This Ends in Embers by Kamilah Cole is book 2 of the Divine Traitors duology. Two weeks ago, I read book one, So Let Them Burn, the first book in the YA political fantasy with dragons! The heart of the story is two sisters, Faron and Elara and their love and belief in one another. Faron is the Childe Empyrean, a title given her by the gods allowing her to summon the gods infinite magic. Faron’s sister, Elara, is a couple years older, a good student, but she desperately wants to become a drake pilot. The sisters are challenged in this story because all is not as it seems. At the start of This Ends in Embers, Elara is now known as the Maiden Empyrean and Faron is considered a traitor to her island of San Irie. But, all is not as it seems and the two sisters still love and have faith in one another. I loved the character work on both Elara and Faron as well as the romantic subplots for each of them. No spice, it is YA. Overall, I enjoyed this book and this series and I give it 4 stars. The narration on this Advance Listening Copy was excellent. It was Narrated by Kamali Minter; Keylor Leigh
Thank you to #NETGALLEY and #HachetteAudio for my ALC.

It was nice to jump back into this world. I ate up the first book and the second one I devoured as well. This ends in Embers starts off where the first ended. That ending had my nerves in a jumble couldn't wait to start book two.

This time Farron is among the dragon riders while Elara is now the chosen one among her people. Elara has to learn to navigate the political field to get people to fight for their cause. This is not something she has ever done before she has always been a fighter. Farron has to watch herself now that she is among the enemy. We watch her grow and change as she finds out who she is without the power of the Gods.

I highly recommend the audiobook for this ends in Embers. Kamali Minter and Keylor Leigh did such a good job with bringing the characters to life. Each voice was nuanced and felt like their own person.

The ending was very satisfing. Did I wish the dragons could stay around? Yes but they were not needed anymore and had to go back just like the Gods. Elara and Farron are back together as they should be. I would like a prequel to this doology that told how the dragons came to be though.

Thank you to Negalley and Hachette Audio for an ARC for This Ends in Embers

I don't think I realized that this was going to be end of the series. I thought for some reason this series was going to be a trilogy. I really enjoyed the story and character development. Still, like the first book, I found the characters to be acting a lot younger than they were supposed to be (Yes, I know this is a YA Book). Loved the magical elements though and the action scenes. I also felt that the story felt a little rushed at the end. I would have loved to stay a little longer with the characters.

This duology is so underrated! I love every moment and I want more!

I loved the adult coming of age story. They battle so much within themselves and against the forces trying to destroy their world. There were so mane quotable moments. I loved the depth of the impacts of war: before, during and after. The writer seemed to do her due diligence with knowing the feelings of people who have experienced such hardships. This series is definitely one that will stay with me and is one many could learn from.

I did find it a bit complicated for the YA genre but it does seem to be upper YA in nature due to the ages of the FMCs. If you like adult fantasy, definitely check it out!

Thank you so much to the publisher and NetGalley for an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

The story of two sisters who were thrown into the war once again in too young age.
The story that will hold me at chokehold for a long time due to its nature. I loved the dynamics between characters and deep self actualization of those characters in certain moments. I loved how not everything that is evil stays evil and not all choices can be black and white.
And I love Jamaican vibe with food and culture. As second part in this duology it was a great continuation and I wish all duologies were written this way.
The audiobook did not disappoint. It was the best possible delivery of this story and I wouldn't have it any other way.

Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for a copy to review!

A satisfting ending to the series. I liked the character development and how both sisters played a part in the conflict, but the actual didn't woe me. Nevertheless, a duology that I recommend!

3.5 stars

A solid end to the series, and I again enjoyed the audiobook. But, if you're like me and forget most of what happens in books ten seconds after you finish it, I might suggest re-reading the first one. I was definitely a little confused. I still enjoyed listening to it, and the story was cool! It wasn't perfect, and definitely felt a little, moral heavy. I don't mind that, but I felt like the characters had some conversations and stuff that felt out of place, and it wasn't the best. There were some cool action scenes, dragons, and all that. Personally, I just didn't find it as engaging as the first one. I can't really pinpoint why, and I think it's more a me thing than a problem with the book. But, if you enjoyed the first one, I think you'll probably enjoy this one.

