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Divine Traitors #2
This Ends in Embers
Perfect for fans of Raybearer and Fourth Wing, this astonishing sequel to the bestselling novel So Let Them Burn, follows sisters Faron and Elara as they fight on opposite sides of a war that could redefine their world.
Faron Vincent was once the saint of San Irie. Now, she’s done the betrayed her country. Alone, disgraced, and kidnapped, Faron is forced to help Iya grow his bloody empire. With her soul bonded to a ruthless killer, Faron has become an enemy to her people… and she fears they might be right.
Elara Vincent—the new Empyrean—must undo the damage her sister has caused. San Irie has been brought back to the brink of war as Iya proclaims that no nation will be safe from his brutal invasion. But how can Elara save her sister, her best friend, her country, and her world when she’s already cracking under the pressure?
This heart-pounding conclusion to the Divine Traitors duology pushes these unforgettable heroines to their breaking point and beyond. Because when the lines between hero and villain are blurred, deadly sacrifices must be made.
"Both a brilliant sequel and an epic finale, This Ends in Embers is a gut punch of a novel that will stay with you long after its ending. Cole balances breathtakingly high stakes with poignant character moments to craft a narrative so passionate it will burn a path straight to your heart." —Chelsea Abdullah, award-winning author of The Stardust Thief
Faron Vincent was once the saint of San Irie. Now, she’s done the betrayed her country. Alone, disgraced, and kidnapped, Faron is forced to help Iya grow his bloody empire. With her soul bonded to a ruthless killer, Faron has become an enemy to her people… and she fears they might be right.
Elara Vincent—the new Empyrean—must undo the damage her sister has caused. San Irie has been brought back to the brink of war as Iya proclaims that no nation will be safe from his brutal invasion. But how can Elara save her sister, her best friend, her country, and her world when she’s already cracking under the pressure?
This heart-pounding conclusion to the Divine Traitors duology pushes these unforgettable heroines to their breaking point and beyond. Because when the lines between hero and villain are blurred, deadly sacrifices must be made.
"Both a brilliant sequel and an epic finale, This Ends in Embers is a gut punch of a novel that will stay with you long after its ending. Cole balances breathtakingly high stakes with poignant character moments to craft a narrative so passionate it will burn a path straight to your heart." —Chelsea Abdullah, award-winning author of The Stardust Thief
408 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 4, 2025
100 people are currently reading
8603 people want to read
About the author
Kamilah Cole
6 books1,161 followersKamilah Cole is a USA Today & national indie bestselling Jamaican-American author, who has been nominated for a Dragon Award, a Lambda Award, a Lodestar Award, and an Astounding Award. She worked as a writer and entertainment editor at Bustle for four years, and her nonfiction has appeared in Marie Claire and Seventeen. A graduate of New York University, Kamilah lives in the Pacific Northwest, where she’s usually playing Kingdom Hearts for the hundredth time, quoting early SpongeBob SquarePants episodes, or crying her way through Zuko’s redemption arc in Avatar: The Last Airbender.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 326 reviews
March 13, 2025
the ending felt a little rushed but overall i had a great time being back in this world! i’m gonna miss all of these characters
August 11, 2025
they had me worried there for a sec ngl
April 18, 2025
ngl this was kinda mid and therefore the emotionally charged resolution just fell... flat
October 7, 2025
i cannot tell if this is a symptom of YA or i’m just picking up the stinkers but why do so many fantasy books have nothing of worth to say about the themes and terms they just throw around? you have such interesting concepts here: a country just after their revolution, going through after war, child soldiers having to pick that up when they thought they could finally be kids again, having to work with the people that literally aided in your country’s colonization and yet NOTHING is explored in any meaningful way? all the answers are so easy and simple. oh it’s not a systematic problem, it was just the single corrupting force doing all this, of course. oh we have a love triangle of the sort? let’s just kill one off instead of having to deal with any of that meaningfully. oh your sister appears to have betrayed you? let’s just say you always trust her and have blind loyalty no matter what. let’s no explore complex emotions. i’m so disappointed because it’s not everyday a book based on or inspired by the caribbean gets outside attention. i can’t even name a caribbean inspired book like this! and THIS is all we get? china gets poppy war and we get this? 😭 IM MAD!
June 26, 2025
Overall, I enjoyed this duology!
A lot of my thoughts are similar to the first book. I was happy to see the overall world expanded through more exploration of the lore, magic, and politics.
The intensity and emotions were heightened. The complex feelings and aftermath of the battle at the end of the first book were written so effectively. You can really feel it through the characters and their relationships with each other.
I enjoyed Elara’s character arc. It was nice to see her come into her own through her powers while still facing her internal struggles. Faron also had strong inner conflicts as she dealt with guilt, anger, and wanting to redeem herself.
Iya was impactful as a villain. I appreciated his layers that were explored through Gael and how they reflected aspects of Faron’s character.
But the writing became repetitive at times. I found myself feeling the story could have been fleshed out more and went deeper.
The ending (while a bit rushed) was exciting, action packed, and had me feeling many emotions.
There is a lot to be valued from these books and they told a wonderful story.
