology.

If you love, dragons, found family, incredible action, political intrigue, sisters that are forced to fight on opposite sides and a unique magic system then definitely check out this series.

Kamala Cole does an incredible job with world building in the character development in the series. The fights and battles were written so well. It was as if I was watching a movie.

~ Dragon started this war. Two sisters will end it.

~ war is never simple – especially when sisters are forced to fight on opposite sides.

Thank you to TBR and Beyond and Little, Brown Books for Young Readers for providing me with an ARC of this book. All opinions are my own.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (5/5 stars)

If So Let Them Burn was an incredible start to the Divine Traitors duology, then This Ends in Ember is the absolutely breathtaking conclusion it deserved. This book not only deepens the vibrant and dynamic world Kamilah Cole created, but it also delivers emotional character arcs, jaw-dropping twists, and a finale that left me completely satisfied.

One of the best aspects of this book is how much the world expands. While So Let Them Burn gave us an amazing introduction to San Irie, this sequel builds upon that foundation by exploring other nations and their roles in the greater political and magical landscape. We also get more nuanced perspectives on San Irie and its people, making the world feel richer and more complex.

But the heart of this book is Faron and Elara, two sisters on opposing sides of a war, each facing impossible choices. Their journeys are raw, messy, and deeply compelling. Both characters feel incredibly real—flawed, emotional, and driven by their own traumas and desires. Faron, in particular, was a standout for me. Her internal struggles and growth made her one of the most complex and captivating protagonists I’ve read in a long time.

The pacing is fantastic, keeping me hooked from start to finish. Every twist and turn felt earned, and the stakes continued to build until the very last page. I loved that this book never shied away from the harsh realities of war, duty, and sacrifice, making the emotional moments hit even harder.

Final Thoughts:
This Ends in Ember was even better than the first book, delivering a conclusion that was powerful, emotional, and completely unforgettable. Kamilah Cole crafted a duology that will stick with me for a long time. If you love rich world-building, high-stakes conflicts, and incredibly well-written characters, this is a must-read.

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This picks up right where the last book left off—and thank goodness because that intense cliffhanger was amazing but I've been thinking about it ever since. This sequel doesn’t hold back on action, yet it never sacrifices character development, particularly when it comes to the bond between the two sisters. This relationship resonated so strongly with me and was the shining light at the heart of this story. Their individual arcs are as fascinating as they are different, and it’s incredibly satisfying to see how their relationship endures even when they’re physically apart.

Cole expands the Jamaican-inspired world beautifully, tackling complex topics that add depth to this YA fantasy without diluting its story. While I appreciated that the story delves into weighty themes despite its young-adult classification, I was more invested in the sisters—and, to a lesser extent, their love interests—than in the plethora of secondary characters whose journeys and emotional beats sometimes felt less impactful.

One notable shift in this installment is that the gods, who were quite a bit more charming in the first book, come across as far less appealing. Which adds to their depth as well and contrasts sharply with the intriguing, dynamic presence of the dragons. The dragons here are much more interesting - even the big bad ones - adding layers to their personalities that I also found utterly fascinating.

That said, while This Ends in Embers improved upon some of the pacing issues of its predecessor—maintaining a brisk, engaging tempo for the most part—the ending did feel a bit rushed. And again, I wish that the sisters were actually together for some of this story.

The way Cole weaves together action, personal struggle, and the blurred lines between heroism and villainy is masterful. This was a great ending to the duology.

Thanks so much to TBR and Beyond Tours and the author for the complimentary copy and Libro.fm for the complimentary audiobook. I highly recommend reading the audio version - I adored the narration! This review is voluntary and all opinions are my own.

This was a fantastic end to a stunning fantasy duology! This book is for you if you 100% understand that reading is political - trust me, this book came out at the EXACT right time, with themes of anti-colonialism and anti-imperialism. I’ve also been wanting to prioritize books with diverse characters/romance and this one hit the spot. the enemies to lovers romance in these books wrecked me in the best way. I cannot recommend this book enough!

What a great conclusion to this duology!! The last 40% is nonstop action! I loved both narrators, Kamali Minter and Keylor Leigh. They were perfect for portraying the sisters ; their voices were distinct enough to identify which sister's POV you were hearing, yet similar enough to believe they are siblings. Overall, Divine Traitors deserves the hype for its LGBTQIA rep, easy-to-follow world building, blurred lines between hero and villain, and, of course, dragons!!

