The content and ideas are good overall, and I will continue to see what book 3 has in store. There should NOT be this much setup for a second series novel to accomplish still. Tightening that up and speeding up the pace would have helped this book immensely.

A great follow up to A Kingdom of Souls, although honestly not AS intriguing or faced paced, it kind of fell victim to the "let me make up for all the details we missed in the excitement of book one" curse. This book took a while to be it's own thing and I'd argue it was until the final 30% that I was even very invested. Definitely going to continue the series and hoping it's only up from here.

I received this complimentary ARC from the publisher, courtesy of NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

Reaper of Souls is the sequel about a witch doctor who must face a king who seeks revenge. This book demonstrates a beautiful world and how magic is not only a gift, but also a curse.

This book is a sequel and so I can't give away too much of the plot. Suffice to say that I enjoyed this book as much as the first one and definitely will be checking out other books by Barron in the future.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me a free advanced copy of this book to read and review.

The way thar Rena Barron has my bookshelves in a chokehold! Anything that Barron writes I will buy immediately. I devour her middle grade books just as quickly as I devour her YA series. The covers are absolutely stunning and I can’t wait for April 2023 for the third book.

Solid sequel to a beloved first. I enjoyed the continuation of Arrah’s story but felt that this story lacked the thrills that the first novel gave me.

I am disappointed with this book. I was expecting one thing and received another. It had potential but it was not well written.

REAPER OF SOULS was an excellent sequel in this series. The characters, the worldbuilding, the conflict, and the stakes kept me at the edge of my seat. Arrah is a character to root for. Her strength is so compelling. I read this in one sitting. Barron is such a talented author who knows how to yank on your heartstrings and punch you in the gut. I look forward to reading more of her works. 5 STARS

This was one of my most anticipated sequels after Rena left us hanging in Kingdom of Souls, and it did not disappoint! The first book was complex. I was relatively new to Orisha in YA fantasy, but I relished their roots in West African mythology. Book two cleared up a lot of the questions I initially had, and it was hard to put down. We gain new perspectives and more queer representation, as well. Complex relationships do not get any easier and adds even more to the works building. Rena warned she would break us, and that she did. I love-hate her for it. I’m finding myself right back where I started, in major anticipation of the finale. In the meantime, you can find me recommending this series to everyone and every one of their everyones.

I really wanted to like this book, but sadly I lowered my rating because of a few reasons, first the main characters made some really dumb decisions and really I expected more, second there was the same plot twist involving the Demon Kind three time towards the end of the book and third because overall it just felt like a filler between the first and the last book.

Reaper of Souls was honestly one of the best books I read in 2021. I didn't know how Rena Barron was going to follow up Kingdom of Souls, which was one of my favorite books of 2020, but she did. I fell more in love with not only our Arrah and Rudjek, but also all of their friends and allies. We got to know the side characters at a much deeper level, and I know that's what made my enjoyment of this book even greater. On top of that, we also got to see a different side of the villain, and I actually began to empathize with him. I began to care for him and his story.

Rena Barron was able to tie together all the loose ends from Kingdom of Souls in this book and expand on them further. This gave us a much deeper, richer understanding of the world and the people in it. But it also gave us a the bigger picture idea of why things were happening the way they were happening. However; this doesn't mean the story was tied up in a nice bow. The story ended on a cliffhanger that makes me desperately want more. So while she was able to tie up loose ends from Kingdom of Souls, there was still plenty of new story to expand and move the plot forward.

Overall, Reaper of Souls blew Kingdom of Souls out of the park, which I didn't think was possible. I loved the tension between the characters, the internal struggle within Arrah, the love stories in this book, and the overall plot and story and where it is headed. I highly recommend not just this book, but this whole series to anyone and everyone. It's an absolute must-read for anyone who likes deep, rich fantasy stories.

SPOILERS FOR REAPER OF SOULS

I absolutely LOVED Reaper of Souls!!! First of all, I love how we start almost exactly where Kingdom of Souls ended (which was when Arrah's sister died and Dimma and Arrah became connected). Now, Arrah is dealing with the aftermath of the fact that many of the people in the tribes died because of Efiya and the demons. Arrah is on a journey to search for any of the people in the tribes who survived, while Rudjek is on a quest to destroy demons with his anti-magic.

Since a lot of the world is established in Kingdom of Souls, it felt like Reaper of Souls had a faster pace than the first novel. I really liked how Arrah and Rudjek's journies came back together in this novel, and I'm excited to see what Rena Barron does in the last novel of this trilogy. Highly recommend this series to anyone who likes fantasy novels with multiple POVS.

