Thank you to NetGalley and Orbit for an eARC in exchange for an honest review

I ugly cried my HEART out for the last forty minutes of this book. Full on raging against these characters and the decisions they were forced to make for each other. It was absolutely brutal and if I think about the ending for too long I upset myself again 😭
For me, this far outshone book 1 (and I really enjoyed the first book!!) and the knowledge that it's a duology and therefore now finished is pretty devastating.
One of the most immersive reading experiences I've had in so long, even when my e-reader was at home switched off I would be out and about still thinking about the characters. Finished and felt like I'd had my heart ripped out, 10/10

4.5 ⭐

What an epic conclusion to this story!
First of all, the writing is so much better compared to the previous book. Astounding!

The story picks up where the previous book ended. Right from the start we notice that the narrative is told through multiple POVs, which only enhances the entire reading experience. We get to see several sides and more insight to the plot, of the magic system and what forms this can take.

Unlike "The Jasad Heir", the tone and plot are a lot darker, there is so much happening that you absolutely find it difficult to put the book down! In spite of that, this sometimes leaves you a bit confused and makes it difficult to keep up. I would've honestly liked for something to be hinted at in the first book, to build some tension, leaving the reader with enough crumbs to still be shocked when a resolution was exposed in this second instalment.
We are presented a lot more about the lore and the world, but I would've liked to know more about the Awaleen and how they got to the point of the entombment. We are only given a bit of information about them at the end of the book.

Regarding the characters, I loved that their growth was done in such a natural way; they didn't go through a whole 180, but adapted and changed after going through challenging and heartbreaking situations (Sara, my heart shattered at the 93% mark!!)
I have to say: Arin's character arc was by far the best in the series. It's astonishing where he started and where he ended up; all that he went through and all that he learned; brilliantly done! Compared to Essiya / Sylvia, I found him a much stronger character. His feelings came through a lot stronger, I could empathize more.

I loved how the story just came together, how the conflict was solved. It wasn't just patched up and everybody was happy. It showed that everyone still had work to do to reach their happy ending, or something very close to it.
And the EPILOGUE! My God! It kept me on the edge of my seat. At some point, I started to think she cannot do this to us, she cannot leaves us like this. But in the end, we got what we expected until the very last sentence (literally!!). Beautifully done!

When I think about the fact that this is a debut duology, I get excited for what Sara Hashem might come out with next. This definitely had them all: unique lore, dark and action-filled plot, well-built characters that change and grow along with the story, a heart-warming romance filled with yearning. Oh, the yearning!

Definitely recommend The Scorched Throne duology!
Thank you NetGalley and Little, Brown Book Group UK for the honor of reading this e-arc!

This book absolutely captivated me in the most delightful way! What began as a quietly enchanting fantasy blossomed into an unforgettable experience by the final pages that genuinely resonated and astonished me.

The writing style was particularly remarkable. The author’s prose has an almost lyrical quality—elegant, reflective, and beautifully crafted. Each chapter pulled me deeper into the story, inviting me to pause and revel in the exquisite descriptions of pivotal moments. It’s one of those rare books where you find yourself marveling at how perfectly a scene is portrayed.

The plot itself felt intricately woven and complete. Everything aligned in a way that felt deliberate and earned. It's a rarity to find a duology that leaves you thoroughly satisfied, but this one nailed it!

I’m on the fence between giving it 4.5 and 5 stars—while it may not have been wildly dramatic or groundbreaking, its power lies in its subtlety, exquisite writing, and the impression it left on my heart.

That said, one aspect did frustrate me: the characters' constant neglect of sleep and food. I get it’s a fantasy world, but their extreme physical disregard felt distracting and pulled me out of the narrative at times. I longed for a touch more realism in their everyday survival.

Nevertheless, despite this one slight irritation, this duology shines as something truly extraordinary—subtle, moving, and utterly irresistible!

3.5 stars.

An enjoyable conclusion to the Scorched Throne duology.

We follow our fmc Sylvia who has been captured by the Urabi, who believe she is the one who can restore power to their former homeland. Meanwhile, our mmc Arin is in search of Sylvia at his father’s commands, however on this journey he learns some truths. I did like the enemies to lovers between Sylvia and Arin, and enjoyed when Sylvia could use her magic to appear where Arin was and we still got to see them interact with each other despite being apart, however it was just good and not amazing.
I enjoyed that we got multiple character povs, especially Sefa and Mareks, which I found particularly interesting after Sylvia’s magic had made them vanish at the end of the first book.

It was worth reading for the ending especially.

I did enjoy this duology, however it didn’t blow me away, but was still a solid read.

Thank you to Netgally and the publisher for providing me with an arc in exchange for an honest review.