A lot of my thoughts are similar to the first book. I was happy to see the overall world expanded through more exploration of the lore, magic, and politics.
The intensity and emotions were heightened. The complex feelings and aftermath of the battle at the end of the first book were written so effectively. You can really feel it through the characters and their relationships with each other.
I enjoyed Elara’s character arc. It was nice to see her come into her own through her powers while still facing her internal struggles. Faron also had strong inner conflicts as she dealt with guilt, anger, and wanting to redeem herself.
Iya was impactful as a villain. I appreciated his layers that were explored through Gael and how they reflected aspects of Faron’s character.
But the writing became repetitive at times. I found myself feeling the story could have been fleshed out more and went deeper.
The ending (while a bit rushed) was exciting, action packed, and had me feeling many emotions.
There is a lot to be valued from these books and they told a wonderful story.
Want to Read
February 11, 2025I need this right NOW
February 10, 2025
This picks up right where the last book left off—and thank goodness because that intense cliffhanger was amazing but I've been thinking about it ever since. This sequel doesn’t hold back on action, yet it never sacrifices character development, particularly when it comes to the bond between the two sisters. This relationship resonated so strongly with me and was the shining light at the heart of this story. Their individual arcs are as fascinating as they are different, and it’s incredibly satisfying to see how their relationship endures even when they’re physically apart.
Cole expands the Jamaican-inspired world beautifully, tackling complex topics that add depth to this YA fantasy without diluting its story. While I appreciated that the story delves into weighty themes despite its young-adult classification, I was more invested in the sisters—and, to a lesser extent, their love interests—than in the plethora of secondary characters whose journeys and emotional beats sometimes felt less impactful.
One notable shift in this installment is that the gods, who were quite a bit more charming in the first book, come across as far less appealing. Which adds to their depth as well and contrasts sharply with the intriguing, dynamic presence of the dragons. The dragons here are much more interesting - even the big bad ones - adding layers to their personalities that I also found utterly fascinating.
That said, while This Ends in Embers improved upon some of the pacing issues of its predecessor—maintaining a brisk, engaging tempo for the most part—the ending did feel a bit rushed. And again, I wish that the sisters were actually together for some of this story.
The way Cole weaves together action, personal struggle, and the blurred lines between heroism and villainy is masterful. This was a great ending to the duology.
Thanks so much to TBR and Beyond Tours and the author for the complimentary copy and Libro.fm for the complimentary audiobook. I highly recommend reading the audio version - I adored the narration! This review is voluntary and all opinions are my own.
Cole expands the Jamaican-inspired world beautifully, tackling complex topics that add depth to this YA fantasy without diluting its story. While I appreciated that the story delves into weighty themes despite its young-adult classification, I was more invested in the sisters—and, to a lesser extent, their love interests—than in the plethora of secondary characters whose journeys and emotional beats sometimes felt less impactful.
One notable shift in this installment is that the gods, who were quite a bit more charming in the first book, come across as far less appealing. Which adds to their depth as well and contrasts sharply with the intriguing, dynamic presence of the dragons. The dragons here are much more interesting - even the big bad ones - adding layers to their personalities that I also found utterly fascinating.
That said, while This Ends in Embers improved upon some of the pacing issues of its predecessor—maintaining a brisk, engaging tempo for the most part—the ending did feel a bit rushed. And again, I wish that the sisters were actually together for some of this story.
The way Cole weaves together action, personal struggle, and the blurred lines between heroism and villainy is masterful. This was a great ending to the duology.
Thanks so much to TBR and Beyond Tours and the author for the complimentary copy and Libro.fm for the complimentary audiobook. I highly recommend reading the audio version - I adored the narration! This review is voluntary and all opinions are my own.
December 26, 2024
ARC provided via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.
last read of the year completed!!
Unique and thought-provoking, This Ends in Embers solidifies the Divine Traitors duology's place as a refreshing presence in YA.
To prepare for writing this review, I went and reread my review for the first book and was pretty surprised to see that my feelings on both books were almost identical. I still really appreciated the world-building and the conversations on generational trauma and the costs of war.
During this book, we follow Faron and Elara as they are separated due to circumstance and the rising war. Because of this, the world and the politics got to be expanded. We learn more about the history of their world, the dragons, the gods, and how the general public views the sisters'.
However, for me personally, this particular installment fell quite flat.
I found much of the book to be redundant and over-dramatized, with powerful sentences being repeated so many times they began to lose their meaning. The sisters still both acted incredibly young, which was something I struggled with in book 1. This is YA, the characters are meant to be young. I know that. But when you have characters that have been stripped of their childhood and forced into these adult roles, it's hard to believe that they'd still be behaving this way.
This also fell into the unfortunate YA habit of feeling very... teachy? Sometimes, authors write YA characters as an adult writing teenagers (rather than putting themselves into the mind of the character), filled with all of the lessons they want to get across and the encouragement they want to give to young people. Which is beautiful and admirable! But it doesn't feel like these characters learning those lessons on their own, it feels like the author is telling me to get my confidence back and not to kill.
