Emotional damage at 100%. I am so dang attached to these characters and loved how each character POV went in their own different directions. Was SO happy to get Hassa’s POV in this one. Is it too early to say I want the third book already?

Despite being the second book in the series this book keeps you engaged and is not just a bridge from the first to the final book. I really enjoyed how engaging the story is and the fact the author incorporated LGBTQ+ characters within the story.

I read The Battle Drum by Saara El-Arifi which is the sequel to The Final Strike. Thank you, NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group-Ballantine.
While this might not be quite as good as the first book since the two leading ladies are separated, this book is still amazing.
We get Sylah on a new land with her old lover Jond. Her story is fascinating, mixing in and really driving the idea of sacrifice and how it plays more organically into the world which is a huge theme of this book. In this book, I actually really loved Sylah’s and Jond’s relationship, mostly because I felt both characters could finally admit to how incredibly toxic it was, but it also showed how much either of them still couldn’t let the other one go. Also, there might have been a cat involved.
Anoor is the most boring of the characters we are following, mostly because her troubles as a discipline are interrupted in the most obvious ways possible, which makes her make obvious mistakes and accusations. The only real saving grace of her story is that we also get to learn what Hassa is doing during this time and the very end of Anoor’s journey where all that ridiculousness finally pays off. I just wish she’d been forced into that position in another, less cliché route.
Then we get a third person mixed in there. A young ambitious girl from a far-off land where all eight blood types live. Hers is a story of tragedy, zealotry, racism, and pain. To be clear, she’s the racist, the zealot, the one who benefits from these systems and suffers under them. This story is intriguing, and unlike other stories that pop up in second books, I found myself enjoying this one, and eager to figure out how it tied into the greater narrative. The only thing I found a little bit off, was that it had to be an ace character who was so villainized in this book. The fact that she wasn’t interested in romance was one of the things against her, but it can also just be read as one of the things that pushed her over the edge since she was basically forced to marry.
Overall, I adored this book. I consumed this book, and I’m already biting at the bit and wanting the third one.

Engaging even though it’s the middle book of a trilogy, interesting world building and characters; sometimes repetitive as characters learn same information, but different contexts still interesting; integrated third gender and several prominent queer characters.

Oh my goodness. Loved this story!

Let me first say that this book is DARK. Please read the TWs and no this isn’t for the weak.

Firstly, I really enjoy books that make me question religion and spiritually. Mainly becaus I’m spiritual an religious but recognize that this does not make the sects of religion nor the people perfect - I like that this book really explores that because I think its so important to bring attention to it.

The villain is one of the most compelling characters I’ve come across in a while. I’m excited to see where this goes in the final book!

I will say that I’m hoping Anoor becomes more useful. She just seems so powerless and useless that I keep wondering when her big moment is going to happen. This was part of the reason, why the book seemed to drag for me in certain chapters.

Nevertheless, it is a well written book and I can’t wait for the final installment which should keep me up all night. Thank you to the publisher and author for a copy of the book!

I received the eARC of The Battle Drum from the publishers/NetGalley in exchange of an honest review.

I thoroughly enjoyed the book. Saara’s storytelling just sucks you in and you can’t stop reading. The world built is very engaging. I had high hopes for book 2 and I was not let down.

Hassa is by far my favorite character in the book. I hate that she has to face so many injustices in her life. Anoor & Sylah continue to get on my nerves. Anoor is too naive. However, the way the book ended I have hopes for her. Sylah, I’m not sure about her. I do love her grit though.

I wish book 3 gives Hassa the ending she deserves. I also hope to see Anoor’s character develop. I can’t wait to read the next one!

This book was everything I hoped it would be and more. As someone who also worries about “second book syndrome,” I was pleasantly surprised at how much I loved this one (maybe even more than the first one?!). It picks up right where The Final Strife left off. I really appreciated the intro Griot tale, as it recounted many of the main plot points from book one (such a nice refresher). We follow many of the same characters but are also introduced to new characters (including a new perspective) as we explore new places within this world. I thought the world building in this second installment was magnificent! It was so detailed and intricate, making me feel like I could really understand this world.

The way El-Arifi has left hints of what was to come throughout this book and the first installment was amazing. I was constantly trying to figure out what was happening (in a good way!) and trying to put all of the puzzle pieces together. Every time I thought I had figured it out, a new plot twist was thrown in. Similarly, I think every character POV was compelling and there wasn’t a character I did not want to read from. Even better, the storylines were all separate and yet intertwined in such a nice, satisfying way. The ending has me desperately awaiting book 3! Definitely a 5 star read for me!

