I really enjoyed So Let Them Burn which is the first book in this duology and so I couldn’t wait to find out how it all ends in This Ends in Embers. The first book ends with Faron being forced to betray her country and join forces with the enemy, Iya, as she helped him and his dragon Lightbringer escape from centuries of imprisonment. Most of the worldbuilding and back story was provided in the first book and the sequel follows on nicely, picking up right where the reader left off.
I love how the sisters effectively swapped places in both books. In the first book, Elara bonded to an enemy dragon and had to train in enemy territory for months and now Faron has to survive and work with the enemies while Iya plans to burn her home and every other country to the ground to rule over everyone. Again, the sisters are separated from each other for the majority of this book, this time without any means of contact at all which adds even more tension to the story as they fight on opposite sides. Elara has no idea what Faron is planning and why she left willingly, even though she trusts her completely and believes that she thinks she is doing the right thing.
The sequel still has alternating chapters from both the sisters’ POV which allows the reader to see what is happening with both of them during the war preparations. In the first book Elara was my favourite sister and this stayed the same in this book as she navigates her new found power from becoming the Maiden Empyrean. Even though Faron had a lot more to deal with, I wasn’t always convinced that she was doing the right thing and I was constantly worried about her situation! She is shown in a much darker light as she tries to control her anger and her feelings of having to grow up too soon in a world full of war. However, Faron’s character development throughout was impressive and her growth while handling a very complicated situation was very well done.
I also loved Aveline, San Irie’s Queen, even more in this sequel. There were moments that she had with the sisters that showed her true self which she isn't allowed to be due to her status and her constant strength and power during the toughest times was admirable. I even loved the rest of the secondary characters: Reeve, Signey, Jesper and Torrey and thought each one added to the plot in important ways.
A lot of this novel is about strategising war plans from both sides as the two sisters figure out what to do and it all comes to a climax at the end with the final battle. Of course, I was expecting there to be some deaths (no spoilers) and I was so worried about who it could be because I loved them all and just wanted them all to survive and be happy! The fight scenes were action packed and I loved the use of different kind of powers to showcase various abilities in this world. Overall, This Ends in Embers is a brilliant conclusion to the duology full of action, character development and the lengths that people will go to save their loved ones.

I loved this book so much and I don’t think I can adequately write how much I loved it and what aspects of it I loved in particular, but I will try.

The first book was a great predecessor for this wonderful conclusion to this amazing duology. However, this one is so much darker and sadder and more tragic than the first in all the best ways.

This was HEAVY. Heavy as hell. Check trigger warnings and such because there is lots of death. Blood. Gore. It’s YA, but still graphic in the sense that there is a war in the midst between these countries and people.

I really loved seeing more of the characters that we got introduced to in the first novel. Everyone was so fleshed out and felt like a real person, which made the tragic things that happened in this THAT much more impactful.

The dual povs from each sister in this were perfect. I loved that each of the chapters always ended in a way that left you wanting more and yet having to switch to the other sisters POV in tense times. It just made you want to go through the book so fast. It was so well done by the author.

These novels are, above all else, fantasy novels and I loved that we got exactly that. Fire powers. Gods. Dragons. All of it was just so fun to read about. I especially loved reading about Faron and her fire powers and how much she grew into her power, both by herself and from training with Gael.

Faron is one of my favorite FMCs ever. She is quite literally the burned out anxious little sister who holds the world on her shoulders and she just resonates with me so much. I want to give her a huge hug and tell her that it was never her fault. I believe in women’s wrongs and Farons are at the top of that list.

Her relationships with everyone in this novel, whether horrible or good, were so entertaining to read about. I feel bad for enjoying scenes between her and Gael so much when I have so much love in my heart for Reeve, but I just loved their dynamic.

They were the same in all the wrong and sometimes right ways and I loved that we SAW THAT EXPLORED!!!!! I sadly am a Gael apologist and see nothing but someone I desperately want to save, so I truly understand Faron in that way.

Reeve Warwick, you will always be loved by me if nobody else. He was a hilarious character and even though we didn’t see AS MUCH as him as a lot of people probably wanted, we got enough to be satisfied in my opinion.

I loved the romance in this, even if it was not the main plot. Whether it was complicated or messy, it all just felt so raw and good in a way that was very real to read about.