I also found this a bit confusing, but I'm not counting that against the book. I've been especially tired this year and I'm more than willing to admit that might have been user error. I would recommend rereading So Let Them Burn before jumping into this one, if you need a refresher.
Overall, I stand by the fact that this duology deserves all the hype and praise it's gotten (and more!) Kamilah Cole did something incredibly interesting with what could have been a very basic premise.
While this book didn't entirely work for me, I definitely recommend it to people that love YA fantasy (+ don't mind YA that reads incredibly young) and want to read something that doesn't feel like everything else.
last read of the year completed!!
Unique and thought-provoking, This Ends in Embers solidifies the Divine Traitors duology's place as a refreshing presence in YA.
To prepare for writing this review, I went and reread my review for the first book and was pretty surprised to see that my feelings on both books were almost identical. I still really appreciated the world-building and the conversations on generational trauma and the costs of war.
During this book, we follow Faron and Elara as they are separated due to circumstance and the rising war. Because of this, the world and the politics got to be expanded. We learn more about the history of their world, the dragons, the gods, and how the general public views the sisters'.
However, for me personally, this particular installment fell quite flat.
I found much of the book to be redundant and over-dramatized, with powerful sentences being repeated so many times they began to lose their meaning. The sisters still both acted incredibly young, which was something I struggled with in book 1. This is YA, the characters are meant to be young. I know that. But when you have characters that have been stripped of their childhood and forced into these adult roles, it's hard to believe that they'd still be behaving this way.
This also fell into the unfortunate YA habit of feeling very... teachy? Sometimes, authors write YA characters as an adult writing teenagers (rather than putting themselves into the mind of the character), filled with all of the lessons they want to get across and the encouragement they want to give to young people. Which is beautiful and admirable! But it doesn't feel like these characters learning those lessons on their own, it feels like the author is telling me to get my confidence back and not to kill.
I also found this a bit confusing, but I'm not counting that against the book. I've been especially tired this year and I'm more than willing to admit that might have been user error. I would recommend rereading So Let Them Burn before jumping into this one, if you need a refresher.
Overall, I stand by the fact that this duology deserves all the hype and praise it's gotten (and more!) Kamilah Cole did something incredibly interesting with what could have been a very basic premise.
While this book didn't entirely work for me, I definitely recommend it to people that love YA fantasy (+ don't mind YA that reads incredibly young) and want to read something that doesn't feel like everything else.
March 24, 2026
2.5 stars. I wish I had more to say about this book, but most of my thoughts can be summed up as: 'It was fine, but less good than I wanted and expected it to be.' The first book had a lot of promise, and also a few holes where I thought the world building and fantasy and politics could use some work. And I expected/hoped that things would get better in in sequel, but instead... meh. I just wasn't that interested in the plot, and when I was, I found it either shallow or silly. None of the relationships were developed enough. Cute, but truly puddle-depth. I'm especially confused about a few side characters whose fate I was apparently supposed to be really invested in. Not only did I not care that much, the book didn't make me believe that the main characters ought to have cared either. So many things/threads that should have been better developed in the first book.
And the ending was so abrupt/unfinished. I thought we were going to do something more meaningful with the politics, but instead we just IDK I just feel really unsatisfied by so much here.
Listened to the audiobook as read by Kamali Minter and Keylor Leigh, and it was fine, but once again, I wish there could have been actual Jamaican narrators. I might come back and go over my notes and write a fuller review later, but I doubt it. My feelings about the book on the whole are very lukewarm. It wasn't bad! Just didn't really deliver on the promise I saw in the first book. I will say, I've been in a weird mood with my reading for a while, and it did take me longer than usual to read this. Lots of instances where I had to rewind and re-listen, because I kept getting distracted. But I never skimmed or anything, and I made sure to take notes, because I wanted to be fair to the book. And in the end, I think my feelings about the book would be the same even if I had read it in the best of moods. It was just fine.
And the ending was so abrupt/unfinished. I thought we were going to do something more meaningful with the politics, but instead we just IDK I just feel really unsatisfied by so much here.
Listened to the audiobook as read by Kamali Minter and Keylor Leigh, and it was fine, but once again, I wish there could have been actual Jamaican narrators. I might come back and go over my notes and write a fuller review later, but I doubt it. My feelings about the book on the whole are very lukewarm. It wasn't bad! Just didn't really deliver on the promise I saw in the first book. I will say, I've been in a weird mood with my reading for a while, and it did take me longer than usual to read this. Lots of instances where I had to rewind and re-listen, because I kept getting distracted. But I never skimmed or anything, and I made sure to take notes, because I wanted to be fair to the book. And in the end, I think my feelings about the book would be the same even if I had read it in the best of moods. It was just fine.
February 20, 2025
3.5/5 Stars
This Ends in Embers marks the conclusion to the Divine Traitors duology, bringing Faron and Elara Vincent’s story to a dramatic and action-packed close. Once the saint of San Irie, Faron is now disgraced, bonded to a ruthless killer, and forced to aid Iya’s violent conquest—making her an enemy to her own people. Meanwhile, her sister Elara, the new Empyrean, struggles under the weight of leadership, desperate to stop Iya’s invasion while trying to save her sister and her country. As war looms, both sisters are pushed to their limits, blurring the lines between hero and villain and forcing them to make deadly sacrifices.
