I’m having a hard time figuring out how to rate this one, but let’s try:

I loved loved LOVED book 1 in this series. I remember not being able to out it down even if I tried, it was one of those that, once I started it, absolutely nothing else would hold my attention (and I’m a routine reader of about 4 books at a time so this says a lot). This second book was fun, it had the enchanting “stories within stories” bit I loved so much, and there’s a ton of action and adventure. I loved Loulie, Mazen, and Aisha a ton (just as I did before). There was a lot to enjoy.

For some reason, though, it just… didn’t have me wanting to pick it up? I do contribute some of this to a lack of Qadir, as he and Loulie’s dynamic was my absolute favorite aspect of book 1. But I’m not sure what else wasn’t working for me here. It felt a bit tried, it’s def got that “sequel on a pirate ship” thing that so many have, and I think it just somehow lost a little of the unique spark book 1 had for me.

I still enjoyed this, and I will likely reread the first two again whenever the next book is coming out. Maybe it’s a timing thing, and maybe I’ll have a better time the second time around. I reread book 2 for this sequel and adored it just as much, so we’ll have to see what happens next time. Thank you to Orbit & NetGalley for this eArc!

it’s been a hot minute since i’ve read this so everything i thought about saying in my review has gone out the window.

adventure? check.
genies? check.
a little bit of romance? also check.

the characters are very likeable and play off of each other really well, it’s not hard to want to read more of them. i did enjoy the first book. as i do with most series, but this wasn’t bad, just that it didn’t hold my attention like i thought it would. i will be interested to see how this will all end in the third, and final, installment.

thank you to orbit for an early copy!

Thanks so much to Orbit for the gifted copy!

I loved The Stardust Thief and after a long-anticipated wait, I was so excited to dive into The Ashfire King. I’m a happy that Chelsea included a recap at the beginning because I really needed it and think every fantasy series should have this! I love the deep lore and sense of adventure of The Sandsea Trilogy, and how the stakes got higher and I got more invested in the characters in book 2. I can’t wait to see how everything ends up in book 3!

I'm not sure how I so badly misinterpreted the relationship between Loulie and Qadir but I did, and it really kind of ruined the whole story for me. I don't know if it was on the author or just me with my current monster romance kick? Anyway, I'm pretty bummed because I really did enjoy the first one and I do think those who enjoy the Loulie/Mazen pairing will have a lot to love in this one.

THAT ENDING!!!!!!!!!!!!

I read this one straight through, and I don't regret it. Chelsea Abdullah just has the talent to find that perfect balance between plot progression and character development that keeps you turning pages. I didn't even like one of the main POV characters in book 1, but this book completely changed my mind--that's how nuanced and masterful Abdullah's powerful emotional arcs are!

As a teacher of teenagers, I also want to add that this is one of those rare books/series that appeals equally to both male and female young adults--AND does so continually and comprehensively, not just with one aspect like so many "boy books" or "girl books" do. I can put this book and book one, THE STARDUST THIEF, on my classroom bookshelf and recommend it in good faith to literally any one of my students.


***Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for providing me with a digital copy of this book to review.***

The Ashfire King is the second in the Sandsea Trilogy, a fantasy series inspired by One Thousand and One Nights. It follows a merchant, Loulie, who roams the desert for jinn relics alongside her jinn bodyguard Qadir; the sultan’s third and youngest son, Prince Mazen, who is more storyteller than prince; and one of the eldest prince’s thieves, Aisha, who once hunted jinn and now finds her life saved by a jinn whose soul rests in the collar around her neck.

After the events of the first book, Loulie and Mazen are trapped in the sunken jinn realm with the ifrit Rijah. They’re desperate to return to the surface because the sultan was murdered by his oldest son Omar, who also took Loulie’s jinn bodyguard Qadir prisoner. But the jinn realm is tearing apart as bindings that keep it sunken and safe from humans are destroyed, and one queen will stop at nothing to fight against the ifrit breaking the bindings in order to make the jinn realm return to the surface. Meanwhile, Aisha is determined to save Qadir while fighting the influence of the jinn resting in the collar around her neck, but Omar is ready for her, and has been experimenting with jinn magic.