And with that, we can segue into Elara, who I also love. Also think she is so strong and respect her so much. I’m so sad about what she had to witness. What they ALL had to witness and go through as literal CHILDREN. It’s just so heartbreaking.

Elara is just one of those characters who is seriously unhatable. If that’s not a word, Elara Vincent made it a word because really she’s so messy and trying so hard, you just find yourself rooting for her and cheering her on.

I adored her and Signey!!!! Huge win for sapphics!!!!! They were so cute and awkward and just FUN to read about. The love and care they had for each other was just so good!! So well written.

Vincent parents are my faves. Any other parent? Yuck. Besides the Soto parent, but the other ones? Yuck. Happy with how things turned out for them!

This is just such a wonderful book with diversity and representation that is so desperately needed in YA fantasy. It’s UNIQUE above all else and I love that. The characters are their own!!!!! Just so sad that this duology is over and I will never get to read this for the first time again.

10/10. Will stay with me for ages. So good I cry. (I did in fact cry. Multiple times.)

I think this book starts off a bit on the slower side, especially after the last book's events. There is a lot of time spent with the individual sides plotting and planning what they will do next, although I did love how loyal Elara was in her feelings towards her sister and why Falon did what she did.

I would say at about the halfway point or so things really began to pick up for me. There is more action and things start to come together. We get more battles and more emotional moments that had me feeling reinvested in the story.

I do think that in comparison to the first book this one fell a bit flat, but I did enjoy the duology as a whole, especially the ending, and look forward to seeing what Kamilah Cole comes out with next.

The story of two sisters who were thrown into the war once again in too young age.
The story that will hold me at chokehold for a long time due to its nature. I loved the dynamics between characters and deep self actualization of those characters in certain moments. I loved how not everything that is evil stays evil and not all choices can be black and white.
And I love Jamaican vibe with food and culture. As second part in this duology it was a great continuation and I wish all duologies were written this way.

When I read book one, So Let Them Burn, I felt like there was something missing from the story and like there was a bit of disconnect between myself and the characters. If I had to describe it in one word, I would say the characters felt rigid. What made this book stand out to me was that the characters, especially our two main sisters, were forced out of that rigidness. They very much got to walk in each other’s shoes and it help me see a new side of them, which I appreciated.

I also found the pacing to be much better than book one. The two points of view used throughout the story connected more and I think this drew me even deeper into the story. What I admired most is the depiction of, or I guess the attempt to define good and evil. Faron is my favorite character in this series and I really enjoyed seeing her learn more about herself. The concept of forcing one of your FMCs to realize that even if she is, or was, a hero that doesn’t make her a good person is crazy work.

One thing I do think could be improved is the depiction of the various magics systems. The explanations are not in-depth, so battle scenes when magic is being used it can be a bit difficult to imagine.

One of my favorite things about this book, and its predecessor, is that it never forgets that its main characters are kids and teens. Kids forced to grow up in a war. Kids who had to take lives, and carry the expectations and hopes of a nation on their shoulders. Kids who barely remember how to be kids anymore. Faron and Elara hold such a dear place in my heart for everything that they go through.

The sisters grew so much in this book. They go through so much, but what stays true throughout this duology is their intense love for each other. While Elara remains my favorite of the two, I really enjoyed seeing Faron grapple so much with her place in the world and how people see her, and how that complicated her relationship with Iya.

I loved getting to see more of the world in this book, and always enjoy some good politics. The way this book deals with heavy themes like anti-colonialism, war, and trauma all from children’s perspectives is impressive and heartbreaking at the same time. I’ve throughly enjoyed the Divine Traitors duology and definitely recommend it for readers looking for their next dragon fix!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Little, Brown Books for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

This was definitely a good conclusion to this story that provided more insight into what was left off from book 1. After finishing this story I have a better understanding to why Faron is the way she is and I don’t even blame her for the actions she took to find a solution to the problem with the help of Elara and friends.

A satisfying and INTENSE finish to an excellent duology! There were multiple points where I was certain no one was making it to the end of this book alive. This did an excellent job of reckoning with the consequences of the events in the first book, and I particularly loved the romances.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc! Opinions are my own.

