The first book, The Jasad Heir, was a more than religious experience, but this one? This one was a damn astral journey. I'm so consumed by The Jasad Crown that in less than a month I had to reread it because I missed and needed these characters so much. Sara simply went all out with this sequel. No matter how hard I try, I can't imagine it being more perfect. I feel like I'll never be the same after this.

I've been trying to write this review for weeks and I still don't know where to start, The Scorched Throne is one of my favorite duologies/stories of all time, also making Arin and Sylvia one of my favorite characters and couples, the intensity with which I lived this whole reading experience was only more incredible thanks to them. These books are more than a duology for me, they are literally an entire universe that has settled in my heart.

Essiya, my beautiful angel, stole my heart from the first pages of The Jasad Heir, but The Jasad Crown made me love her even more and ended up shattering all my schemes even further. As shown from the first book, her life has been a succession of losses, betrayals, and escapes. She has been shaped by fear, loneliness, and uprooting, which only intensifies in this second installment. But there is something in her spirit that cannot be broken, something that makes her incredibly powerful, even when she herself doubts her ability to be what her people need.

At first, Essiya wants to run away from everything, from her destiny, from her power, from Jasad. The fear of madness, of the magic that runs through her veins, makes her fear the future that awaits her. Regarding her, the concept of power in this story is not glorified; it is a burden, a curse she must learn to live with. Essiya struggles with this constantly, but what broke my heart and left me speechless is how, step by step, she begins to accept it, to fight for her people, for her land, and surrenders completely to it, even if the consequences could be her own death. Her character arc is simply breathtaking, heartbreaking, and emotional, and she ends up showing a loyalty and dedication to all those under her care that makes her even more real and human.

On the other hand, Arin of Nizahl, also known as The Silver Serpent. HOOOTTTTT I KNOW!!!! This man begins as an impenetrable enigma; he's cold, distant, tormented by his own doubts, and yet, throughout the duology, he reveals himself to be a soul deeply capable of love. Throughout this book, Arin sheds all the layers of pain, control, and, in a way, guilt, which makes all his growth and development as a character more visible. Sara's decision to include more POVs from his perspective simply gave me years of life, because not only was I eagerly awaiting them every moment, but they were also a huge help in understanding Arin more deeply.

The relationship between Arin and Essiya isn't easy, but it's all it's supposed to be. When they were apart, I just wanted to die because I thought, this will bring trouble, but the author surprised me by including magical appearances by Essiya wherever Arin was, and damn, they gave me the best lovers' arguments, and the way that despite all of Arin's doubts, he continued to listen to her and trust her, and she in him, made my stomach fill with butterflies.
In all their moments together... Oh, God! I think I fainted a few times. Every encounter between them is imbued with a burning desire that transpires from the pages. The way they seek each other out, protect each other, DESTROY each other… every action, every word, every smile, every touch of the hand has immense meaning. Even from a distance, it's as if their souls recognize each other in the chaos. It's a relationship that is both a refuge and a constant war.

And NEVER, BUT NEVER, FORGET the following words.

"I will never sit on the Jasad throne," Arin said.
"The Jasad crown will belong to my wife, and my wife alone."

MY WIFE…
MY-WI-FE…
MYYYYYY WWIIIFFEEEE… AAAAHHHHHH!!!!!!
HE CALLED HER MY WIFE…
HERE I SUFFERED THREE HEART ATTACKS, HERE I FELL TO THE GROUND HARDER THAN EVER, HERE MY ENTIRE EXISTENCE WAS REMADE, HERE I LOST MY MIND…
HERE I KNEW I WOULD SERIOUSLY NEED TO GO TO THERAPY OR RETHINK WHETHER TO GET A KITMER TATTOO ON MY FOREHEAD OR THESE WORDS…

Arin of Nizahl, the man that you are!!!!

There are so many scenes and phrases like this one that will remain etched in my heart forever.
The way that even in their worst moments, they are each other's refuge. Arin knows how to read her better than anyone, and Essiya, though she tries to hide it, is unable to stop herself from seeking him out. They are hopelessly in love.

