*Emberclaw* by L.R. Lam is a dazzling finale to the Dragon Scales duology! Arcady’s daring infiltration of the arcane University of Vatra and their fight to prove their worth are gripping, while Everen’s struggle to reclaim his place among dragons is both heartbreaking and inspiring. The magical trials, intense stakes, and rich world-building, complete with dragons and wraiths, kept me hooked from start to finish. The bond between Arcady and Everen adds a layer of emotional depth, making this a perfect read for fans of epic fantasy with heartfelt character arcs and thrilling action!

Now that Arcady has been able to chang their seal and been admitted to the Citadel its all magic classes and making allies in an effort to fit in. But then the chancellors announce they will be holding trials for full and half scholarships, which Arcady cannot afford to miss. There’s just a few problems: they are being blackmailed by Larkin to investigate one of their professors and steal their research into The Elixir of Life, they’re dreaming about Everyn in increasingly realistic scenarios that might not just be dreams, and their lab partner is probably the assassin that almost killed them before.

There’s a wealth of new chatacters in book two—or should I say just a bunch of wealthy characters since all the nobility’s children attend school with Arcady now—but also the return of some of the old ones we were already familiar with. I wish I could say that I grew attached to them but to be quite honest I found them to be rather out of touch and self-absorbed. I wasn’t even particularly interested in Sorin’a pov chapters until she began to rebel from Magnes’s control and that was halfway through the book. I was far more invested in Arcady and Everen’s reunion and the mending of their relationship.

The romance here was perfect. Despite betraying each other in Dragonfall, Arcady and Everen spent the first half of the book hopelessly pining and longing for each other. It was so sweet. The fact that their bond even let them share dreams (although at first they were just guilty fantasies) just proved how deep their love for each other ran. When they did reunite their devotion to each other was unbreakable. They shared each others’ fears and albitions, the trust between them finally healed. I would have prefered a bit more of an epilogue detailing what happened to them after they defeated Magnes and brought the dragons back to Loc—perhaps LR Lam may write us a short story or novella about this? Did Everen and Arcady just live apart while he continued his studies? Did the dragons join the ruling consuls? Was war aboided with Jask? Who is raising the baby hatchlings and will they get bonded humans of their own? So many questions without answers!

My only issue with this book was the setting of the Citadel. It actually progresses very well with plenty of character development and action sequences, but honestly I am over the magic school lessons and the deadly trials the students end up facing to prove their knowledge and ability(it has always felt a little too much like Harry Potter to me). I understand it was all a trap set up by Magnes to capture Arcady and Everen but I wanted less magic lessons and more actually figuring out how to stop the Dreamer from awakening. Also the plot with Larkin’s blackmail kind of just fizzled out, making me feel like it was forgotten and just wrapped up quickly to avoid the plot hole.

Overall I enjoyed the book and would reccommend this duology to my friends and followers.

As a big fan of DRAGONFALL I was absolutely thrilled to receive the ebook of this sequel! This is the completion of the duology and it was such wonderful fun to read. Magical academia, heist, dragons -- what more can you ask for? I can't wait to get the hard copy - this was fantastic and I can't recommend enough!!

Thank you to NetGalley for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

This book is captivating! I was fortunate enough to read it this week, and I simply couldn't put it down. Without a doubt, it’s my book of the year—it's that amazing!

Although there’s a long wait until the release of Emberclaw, it will definitely be worth it. The story is addictive, intense, and deadly delicious. Personally, Emberclaw is my favourite in the duology.

Reading it brought me joy, especially as I learned more into the lives of the characters, particularly Arcady, Everen, and Sorin. The writing is beautiful, and the story lingers after you turn the last page.

A big thank you to NetGalley and the author for providing an eARC!

At the end of Dragonfall, I knew that it was not the end of Arcady and Everen; I knew that Sorin had a bigger part to play; I knew that Magnes was plotting something; and I knew that there was a reason that the alternating narration in the book was done in first person for Arcady and Everen and third person for all of the other character's view points. Last things first, the narration continues the style as in the prior book and the explanation to my question is provided at the end of this story (I had guessed it, but won't spoil for anyone who hasn't). Emberclaw picks up with a quick summary of the prior book which I appreciate in a sequel if it has been a while since I read the previous books (it is a bit of an info dump but as a separate section, skip it if you don't need it). The writing and pacing were better than Dragonfall and it was easier to get absorbed in the action and plot of this book. There is a good blend of action, adventure, romance, magic and dragons to the tale and I found the ending satisfying. Anyone who liked the first book of this duology will surely enjoy the conclusion. Those that haven't read Dragonfall but want a different take on dragon rider fantasies should start there.
I received access to this eARC thru NetGalley (for which I want to thank NetGalley and the publisher, DAW) for an honest review. The opinion expressed here is my own.