A Throne of Smoke and Ruin

by Hailey Gonzales

My fated mate betrayed me.
A five hundred-year-old fae warlord is trying to kill me.
And now I'm a princess.

After unintentionally revealing myself to have royal blood and hatching three baby dragons, the king wants me dead.

I'd run if he didn't have my sister. And since the magical barrier keeping a mysterious warlord known as 'the Great Evil' is failing, I have no choice but to fight alongside the king.

But I won't take this lying down. I'll find a way to solve all my problems, even if I have to sacrifice the world to do it.

A Throne of Smoke and Ruin is book two in a steamy, dragon rider romantasy that includes enemies-to-lovers, political intrigue, a MMC with shadow powers, and fated mates.

677 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 19, 2026

About the author

Hailey Gonzales lives in a small town in California. She adores her dog, Miley, who is the cutest animal in the multiverse. Hailey enjoys writing Urban Fantasy, Fantasy, and occasionally, Contemporary. But most of all, she loves to write about found family.

Reviews

[Tammy · Rating 3.5 out of 5]

3.5 I really enjoyed the beginning. Towards the middle, I felt like it was dragging..

With that ending, I need to read book three though!

[Stinkin’Good Good Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

The kingdom is on the verge of ruin from the Great Evil. There are alliances and treason.

I love the balance of plot and spice. We have a bit more story going on here for book two. Trying to navigate an unfit king, the great evil getting stronger and closer to bringing the kingdom to ruin, and Selena being the Nestmother and of royal blood, she tries to plan the best way for her people to be safe and win this fight that is on the horizon.

Selena and Keiran's fated mate bond continues to grow and there is still some rocky spots to get through.
We get more into Gareth's story and that makes me so happy.
I love this found family, learning their stories and where they are headed.
Mystery still surrounds so many parts of this story, who exactly is The Great Evil and why, how did they contain him and why, where is Clara and Wes, what will the Dragonsguard do next to keep the kingdom safe and what will become of the hatchlings.

[Sam Carr · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️
This book is a fun, action packed read. It took me a while to get into the flow of the story as there is lot happening and multiple POVs to follow. I found my concentration flickering out through the middle section of the book, things seemed to drag a little, but picked up again towards the end.
I enjoyed the mix of characters a their different dynamics. I enjoyed reading the different POVs and liked finding out more about Gareth. Loved the baby dragons! I find the lore surrounding the dragons really interesting.
Lots of political intrigue and secrets. Enjoyed all the plot twists and the surprise ending! Looking forward to book 3.
Thank you to Hailey Gonzales for the opportunity to read an advanced reader copy. All thoughts and opinions are entirely my own and voluntarily given.

[Alexandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book picked up shortly after the cliffhanger ending of book 1, so we are thrown right back in it. Selena is dealing with new dragons, surviving Luther and his drama as well as the fallout from all of Kieran's secrets being unraveled. I liked how she stood firm and got him to properly apologize. I also enjoyed how there was more of the story than her relationship with Kieran. Don't get me wrong, I do really enjoy their romance and I really liked the spice in the story. I was just caught up in and liking reading all of the action happening outside of their relationship, with the bigger series issues. It was nicely balanced, in my opinion. I had a good time with this book and can't wait for the next book to see what happens!

[Becky Veszelei · Rating 3.5 out of 5]

I initially received this as an ARC in exchange for my honest review, the book is now published but it took me a while to finish.

I loved the first book and was extremely excited for this one, so much so that I thought I would finish in a day or two maximum. Sadly this wasn’t the case… a lot of parts I don’t even remember. I feel like it was dragged out and only when I was about 80% in did I feel like it was getting better and to the level the first book was at. Only because I liked the ending so much will I still want to read the third book as well, because I need to know what happens!

The author still did a great job with world building, political intrigues, love and the overall writing. It just dragged out too long for my taste.

[°•~✨Joy✨~•° · Rating 5 out of 5]

ARC REVIEW

Part 2 of the story is out and did not disappoint 🥰
Politics, intrigues, secrets, revelations, plot twists, this book has it all.
I'm so happy there are multiple POVs 🥰🥰
Gareth is really an interesting character and I'm hopeful he'll be able to grow and prosper alongside his people. I believe there's a hint at a romance for him, too. We'll see how it evolves 😊💕
Surprise POV at the last chapter. Not a surprise the choice that's made, they are siblings, after all 💕
As usual with Hailey Gonzales' works, I can't wait to know what happen next 😘

[Maria Mieling · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this as an advanced reader copy from the author and I am voluntarily leaving an honest review.

I really love these characters and the story. This book was A LOT! It wasn’t just character development but world building and plot development that made this book a bit more challenging to tackle. I loved it but it was a lot and some parts felt like maybe they could be novella worthy or bonus chapter worthy that would have made the book as a whole shorter and easier to follow. I will say that I am rooting for Gareth and wanted way more of him throughout the book. Overall 4.25 ⭐️

[Sam · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved it!
Fans of FW and Quicksilver will too!


🌟Fated Mates
🌟Dragons with personality 😍 🐉
🌟 BABY DRAGONS 😍
🌟Shadow Daddy who melts/kneels for FMC😍
🌟FMC who repeatedly calls everyone on their crap 👌🏻
🌟CHARACTER 👏DEVELOPMENT 👏

👀 waiting on the antagonist to get what's coming to him.

Ben definitely gave Ridoc/Carrion vibes and I'm here for it.

Gareth and his books 😂 yesssssssss





Can't wait for book 3!!!

[Allie Bridges · Rating 3 out of 5]

The beginning was so good! I felt the middle of the book was a lot more world building and it took me a while to get through it. Then ending sucked me right back in and I’m looking forward to book 3! I really enjoyed reading from Kieran and Garth’s POV. The biggest disappointment of this book was not getting to see more of Selena’s power. Fingers crossed the next book we get to see more magic and major battle scenes.

[Paula Dawes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Baby dragons for the future

Selena is now a princess and Nest Mother to 3 baby dragons. With her fated mate Kieran she needs to keep her found family safe while trying to find her sister Clara. Lots of action and new bonds to build.

[Jackie · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

It took me a little bit to get into it, but once I was a little into it I could not stop thinking about this book! That ending has me impatiently awaiting book 3. Highly recommend!