Thank you Netgalley and Harper Collins UK for providing me with an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and Del Rey for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

The Battle Drum picks up where The Final Strife left off, and we get to see the direct aftermath of that buckwild ending. Sylah and Jond are traveling to new lands, Anoor is now her mother's disciple, and Hassa remains in Nar-Ruta as a spy while also keeping an eye on Anoor. El-Arifi also introduces a new character as a POV character who becomes integral to the story and gives us some very interesting information

I really enjoyed going to new locations with Sylah and Jond and getting perspectives outside the Warden's Empire, as well as uncovering the secrets about the founding of the Empire. I did think of all the points of views, Anoor's was the weakest (this is a little more in line with a murder mystery) but the way it ties up and merges with other story lines was immaculate. I thought the spread of POVs was very well thought out and I enjoyed reading each one. As always I love the care that El-Arifi writes Sylah's addiction with, and I thought all of the character arcs were satisfying and interesting. I loved what The Battle Drum does with culture, religion, magic, and politics here and every new reveal had me gasping with delight. I also loved that we got a recap of The Final Strife at the beginning. It was so well-done and felt so natural, so major props for that.

I had a few quibbles. The pacing of the middle felt a little bit slow and it definitely felt like a Second Book(tm), and while I enjoyed Anoor's story, it did feel weaker, in part because the scope wasn't as large. But the ending of this book is so strong that by the end I found I didn't mind these things as much, because El-Arifi sticks the landing.

This was a genuinely excellent read that I had such a fun time with and I can't wait for the next one.

I got sucked into this second book. I loved getting to know the characters through their actions and behaviors. I liked Jond character so much in this book. No matter how nasty people are he looks out for those he is invested with. I love how Ads followed him around like a puppy. The world building was also interesting. I mean different colored bloods and cultures that went with them was pretty cool. I am hoping anoor and her love can reunite in the next book cause they would not stop yearning. lol. I look forward to more of the adventure.

This was one of my most anticipated 2023 reads so I was totally PUMPED to get the ARC.

Here is what I thought….

I loved it…maybe even more than The Final Strife. The pacing was excellent, I was always eager to pick the book back up. The characters are still getting themselves into stressy messy situations, at one point I wanted to scream and throw the book. Best of all were all the reveals, omg it’s one twist after another after another. I’m feral for the final installment!

Once again this author has blown me away! Saara El-Arifi is a mastermind when it comes to building the world. building suspense and hitting you with an amazing plot twist that makes you question everything that you know! Fans of The Final Strife will absolutely love this second installment in the series. I cannot wait to see how all of this ends. It was so great being back in this world and seeing my favorite characters again. I honestly cannot predict what will happen in the finale but I know that it will be epic!

The Battle Drum
The Battle Drum is the second book in the Ending Fire Trilogy, following the Final Strife, which was a brilliant first book for the series. Unfortunately it didn’t quite meet the same brilliance that the first book gave. So much information was given, I appreciated the expansion of the world and more of the lore but it was so overwhelming that I couldn’t quite follow the plot. The plot, I could hardly tell you what progress was made, it just felt so slow and filler-like. The first book had a an exponential curve of plot but then The Battle Drum felt like a flat-line with an occasional upturn.

Its hard to suggest this book without knowing what will occur in the third, if the third proves to bring a good conclusion to the story than this filler is worth it. But if it is more of what this book was like, it may become a Do Not Finish. I hope to see more in this series as I really enjoyed the first book and had high hopes for this one. My hopes for the third book are not quite as high, hopefully it improves.

Thank you NetGalley for giving me an ARC of this book. I preordered an edition of The Battle Drum from Goldsboro to have a matching copy with the one that came in the GSFF subscription, so I wanted to get started on this series to see if it was worth keeping. While I won't claim that the first one is perfect (all of those reviews about the author's fat phobia? Yep, it did happen and definitely not exaggerated) it was still well written and engaging and after finishing The Final Strife last week, I immediately picked this up because I didn't want to waste any time or forget any details. I ended up giving book one four stars, and while this one does rate lower for me, I will definitely be continuing the series.

In case you were wondering, there is ZERO comparisons of lard or any body shaming comments in this one directed at Anoor's size, at least that I remember. So for sure an improvement from book one. ALSO, in case it has been awhile since you have read The Final Strife, this book does start off with a nice refresher of what happened in the first book. Can all fantasy stories do this please? Even though I read them back to back, I loved that it was there. Let's normalize this in our fantasy books PLEASE. From there, I do feel like the story itself goes a bit downhill for me.

The middle definitely suffers from some pacing issues and dragged kind of a lot for me personally. It felt like it could have been shorted by at least a hundred pages or some conflicts reduced since they didn't really add anything to the story except to create more drama for characters that are already overflowing with tension at this point.

I also didn't like the Anoor and Sylah separation ONLY BECAUSE DAMN, are they annoying as hell when they aren't together. I loved Sylah's bad bitch attitude in book one. In The Battle Drum.... she's not that. She is a love sick teenager willing to cheat on the person she's wasted hours of my time pining for at this point because she's lonely. She cares nothing about her mission, nothing about the world as a whole, and just whines because she's horny. And if I thought that was bad, don't get me started on Anoor. She has zero personality except crying about how she misses Sylah and then CRYING SOME MORE thinking about how Sylah would be disappointed in her crying. It was rough to say the least.

Now, for the "twists"... Not good. At thirty-five percent I made a prediction with one hundred percent certainty on who committed a murder, and turns out, I was right. Also, a scene where Nayeli commits a murder? Also called what was happening there. And I get it, this is a fantasy and not a thriller, so the predictability doesn't necessarily lessen my enjoyment, it just made it feel like getting through those pages and pages of them trying to solve something that the author very obviously laid out for us, super tedious.

