Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Queen of Shadows and Ruin is the final book in Nisha J. Tuli’s The Nightfire Quartet, a romantasy inspired by South Asian (Indian) mythology. This was a beautiful and captivating conclusion that kept me hooked from start to finish.

This book was a stunning conclusion to an incredible series! Nisha J. Tuli’s writing keeps getting better, and this final installment was filled with so many emotional moments. I absolutely loved Yasen and his friendship with Zarya—it was one of my favorite aspects of the book. Their bond felt so real and deep, and I appreciated how much they supported each other.

Zarya herself has grown so much over the series, transforming from a timid, lonely girl into a fierce and resilient FMC. Her journey has been incredible to watch, and I was completely invested in her fate. Zarya and Rabin endure so much in this book, but their love, faith, and trust carry them through it all. Watching them find solace in each other, finally knowing they’re not alone, was truly beautiful. After everything they’ve been through, they finally have someone to lean on, and I couldn’t be happier for them. That said, my heart ached for Rabin—his entire world was turned upside down, and he didn’t deserve any of it.

This book was filled with shocking twists, betrayals, and deep emotions. I especially loved the found family aspect—seeing these characters come together and support each other made the story even more powerful.
The ending was perfect, and I know this series will stay with me for a long time. I highly recommend it to anyone who loves strong heroines, unique magic, and heartwarming found family dynamics!

Suuuuuch a good conclusion to this series. The balance of fantasy and romance, action and spice was once again brilliant. Definitely recommend this book and the rest of the series

Queen of Shadows and Ruin is the perfect conclusion to The Nightfire Quartet. It had me on the edge of my seat the entire time. I couldn’t put it down and stayed up late to finish it in one day. Zarya had so much character growth in this book. The pacing of this book is so intentional. The pacing in the first half of the book is intentionally slower to get the reader to a place where they start to let their guard down and feel comfortable, only to change it up in the second half and throw you into a gauntlet of emotions.

As a reader based in the U.S., Nisha’s book releases during a time of political turmoil in the U.S and it is adds an additional layer of emotions as you draw the parallels between the oppressed and the oppressors in the book and the oppressed and oppressors out here in the real world. In the same vein, this book also offers a glimpse at what could be when people ban together to defeat evil.

Queen of Shadows and Ruin is a 5 star read for me, and I am very thankful to Second Sky Books and Nisha J. Tuli for allowing me the opportunity to read this eARC.

Thank you, Second Sky and Nisha J Tuli, for the opportunity to read this ARC! The following thoughts are my own.

Book 4 of the Nightfire Quartet saw the conclusion of Zarya and Rabin's story with many twists, turns, and, of course, broody dragon shifters!

I love Zarya and Rabin as a couple and enjoyed their journeys (together and apart) since Book One.

Read the Nightfire Quartet if you like:

💙South Asian vibes
💛Magic
💙Intricate world building
💛Dragon shifters
💙Found family
💛Court Politics
💙Fate

Happy Reading 📚

Queen of Shadows and Ruin is the final fourth book in the Nightfire Quartet series, releasing 6th March 2025 by Nisha J Tuli.
ARC Review

Phenomenal!!! 5 star read⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

A beautiful, ruthless, spicy, addictive romantasy and final conclusion to the Nightfire Quartet series.

“She will be the one to free them all”

‘’I will protect you with every breath in my body”

I highly recommend for all readers of romantasy, immersive, vivid world building and spicy, enemies-to-lovers romance books.

Thank you to the author Nisha J. Tuli, publisher @secondskybooks and NetGalley for sending me the eARC book. I’m so excited to read this and continue with Zarya’s story to free the enslaved Vanshaj people. Make yourself a cup of chai and bring snacks because you will not be able to put this book down.

The story continues with Rabin convincing Zarya to finally meet with her father, the mysterious King Abishek in the northern winter mountains of Andhera and they travel to the black marble palace.

With Zarya’s sixth sense and dark ribbons of black magic she seeks to find answers from Abishek and finding out why her paramadhar mating bond with Rabin seems to be fading in Andhera. Zarya is also having vivid dreams and visions of her mother, Asha the Queen of G’iana.

The first half of the book was focused on the word building of Andhera and there were also new characters introduced to the story. The story picked up half way through and started to unravel and then became a thrilling, emotional rollercoaster of a journey. I loved Yasen’s banter and Rows character and the family relationship they had with Zarya.

The world building in this book was immersive and beautifully written and I loved the way the author described the world and people of Andhera, the snow, frozen mountains, castle and King Abishek’s kingdom. The author has a beautiful way of writing descriptive, metaphorical, immersive, vivid worlds/realms inspired by Indian mythology and culture.