I’m so sorry this duology is over! I had already enjoyed book one but I absolutely loved the end of this series, so many things that had previously been hinted finally start making sense and the complete tapestry is quite brilliant!
I loved our main characters even more and i very much appreciated the added povs and the focus on other secondary characters. I wish there was a novella to meet them again🥺
Overall this book has everything: a rich worldbuilding, complex, fascinating and visceral characters with twisted morals and ready to do everything it takes for the bigger picture. Silvya and Arin’s relationship is memorable, just think of this quote:
“ The home she had carved inside him, where the air smelled like her hair and the bells sounded like her laugh. A place where he could rest until he was old and weary, where he could only sleep with his hand settled over her heart”

The last part of the book was definitely bittersweet, painful to read as Essiya came to realise her fate but also hopeful until the last page. Well done!!

Thank you to orbit uk, netgalley and the author for a chance to read an arc of this beautiful, evocative book. All opinions are my own!

I am super grateful to the author for allowing me to be an ARC reader for this book

I absolutely loved this book, I will say the middle was kind of sluggish but I found myself wanting to go back to the book again and again in my free time which is the best thing you could ask for as a reader

I will say however that the ending didn’t give me everything I wanted. The conflict was perfectly executed however the aftermath was something I feel should have ended different. I won’t say too much as there are spoilers and I did still adore this book but the ending definitely bought it down from a 5 star

Absolutely adored the first book of this duology - The Jasad Heir.
Was so happy to be able to read the second and final part of this story.
Very unique story telling, and I'm very satisfied with how this story ended!

🌟🌟🌟🌟 4/5 stars

The conclusion to the Scorched Throne duology delivers everything I hoped for and more. Just like the first book, this sequel is packed with high-stakes action, emotional tension, and a rich, Egyptian-inspired setting that completely swept me away. I loved returning to this world—the mountain refuge, the ruined Jasadi fortress, and the desert landscapes were all so vividly described that I felt fully immersed in every scene.

Sylvia’s journey is just as gripping as before, if not more so. Her internal struggles, her fight to reclaim Jasad without losing herself, and her complicated connection to Arin kept me turning the pages. The stakes felt real, the magic was beautifully woven into the story, and I appreciated how the political intrigue deepened rather than just repeating what we saw in book one.

This was a satisfying, emotional conclusion that balanced character growth, war, and hope. I highly recommend the duology to fans of fantasy with powerful heroines, layered world-building, and settings that feel truly unique.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Sylvia, the chemist’s apprentice and Champion of Nizhal, is gone. Only Essiya remains now, Queen of Jasad. No longer supressed, Essiya’s magic reigns free and it is a force to be reckoned with. Unfortunately it is not her enemies that seem to be the main target, but her mind. With armies rallying against them the Jasadi’s have only one hope: raise the fortress of Jasad. The last person to raise the fortress died, but Essiya isn’t concerned about that. She’ll take a hero’s death over going insane and killing everyone. Her only worry is whether she can hold onto her sanity long enough to raise the fortress. And whether a certain Nizhal Heir will try to stop her, either to save her life or to destroy her people.

The slow burn enemies to lovers reaches peak tension in this book as Arin and Essiya stand on opposite sides of a decades old war. Every decision they make is driven by both love and anger, a balancing act which seems to work surprisingly well for them. Arin’s strategic mind comes into full play in this book and, despite the distance and opposition, they manage to work together to reach the joint goal of peace. This is thanks to the work done in the first book to build up their relationship to a point where they can now predict each other’s movements and the reasoning behind them; a very clever form of character development from Sara Hashem. I also love how in the first book their own secrets tore them apart and in this one the secrets of others work to bring them back together.

Individually the characters also go through a lot of development in this book, both learning to give freedom to their emotions instead of locking them away or ignoring them. Essiya learns how to think of others and make decisions for the greater good instead of purely for survival. She also begins to heal from the trauma of her childhood, embracing who she is and letting other in. Arin’s development is a lot more explosive. His logical world view also takes a massive hit, which leaves him fragmented and unstable. Instead of learning to let more people is, he faces a hard lesson about trust and who really deserves his. Only when they are together do these new versions of themselves make sense.

I found the ending of this book immensely satisfying. It has sacrifice and loss and grief, but it also has hope, healing and a touch of magic.

Thank you to Netgalley.com for providing me with an ARC of this title.

The Jasad Crown is the final installment in this Egyptian fantasy themed duology. This was a beautifully written finale, the pacing was better than book one and it was a fascinating read. The plot twists were brilliant and kept me reading. This is a very unique world with unique magic concepts that I really enjoyed.

I wish we had higher stakes, more action and battle scenes. It took a long time to get there and then it felt a little rushed and everything was neatly tied up/resolved quickly.

The epilogue made me so sad! I loved Arin and Essiya and I wanted more from their romance! They had to wait 10 years to be reunited. That killed me! I wish we had more of their romance on page. When they were together, you could feel the yearning & tension and the love between them. I just wanted more romance but I do understand that this is more fantasy driven!

Learning about Arin's history and his magic was so interesting. Learning about Rovial's magic within Essiya was also really good. It was a great twist too.

Overall it was a good conclusion to book one and I thoroughly enjoyed it. It would have been 5 stars had we just had a little more from Arin and Essiya. I also didn't really like the ending between them both as it didn't feel satisfying to me!