The thing I love most about this series is the stories it contains. Sometimes it’s just the pure story of the tale being told, and sometimes it’s the stories the characters tell each other. I find all of them magical in their own way, and the writing lends itself to a gorgeous softness, making it feel like the reader is listening to a storyteller. At the same time, sometimes I did feel like the softer storytelling blunted some of the more exciting scenes that were filled with battle, loss, and danger. And yet I found it really pulled me into the budding romance between Loulie and Mazen.

As much as I love seeing Loulie, Mazen, Aisha, and Qadir together, I really loved seeing them torn in different directions for much of The Ashfire King. Loulie and Mazen may be trapped in the same realm together, but they end up having different roles they need to play throughout their time there, and it often called for them to be separated. I adored Mazen in this one. I love that he’s a wide-eyed storyteller where everything has the potential to be wondrous to him. He acquired some special friends in this one, and I really loved one of them. There’s just something so soft and lovely about him and his heart of gold. Loulie finds trusting others to be a really hard thing, so it was really beautiful to see her falling for Mazen while also being fearful of the closeness she finds herself developing with him. But she has an admirable, brave soul, and, while it hurt to see her separated from Qadir, I really loved that she had to rely on herself and those around her.

I found Aisha’s story to be fascinating, what with her fighting the influence of the jinn in the collar. Her life is hanging by a thread, the collar the only thing keeping her from dying, so I found most of the story feeling really nervous for her. I love how it felt like a blessing and a curse, especially when she goes to save Qadir from Omar’s clutches. She’s a fierce warrior, and has undergone so many changes. I sometimes felt sorry for her because her entire world has been flipped on its head, but she has the soul of a warrior and will do whatever she can to set things right. Even if I found her story sometimes a little boring and sometimes a little tedious, I did end up loving it by the end. She doesn’t have it easy. But she has the second prince, Hakim, on her side, and I absolutely loved him. The two of them together were fantastic, and he’s just such a wonderful character. I can definitely see him and Mazen being close; despite not being blood brothers, they have a lot in common.

What I really enjoyed, though, was exploring the jinn realm. It’s both sad and incredible, what with magic flowing everywhere while danger literally lies overhead. This is a dangerous world where the sky darkens frequently, generating a great deal of danger to anyone left out in it. To protect the people, ashfire burns, but it’s in limited supply. I loved discovering where the ashfire came from, and who the titular character is. The whole history was fascinating, and I was sometimes as puzzled as Loulie and Mazen as to who to trust. There’s a great deal of history and world building woven into The Ashfire King, and I had a fantastic time with it.

I really enjoyed how the world and the story worked together. The story could only flow because the world was so rich and detailed and filled with history. What happened in the past is impacting the present, putting the jinn realm in danger. I really enjoyed Loulie and Mazen’s story as they had to navigate the stories of the past in order to figure out what they needed to do in the present. I did feel it took a really long time to get going, and then there were lulls where important things were happening, but I was also just eager for them to get moving. Sometimes, their story felt really slow and almost tedious, so I was glad when it would switch to Aisha. I really liked her sharpness, but her story was also slow to get moving. The end was definitely very exciting, but much of the middle felt a little too slow.

The Ashfire King is a fantastic middle book. It did sag a little from time to time, but I was enamored with the stories, Mazen and Hakim definitely stole my heart. I loved seeing Loulie and Mazen and Aisha on their separate journeys, and I really enjoyed getting to know Hakim. I was a little disappointed it didn’t feel as thrilling as some of the events probably should have been; sometimes the softness of the storytelling wasn’t a perfect fit. But this was a really smooth story to read, and I’m excited to see how their stories conclude.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a review copy. All opinions expressed are my own.