This was a fitting follow-up to last year's Kingdom of Souls. I enjoyed the pacing here a bit more than in the first, and I think that most will enjoy the way to series has gone on. Excellent representation of a type of culture that is often missing from the YA landscape.

Reaper of Souls doesn’t suffer from Sequel Syndrome. While it’s not as good as the first book, that stems from pre-existing issues getting the space to grow.
To me, one of the main problems with Kingdom of Souls was the boring characters despite a great plot. Here, that only stands out more now that we get to read Dimma and Daho’s story, and they’re much more interesting than the main characters.
This left me with an ambivalent feeling: On the one hand, Dimma and Daho are compelling characters, and their past develops their characterization and is relevant to the present. On the other, seeing their side of the story means pausing the main plot to read about love at first sight for way too long.
The backstory also expands a lot on the worldbuilding. While that gives the world more depth by showing us that there’s more beyond the Almighty Kingdom, it also introduces us to a sort of multiverse, which feels out of place here. It’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it could’ve been done better. Instead, it’s just so much new stuff thrown at us with very little foreshadowing in the previous book.
Looking back, not much actually happens in the main plot until the last pages. However, there are some neck-breaking twists near the end that change everything. They give another layer of meaning to everything that came before them. Now the stage is set for an epic ending.

3,5 stars

Reaper of Souls continues a few weeks after Kingdom of Souls. Arrah struggles to find her place back in the city. And soon she has to leave yet again to see if she can find the last of her parent's people.

I read this book a while ago but I struggled finding the words to review this book for a while. As a whole I feel that the book just isn't as strong as the first book. That book and plot was so incredibly solid. This book didn't quite feel that way. I'm not sure if it was the switch between point of views between Arrah and Rudjek precisely. But it did jolt me out of places in the story.

I will also admit that I didn't find Rudjek's storyline as interesting as Arrah's and I would have preferred to have spend a little less time with him. It just continously felt that I was getting my chain yanked around in his storyline. Where as Arrah's was much more focused. Sure, there were some headplays there and I might never trust anyone ever again, but her line was very goal orientated. Clouded by her own doubts and the doubts that the demon king placed within her.

It just feels a bit like the middle book syndrome in places. It is used to propel the story forward for that end countdown in the last book. Especially in Rudjek's story and the ending of Arrah's in this book. It didn't feel quite satisfactory or that I needed the next book immediately.

Having said that, the book is still a good continuation of the first book. It propels forward with every chapter and in places it keeps you filled with tension. It also sets up the next book well. And while I might not have wanted the book right away I do still really want to read on in this series.

The cost of power is greater than expected.

Arrah is reeling from the discovery of who she is and what the Demon King truly wants from her. Without her family and tribe to support her, she has few allies left to battle the demons claiming the lives of those in the kingdom. Her romance with Rudjek is tested and pushed to its limits in the middle of an endless battle.

This sequel was quicker to bring readers into the action and address the consequences of the first battle. There are some new characters but primarily the original cast with more backstory. The book balances the perspectives of Arrah and her past life, as well as Rudjek and the Demon King. The perspectives add depth to the plot but do not maintain a continuous flow throughout the story. The ending will leave readers wanting more!

An amazing follow up to Kingdom of Souls!!

Kingdom of souls was one of my favorite reads of 2020, so I counted myself incredibly lucky to be granted an ARC by NetGalley to review this book. I can honestly say that I feel the sequel was almost more fast paced and full of action than the first. I loved Arrah's character progression. She just keeps getting stronger and stronger, and the flashback scenes really unraveled a whole new understanding of the bigger picture. My only regret in reading this amazing book so fast is that now I am going to have to wait for the next installment!

*Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for supplying me with an Arc of this book*

Omg this book! Every moment of this book was thrilling. I enjoyed reading this book and loved how the world was described. It picks off right at the end of the Kingdom of Souls where the war is still raging on. Each chapter is told from either the perspective of Arrah, Rudjek or the Unnamed Orisha. Although the tone of the book is relatively dark all in all, it does get broken up via the comic relief from some characters which seemed rooted in realism, making each character just seem real and rounded rather than flat and serving one purpose.
I can't wait until the next book!

Everything about this book is perfect. I read the first one, Kingdom of Souls, at the insistence of many of my teenage students. They identified with family secrets, struggles to attain something that seems impossible (college acceptance letters might as well be magic to teens), and they LOVED Arrah. I read this book in two days and couldn't put it down. Arrah is an immediately likeable character, and this book follows her journey to save her kingdom. The writing style is beautiful, and though the tone of the book is pretty dark, there's a good amount of lighthearted joking to break up the mood. Seriously can't wait for what comes next!