This book has:

✨Rebellion action & adventure
✨Political Intrigue
✨Dark magic
✨Dragon shifting MMC
✨Found family & friendships
✨Spice 🌶️🌶️🌶️
✨Unique magic system
✨Prophecies
✨Mating bond
✨Betrayal

The fourth and final book of this series has a perfect balance of a ruthless, engaging, compelling story, with spice and unique magic system and will have you hooked.

The ending was so beautiful, emotional, heartwarming and a thrilling rollercoaster of emotions and I cried tears of joy. I wish there was more to read as I don’t think I’m ready to let this series go…

The pacing of this book started off a little slow up until the half way point. The plot was a bit repetitive and didn't really make much progress on the action. Then at the half way point we were off to the races! Action started with a raiders of the lost ark style chase/quest, then a faceoff with the main villain - which wrapped up in less than a chapter. While the fast closure helped to ease the readers' anxiety - it did feel a little anti-climatic after being through the whole saga of the first three books. Then the last 10% of the book was really a love letter to readers. It wrapped up so many threads woven throughout the series without being a "the end" and then epilogue. It allowed each character arc to get closure, and offer some "ending" to each open question. I'm rating as a 4 only because the pacing but standing ovation to the those that love a complete series and a bit of closure.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
*Queen of Shadows and Ruin* was an absolute thrill from start to finish! The action was intense and perfectly paced, keeping me on the edge of my seat the entire time. The character development was phenomenal, with Zarya and Rabin’s journey being the highlight of the book. Their arc was so well-written and satisfying—I loved how their story wrapped up! This book delivered everything I hoped for and more. A must-read for fantasy fans!

THIS SERIES IS AMAZING I cannot handle how this author makes you care about characters and her wonderful balance of people, romance and fantasy elements

this series is by far one of the best series Nisha has written. it keeps you on your toes with the suspense, and i seriously binged it in less than a few days.

I mean, what else is there to say? This series is so good, Nisha J Tuli is so good, she's my auto buy for life. I know her other series gets a ton of hype (and rightfully so! I loved that series too), this one is almost better and has so much less attention! We need to hype this series up just as much because it's so unique, it's doing things no other romantasy book does. The world is so big, I love how many different types of magic there are in this world. More than most romantasy authors, Nisha is so good at putting so much historical lore to her characters and worlds. I love how she ties in the events of hundreds of years ago to things happening today. I love the Eastern Asian mythology. I love the CLOTHING! We need more kurta's in romantasy.

Nisha - never stop writing books, even if it's just for me :)

Thank you Secondsky books, netgally and Nisha j tuli for this book.

I said that it would be a hell of a ride. But I didn't know it would be more than that.

*spoilers below*

The most intense book I've read. And it kept me on the edge. Really loved the storyline, the world building. It was really good.

Zarya and Rabin's journey was really rough and had so much going on that they only found peace at the end.

The betrayal was very bad, plus zarya finding her mother, the hidden city, the war, all that made the book even more exciting with the secrets being revealed, all that with things that needed to be mended amongst their own.

But I'm glad the end turned out to be the best. I loved this series a lot. Thank you for making a wonderful series.

This book… yall this book was filled with so much magic, betrayal, heartbreak, strength, love, joy; it was like the best rollercoaster of emotions. It was the perfect ending to the Nightfire quartet and I am so thankful I had the chance to read it early! This series cures every ACOTAR/TOG/Fourth Wing hangover I’ve had. 10/10 would recommend.

It's official, Nisha J. Tuli is the Queen of captivating, spicy, romantasy!
"Queen of Shadows and Ruin" is the fourth book in the exciting and spicy "The Nightfire Quartet" and while you could dive in at this stage, I would recommend that you start with book one, "Heart of Night and Fire", followed by "Dance of Stars and Ashes", and then "Storm of Ink and Blood". Why? Well, you don't want to miss out on the completely epic adventure and romance.
As the principal storyline has been well-established by book, we dive right into the action and this does not let up throughout the book, from travelling by dragon, to snatched moments between lovers, "Queen of Shadows and Ruin" is the perfect ending to this quartet.
Five stars, in fact all the stars!!

Absolutely loved this ending to the Nightfire Quartet! Nisha delivered with this final instalment which found Zarya and Rabin fighting for their lives and for freedom for the vanshaj against dark forces across the continent. All our favourites were back including Yasen whose personal story we get to see unfold. I loved how all the pieces came together and our MCs got the HEA they deserved.

What an amazing end to such a fantastic series. As always, Nisha has blown me away. Submersing me in a culture I have zero clues about but in a way that keeps me interested instead of zoning out, and wanting to learn more. Her attention to detail is flawless and the writing keeps you hooked in, gobbling it up as fast as you can. The adventure is top notch, and kept me guessing for the longest time. I’ve read other books recently that the twists legit angered me, but Nisha’s floor me with her intelligence and creativity. Raja in particular, is he the evil tyrant everyone says, or misunderstood and misrepresented?? I couldn’t wait to find out!
The characters journeys held me captive from beginning to end, the growth of Zarya is perfect and inspiring. Yasen POV in this book was a great addition and his story also touched me. The connection with her biological brother in addition to growing her found family gives you all the feels. The grumpy/sunshine also never fails to amuse me, though I feel Zee was finally starting to rub off on Rabin more in this one.
I will forever immediately read anything Nisha puts out, getting my hands on this ARC was perfect for my onyx storm hangover. Cannot recommend this series or her as an author enough. Can’t wait to see what’s next now that this and Ouranos are done! Hopefully a follow up on to wake a kingdom.