Thanks to Netgalley and Hachette Audio for the arc!

I will say it was easy to fall in love with these characters because of the narration and they definitely kept my attention especially with the accents used for certain characters that I was able to picture the scene and what was going on.

This is the conclusion to the Divine Traitors Duology, and I thought it ended on a high note. There is so much going on in this world and yeah Kamilah Cole is able to ground the story in a way where I wasn't feel lost. I enjoyed following along with Elara and Faron as they try to fight their way back to each other as well as their relationships with other characters including their love interests.

I found I enjoy ya fantasy that is aware that at the end of the day Elara and Faron are still teenagers who were forced to grow up way to fast and make decisions that they shouldn't have been making. It reflected in both Elara and Faron's character. I also appreciated the fact that this was a diverse cast of characters in a Queer Normative society.

Overall I think this was a solid YA Dragon Fantasy and would highly recommend.

This Ends in Embers is a fantastic conclusion to Kamilah Cole's Divine Traitors duology. The book picks up right where So Let Them Burn left off, and I was so grateful for that because what a cliffhanger! Cole adds many layers of plot in this second book while also successfully tying up all of the loose ends from the first. I would recommend this duology to young readers and adults who enjoy complex world building, political intrigue, and well developed characters. Additionally, Cole's depiction of colonialism and rebellion in this story is arguably the strongest I've seen in this genre. I also highly recommend the audiobook as the narrators do a great job bringing the characters and the world to life.

Thank you to NetGalley for my advanced copy.

I feel this duopoly is so under hyped and underrated ! It’s an excellent dragon fantasy, and hoping with book 2 completed there’s a flood of more fans.

Faron is bonded now to a villain after betraying her country. Elara is picking up the pieces and the new Empyrean leader. The roles are switched with Elara trying to save Faron and bring her back to herself.

Gray area between who is the hero and villain as more secrets about their world and history are revealed.

The world building is easy to follow, loved the sisterhood and emotional struggle between right and wrong, country over family. Satisfying conclusion !

Narration was great!

Thanks to NetGalley and Hachette Audio for the ALC in exchange for an honest review. Release date 1/28/25.

“But she was so tired of living in a world that forced her to whittle down her edges until she was smooth and palatable, until she was what everyone needed her to be instead of who she was.”

A fantastic conclusion to this duology!

What I liked:

I loved having both Faron & Elara’s POV, and reading what was happening on both sides and what each sister was going through.

I think that Cole wrapped up this story perfectly.

The audio narration was so well done! I loved that each sister had their own narrator, which made it easier for me to follow on audio.

What didn’t work for me:

I didn’t love this one quite as much as book 1, but there was nothing major that didn’t work for me.

This Ends In Embers was one of my most highly anticipated books after I fell absolutely in love with So Let Them Burn. And it did not disappoint.
This was a fantastic sequel and perfect conclusion to Faron and Elara’s story.

At the end of the day, this is duology about corruption, but also family (both blood and chosen). Faron and Elara are left scrambling after the events of the first book, separated from one another and on the brink of the second war of their young lives. Meanwhile, Iya is plotting to destroy and invade the surrounding nations with Faron by his side.

This was written just as beautifully as the first book. I genuinely cared for all of the characters (which left me heartbroken at the end) and the story progressed at a nice pace. And…dragons!

I do feel like this book was a bit darker than the first. The stakes were always high, but you can definitely feel the tension more in this book. So Let Them Burn had a lot of world building and character information, but it also had some fun and exciting scenes of riders communicating with their dragons and more lighthearted moments. This Ends In Embers is all about saving the world (and each other) from Iya’s destruction. I don’t think this is a bad thing. I think that if both books had the same vibe, I wouldn’t have been as invested in or worried about the fate of our characters as we reached the end.

I also want to point out that I listened to the audiobook performance of This Ends In Embers and I absolutely loved it. The quality and narration was great and really matched up with Faron and Elara in my mind.