6 / 10 ✪

https://arefugefromlife.wordpress.com/2025/04/13/the-ashfire-king-by-chelsea-abdullah-review/

While the first book was dotted with stories—myths and legends retold to fit in the Sandsea universe—the Ashfire King has only three. And worse, where they appeared to occur at natural breaks and intervals before, now all three lacunae seem forced. Afore, these were used to bridge the transitions between fast and slow paced bits, and here they just ruin the relatively continuous fast-paced story. It’s disappointing, but not the biggest disappointment of the book.

I enjoyed the characters, though I wish Qadir and Aisha had played bigger parts, as both stole the show when they deigned to appear. Aisha particularly is limited—while she pursues her vendetta against Omar—while Qadir has no POVs of his own, but pops up every now and again in Loulie’s. The story itself is decent, with an interesting hook and rival factions, each of them with their own… moderately different goals. But in the end they all boil down to the same things. The jinn—all of the, regardless of faction—want out. The humans—especially Omar, but again, pretty uniformly—want the enslave them for their magic. None of their petty differences matter that much, and it comes through in the text. The pacing shares this, with a constant stop-start motion, broken up on three occasions by told tales.

The romance is pretty much the worst.

From the start, I figured the only reason Qadir had been imprisoned was to set up a love-triangle between he and Mazen and Loulie. And nothing disabused me of this. It’s obvious beyond obvious, and I’m not here for it, particularly as it seems so forced. But then, so much of the Ashfire King feels this way.

And I get it—writing is hard. Perfecting a book takes ages, and it’s so hard to bottle lightning, let alone twice. It has been three years since the Stardust Thief came out, and all that time the author has been dreaming of Book #2; it’s just a shame when fantasy and reality refuse to overlap.

TL;DR

So much of this has felt like me complaining about it, but the book’s not that bad. A decent story, a good cast of characters, a good setting, and a thoroughly immersive world. Weighed down, yes, but uneven pacing, a forced romance, and infrequent use of the storytelling that played such a key part of the first installment. But at the end of the day, it’s the Ashfire King’s comparison to the first book that matters most. For while the Stardust Thief was truly bottled lightning, the Ashfire King just isn’t. And is disappointing in its shadow.

I'm so sad that I just did not love this. I really enjoyed the Stardust Thief when it came out a few years ago. The pacing was a bit off at times, but it was a debut, and overall it was just a really enjoyable story, so i was excited for this sequel. However the slight issues I had with that book really morphed into larger issues here, and led me to just totally disconnect from the story.

First for me is the pacing. The first book was essentially an adventure story, and as such, I was ok with just kind of wandering the desert with our heroes as they figure tings out. However, this story, which follows a lot of important action and reveals at the end of the first book, essentially kind of follows the same formula. Despite a LOT happening, nothing really feels urgent until close to the end of the book.

Moreover, characters who I was really excited to get to know that got less page time in Book 1 really didn't get more here (Quadir, Hakim). Aisha's story was by far the most exciting, but even then, it really took too long (well over 50% of the book) to get going and for anything meaningful to really happen. This is a 500+ page book, so I want to feel like the action is leading somewhere important, and I just didn't.

Finally, with the exception of Aisha, I struggled a bit with the characters and the character writing. This is adult fantasy, but for me increasingly it read like young adult, and two of the central perspective characters read like teenagers. I know they are youngER adults, but they didn't read that way to me. Both of them could have been 16 and honestly the story would have fit better. We are told so much about Loulie (she's legendary, she's adventurous etc) that doesn't actually fit with what we are SHOWN about her.

Overall, I was prepared to give this one a fair shake because I really enjoyed the author's debut, and I'm always looking for more fun adult fantasy adventure stories, but it just didn't work for me sadly!

Thanks to Netgalley and Orbit for a review copy in exchange for an honest review!