The first book I read by Nisha was a Heart of Night and Fire. Since then I have gone on to read every other book Nisha has written and it was a honour to get the Arc for the final instalment of the Nightfire Quartet.

This book was the perfect end to the story of a young girl fighting for love, family and freedom. The way Nisha gets you to be truly invested in all the different friendships and relationships is a feat to her skills. This was a rollercoaster of emotions and I feel that Nisha has given all of the characters the ending they deserved.

Damn this one was stressful! The tension builds and builds - you KNOW something is wrong, maybe even have a pretty good idea of what it is, but Nisha makes you wait and sweat before finally snapping and catapulting into a doozy of a final battle that carries on for much of the second half of the book.

The emotional connections our various cast of characters have been building all get to stretch and play in this one. And Yasen finally gets his own POV, which is delightful and one of the only sources of humor to be found as the stakes get so dire.

Rating: 4.5/5
Spice: 3/5

Tropes:
- Elemental magic
- Dragon shifter
- Chosen one
- Possessive morally grey MMC
- FMC with shadow powers
- “My wife”
- Found family
- Deadly magical creatures
- Tear down the system
- Multi POV
- Indian-inspired world

Thank you to Second Sky and NetGalley for the chance to read an advanced copy. All opinions are my own.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. - arc & monthly book box pick reviewer

What an incredible end to a fantastic romantasy! Most of all, I'll miss Yasen as well as Yasen's man. Yes, you read it right, our favorite man finally found his favorite man!! I'd love a novella or something that focuses on them. I can't get enough of them!

Zarya and Rabin really go through it all in this book, but their love, faith, and trust withstand it all, and it was incredible to see them find that solace, that peace in knowing they have each other. Both have been so lonely and so alone for such a long time, and now, they truly have each other, and I was just so happy for them. I do feel sorry for Rabin because everything he thought turned upside down, and he really didn't deserve any of it. It was brutal and heartbreaking to see him experience all that. Zarya persevered through A LOT in this book, too. Let me tell you, the problems and conflicts they went through in this book, holy moly! Atrocious father, murderous sister, literal demons from another realm, another abusing father, our main characters really saw it all!!!

I love these characters a lot. Zarya with her fierce perseverance and unyielding morals, Rabin with his broody and quiet resolve, Yasen our heart and excellent soldier, and the rest of the cast; they all create a magical synergy that isn't found that often. I'd read at least 2 spin-off series with 2 couples from the Nightfire Quartet.

I give 4 stars, though, because again, I felt like the book would have benefited from being shorter, and also because Zarya and Rabin made some mistakes that they shouldn't have. Being kindhearted doesn't exclude being suspicious or at the very least cautious, and Rabin with his brilliant military mind should have connected some dots sooner. So at least for me, there was never a question "is he evil or not" since the answer had been very clear. To keep it short, they were too trusting when everything else screamed that they shouldn't.

However, I still love these characters, and I am just so fascinated by this majestic worldbuilding!!! The layering, the history, the background in this worldbuilding are out of this world!! It really doesn't get any better!!

If you love romantasy, spicy romantasy that combines excellent romance and even more excellent worldbuilding, look no further!! I love this series so much!!! Also, if you haven't read the author's Artefacts of Ouranos, please do!! Nisha J. Tuli writes amazing romantasy!

This was a beautiful, action packed ending to this series. I love Nisha J Tulis writing and each book gets even better for me. Zarya and Rabin face so many trials in this book and overcome so much. Even Yasen has to learn how to overcome some personal issues. This book is filled with twists and turns and parts where I didn’t know how Zarya was going to get out of it. The fighting scenes are much less in this book however we get so much information that I think it makes up for that. The ending was perfect and I highly recommend this series to anyone who loves found family, a strong FMC, unique magic, and so much more.
Thank you so much Second Sky for the arc!

I found this book to be difficult to get through for about the first half. It was obvious what was happening to everyone except the characters and it was kind of painful to read. I only kept reading because I knew it was the last book in the series and I wanted to finish this series. I enjoyed the first and perhaps some of the other books but at some point even they became a little hared to get through. No doubt just a personal opinion. I almost didnt finish this book but pushed through and I slightly did find the ending pretty good. I felt that the characters changed quite a bit between books and it was a bit odd. I am glad I finished the series and I do enjoy other books by this author, but this was not my favorite