Requiem

Burning Stars #1.5

by Rurik Redwolf

One day was all it took for Zethra's life to completely fall apart.

What should have been a victory turned out to be bittersweet at best. Her consort, Ishvar, had ensured that a cure for the Rehoz Virus was uploaded at the cost of his own life.

Zethra must bring him home to be buried. But she's not ready to let him go... and isn't sure if she ever will be.

Genres: Dragons, Fantasy

32 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 1, 2023

About the author

I like dragons.

Reading order, since I can't change it on Goodreads:

Main Series:
Ashen Dreams
Blackout

Side stories:
Requiem (Read after Ashen)
Afterdark (Read after Ashen)
Marooned (Read after Blackout, not yet released)

Reviews

[The Leg Man · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sad (in a good way)

I would thoroughly recommend that you read Ashen Dreams if you want to get the full eye-watering experience.

Short and heart wrenching, it truly encapsulates the grieving experience and what comes after.

[Timme9515 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great follow up story with another POV to deepen the end of the previous book. Short and good.

[Pierre · Rating 5 out of 5]

The aftermath of Ashen Dreams from another point of view, with all the conflicted feelings that the loss of a loved one and of a yearned for future can bring.

[Hans · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm a sucker for sad stories but I find a lot novels that tries to make an emotional moment miss the mark. I will say this short story delivers on being an actual emotional story.

To be honest, when reading Ashen Dreams I never gave Ishvar a second thought. So when he died I was kinda like 'aw that sucks... anyway'. While reading this though I actually came to appreciate both him and Zethra a lot more. Especially Zethra, who is given some depth in this short story.

The grieving and sorrow feels genuine and that is something I always look for in moments like this in books and other media. Yes, many people grieve in different ways so there really isn't a strict formula someone can follow to make it feel real but it still needs to be portrayed in an understandable and believable way even if it suppose to be a hero make a grand speech. At least for me it should feel that way.

I also enjoyed that we are introduced to a few new characters and get a good sense of their personality without it ever really being told directly to us.

[Predatoria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Definitely read Ashen Dreams before reading this book, and warning I have a couple spoilers about Ashen Dreams in this review.

Requiem definitely gave a nice sense of weight, meaning, and closure regarding Ishar's death and Zethra's grieving. I feel like it really leaves the entire storyline in a great place and is a good closure to Ashen Dreams.

It convey's Zethra's sorrow, grief, and anger and will to fight moving forwards too.

I even got teary-eyed a couple times, admittedly.

The short story is also filled with all the little details I love about these books that really make the world feel alive and real.

This is definitely a must-read after Ashen Dreams.

[Blaze Draconian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not a lot to say. The book is a 30 page story that deals with the aftermath of Ashen Dreams from Zethra’s perspective. If you’ve read that book then you are going to automaticaly want to read this one.

It destroyed my emotions, and gave me a lingering feeling of sadness. 10/10 would read again. XD

[Lincoln Hudgins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Now I’m sad. It’s a good book and what was needed after ashen dream. Wraps up Ishvar story perfectly but still sadly. If you haven’t read ashen dream go read that then read this.

[Sander · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow this short book emotionally destroyed me. Read Ashen Dreams first, it's pretty much required. Keep tissues at hand, you will need them.

[Katash Sierrette · Rating 5 out of 5]

All I am going to say is read Ashen Dreams first, then prepare to cry a lot. This is a very short story expansion of Ashen Dreams with the POV of Zethra. It gets straight to the point, is full of grief but fully warranted after Ashen Dreams.
This helps fill a hole that is made in the reader, but not fully. That hole never fully fills and you'll see what I mean in Blackout, Go read that after!