Moving on to another aspect, Essiya's power is her destiny, but her constant struggle is against it. It's the battle to not become the person the world thinks she should be. Essiya fears losing herself in her own magic, being consumed by madness, but, along the journey, she learns to master it without losing her humanity. This is the tragedy of an inherited power, a destiny that drags her toward an uncertain future, as she struggles to find a path where she can be herself, with all her imperfections.
One of my favorite things about this story is how Sara explores the weight of destiny. Essiya never asked to be who she is, never asked to be the savior of Jasad. But what leaves me speechless is how she, with all her pain and fear, chooses to face it all. Power doesn't define her; she redefines power.

Now, another of my favorite points in this installment, the POVs of Sefa and Marek and the supporting characters. It was so incredible to be able to see part of the story through both of their eyes and how they made such great contributions to it. I always say I love when supporting characters have a purpose beyond just taking up space, and Sefa and Marek were the perfect example. They both became exceptionally involved in the story, giving not only a funny but also a tragic touch. They show that love isn't just something that happens between couples, but extends to all those with whom we share our lives.
Sefa's adventure in Lukub with the Sultana was extraordinary and showed me once again what a big and generous heart she has. Marek also gave us not only funny but touching moments alongside Jeru, another character I loved hopelessly in each of his appearances. The loving and loyal relationship that Sefa and Marek have with Essiya melted my heart countless times. Sara wrote one of the most beautiful yet heartbreaking friendships I've ever read. The losses in this book were profound, and the pain was absolutely overwhelming. Marek's death devastated me, and there was no escaping the weight of sadness this book dragged me under, but I understood that every sacrifice, every loss, had a purpose.
On the other hand, I don't want to forget the Urabi, because they also had their moments. I have to admit, at first, I felt a bit indifferent toward them because of how they treated Essiya, but as the story progressed, I grew very fond of Namsa, Maia, and Lateef. They were very sweet and kind once they began to truly see Essiya. With Efra, let's just say my opinions on him are somewhat complicated, but let's leave it at that, lol.

I don't want to go into depth about certain aspects of the book because I don't want this to be a spoiler-filled review, but the ending destroyed me in the worst way. The epilogue changed me as a person. Because what do you mean by Arin not losing hope for a single day for ten years? No no no I don't want to cry again, that was too much for my already battered heart, and the way he welcomed her back, "WELCOME HOME, SURAIRA" NOOOOOOOOO!!! 😭 and that was it! Thank you Sara for making me the happiest and unhappiest person at the same time.

Last but not least, the way Sara built this world was absolutely incredible; she expanded it with new elements that significantly enriched the story. I appreciate that she told us more about the Awaleen, the magical madness, and what led the kingdoms to lose their magic. The plot twists were otherworldly and deeply superior; I don't think I'll ever surpass the revelation about Arin's mother, iykyk. I still say the Egyptian inspired world is fantastic (more books with this kind of setting, please), with all its cultural references that make delving into this story an unparalleled experience!

Now all I can think about is that this is all over, and it makes me deeply sad. As I said at the beginning of this review, these books are more than a duology; they're an entire universe that has settled in my heart..

I can't wait for Sara's future books. She's completely won me over, and she's definitely a auto-buy author for me now. I'm a fan for life.

Thank you Netgalley, Orbit and Sara Hashem for this digital ARC!! I had the best and wildest experience reading this book.

The sequel I was dying to get my hands on! The Jasad Crown is the second book in the Scorched Throne Duology and it was a satisfying conclusion to Sylvia (and Arin’s) story. This story picks up immediately after the cliffhanger ending of book one, and puts you right back into the story with an additional two POVs.

The political maneuvering in The Jasad Crown is intricate compared to book one; getting into laws of succession and the various factions of Urabi, and it makes for an engaging kind of mystery that slowly unfolds what happened at the Blood Summit and in the kingdoms since the fall of Jasad. The detail of the world building were so well thought out, it was a developed world and story, which I’m happy to say about a book where I was more interested in the romance aspect. The political storyline could have been enough to stand on its own, but y’all know I was here for the SLOWBURN.

I love Arin and Sylvia, both individually and together, I love their characters and the way that they are just drawn towards each other and the longing and tension is palpable. I kept screaming “KISS ALREADY”! We get more background on Marek and Sefa and how their relationship was established and honestly as far as side characters go I adore them. The characters are nuanced and flawed and selfish in such a relatable human way, making them one of the strongest aspects of this duology for me.