I really enjoyed the first book and thought it was a strong debut YA novel, but this final installment didn’t quite have the same appeal for me. The attempt to expand the worldbuilding and develop the characters—especially Elara—was a solid effort, but with so much action driving towards the conclusion, it almost felt like we didn’t have enough time to fully flesh out some of the world-building or character development. I rarely say this but it may have benefitted from being made into a trilogy rather than a duology. I loved Elara’s character even more in this book and her and Signey’s relationship was great, though I was a bit underwhelmed with Faron’s character development. I found myself enjoying Faron’s POV chapters significantly less than Elara’s and I couldn't clearly understand her motivations behind staying with Iya.
That said, there were aspects I truly enjoyed, including the queer representation and how naturally queerness is embedded into the world. The demisexual rep, in particular, was fantastic to see, as it is so underrepresented in the fantasy genre. Even though this one didn't hit quite as hard as book one, I would still highly recommend the duology and feel like it is the obvious choice for people looking for a fresh and more diverse perspective on dragon fantasy.
Thank you to Little, Brown & Company and NetGalley for the opportunity to read This Ends in Embers as an e-arc.
This Ends in Embers marks the conclusion to the Divine Traitors duology, bringing Faron and Elara Vincent’s story to a dramatic and action-packed close. Once the saint of San Irie, Faron is now disgraced, bonded to a ruthless killer, and forced to aid Iya’s violent conquest—making her an enemy to her own people. Meanwhile, her sister Elara, the new Empyrean, struggles under the weight of leadership, desperate to stop Iya’s invasion while trying to save her sister and her country. As war looms, both sisters are pushed to their limits, blurring the lines between hero and villain and forcing them to make deadly sacrifices.
I really enjoyed the first book and thought it was a strong debut YA novel, but this final installment didn’t quite have the same appeal for me. The attempt to expand the worldbuilding and develop the characters—especially Elara—was a solid effort, but with so much action driving towards the conclusion, it almost felt like we didn’t have enough time to fully flesh out some of the world-building or character development. I rarely say this but it may have benefitted from being made into a trilogy rather than a duology. I loved Elara’s character even more in this book and her and Signey’s relationship was great, though I was a bit underwhelmed with Faron’s character development. I found myself enjoying Faron’s POV chapters significantly less than Elara’s and I couldn't clearly understand her motivations behind staying with Iya.
That said, there were aspects I truly enjoyed, including the queer representation and how naturally queerness is embedded into the world. The demisexual rep, in particular, was fantastic to see, as it is so underrepresented in the fantasy genre. Even though this one didn't hit quite as hard as book one, I would still highly recommend the duology and feel like it is the obvious choice for people looking for a fresh and more diverse perspective on dragon fantasy.
Thank you to Little, Brown & Company and NetGalley for the opportunity to read This Ends in Embers as an e-arc.
December 13, 2024
It was so nice to return to this world. So Let Them Burn was one of my reading highlights of the year: a story of sisterhood, the cost of war, finding yourself, and learning to forgive past mistakes, all set against this wonderfully vibrant, well realised Jamaican-inspired world - with dragons! This Ends in Embers picks up where the first book left - which I'm very glad for, because that cliffhanger had me so anxious! Like any good duology, the ending of the first book served as a sort of midpoint 'oh shit' moment for the duology as a whole. I honestly can't praise the pacing of these two books enough: every reveal was so perfectly timed, every twist perfectly placed. Similarly, the character building was so stellar - Faron's character arc in particular was very impressively done. She's a complicated character with a complicated past, and watching her change and grow in this duology was a delight. While Elara was my favourite in the first book, Faron stole the second for me. Overall, a really satisfying conclusion, and well worth the wait.
Thanks to Hachette Audio for the audio ARC!
Thanks to Hachette Audio for the audio ARC!
March 30, 2025
Real Rating: Hovering somewhere between 3.5 and 4 🖤
This book picks up immediately after the carnage of book 1 and I really appreciated the cohesive timeline. One of the things I loved about So Let Them Burn was the dynamic between Faron and Elara, and I was thankful to see that, even though they were apart for most of the story, that bond still held true. Furthermore, I loved seeing the relationships with other characters continue to develop and blossom, despite the struggles both sisters were facing. As always, I loved loved loved the inclusion of the dragons and the gods, and the lush world building.
I did have some concerns with some of the pacing, as the first part of the book felt extremely slow and the ending felt kind of rushed. However, I thought the final battle was well done and ultimately appreciate how everything was wrapped up.
Overall, this was a really satisfying end to the story and I’ll continue to read books by this author. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.
This book picks up immediately after the carnage of book 1 and I really appreciated the cohesive timeline. One of the things I loved about So Let Them Burn was the dynamic between Faron and Elara, and I was thankful to see that, even though they were apart for most of the story, that bond still held true. Furthermore, I loved seeing the relationships with other characters continue to develop and blossom, despite the struggles both sisters were facing. As always, I loved loved loved the inclusion of the dragons and the gods, and the lush world building.