I was so excited to get the chance to read this early! So Let Them Burn was one of my favorite books from last year and I couldn't wait for the sequel. Unfortunately. this fell a tiny bit flat for me. I think my biggest issue was that I was having a hard time keeping track of the two storylines and who was involved in what just because there was so much crossover and changes that it got hard for me to follow at times. I did still love the characters just as much as I did the first time and I liked the way the story all came together in the end, it just didn't quite hit the same way that the first one did for me.

Much more action packed than So Let Them Burn. The world building continued and my imagination was delighted. The storyline was advanged and much was revealed in these pages while tying up loose ends. Can't help but see parallels in these pages with conflicts occuring around the world today. This realization and what was at stake for their future tapped into my emotions. Truly a YA fantasy for YA. I highly recommend this work of words.

It was wonderful to return to this world and after the cliffhanger in So Let Them Burn I was anxious to continue the story! This is a unique and thought provoking read about sisterhood, finding yourself, and forgiveness! It was interesting to learn more about the world, its history, and how the public thought of the sisters, the dragons and the gods! Yes, that's right, dragons! Who doesn’t enjoy a book about dragons! It's sad to see this series end but this was a great conclusion to this duology! Thank you Tbr and Beyond Tours, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers and Kamilah Cole for sharing this book with me!

Following the catastrophic and heartbreaking conclusion of the first book, This Ends in Embers sees sisters Faron and Elara split apart again. This time it is Faron alone in Langley, while Elara remains in San Irie and both are dealing with the consequences of their decisions. In So Let Them Burn Faron released the first dragon, a god-like creature called Lightbringer from his imprisonment in the Empty. After just finding love in Reeve, he was taken from her when the first Empyrean, Gael, took over his body. Bound to Gael and Lightbringer, Faron stopped her sister from sending them back to the divine realm. Free to destroy the world, Lightbringer started with their home town, killing many of their friends and neighbours in the process.

Reeling from the destruction wrought by Lightbringer being free, Elara struggles with her new responsibilities as the Maiden Empyrean. The gods gave her their powers with the request that she use them to send all dragons back to the divine realm. Having previously been bound to the wise and kind dragon, Zephyra, Elara has firsthand experience of what it feels like to have that bound removed. She’s unsure how she’s going to get Langley to relinquish creatures they love and cherish, as well as how to save Faron and Reeve from the clutches of Lightbringer.

So Let Them Burn was one of my favourite books of last year, and I was looking forward to delving back into the world of the Divine Traitors duology with this sequel. I wanted to give this book a higher rating based on my love for the characters and the world, however, I have to be honest; the sequel fell a little flat for me in a few ways.

The first was the pace and flow of this book. I felt that the first book was much more balanced between the quiet moments and the action. In This Ends With Embers, there was a lot more downtime, which while necessary felt like it dragged on a bit at times. Everything was fascinating and well-written, it just felt as though everything was leading up to two big battles, one just over halfway through, and then the inevitable final battle.

The final battle was epic, and I was mesmerised by the events. I wish I could say that I felt satisfied with the conclusion. There was nothing wrong with the conclusion, it just did not work for me. I largely attribute that to my age. I read young adult and middle-grade novels for the story and world-building, so I’ll readily admit when a book is not aimed at my age group. Some of the ways the characters were written, especially about their romantic interest, felt very in line with how I felt as a teen – but as an adult, I’m shaking my head at the naivety.

Cole’s strength is in her world-building and characters, especially her insight into her characters’ feelings and experiences. There were many moments where Cole captured their experiences perfectly, in a way that hit me hard in the feels. Despite my personal feelings, This Ends in Embers is an enjoyable read, and if you enjoy dragon fantasy, you’ll love the world-building.

This Ends in Embers is the sequel and conclusion to the Divine Traitors series by Kamilah Cole.

The dual perspectives of Faron and Elara on different sides of the conflict were particularly interesting. Faron's journey, trapped behind enemy lines, reveals that not everything is black and white. Her character development as she navigates the grey areas against the villain is compelling.
On the other hand, Elara's evolving relationship with Signey adds an interesting dynamic to the story.

However, the pacing at the beginning was too slow, causing my interest to drop slowly as the story goes. Just as the plot began to pick up, it felt rushed, leading to a somewhat abrupt ending.
Compared to the first book, this sequel falls a bit flat despite featuring more action and dragons, which should have captured my interest.