I look forward to reading anything else written by Hashem! She knows how to write the type of romance and fantasy I enjoy reading.

The Jasad Crown is a master class in sequels. Right from the jump, Hashem sets the pacing and tension perfectly. I find that it can change the tone of the book when we start introducing new perspectives but the use of third person to show the other characters’ sides is done with fidelity and makes it so that we want to stay on each character, constantly torn and constantly hooked. This book is incredible and I’ve already preordered a physical copy.

This was such an enjoyable sequel! I loved the first book, and I'm glad that I was able to go straight into this one, I had to know what was going to happen next! That we had more perspectives added, and Arin had more, we got to see more of this world, and I loved that!

We got to know these characters and this world in the first book, and in this one, things are shaken up. Like Arin was always so confident in his own mind, his sense of self, and that really gets shaken up in this book. Some big reveals came to light, and I loved to see how things changed!

After the events of the last book, they're all separated, and don't know where everyone else is. I loved watching them figure out what they were going to do, and how Arin in particular responded to the fact that she was the Jasad heir, and now technically is the ruler, even if she hasn't taken the crown or throne, it's hers by birth.

The threat of her magic grows in this book, and becomes a bit of a threat, as the synopsis mentions, playing with her mind. When we learn what was going on, yeah, that was pretty shocking. I really enjoyed how things worked out, even though they hurt, it was just so good!

This was an amazing read, and I can't wait to read more by Sara Hashem!

THAT ENDING ARE YOU KIDDING ME 🫠🫠🫠🫠🫠

TY NetGalley for the ARC, AND THE EMOTIONAL ROLLERCOASTER THAT THE LAST 10% WAS. When it comes to duologues I feel like it’s very hard to live up to the hype of book one. But this was even better, book two has knocked it out of the park. Sylvia and Arin’s chemistry is so well written, this is exactly what I mean when I want a painfully slowwwwww burn enemies to lovers trope.

“You think power belongs to those who take it. But real power is surviving what comes after.”

“All your choices require sacrifices. The question is, what are you willing to lose?”

“After a lifetime of running, he was my homecoming.”

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ A must-read, and now my go to rec for fantasy!

Thanks for my early copy. All thoughts are my own.

Am I still obsessed with Arin? Yes!

Did I enjoy this way this duology ended? Yes and no. I’m glad that what happened, happened but the way it just ended….left me wanting so much more. I’m still processes.

4 stars.

I so love it when the second book in a duology exceeds my expectations!

The Jasad Heir was such a good mix of trials and romantic fantasy. The risk? How do you keep the momentum and thrill from the trials, explore the enemies-to-lovers relationship AND do not bore the reader to death?

Let me tell you something! Sara Hashem absolutely DID IT! 🙇‍♀️🔥❤️

Here’s why I adored The Jasad Crown:
✨The thrill of a trial I mentioned earlier? No worries. You won’t miss it because the second book is more epic. The stakes are sky-high. You will not know peace.
✨It’s told from 4️⃣ POVs
✨Still a fantasy with a heavy accent on the romantic relationship — but the love story burns brighter, hurts deeper, and will absolutely melt your heart. Every girl deserves an Arin. Just saying. BONUS: the author did not fall into standard tropes. I am very pleased with how she handled the main characters’ relationship.
✨It’s chuckling-to-yourself funny
✨We get to explore more of the world, the kingdoms’ history, magic system, magic creatures, magic-madness, as well as the gods and their relationships.

The Jasad Crown is the perfect conclusion to The Scorched Throne duology. If you’ve read the first book: RUN, don’t walk, and grab this one!

This was an excellent conclusion to the duology. The characters in this story feel so real and continue to develop more nuance throughout the story. This is not a situation where some of them are one-dimensional; every major character is fully fleshed out and continues to advance the plot throughout the entire story. The political development also continued to evolve throughout the story and gave the reader a more established view of the entire world we're in. The whole way through the book, I was torn between wanting to fly through it and not wanting to finish the story because that would mean it's over. This is one of my favorite duologies I've ever read, and I can't wait to see what Hashem writes in the future!

Unfortunately I will be DNFing this book about 20% into. I really was not enthralled with this first book, but figured I would give the second a try to see if the story improved, but unfortunately I'm just finding myself in the same situation. There is a lot of talk with little explanation or action of what is occurring in the story. The plot also is very slow much like the first one making it very difficult to keep my attention. This is not to say the book is bad, but that it just did not work for me.