I did have some concerns with some of the pacing, as the first part of the book felt extremely slow and the ending felt kind of rushed. However, I thought the final battle was well done and ultimately appreciate how everything was wrapped up.
Overall, this was a really satisfying end to the story and I’ll continue to read books by this author. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.
October 30, 2025
At its core, this series is about the love between two sisters. Yes, there is magic and dragons and imperialism and romance, but the relationship between the sisters is what had me the most in love with this book. Their relationship strengthens all the friendships and romances we see, and I adored how they always believed in one another. This is an amazing duology. It’s action-packed from start to finish. The macro worldbuilding was great. Did I wish the micro worl building was clearer on why they had to make calls by fire but had photographs? Yes. Yes, I did. But those little things in no way took away from how exquisite the writing is. There were so many lines that packed an emotional punch and also related to modern life. More hype for the Divine Traitors duology and Kamilah Cole, please!
February 5, 2025
Faron Vincent... the once saint of her country who has fallen from grace by betraying them. Bonded to a killer she must deal with being an enemy to her people, and figuring out where she goes now
Elara Vincent.... the new Emperyean who has her work cut out for her in sorting the damage her sister has caused. Her country is being brought to the brink of war by the very figure her sister is Bonded to
The line between being a hero and being a villian are not as clear as the two girls once thought, and they must assess what they will (and won't do) to find they path.
I was more hooked on book one but glad I finished up the series as its a great duology all and all. Really enjoyed all the depth of the bonds, between humans and dragons, and the connections and relationships that we seen more of along the way
Out tomorrow... thank you to NetGalley and Little Brown for the review copy, all opinions my own
Elara Vincent.... the new Emperyean who has her work cut out for her in sorting the damage her sister has caused. Her country is being brought to the brink of war by the very figure her sister is Bonded to
The line between being a hero and being a villian are not as clear as the two girls once thought, and they must assess what they will (and won't do) to find they path.
I was more hooked on book one but glad I finished up the series as its a great duology all and all. Really enjoyed all the depth of the bonds, between humans and dragons, and the connections and relationships that we seen more of along the way
Out tomorrow... thank you to NetGalley and Little Brown for the review copy, all opinions my own
February 1, 2025
2.75 stars
Thank you to NetGalley and Little, Brown Book Group UK for sending me a copy of this ARC for review. All thoughts are my own.
Having really enjoyed So Let Them Burn, I was extremely excited to be approved for the ARC of This Ends in Embers. However, I have found myself to be quite disappointed with this book.
This Ends in Embers follows immediately from the aftermath of its predecessor. Once again we are following the two sister POV's, separated once again from each other due to the events of the previous book.
This series is a great exploration of the impact of war and violence on people and the generational trauma that can come from that. The first book in the series, in particular, explored the racial side of colonialisation, but this seems to have disappeared entirely in book two (not that I am expecting characters to be regularly racially abused, but the racism from certain characters seemed to have ended by this book!)
I will start with what I enjoyed about this. The world was so much bigger and more interesting in this one than in the first book. I enjoyed learning about the different cultures and magic systems across this fantasy world and the different political structures they all have, which impacted the latter parts of the book. I do wish these new places were described more as they all blended into one for me.
The writing style is quite simple, which is to be expected for a young adult story. There were often times when it almost felt like parts of the story were missing. Often, you'd be told "time to execute the plan" or "time to go here" without any context as to why they are doing that plan or going to that place. The plotting was quite confusing because of this, and made me believe I had skipped pages without realising it! I'd then go back and reread previous pages and realise I hadn't missed anything. Maybe it's just my copy.
I also felt like the character's intentions and growth just didn't make sense. Maybe again they weren't explained enough to me, but I felt they were acting out of character quite often. The sisters especially were both incredibly immature, which does not make sense if you consider these two girls who grew up in a war zone, actually fighting in the said war at the young ages of 12 and 13 and then going back into another war again. The only character that seemingly acted as they should have done was Queen Aveline. Even other side characters should have been at least a little bit traumatised at what had happened to them!
The end of the book was also rushed and resolved too quickly, while the first three-quarters of the book was very slow, with not much happening. Due to the two POV nature of the book, you almost miss out on what was happening with the other character when separated during battle. This part of the story is quite linear, where you'd spend, for example, 5 minutes with one of the sisters, and then the next 5 minutes with the other. In that time you could miss what happened in the previous 5 minutes of the POV! I don't think I've seen this happen in a multi-POV story before, and it was quite jarring with that time missing from the story.
Overall, I feel this book fell flat for me and was a disappointing end to the series, having been really excited to finish the duology. I will pick up the author's future works, but I likely would not be rereading this one.
Thank you to NetGalley and Little, Brown Book Group UK for sending me a copy of this ARC for review. All thoughts are my own.
Having really enjoyed So Let Them Burn, I was extremely excited to be approved for the ARC of This Ends in Embers. However, I have found myself to be quite disappointed with this book.
