Thank you to NetGalley and Del Ray for letting me read an e-ARC of The Ending Fire by Saara El-Arifi! This book comes out September 10, 2024, so you have plenty of time to devour the first two books in this series before diving into this final installment. Don’t forget to preorder this from your local indie bookstore or library.

Readers rejoin our main characters where we left off - Anoor is preparing to travel with the Zalaam, Sylah returns to the mainland to search for Anoor, Hassa is dedicated to seeing the downfall of the Wardens and returning the land to the Ghostings, and Jond is working toward the same. We witness the rapid decline of Anoor as she falls further and further down the rabbit hole that Yona and the Zalaam have constructed for her as the Child of Fire. Sylah eventually comes to grips with the idea that Anoor is on the wrong side of the impending war while working hard to prepare their troops. Hassa and Jond are, perhaps, our hardest workers throughout this installment: Jond is traveling with Kara to secure allies for the ward and Hassa is preparing the former Warden’s Empire by gathering the Ghostings and ensuring that there is order in the ranks (while also working on her own bloodwerk technique after acquiring a special stylus).

The build-up and scenes of war were phenomenal, the character growth and development is ridiculously well-done, and I found the conclusion immensely satisfying (though sad in the countless losses). Watching these characters move through grief and heartache while also grappling with the end of the world was a thrill, and, needless to say, this finale blew me out of the water. This book had me neglecting other responsibilities just so I could keep reading, which is not common for me. Though I’m mourning the end of this beloved series, I cannot wait to see what El-Arifi continues to put out into the world, and I will continue singing the praises of this trilogy. If you love epic fantasies with masterful world-building, pining sapphic romance (slow-burn style), intriguing magic systems, queer-normative characters/universes, and characters who are so human that you love to hate them at times, this series is for you.