Is there anything more satisfying than a well executed duology?

The Jasad Crown picks up right where the last novel left out. Expanding in scope and POVs, the tension continues to grow until the grand finale that grabs you by the throat and doesn’t let go.

There were a few emotional beats I wish were given more room to grow, but overall this was an extremely satisfying end to an epic and unique tale.

Thank you to NetGalley and Orbit Books for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley and anybody else who blessed me with this arc copy.
We are brought back into the lives of Arin and Sylvia after that Citadel mess that happened at the end of The Jasad Heir. Everybody is separated and navigating their way after finding out that Essiya the Jassad Heir lives. And she is back to liberate her people from prosecution and bring them back to the land they call home.
The Jasad Crown is so heartbreakingly beautiful. Written from multiple POVs which I love and helps bring the ending together beautifully. The love of a man who never saw himself wait for what felt like a lifetime for a lost lover. A woman who sacrifices herself for her people and the people she loves.
This book has shown me that we have been spoiled with these intricate series and side character books because I want more of this world. Although it ended beautifully.

"You, Essiya of Jasad, will not be known for burning. You will always be known for surviving."

I feel hollow. I will never be the same again. This book has simultaneously destroyed me and filled my heart with so much love. Thank you Sara for ripping my heart out of my chest🥰 I will be sending over my therapy bills to you!!!

It's the way I'm just speechless. I genuinely do not even know what to say. How can any words I put down ever express how much of a soul series The Scorched Throne duology is to me now??? If you had told me over a year ago that a woman with the temperament of a deranged goose and a man whom everyone knew to be cold & emotionless would have buried their way into my heart, I would've never believed you. Two souls that believed they would always be alone, finding love with one another and those around them. Essiya and Arin had already become one of my favourite couples when I read The Jasad Heir but now they are definitely in my top 3 favourite couples ever.

To start, ESSIYA MY BELOVED!!!🥹 Guys, when I tell you The Jasad Crown made me fall in love with her even more than I thought possible?? Her growth throughout this journey was AMAZING, the love I have for this girl???!!! The life Essiya has had crushes me and every single time I wanted to give her the biggest hug. She has suffered so much and been alone for so long, always on the run, guarding her heart... it started with Sefa & Marek barging into her life, immediately loving her and refusing for her to hide away, then Arin whom she found her equal in, the one person in the world she could call her home and safe place, where she could be her savage, beautiful self, and now she fights for Jasad, her land and people. There are so many aspects of this series I love, but I absolutely adore how Essiya starts off with wanting nothing to do with Jasad and the responsibility she was born with, terrified of it all and especially getting killed, and slowly you see her fight through that fear and become the leader she never thought she could be. She's in no way a perfect leader but when it came down to fighting for them all, she really pulled through, even with the fear of magic-madness. Her love and loyalty to those she cares for is literally the sweetest thing ever, especially towards Sefa, Marek, and Arin???

AND THEN ARIN OF NIZHAL HELLO?? Sara really said "let me make you guys fall even more in love with him while *I* torture him even more!!!😀" JAIL. Not only did we get SO many more POV chapters of Arin but we got a much, much deeper understanding of him and his past. Anytime Arin was in pain, I was in pain. Anytime he was happy, I was happy. His growth??? Oh if it wasn't handled beautifully, I love how realistic Sara wrote it. And genuinely the way he is so in love with Essiya??? THE YEARNING KILLED ME AND GAVE ME LIFE.

I could literally spend forever talking about the romance between Arin and Essiya. How even separated, they couldn't stop thinking about one another. During their darkest moments, in their decisions, even to the point where Arin believes he's seeing hallucinations of Essiya?? How even surrounded by other Jasadis and believing Arin was preparing to kill her, the one person she trusted most was still Arin. How Arin's first instinct when hallucinating Essiya in the Citadel was to shout at her to run. How even in a room full of beautiful things, a bloodied Arin still outshined them all. How they love pinning each other against walls (Arin more so🤭). How Essiya really thought she could play a game of seduction against THE Arin of Nizhal... and then realized her mistake very fast (please I could not stop laughing). How Arin could watch her fight until weeds grew around his boots and never tire. How Arin could read every emotion in her eyes like it was written in a language he was born to speak. How he found himself grinning and laughing, his eyes softening when it came to Essiya. How Essiya would get nervous and Arin would joke around asking if he should put a knife in her hand to calm her down. How when they couldn't touch one another, they found intimacy in their violence that almost sufficed. How Essiya's destination would always be Arin. How there was no life where Arin could live without Essiya. How even when Arin moved to the floor to sleep, a sleeping Essiya followed him to the floor?? (That was so cute oh my god). How they would always choose one another?? (view spoiler). Yeah!! As you can tell I'm not normal about these two and never will be.