This Ends in Embers follows immediately from the aftermath of its predecessor. Once again we are following the two sister POV's, separated once again from each other due to the events of the previous book.
This series is a great exploration of the impact of war and violence on people and the generational trauma that can come from that. The first book in the series, in particular, explored the racial side of colonialisation, but this seems to have disappeared entirely in book two (not that I am expecting characters to be regularly racially abused, but the racism from certain characters seemed to have ended by this book!)
I will start with what I enjoyed about this. The world was so much bigger and more interesting in this one than in the first book. I enjoyed learning about the different cultures and magic systems across this fantasy world and the different political structures they all have, which impacted the latter parts of the book. I do wish these new places were described more as they all blended into one for me.
The writing style is quite simple, which is to be expected for a young adult story. There were often times when it almost felt like parts of the story were missing. Often, you'd be told "time to execute the plan" or "time to go here" without any context as to why they are doing that plan or going to that place. The plotting was quite confusing because of this, and made me believe I had skipped pages without realising it! I'd then go back and reread previous pages and realise I hadn't missed anything. Maybe it's just my copy.
I also felt like the character's intentions and growth just didn't make sense. Maybe again they weren't explained enough to me, but I felt they were acting out of character quite often. The sisters especially were both incredibly immature, which does not make sense if you consider these two girls who grew up in a war zone, actually fighting in the said war at the young ages of 12 and 13 and then going back into another war again. The only character that seemingly acted as they should have done was Queen Aveline. Even other side characters should have been at least a little bit traumatised at what had happened to them!
The end of the book was also rushed and resolved too quickly, while the first three-quarters of the book was very slow, with not much happening. Due to the two POV nature of the book, you almost miss out on what was happening with the other character when separated during battle. This part of the story is quite linear, where you'd spend, for example, 5 minutes with one of the sisters, and then the next 5 minutes with the other. In that time you could miss what happened in the previous 5 minutes of the POV! I don't think I've seen this happen in a multi-POV story before, and it was quite jarring with that time missing from the story.
Overall, I feel this book fell flat for me and was a disappointing end to the series, having been really excited to finish the duology. I will pick up the author's future works, but I likely would not be rereading this one.
April 7, 2025
there is no right. there is no wrong. there is only the endless effort to leave this world a better place than it was the day before.
this series will always have a special place in my heart 🫶
this series will always have a special place in my heart 🫶
November 22, 2024
A solid conclusion that expands the world, sticks the landing, and is sure to please fans of the first. This book continues to follow Faron and Elara, two sisters forced to grow up too soon and survive far too many traumas, as they do their best to manage the immense responsibilities placed on them while still remaining true to each other and themselves. It's a tall order, and their failures are not few. Yet they persist, and if there's one thing this book seeks to instill, it's the importance of trying--of never giving up. It's a message sure to resonate with many teen readers, who will also find a lot to relate to in Faron and Ellara's struggles.
That said, I personally have always had a hard time caring very much about the lives of the sisters when so many others have been sacrificed due to their single-minded focus on each other. (Call me Desmond Pryor, I guess.) I was pleasantly surprised therefore, by this book's attempts to grapple with the ways in which their decisions have impacted the rest of the world and to hold them at least somewhat accountable for all the death destruction left in their wake. It certainly captures the ways in which colonialism and war deal damage to everyone involved.
All in all, an emotional and heartfelt story. And also Aveline is precious and can do no wrong. ARC provided by Edelweiss.
That said, I personally have always had a hard time caring very much about the lives of the sisters when so many others have been sacrificed due to their single-minded focus on each other. (Call me Desmond Pryor, I guess.) I was pleasantly surprised therefore, by this book's attempts to grapple with the ways in which their decisions have impacted the rest of the world and to hold them at least somewhat accountable for all the death destruction left in their wake. It certainly captures the ways in which colonialism and war deal damage to everyone involved.
All in all, an emotional and heartfelt story. And also Aveline is precious and can do no wrong. ARC provided by Edelweiss.
January 22, 2025
A worthy successor and finale to what was a fantastic debut! This was an entertaining and sweeping fantasy filled with dragon battles, sisterly love, political schemes. It picks up almost right after the first book ends and had great Game of Thrones vibes, but with Jamaican inspiration (I need to eat all the food in this book). While the ending was good and done well, I do wish it had been a little less abrupt.
February 6, 2025
Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC in exchange for my honest review!
It took me a long time to get into this book and it was probably not fault. I’m not great at remembering what happens and for some reason this one took a long time to click in my head.
We get back and forth POVs between Elara and Faron. I think there were moments that I really felt for them both but there were also a lot of moments I rolled my eyes a bit. The fight scenes were very well detailed and I really enjoyed the magical elements. We get to see some new things going on in this book. I also really enjoy all the characters this world brings in. A big thing for me was the end. It just seemed so rushed? Like it happened so fast and then it seemed too perfect. There were the necessary deaths and then it was over. Other than that, I really liked the pacing of the book. This was a very enjoyable duology!
It took me a long time to get into this book and it was probably not fault. I’m not great at remembering what happens and for some reason this one took a long time to click in my head.