I had expected to read such an intricate plot in the second book following a cliffhanger that connotes a high-risk act of surrender that left me feeling devastated, which Kamilah precisely delivers in this book. She does not let the sisters and their companions have an easy win; she slowly burns them from the inside first to eat their expectancies alive, to the point where readers might think that the sisters will lose the war immediately, before turning that fire into an element that gives them hope and power to break through the forces.

This kind of plot gives more time and space to explore both sides of the warring armies, particularly the strategies that they implemented to continue their battles and secure victories. I like how each side has a vastly different approach to constructing their methods; Iya and his allies are filled with veteran war strategists who look so confident with their plans. They are equally powerful in brute and intelligence, constantly one step ahead of Faron and her friends from the other side. On the other hand, while Faron, Elara, and their groups are not short in force, they know they are still outnumbered against Iya. So, I enjoy how Kamilah diverts their tactics to diplomacy and research, finding more efficient ways to stop the enemy without spilling too much blood or losing more than what they have.

A narrative like this will not deliver its intended purpose without a compelling antagonist, which is the position the character Iya serves throughout the book. Much like Thanos from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Kamilah effectively writes his character as a cunning, brilliant villain whose actions are unjustifiable but reasons that we can't even contradict because they hold a semblance of truth—awfully complex, whether you like or hate the character. The most highlighted aspect of his constant appearances is the slow mental torture he provides for both Faron and the readers as he keeps playing with us.

🐉This Ends in Embers🐉

So Let This Burn was such a stunning debut, I was so excited to find out how the duology would conclude. I made sure I re-read the first book before diving in because of course I couldn’t remember enough to properly enjoy it and it was a great idea because I enjoyed it just as much the second time. To avoid any spoilers for either book I am going to keep this fairly brief.

I really enjoyed This Ends in Embers. I loved how the world was expanded in it. Similarly to book one, I really enjoyed the characters, particularly the main characters and their sister dynamic. I did find the plot both dragged a bit but also the ending felt abrupt. I also felt at times that things could have been a tad clearer. But, there were enough pockets of action and character moments to keep me invested overall. I am happy to report I found Faron significantly less frustrating in this one, gold stars for character growth!

Overall, I enjoyed this one! While not as much as the first, it was still a solid ending to the duology. It is definitely a duology I would recommend picking up. Especially if you enjoy dragon-y YA stories!

A huge thank you to @littlebrownyoungreaders & @netgalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review! This Ends in Embers is out on February 4th!

⭐3.5/5 stars⭐

Big thank you NetGalley and to the publisher for the chance to review this book pre-release. This Ends in Embers was a beautiful wrap up to the duology. It started out right where the last one left off (which I LOVE), and did such a great job maintaining the pace. A more formal review will be available on my IG/TikTok and Goodreads for release.

This Ends in Embers is a fantastic conclusion to Kamilah Cole's Divine Traitors duology. The book picks up right where So Let Them Burn left off, and I was so grateful for that because what a cliffhanger! Cole adds many layers of plot in this second book while also successfully tying up all of the loose ends from the first. I would recommend this duology to young readers and adults who enjoy complex world building, political intrigue, and well developed characters. Additionally, Cole's depiction of colonialism and rebellion in this story is arguably the strongest I've seen in this genre.

Thank you to NetGalley for my advanced copy.

“But she was so tired of living in a world that forced her to whittle down her edges until she was smooth and palatable, until she was what everyone needed her to be instead of who she was.”

A fantastic conclusion to this duology!

What I liked:

I loved having both Faron & Elara’s POV, and reading what was happening on both sides and what each sister was going through.

I think that Cole wrapped up this story perfectly.

What didn’t work for me:

I didn’t love this one quite as much as book 1, but there was nothing major that didn’t work for me.

A worthy successor and finale to what was a fantastic debut! This was an entertaining and sweeping fantasy filled with dragon battles, sisterly love, political schemes. It picks up almost right after the first book ends and had great Game of Thrones vibes, but with Jamaican inspiration (I need to eat all the food in this book). While the ending was good and done well, I do wish it had been a little less abrupt.