And then getting Sefa and Marek's POV chapters as well??? I LOVE THEM YOUR HONOUR. Sefa's kindness is like no other, she has the most beautiful heart in this series and I loved her subplot SO much. Marek was hilarious and sweet as always, and his subplot was just as engaging. Sefa and Marek's platonic love for one another will genuinely be one of the best I've ever seen in all the books I've read in my life. Like it's up there with Will and Jem's bond (from The Infernal Devices). Just like there's no Will without Jem (and vice versa), there is no Sefa without Marek (and vice versa). Their relationship was written beautifully and you can really feel how much they mean to one another. The amount of lines I highlighted?? I wanted to cry so much throughout this book. And even the love Sefa and Marek have for Essiya?? Oh my god. Seriously, Sara really wrote such heart-wrenching relationships in this series. (view spoiler)

And we got more Jeru!!!! JERU MY LOVE. He had so many amazing scenes, especially this one scene with Marek and Sefa individually!!!! Like excuse me Jeru I didn't ask for you to hurt me as well?? There were also some new characters whom I didn't expect to like so much! Namsa and Maia!! Lateef!! BUT EFRA CAN GO TO HELL. Except for one scene that I liked from him, this guy pissed me off to no end.

Also can I just talk about how much I adore worldbuilding? I love that we not only got to understand more of Essiya's magic, but the lore behind the Awaleen and the so many questions we had in book 1 regarding the other kingdoms!! Literally all the plot twists shocked me and it could be another case of me being bad at guessing plot twists but seriously did not see them coming omg??? Also I have such a special love for this world because of the amount of Arabic words & food I recognized that I eat regularly?? The Scorched Throne duology has been the closest I've ever felt to my culture in reading and I adore it so much like I've never been able to experience this before and I didn't realize how beautiful of a feeling it is?? Petition for more Egyptian-inspired fantasy books!!

One more thing before I end this review, but below will be major spoilers as I go crazy with some of my favourite quotes, I'm sorry I can't resist!!
(view spoiler)

I'm heartbroken that it's over but I will never forget the journey this series took me on. I love the magic in this world and the way everything was wrapped felt perfect to me. The ending broke me in every way possible, and while I would kill for just ONE MORE CHAPTER (please on my knees begging), I'm satisfied. I will forever be recommending this duology to everyone I know and be so annoying about it!!! Arin & Essiya you will always be remembered.


Eternal thanks to Orbit for sending me an ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review!!

What a fantastic follow up to end this Duology.
Thank you thank you thank you orbit books and NetGalley for a gifted copy of this in exchange for an honest review. The Jasad Heir was one of my top reads last year and this book complimented it FANTASTICALLY.
Slow burn
Found family
Enemies to lovers
UGH! Can I read it again right now? This set the standard for duologys and I’m obsessed

Fantasy duologies are my weakness… compact, powerful, and in this case emotionally destructive. The Jasad Crown absolutely delivered. I struggled a little with the pacing due to the heavy world building there was at the start, especially for this being a second book, but by the end I was fully entertained.

I thoroughly enjoyed witnessing Arin and Sylvia/Essayia grow. Arin’s POV chapters were a much appreciated touch.

Overall this book broke me in the best possible way. Thank you to Orbit Books and NetGalley for the ARC!

Thank you to NetGalley and Orbit for giving me the opportunity to read the Jasad Crown.