I was wildly excited to be given the opportunity to read an ARC of this book. I really enjoyed The Stardust Thief and had been patiently waiting for The Ashfire King to be released. I was once again swept into the story and enjoyed the adventures the characters all found themselves on. Watching Loulie, Mazen, and Aisha grow and develop throughout the book was enjoyable and the worldbuilding continues to impress. My only real complaint is that my favorite character, Qadir, is barely in it. Other than that, this continues to be one of my favorite series. I can't wait for the next book to come out.

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC.

I really enjoyed the first book in this trilogy and was glad to receive an ARC of the second installment in the series. The Ashfire King picks up where the first book ended and delivers a lot of action again as Loulie and Mazen travel beneath the sandsea to the land of the jinn. Meanwhile the other main characters are involved with escapades of their own until they are all reunited at the end of the book with everyone intact and planning the next adventure to eventually defeat the evil Omar.
So this book was action packed but just way too long! It started to seem like the action was repetitive with constant near misses and rescues. I would have enjoyed it much more if it was shorter and I didn’t feel like I was slogging through one repetitive escapade after another. I also really found the dialogue lacking in any creativity and it induced a lot of eye rolling. Overall, the book was a disappointment to me but I’m rating up to 3 stars for the action that many readers will enjoy. I don’t think I will be completing the trilogy.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the Advanced Reader Copy in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are my own.

I've been eagerly anticipating this book for so long, it's disappointing that I find I don't care about what's going on in the book. The beginning was rocky: lots of "look at this interesting new world!" The book is already a fantasy world to me, why would I care if the characters are visiting a secondary fantasy world?

The Ashfire King by Chelsea Abdullah is a mesmerizing continuation of the Sandsea Trilogy that masterfully blends high-stakes adventure with rich, character-driven storytelling. Set in the collapsing realm of the jinn, the narrative follows merchant Loulie al-Nazari and banished prince Mazen bin Malik as they navigate political upheaval and ancient magic.

Abdullah's world-building is immersive, drawing inspiration from Middle Eastern folklore to create a setting that's both enchanting and some of my favorite storytelling.

The characters are deeply developed, with personal growth and complex relationships that add emotional depth to the tale. This sequel not only expands the universe introduced in The Stardust Thief but also sets the stage for an epic conclusion. A must-read for fans of intricate fantasy and folklore-inspired narratives. Cannot wait for book three!

Thank you, NetGalley, and the publisher for the ARC. This is my honest review.

Thanks to netgalley and orbit for the eARC. The Ashfire King is fast paced and does not suffer from middle book doldrums. It has a useful story recap (for those of us who read the first when it came out and don't remember the details) and follows our group in the dyads of Loulie/Mazen in the sandsea and Aisha/Qadir on the surface. The jinn world is impressively developed with a large cast of characters and I especially enjoyed the marid. I personally never love the two (or more) separate groups storytelling device, so I did not love this book as much as the first installment but it was still an entertaining read.

I did not finish this book. I made it to 41%.

Our beloved characters are back! Last time we left them they weren't in the best place and we are seeing how they deal with losing one of their own while trying to navigate this crazy world.

While it was the same characters, I found what they were going through to be dull. And while I found the world fascinating before, I did not this time. Maybe it's because our new scenery wasn't described as well? It was hard for me to picture exactly where they were and how things worked. Maybe it needed more world building? Something was off because I didn't feel a strong connection to the characters and the world. Even the characters felt a little different. Their depth wasn't there for me like it was last time.

I am very sad I didn't like this book enough to finish it because I completely ate up The Stardust Thief. I will not share my review socially since I did not finish the book and I don't like to publicly give feedback or reviews on books I do not complete.

4.5 stars! Thank you to NetGalley and Orbit Books for this advanced copy! You can pick up The Ashfire King now.