I believe I would have enjoyed this story more had I re-read the 1st book, as I spent much of my time trying to remember who the characters were and their importance to the plot. Therefore, I highly recommend re-reading the 1st book if it's been a while since you last picked it up, to avoid confusion at the beginning.

While there are parts of the book that I loved, a few issues prevented me from fully enjoying the conclusion of this duology.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

It took me a long time to get into this book and it was probably not fault. I’m not great at remembering what happens and for some reason this one took a long time to click in my head.

We get back and forth POVs between Elara and Faron. I think there were moments that I really felt for them both but there were also a lot of moments I rolled my eyes a bit. The fight scenes were very well detailed and I really enjoyed the magical elements. We get to see some new things going on in this book. I also really enjoy all the characters this world brings in. A big thing for me was the end. It just seemed so rushed? Like it happened so fast and then it seemed too perfect. There were the necessary deaths and then it was over. Other than that, I really liked the pacing of the book. This was a very enjoyable duology!

I've been anticipating this book for SO long, and it absolutely lived up to all my hopes, it was such a fiery and well rounded ending to the duology! The bond between Faron and Elara was written so frickin well, and both the romance subplots were so so wholesome.
++ The action scenes / fight choreographies were written so well, I was hooked to the page throughout.

Also, this book explores so many new streams of magic in this world! Absolutely fascinating stuff, I would say an enthusiastic yes to any (and I mean any) follow-up work or fluffy novella set in this world <33

TWs - war, death, gore

-- ty to the author, the published and @coloredpagesbt for a gifted copy!

I'm so glad to be back in this world. The story picks up where So Let Them Burn ends. I had so many questions answered here, and I still want more. I was positive this would be a trilogy (bare minimum) and was kind of shocked that this was a duology, but I think that was the right thing to do. The pacing was great, and I loved the character development. I appreciated that this was multi-pov, but if I'm being honest, I preferred Faron's point of view. I enjoyed (and loved) how Cole addressed colonialism, and she didn't gloss over it. This beautifully written Jamaican-inspired story shows that not everything is black and white.

The day we’ve been waiting for is here! 😱🥹

I’ve been counting down the hours until I can hold this book in my hands. This entire duology—this incredible journey—was created with so much love and humanity and it’s given me my new favorite heroines. Faron and Elara’s story has been a surprisingly healing experience. It’s also based on my parents’ home country of Jamaica, so I had so much pride reading a fantasy story that felt so familiar to me. Grade school me would be hopping around in excitement right now.

Most of all, it’s an incredible story about identity: the characters go through hell and back trying to find themselves while their own country is struggling to rebuild and figure out its own identity.

If you want to find out how Faron and Elara’s story concludes, go pick up “This Ends in Embers”!

I think this duology is such an interesting one because it starts from a place I’ve rarely seen fantasy start from: after the chosen one has fought in the big battles and won independence from the colonizing and oppressive forces, what next? What does it mean to be a chosen one without a purpose, or to heal from a war you should have been too young to fight in?

This Ends in Embers continues that line of thought as the main characters struggle to find their own identities and purposes in a world that has asked so much of them and offers so little in return. I appreciated the growth of both Faron and Elara, as well as the thought put into asking why people hunger for power. If you enjoyed So Let Them Burn, this will tie up a lot of the existing plot points and provide answers in a way that felt true to the first book while building on it. I could see fans of the Raybearer series also enjoying this, as well as fans of Seraphina.

This Ends In Embers was such a heartbreaking and bittersweet sequel. Reading about what happens to some of my favorite characters was hard but that's what happens in a good fantasy
As always, I love the sisterhood between Faron and Elara.
I love that they ride hard for each other and never waver in their love and support of each other. I think this series is perfect for readers who want to get into fantasy but don't know where to start!

Elara had to face the consequences of Faron's action in their hometown at the end of So Let Them Burn, while Faron got bonded with a megalomaniac ancient dragon and wanted to save the boy she cares about. Basically they both tried to fix the mess they made from different side of the battlefield and had no way to communicate with each other.

honestly i still think that this duology is Fourth Wing, but way better in term of concept and character dynamics. even though personally i think this book overall is just okay. nothing bad but nothing special either.

DNF’d the first book but I had already received this ARC through TBR and Beyond Tours before starting the first one. I thought the premise was really interesting and I had high hopes for a dragon book with some of my favorite tropes. However I was just so bored and couldn’t force myself to finish it. It has a lot of character focused writing versus world building so it felt like I was waiting and waiting and nothing happened.