I was really excited for the follow up to the Jasad Heir because I loved that first book so much but this second book for me fell kind of flat. This story has a boat load of characters and a lot of the time I was struggling to keep up with who did what and when. I think if I had some kind of glossary or re-cap of every person, It would have helped immensely. I remembered all of the key characters but sometimes that didn’t help much. I also didn’t enjoy the chapters from Marek and Sefas POVS. I know why they were needed but in the end they didn’t feel truly necessary. I would have also loved more time spent between Arin and Sylvia to see their relationship evolve a little bit more. The wrap of the story was decent but the book as a whole felt like a struggle for me to read. Maybe if I had read the two books back to back, I’d have less of an issue but I’m not sure.

I’ve been waiting for so long for this sequel that I had begun to question whether the first book was really as enjoyable as it was. (This is an established coping technique for readers, when we have long waits between books, to prevent the onset of madness due to anticipation!) But the minute I turned the first page on this one, I remembered just how satisfying that first book was. And now, with the duology complete, I can say that the entire experience was all-around excellent!

There’s a lot of great things to talk about with this one, but given the current proliferation of the “enemies to lovers” trope in romantasy, I think this is an area where this book really shines. So much so that I’d almost say this should be required reading for how to correctly write this sort of romantic storyline. There are many ways in which the love story is successful, both in the first book and carried over to this one. The first book is appropriately a slow-burn, with both characters slowly, naturally progressing through their negative associations with the other. As is typical with this sort of plot, that book ends with a bombshell, revealing all of the secrets and lies between them.

The important part is now how this romance is handled in this book. The author does so many things right! For one thing, it’s not as if both characters suddenly, inexplicably, lose all of the friendship, trust, and even love that had built up between them. Yes, obstacles have been introduced, but both are mature characters who, to some extent or another, trust their own original judgement and, frankly, have more important things to worry about than too much ridiculous angst. Sure, these reveals have an impact, but there’s no overly YA “but she betraaaayyyeeed meeee” nonsense where it doesn’t make sense.

Further, and this goes back to work done in the first book, the author created two characters who are fully realized beings on their own, who have built-in personality traits, strengths, and weaknesses, that would independently drive their choices and actions through an enemies-to-lovers romance. For example, Arin has been well-established as a character who is highly strategic and highly invested in understanding everything that goes on around him. Thus, by the time the truth about Sylvia is revealed, his journey towards re-thinking his understanding of his own nation and the history of this world at large is based on his own intrinsic character traits, not just “but I luuuuv her!!” Too often, the entire journey from “enemy” to “lovers” requires one character to simply change who they are or change teams based on almost nothing but their love for the other character. Here, Arin’s journey has practically nothing to do with his feelings for Sylvia, and this makes it all the more realistic and interesting to read! It’s this point, giving characters their own inner motivations for change outside of the love story, that I think is so often missing in these sorts of romances.

Further, Sylvia doesn’t magically transform into the perfect leader of this rebellion. Indeed, she’s pretty terrible at it all the way through the entire book! What’s more, however, the book does an excellent job of portraying the foibles of the rebellion itself! All too often, again, stories like this have a frustrating tendency of dumbing down their political conflicts to the point that you can pretty much guarantee that whatever rebellion group you find will be coded as purely good and righteous at every turn. Here, this group is made up of humans, with their own grievances, misunderstandings, and tendencies towards self-centered motivations. Sylvia’s journey is one of balancing imperfections, both her own as well as the group of displaced Jasadis that she’s trying to lead.

Lastly, as far as the romance goes, I appreciated that the author didn’t string us a long with the love story! Even given their circumstances, Hashem found creative ways to throw Arin and Sylvia back in each others orbits at regular intervals, beginning fairly early in the book. I always find it incredibly annoying and contrived when authors feel the need to keep their characters apart to drive up “tension,” especially in books that are the last in a series’ run, as this is our last time getting to spend time with these characters. And for pages and pages to be wasted on unearned pining is the peak of annoyance for me.

I also enjoyed the introduction of a few chapters from various side characters’ perspectives. There weren’t tons of these, but through them, we got a better insight into various interested parties, all with their own priorities and motivations. These perspectives helped to further flesh out the world and raise the stakes for the ultimate conflict, one that affected more than just Jasad itself but magic as a whole!

I also really enjoyed the expansion of this world’s magic system and history. The book definitely took some twists and turns that I didn’t see coming, and the answers to many lingering questions were incredibly satisfying. I think the book also wrapped up in an excellent manner. It’s bittersweet, of course, but it also technically checks off the HEA requirements, so never fear!