A satisfying conclusion to this biology, Kamilah Cole does fantasy YA very well. I definitely enjoyed the first book more, and some of the pacing felt a bit off, but overall a great read. She does a fantastic job and blending island culture, fantasy, and social commentary into a magical a digestible story. We have great representation and I appreciate her ability to show characters acknowledging their age, fears, and traumas, they feel very fleshed out. Looking forward to more from this author in the future.

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher, and author for an advance copy of this book.

This Ends in Embers is the second book in The Divine Traitors duology. So Let Them Burn was one of my favorite reads from last year and I was so excited to jump into the second book to see how the story concludes.

One of my favorite parts about the book was the love between sisters and the faith they had in one another. We knew going in that the sisters would be separated but their love was still prominent throughout the novel. I also appreciate the reoccurring theme that age does not matter when making change and a difference in your world. I also actually really enjoyed the romance subplots and am hoping the author writes a romantasy in the future because the banter is really fun to read.

The book has some pacing issues for me and some plot points that didn't get completely resolved. I did enjoy the pacing of the last 50% though and wished that was the pacing throughout the whole novel. The beginning feels repetitive in the sense that the main characters kept talking about the issues/conflict rather than the plot moving forward. Then when we get to 50% and the real story begins, in my opinion anyway, it feels rushed. I also wanted to see more from Faron. I wish her motivations were more complex and I really wanted to see her take initiative and use the power and cleverness we know she has.

I also would have loved to see the author lean more into having more action scenes, because when they're there, they are so fun and intense. I think my expectation was that there would be so many more, especially with this title.

I will say that it is still a book I wish I had as a teenager and it's still a duology I would recommend. I am excited to read more of Cole's work in the future.

This Ends in Embers is a wonderful sequel/conclusion to the Divine Traitors duology. Picking up shortly after So Let Them Burn ends, we continue to follow Elara and Faron as they attempt to set right the many wrongs they accidentally caused. As with So Let Them Burn, Cole continues to explore the impact of colonialism and imperialism, reveals how building bridges can break down assumptions about peoples and cultures, and highlights the importance of family (both found and actual). While many of these themes are explored in other books, Cole does a great job mixing in the magical elements to really delve deeper and pulls in military strategy in interesting ways. Plus, dragons! If you liked So Let Them Burn, you’ll find This Ends in Embers to be a satisfying conclusion to the story.

This Ends in Embers is the second book in the Divine Traitors series and picks up after the shocking conclusion of So Let Them Burn. Cole continues to flex her world building strengths in This Ends in Embers. It was one of my favorite aspects of the first book, so I was excited to see it continue in this one. I loved getting to know more about the dragons and gods. With Faron and Elara separated, I thought Cole did really well to tie their storylines together into a cohesive story. As with most multi POV stories, I found myself drawn to Faron’s story over Elara’s. I did still appreciate Elara’s character growth, though. One element I struggled with was that Cole seemed to rely more on telling than showing at times. For the audiobook, I appreciate the choice to use two narrators, Kamala Minter and Keylor Leigh, to voice the separate POVs. It helped keep Faron and Elara’s stories separate in my mind. I also felt that both narrators brought appropriate levels of energy and emotion to the role to keep me invested. Overall, I found this to be a satisfying conclusion to the Divine Traitors duology.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley and am voluntarily posting a review. All opinions are my own.
This Ends in Embers is the second book and conclusion of Kamilah Cole’s Divine Traitors duology, and I feel she more or less sticks the landing in bringing this story to a close. It picks up right where the first left off, further expanding on the world in compelling ways.
Once again, the story follows sisters Faron and Elara, and the two are once again on separate journeys, yet I appreciate how their connection as sisters amid all they’ve been through continues to be reinforced. And individually, both have grown so much as a result of all their experiences, especially Faron as she attempted to correct her mistakes, although Elara’s journey trying to live up to expectations as the new Empyrean was also exciting..
Plot-wise, the story was fairly engaging throughout, and it’s fairly evenly paced throughout, and it came to a fairly satisfying conclusion.
This was a satisfying conclusion for a first duology, and I’m excited for what Kamilah Cole writes next. I recommend this to readers interested in a Jamaican-inspired YA fantasy with dragons.

Thank you NetGalley for this highly anticipated ARC!

What an excellent sequel! It was dark and bloody and emotional and just SO satisfying!