The way I've been waiting YEARS for this book, and the wait was 100% worth it. Chelsea Abdullah immediately catapulted us back into this gorgeous world full of djinn, merchants, runaway princes, and ruthless mercenaries. The book starts out with Loulie and Mazen falling into the hidden djinn world below the surface, on the run from the tyrannical sultan Omar and his 40 Thieves. Aisha chooses to stay behind and try to take Omar down from the inside, but her plans quickly change when she realizes Qadir, the djinn king, is alive and needing rescue.

The Ashfire King takes its time introducing us to this new world and the many characters who inhabit it. We meet new kinds of creatures, like the marid, new foes, like Nabila and the djinn queen, and new friends like Rijah and Duha. While some points in the story were a bit slow, overall, I enjoyed the journey our protagonists took to free the djinn cities from their bindings and raise them to the surface.

I think Mazen had some of the best character growth in this book, stepping into his role of a storyteller more confidently and capably. His relationship with the firebird was the absolute sweetest thing, and I'm curious to see where his romance with Loulie goes in the future (she needs to work on letting her walls down though). I wish we'd seen a bit more of Qadir, but I'm not mad that we got to see so much of Aisha (the GOAT) in this book.

Don't sleep on this series!

Bless you Chelsea Abdullah for starting The Ashfire King with a recap of The Stardust Thief. Every author should do this for sequels. One of my favorite aspects of this book (as with The Stardust Thief) is the incorporation of little story-telling asides throughout the book. I love when books have this feature. It's such a fun way to get background information and break up the storyline. Plus, they all start with "Neither here nor there, but not so long ago...", which is such a satisfying tagline to me. The recap at the beginning starts with this, to make it more cohesive with the rest of the book and seem like one of the tales being told by our beloved storyteller.

Am I biased for loving a story with a Middle Eastern setting? Absolutely, but I have no apologies. The descriptions and surrounding world give this book such a cozy and rich feeling for me personally (disclaimer: this is absolutely not a cozy fantasy. The vibes just feel comforting if that makes sense). Book #2 picked up right where #1 left off. It had just as much action and high stakes, the same lovable (and hate-able) characters, and the story moves quickly because so much happens.

I had a great time with this book and definitely recommend it.

4/5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an arc in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this one! Thank you too Orbit and Netgalley for gifting me an E-arc.
From top to bottom, I really enjoyed how Chelsea Abdullah wove this story; I liked the party separation, the increased story telling from various parts of the world (and beneath the sandsea), and loved the character progression - especially for Aisha!!
I will say, there is never enough Qadir in these pages. I squealed when my lizard man came back on page.
I had a tough time getting through this one in the middle - whether that is on my mood or the boook's fault, I'm really not sure. But compared to the way the first one didn't let me go (I read it all in one sitting) this one was a touch disappointing in that way. BUT! Still really enjoyed, and highly recommend these books, especially for those who love the S. A. Chakraborty Daevabad trilogy books.

(3.5)I really like the richness of this story and great characters. I think this kinda suffered from book two syndrome. It felt quite long but I neeeed to know how it ends.

I still love the characters and the different growth and experiences they are going through. My favorite parts are still the stories the story tellers weave throughout.

Overall pretty good just dragged in the middle.

Thanks to netgalley and orbit books for an eARC.

A merchant and a prince trapped in the crumbling realm of jinn must figure out how to save one world to return to their own.

I have been eagerly awaiting this book since I finished book 1, and it did not disappoint. I was glad to see there was a recap at the beginning of this book to outline the events of The Stardust Thief. It has been so long since I read that one it was a nice way to get caught up quickly.

I did miss Qadir through most of this book, he was one of my favorite characters in the first one. I LOVED seeing Aisha's character arc in this installment. I was not a huge fan of hers in book one but Chelsea has sold me on her now.

This one ends in another major cliffhanger like books one and I cannot wait to see what happens next.

Thank you to Netgally and Orbit for the review copy.

I enjoyed the first book in this series, but I just could not get into book two. It was a DNF for me. Perhaps it was the time lapse between stories. Thanks Netgalley and publishers for the free e-arc.