This book is peak romantasy, as far as I’m concerned. It’s also criminally under-appreciated in a packed genre where, too often, lesser titles rise to the top based on nothing more than #vibes. This is a fantastically written, fully realized and developed, romantasy title that should be used as the gold standard for properly pacing an “enemies to lovers” romance. This is a great read for romantasy and fantasy romance readers alike and I can’t recommend the duology enough!

Rating 10: Great world-building, excellent prose, spot-on dialogue, and a love story that hits all the right notes, this book has it all!

Link will go live on The Library Ladies on July 18

I pre-ordered The Jasad Heir to support a fellow Muslim sister—what I didn’t expect was to be absolutely wrecked by this series in the best way. The Egyptian-inspired setting, the sharp political intrigue, the yearning (!!), and the emotional devastation?? I’m obsessed.

When I saw The Jasad Crown on NetGalley, I sprinted to request it. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC—this was everything I hoped for and more.

I loved how the sequel dove deeper into Arin and gave us his backstory—his cold composure, his hidden softness, his obsession with Essiya?? I'm screaming. Their slow burn was so deliciously painful. It burned.

This duology is a stunning exploration of power, trauma, and love between two people who were never meant to love—but tried anyway. The expanded POVs, the complex women, the heartbreak, the stakes, the tension. I cried, I yelled, I squealed. That epilogue? Life-altering. I am on the floor. I may never get up again.

Sara Hashem, I’m in awe. I love this series. I need more. And we absolutely need more silver-haired men in fantasy. 😉

The emotional conclusion to The Scorched Throne. At the start of book 2 our group has been separated. Quite often this can get old quickly or result in favoring one character's storyline over the others; that's not the case here. Sara Hashem balances the different plotlines perfectly so that I was eager to continue every one of them.

My only gripe with Crown is I wanted more of the tension that Heir delivered. It felt that Arin changed allegiances too quickly; he didn't even pretend to try to find Essiya for Nizhal. The payoff would've been greater had Arin truly tried to continue being the cold, calculating commander he was before meeting Sylvia.

I love Sara Hashem's writing, and felt incredibly moved by her continuous ability to distill powerful emotions and observations into profound passages and aching sentences - even the power delivered in one word. (When you read "Oh." you'll know it.) This book expands the mythology and magic of The Jasad Heir's world so beautifully, and winds the story into greater and more enchanting stakes. I particularly enjoyed the way Sara teased pieces of strategy and reading them come to fruition.

I was surprised in the nuanced writing of one character in particular, who Sara did not let simply be 'bad' and whose words brought me to tears. However, I largely had difficulty maintaining a hold on the emotional threads of this story, I think due in part to its structure. While I enjoyed the additional points of view, I felt there wasn't enough time for me to solidify their unique voices. When storylines converged, I felt detachment rather than greater connectivity. I think it would have been nice to spend more time immersed in these journeys in their own novella before putting all of the pieces on the board. This would've also allowed for the creation of a timeline that could be overlapped in a final installment and reveal machinations from additional context and examination, which I would've loved even more of.

Additionally, one of my favorite aspects of Essiya's character is the portrayal of her defenses. In this book, I felt too great of a leap in Essiya's comfort with both romantic and non-romantic touch. This element of discomfort and growth was handled excellently in Heir, but in Crown I felt it was also portrayed less consistently. While I appreciated the romantic emphasis on hunger, I wanted more about the physical and emotional vulnerability of being seen, especially as the self changes.

Struggling with these aspects, I did not reach the emotional point of devastation I hoped, which was teased in the book's marketing. As my rating is 3.5★ (rounded up) and I gave The Jasad Heir 5★, I look forward to re-reading this book in print (preferably after an immediate re-read of the first book to help with my own emotional continuity). And needless to say, I am so excited for all that Sara Hashem has to come.

Thank you very much NetGalley and Orbit for the arc! This was one of my most anticipated books of 2025 and I am so thankful for the opportunity to read an advanced copy in exchange for my honest feedback.