I feel like I'm making it sound too negative, and that's not my intention since I actually did like this book. I loved seeing other parts of the world and the plot and magic system expanding to give us an even wider view were well written, thought out, and executed. The inclusion of more characters and the developing relationships were also really nice and I don't think there was a single perspective or character mentioned frequently that I didn't want to know more about (except Ads, let's just forget about her annoying ass, thank you very much). I am not disappointed in this book at all and will be continuing the series whenever the next book is released.

I bought the first book so I could read this and I HAVE NO REGRETS. If you read The Final Strife and you think you have a solid foundation on the world and magic system ~ no you don't. You know nothing.

This was the best book that I've read in 2023 so far. It gave everything a book should give. As the second book in the trilogy, I feel like it was paced so much faster than the first installment. I know some reviewers stated that the middle dragged a bit for them, but I didn't really have that problem. The way that it is written is important. Sometimes you will be confused and sometimes you won't understand the relevance of something. You are learning about an expanding world WITH the characters who also don't understand the relevance of that particular thing. This book doesn't just hand you revelations, you walk the line with everyone else. As a result, I FELT everything right alongside the characters, their shock, their betrayal, their love, their heartbreak.

I also saw people complaining that Sylah and Anoor were separated for the whole book. I guess I'm not an expert on how the books were marketed, I'm sure a lot of people came for the promise of a lesbian power couple (which we all love) - but the romance is not the plot of the story. I personally loved how the story divided and we got to see Sylah and Anoor, who are both very human and flawed characters, fight their own individual battles in this interconnected plot. We also get more ghostings, some flawless side character development, and more Hassa who is simultaneously the most selfless and badass character ever.

Anywayyy...it was dark, it was raw, you should read content warnings, and then you should read it. ** Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review**

The Battle Drum by Saara El-Arifi

544 Pages
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine, Del Rey
Release Date: May 23, 2023

Fiction, Sci Fi, Fantasy, Runes, Magic

This is the second book in the series. In the first book, we meet:

Hassa – A Ghostling with clear blood
Sylah – An Ember with red blood
Anoor – A Duster with blue blood, the current Disciple
Jond – An Ember with red blood
Yona – An Ember with red blood and former Warden
Gorn – An Ember, chief of staff to Anoor and Yona

This book picks up with Sylah on the way over the Marion Sea. She needs to get help for Anoor so she can reuinite all the blood clans. Now we are introduced to Nayeli, who becomes the Wife of Kabut, the Godpower. She has a difficult marriage with Chah and it does not end with for them.

The book has a steady pace, the characters are developed, and it is written in the third person point of view from three different perspectives. I love the women in this book. They are different but have one thing in common. They are all strong women filled with determination. Each of them has a duty or journey to fulfill. The book ends leaving you wondering about the next book in the trilogy. If you like fantasy books, especially with fighting clans, you will enjoy reading this book.

In The Battle Drum, we continue Anoor, Hassa, Jond, and Sylah's stories. I felt that this book was a great follow-up to The Final Strife but it felt a little slow for me and I wish more time has been spent with Anoor. That being said it was a great read and I am excited to read more from Saara El-Arifi!

This book was as good as the first one! I love the writing, characters, and world-building. Saara El-Arifi takes you away from your life and transports you into another, and it's full of intrigue and drama, and magic. The book was magical.

Saara El-Arifi, you meanie, writing a book that is so good, and ending it like that and now I have to wait so long to find out what happens and I’m in pain.

In all seriousness, The Battle Drum (the second book of The Ending Fire Trilogy) was so riveting and so painful. Anoor, Sylah, and Hassa my beloveds are all back and all the POV characters included in this book were so enlightening. Without spoilers, this book had so many revelations and new mysteries. Saara does such an amazing job with the worldbuilding.

Like The Final Strife, this was a five star read for me. A very satisfying middle book in a trilogy. Thank you to Random House for the eARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you so much to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book early! When I finished The Final Strife, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on its sequel. This picks up not long after the conclusion of book 1 and expands the story and world building in ways that are both complex and easy to follow. The characters only continued to grow in complexity as well and new characters were introduced that are sure to be just as beloved. An excellent addition to the series that fans of the first book will not be disappointed in.

Those who loved The Final Strife will also love The Battle Drum. El-Arifi's sequel is just as exciting as her first, and is an absolute joy to read.

The Battle Drum has many hurdles to overcome - it's the middle book of a trilogy with a large amount of world building from multiple points of views. El-Arifi is able to overcome all of these hurdles brilliantly. She is able to explain so much history and magical rules of this world without it feeling "info-dumpy," and she keeps you intrigued the whole way through. She is able to keep you invested in the mystery without feeling confused. For having five POVs, she's able to write in such a way where you are never wondering where you are in the story, and each POV has its own individual voice. So well done. My only complaint is that I do not know when the trilogy's finale will be released.

There are a few typos and errors that need to be addressed before publication (the biggest one being a chapter from Hassa's POV labeled as Anoor's), but I trust these will be fixed by el-Arifi's editors.