We get back and forth POVs between Elara and Faron. I think there were moments that I really felt for them both but there were also a lot of moments I rolled my eyes a bit. The fight scenes were very well detailed and I really enjoyed the magical elements. We get to see some new things going on in this book. I also really enjoy all the characters this world brings in. A big thing for me was the end. It just seemed so rushed? Like it happened so fast and then it seemed too perfect. There were the necessary deaths and then it was over. Other than that, I really liked the pacing of the book. This was a very enjoyable duology!
March 9, 2025
Why is the writing in this book so bad? Is it because it infodumps like a 5th grader taking a state test? Is it the clunky dialog? The redundancy and repetition?
Maybe it's all of the above. But the mortal sin for this book is that it is essentially a repeat of the first, complete with the same will-they-wont-they tropes, and selfish, childish behavior.
There are so many better books about dragons out there, and I'm very excited to move on to those.
Maybe it's all of the above. But the mortal sin for this book is that it is essentially a repeat of the first, complete with the same will-they-wont-they tropes, and selfish, childish behavior.
There are so many better books about dragons out there, and I'm very excited to move on to those.
May 19, 2025
After the surprising and emotional ending of the first book, I’m desperate need to see what happens next.
December 13, 2024
Thank you to NetGalley, Hachette Audio, and Little/Brown Books for Young Readers for this advanced copy! You can pick up This Ends in Embers on February 4, 2025.
What a satisfying conclusion to a fantastic duology! Kamilah Cole really pulled multiple storylines together in a way that kept the plot moving while still letting us sit with the characters and their emotions. I really appreciated Faron's growth in this book as Iya, Gael, and Lightbringer showed her what it means to throw away your humanity. Even though Faron had the power to do the same, her decision not to was a great moment of growth and encapsulated her journey from that girl using the gods' powers for a footrace with her rival to one choosing not to kill her enemies.
While Elara's story didn't capture me quite as much, I did appreciate the evolution of her relationship with Signey and how they navigated it without being bonded anymore. I think it was important to show that soul mates can build normal, healthy relationships too without being "cosmically bonded."
Overall, this is a great political and action-packed YA fantasy with lots of dragons, lots of magic, and some great characters.
What a satisfying conclusion to a fantastic duology! Kamilah Cole really pulled multiple storylines together in a way that kept the plot moving while still letting us sit with the characters and their emotions. I really appreciated Faron's growth in this book as Iya, Gael, and Lightbringer showed her what it means to throw away your humanity. Even though Faron had the power to do the same, her decision not to was a great moment of growth and encapsulated her journey from that girl using the gods' powers for a footrace with her rival to one choosing not to kill her enemies.
While Elara's story didn't capture me quite as much, I did appreciate the evolution of her relationship with Signey and how they navigated it without being bonded anymore. I think it was important to show that soul mates can build normal, healthy relationships too without being "cosmically bonded."
Overall, this is a great political and action-packed YA fantasy with lots of dragons, lots of magic, and some great characters.
May 6, 2025
3.75⭐️
“If you cannot be their saint, why not be their villain? Why chase fame when you could live in infamy?”
This is a sequel, so I’ll keep it short and sweet. Although this one took me ages to read (my focus was off so I put it down for a while), I did really enjoy this sequel.
After the explosive end of the first book, I liked that this one picked up right where So Let Them Burn left off. There were a lot of changes that took a little while to get used to but I still felt invested in these two sisters’ journeys. Faron was as always the most unhinged one, and her storyline took a little while to capture me again. I really liked how Elara acted in regards to her changed situation. The plot was interesting and I was constantly wondering how it would end. Although this one didn’t quite live up to the first book, I still think this is a really great duology for anyone who likes dragons, Black girl magic and hella queer characters!
“If you cannot be their saint, why not be their villain? Why chase fame when you could live in infamy?”
This is a sequel, so I’ll keep it short and sweet. Although this one took me ages to read (my focus was off so I put it down for a while), I did really enjoy this sequel.
After the explosive end of the first book, I liked that this one picked up right where So Let Them Burn left off. There were a lot of changes that took a little while to get used to but I still felt invested in these two sisters’ journeys. Faron was as always the most unhinged one, and her storyline took a little while to capture me again. I really liked how Elara acted in regards to her changed situation. The plot was interesting and I was constantly wondering how it would end. Although this one didn’t quite live up to the first book, I still think this is a really great duology for anyone who likes dragons, Black girl magic and hella queer characters!
January 18, 2025
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.
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eARC courtesy of Little Brown Books
ALC courtesy of Hachette Audio
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eARC courtesy of Little Brown Books
ALC courtesy of Hachette Audio
May 21, 2025
3.5⭐️
This one didn't catch me like So Let Them Burn did.
I disliked Faron in this way more than I did in book one. I understand she's gone through MANY traumatic things but so have the other characters? Everyone handles trauma differently, but this is fiction. Faron was annoying and lacked the fight she had in her in the first book. The other characters were fine, I really liked Elara and Aveline in this!
As for the plot, I feel like there wasn't a lot happening in this book. This might genuinely be me but I feel like for a lot of this book nothing much happened. The battle at the end of the book slayed tho🫶🏻
This one didn't catch me like So Let Them Burn did.