Actual Rating - 2.5 ⭐️
⤷ Romance - 5 ⭐️
⤷ Arin - ♾️ 💫
⤷ Plot (Before the 60% mark) - 4.5 ⭐️
⤷ Plot (After the 60% mark) - 2 ⭐️
⤷ Pacing and Magic System - 1 ⭐️

I want to thank NetGalley and Orbit Books US for providing the eARC. As with any arc reviews, I will keep this spoiler-free. However, due to this book being the finale of the series, there may be spoilers mentioned from the first book. Please keep this in mind if you wish to read this review and you haven’t read Jasad Heir.

When I first read Jasad Heir in late March this year, I was mesmerized by how well-written the characters are and the overall concept of the plot. For once, I felt I had found a book that had done the enemies-to-lovers trope right. I love Sylvia’s inner struggles and Arin's cold and stoic heart and how their relationship builds slowly and steadily. I was so excited when I got this eARC for the second book that upon reading it, I was left disappointed.

For starters, the number of chapters in this book is 73 with a few short epilogues while the first book has 33 chapters. I understand that sequels tend to be longer than the first book, however, this contrast is quite a huge difference. I went open-minded when opening this book up on my Kindle because I always believe regardless of how long the book is if the plot is enjoyable it won’t bother me much with the length. Yet, I noticed at times I would have to take breaks or try to rush a bit to finish the next chapter. Long story short, I felt a bit burnt out due to the number of chapters.

Regarding the plot, it felt like a roller coaster throughout my enjoyment. The first 20% felt a bit slow as characters are being reintroduced along with a few different POVs you follow. During this portion, the story does discuss events taking place in the first book yet there is no recap explaining what occurred; the story requires you to remember the events accurately. I didn’t have an issue remembering because I read the first book a while back. However, it can be difficult for those who haven’t reread the first book in a year. I think what could have helped is a glossary of character and mythical creature names since at times I did have to look up Jasad Heir on my Kindle to remember the description of certain creatures. After the 20%, the plot thickened and the pace went fast. I like this as it was engaging seeing what each character is doing throughout the book and it was nice connecting the timeline with our main characters' activities. The author's writing did improve tremendously by using beautiful metaphors and descriptions; I had to highlight a couple of those sentences.

One caveat I will mention though is the magic system feeling surface level between 20-60%. As the first book mentioned how dangerous the magic system is and we finally get to learn more about the magic in the second book, I felt frustrated that we didn’t get that much depth of information. We just learn character A and character B have XYZ magic but never learned the how and the why. The explanations felt like a recap of what we already learned from the first book.

By the time we hit the 60% mark, the plot started to fall apart. There were a lot of scenes that were wrapped up and skimmed and a lot of events that occurred between certain characters felt flat to me. I didn’t feel emotional during those scenes that the story tried to make the readers feel because we barely learned about them in the first book. Even a couple of resolutions felt more tell than show. I felt at this point that the second book should end and the 60% should have been a third book. That way a couple of events wouldn’t feel so rushed near the end.

The last 10% of the book made me feel extremely irritated, especially two plot twists that happened back to back. To those who have read those scenes, maybe it would not have bothered you so much but it is a pet peeve I have for fantasy books based on a specific trope. This led me to just fast forward through reading the last few chapters and the epilogue to be done with the story.

If there are two moments I love the book that stayed consistent were the romance and Arin’s character. The amount of yearning in this book between Arin and Sylvia had my heart flutter, kicking my feet, and fangirling with my plushies over how adorable these two characters interacted. If you were fangirling over these two in the first book, wait til you read about them in the second book. The slow burn from the first book helped tremendously with the development of their relationship in this book. As for Arin’s character, hands down he is my top favorite character in both this duology and the fantasy genre overall. His entire character arc from start to finish was terrific and written so well, I felt I learned and empathized so much about him in this book. The way he also loves and yearns for Sylvia made me put him as one of my top book husbands. All his chapters and romance with Sylvia were my favorite throughout the book and had me highlight a lot of lines in my Kindle, especially his epilogue that pulled my heartstrings. If anything is coming from this review, reading for the romance and Arin’s character development will be so worth it and help you enjoy the story at the very least.

Despite my mixed emotions about this book, I am excited for Sara Hashem writing journey. I want to still support her because even with my mixed thoughts about the finale, the romance and improved writing style gives me hope her future works will get better. If you are obsessed with the Jasad Heir world, you may honestly enjoy this book more for the plot and world. But for the rest, I would suggest possibly picking this book with an audiobook to help you get through the length of the book.