I thought this was a wonderful conclusion to this duology and I can’t wait to see what Kamilah Cole writes next!

*Endless thanks to Kamilah Cole, Hachette Audio, and NetGalley for providing me with and advanced audiobook of This Ends In Embers in exchange for honest review*

This Ends in Embers picks up where So Let Them Burn left off as it's Book 2 in the Divine Traitors series.

Honestly, I had as difficult time with this book as I did with the first one. The writing didn't particularly captivate me. The story (for a story with dragons) was uninteresting to me. I honestly think this is not a bad book. It just failed to win me over. I'm sure it has an audience out there, but it isn't me.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this ALC. Kamali Minter and Keylor Leigh were fine narrators.

OMG, how much more can these girls take?!?

I am voluntarily leaving my honest opinion.

So Let Them Burn had me on the edge of my seat but this book! This book had me yelling at the pages! Picking up exactly where the first book left off Faron and Elara find themselves on separate sides of the conflict causing the story to dive deeper into the history of the land, really susing out the reason and need, if any, for there to be a seated Empyrean.

This is a true YA book, which is refreshing. Many YA-tagged books should be adult/ young adult, so kudos to Kamilah for writing a TRUE YA.

The narrators, Kamali Minter and Keylor Leigh did a great job of bringing the characters to life and pulling us into the world.

Thank you Netgalley, Hachette Audio | Little, Brown Young Readers, and Kamilah Cole for the ALC of this fun book!

This Ends in Embers is the second book in the Divine Traitors series and picks up after the shocking conclusion of So Let Them Burn. Cole continues to flex her world building strengths in This Ends in Embers. It was one of my favorite aspects of the first book, so I was excited to see it continue in this one. I loved getting to know more about the dragons and gods. With Faron and Elara separated, I thought Cole did really well to tie their storylines together into a cohesive story. As with most multi POV stories, I found myself drawn to Faron’s story over Elara’s. I did still appreciate Elara’s character growth, though. One element I struggled with was that Cole seemed to rely more on telling than showing at times. For the audiobook, I appreciate the choice to use two narrators, Kamala Minter and Keylor Leigh, to voice the separate POVs. It helped keep Faron and Elara’s stories separate in my mind. I also felt that both narrators brought appropriate levels of energy and emotion to the role to keep me invested. Overall, I found this to be a satisfying conclusion to the Divine Traitors duology.

Overall, it was a good sequel. Picked up right after the first book and raced off to the finish. The world and mythology is amazing and interesting

And we are back for the finally of the Divine Traitors duology. This Ends in Embers kept strong just like the first with a focused narrative and not a lot of nonsense. This book focused more on the characters and plot with world building not being as strong but honestly you got all you really needed in the first with some added clarity here on locations and lore. the political aspects were also expanded on much more but were easily followed and I think solid for a YA book. Just like the first I think the book started off strong and slowed a bit in the middle, but the payoff in the end was a fast paced action packed ending. Does not end in happily ever after which I liked. Actions all had consequences and some of those consequences were grave. In the end I would def recommend to YA readers. It is a fresh take on the fantasy genre, with hyper focus on the main plot that you can breeze through. Solid, solid fantasy duology. Thanks to NetGalley and Hachette Audio for the advanced audio copy.

I really enjoyed the first book in this series. But I simply couldn't get into this one. Which was a bummer cause I had been looking forward to it. I just couldn't connect with the story or characters

OH MY GOD!!! Y’all this book (and this series) is AMAZING! Don't walk, run to preorder this book!

This book is an epic finale in a beautiful duology. Genuinely one of the best YA fantasy books I have read. A story about war, love, family, imperialism, and the power of dragons and the gods; it is truly amazing. It is unique and really examines the impact of war, actions, and the difference between heroes and villains.

I literally cannot even fully put into words how much I love this book. Like the first one, it shows two powerful heroines who are pushed to their limits. I love the characters, I love the narration of the audiobook, I love the message, I LOVE THIS BOOK.

This Ends In Embers comes out on February 4th. Please everyone read it so I can have someone to talk to about this!!!!!!