I disliked Faron in this way more than I did in book one. I understand she's gone through MANY traumatic things but so have the other characters? Everyone handles trauma differently, but this is fiction. Faron was annoying and lacked the fight she had in her in the first book. The other characters were fine, I really liked Elara and Aveline in this!
As for the plot, I feel like there wasn't a lot happening in this book. This might genuinely be me but I feel like for a lot of this book nothing much happened. The battle at the end of the book slayed tho🫶🏻
February 17, 2025
I feel similarly about this book as I did with the first one. I liked the messaging and the positive representation in the book. I do think it was pretty rushed and there wasn’t enough time to fully develop some of the magic systems or the world-building. I think the duology might have actually benefited from being a trilogy, with another book preceding the first one, in which we get to see the original war played out. I think then there would’ve been more time to do further world-building as well as develop the characters and their relationships more on the page.
July 19, 2025
4.25
It's so hard to build a sequel to a great book, but Cole does it with Embers. I really loved this conclusion!
Elara is back fighting for the world's survival against an evil force, Iya, who wants to control the world with the help of dragons he controls including Lightbringer. After her sister's fall from grace, she has been gifted the Empyrean title which allows her to embody and summon the gods. You see maturity in her relationship with her sister, with her love interest Signey, and in how she deals with conflict.
In an effort to save her sister, Faron has tied her soul to the evil force who has taken over many bodies to carry out his work, including Reeve who is Elara's best friend and Faron's love interest. She'll do anything to save the people she loves, but does that mean she's like Iya who will sacrifice everyone for his will?
There's action right up until the end of this fight for survival. There's also more heartbreak as the two sisters fight separately to save their people.
It's so hard to build a sequel to a great book, but Cole does it with Embers. I really loved this conclusion!
Elara is back fighting for the world's survival against an evil force, Iya, who wants to control the world with the help of dragons he controls including Lightbringer. After her sister's fall from grace, she has been gifted the Empyrean title which allows her to embody and summon the gods. You see maturity in her relationship with her sister, with her love interest Signey, and in how she deals with conflict.
In an effort to save her sister, Faron has tied her soul to the evil force who has taken over many bodies to carry out his work, including Reeve who is Elara's best friend and Faron's love interest. She'll do anything to save the people she loves, but does that mean she's like Iya who will sacrifice everyone for his will?
There's action right up until the end of this fight for survival. There's also more heartbreak as the two sisters fight separately to save their people.
August 7, 2025
This was much better than the first one. Had a very good time! Interesting themes and characters. The problem was in the pacing for me. It felt very rushes and a bit all over the place. But dragons! And very cool at least.
April 23, 2025
This series has everything I wanted in a fantasy. The only reason it wasn’t a 5 star read was because it took me a minute to get into it. I’m excited to see what else this authors does!
January 15, 2025
3.5🌟 Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing an e-arc of this novel.
First off, let me say that I absolutely love the new covers on this duology. They're stunning. In this second installment, we continue to follow the sisters while they essentially switch places and attempt to free their world of pending tyranny. What I enjoyed most of this story was the expansion of the world to include places we had only heard about in the first book. I loved those scenes and wished we had spent longer in them. I loved the scenes where all the main characters were in the same general area and wished we had gotten more of that and also had everyone together more at the same time.
Getting more history about the Gods, as well as the dragons' origin in this world, was definitely a treat. Seeing the evolution of Faron and the comparisons between her and Iya were the most intriguing parts of the story for me. I liked seeing her sister get the chance she has always wanted and later growing to recognize the pitfalls of having such power and responsibilities placed on you. I will say, though, that I expected the girls to be a little more mature in their mindsets. Considering that their territory has been so engrossed in war for such a long time, I expected them to see the bigger picture way more than they did. Their singular focus on saving each other while the world burns and other peoples lives are ended or destroyed because of their decisions, grated on me very heavily.
If you like YA fantasies with communicative dragons, I say give this one a go.
First off, let me say that I absolutely love the new covers on this duology. They're stunning. In this second installment, we continue to follow the sisters while they essentially switch places and attempt to free their world of pending tyranny. What I enjoyed most of this story was the expansion of the world to include places we had only heard about in the first book. I loved those scenes and wished we had spent longer in them. I loved the scenes where all the main characters were in the same general area and wished we had gotten more of that and also had everyone together more at the same time.
Getting more history about the Gods, as well as the dragons' origin in this world, was definitely a treat. Seeing the evolution of Faron and the comparisons between her and Iya were the most intriguing parts of the story for me. I liked seeing her sister get the chance she has always wanted and later growing to recognize the pitfalls of having such power and responsibilities placed on you. I will say, though, that I expected the girls to be a little more mature in their mindsets. Considering that their territory has been so engrossed in war for such a long time, I expected them to see the bigger picture way more than they did. Their singular focus on saving each other while the world burns and other peoples lives are ended or destroyed because of their decisions, grated on me very heavily.
If you like YA fantasies with communicative dragons, I say give this one a go.
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