As a fantasy duology, it was very good!

hank you so much NetGalley and LittleBrownBookGroup UK for this arc, I couldn’t be happier.

There are some books that you love, but time flies and you forgot why, you forgot the details and you finally ask yourself what did I love about it?
And there are those books that crushed you, marked you to the bones, and that you will remember and cherish their first reading all your life. The scorched throne duology was of the latter for me.

Last December, I read the Jasad heir and it was already breathtaking. I did not expect to become so attached to the characters, so immersed in this gorgeous storytelling, nor did I expect that the book 2 could be as amazing as the first one (even better maybe? I can’t say).

I wish I could tell you, but no spoilers here so, if you haven’t read the Jasad heir yet, I can’t quite fathom what you are waiting for. You will embark for an Egyptian-inspired fantasy with a real enemies-to-lovers romance joint with the slowest-killing-you-burn that you’ll love.
This is epic (will left you gasping for air), tragic (tears incoming), magical (the magic system is fantastic yes), complex (so many plots that you won’t see coming at you), and I don’t know what else to say if you are not already convinced to embark on this journey.

Arin and Sylvia will have my heart for a long time (always), I loved them, I miss them already - and I want more (or maybe not, maybe I want to stay heartbroken by this epilogue that killed me).

I can tell you that it just became one of my favorite story, one I will re-read with dread, and a tissue box for it will kill me even now that I know how it goes.

𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐉𝐀𝐒𝐀𝐃 𝐂𝐑𝐎𝐖𝐍
𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒄𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒉𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒃𝒐𝒐𝒌 #𝟐

In the thrilling conclusion to the Egyptian-inspired Scorched Throne duology, a fugitive queen may be the key to restoring her lost kingdom of Jasad, but it could cost her everything and everyone she loves.

I loved this installment so much! The emotional depth, the characters and the world was so much more richer and beautiful to the point of heartbreak and disaster. The tone and plot of this book is darker and more complex than the first-- the stakes are higher, and the angst is angsting.

The political intrigue became much more descriptive in the second book. I feel like I understood the kingdoms and their rules much better and I really enjoyed watching it all play out as a part of the war strategy. The romance between Essiya and Arin continue to be slow burn and heat up over the course of the book. I feel like the author did a really good job about making the romance intriguing and interesting, but not overwhelming the overall fantasy story with it.

Essiya is the embodiment and epitome of rage, and she was such a complex and badass character. She was fascinating throughout the book and her magic is so powerful and had my jaw dropped many times. For Arin, we truly see the complexity of his character and how deep his layers run. We got to see a lot about his backstory and the curse, which made so much sense to the plot-twists and made my heart break for this man. He's so brave, even after everything and my heart broke for him when he was so afraid to love himself and Sylvia, vulnerable and defeated after everything unravelled and destroyed him.

Overall, it's a wonderfully heart-breaking, gut-wrenching and bittersweet ending to a beloved duology!

The Jasad Heir was one of my favourite books last year, the tension between Arin and Sylvia was perfect as well as the politics and world building.

This books frankly knocks it out of the park, I’m sat writing this at 12:23am after having sobbed for approximately an hour and I wouldn’t want it any other way.

This was just such a perfect book:
• a strong bad ass TALL!!! FMC
• an unbreakable found family
• enough tension that you could slice it with a knife
• BOTH OF THEM BEING OBSESSED WITH EACH OTHER!!

I don’t think I’ll ever forget the Scorched Throne Duology and I will be forcing everyone to read it

Thank you to NetGalley and Orbit for the honour of reading this phenomenal book

A very solid conclusion for the series- I appreciate that this wasn’t dragged out into 3 books, but I do think that the second half of the book was a little rushed. I believe this could have benefitted from being long as the book 1 with a slower paced conclusion. The inclusion of different perspectives was done much better than in the first book, I liked that we didn’t linger too long in Sefa and Marek’s heads. I do wish that I could have understood Marek’s dedication more after being in his perspective.

Emotionally, I’m devastated! I needed more from the conclusion to satiate me but I did like that we weren’t left us waiting for their reunion the entire book. I also think that Marek’s death was a little unnecessary but I suppose that’s war. I also did think Arin’s rise to Supreme was a little too easy, or perhaps it just appeared that way since he had been plotting and planning 10 steps ahead.

In terms of the Awaleen, this could have been fleshed out more, I would have liked the epilogue to have been the final chapter to have had a separate epilogue that showed more of the Awaleen’s reintegration as well as Arin and Essiya’s life together. I also would have liked to see more of Sefa’s time as Sultana or how Vaida chose to spend her second chance at life. I think we could have gotten more from the Rovial in her head.

Overall I enjoyed this thoroughly, and was genuinely laughing constantly, humour can be hard to translate on text but it was done very well.

Will be reading more of Sara Hesham’s work to come!

The perfect sequel! I loved every minute inside this book. True enemies to lovers and a impressive worldbuilding. I will read anything by this author.

What in the feet kicking, giggling, heartbreaking, laughing out loud, tears streaming down my face, complete emptyness was this????

I can’t thank NetGalley enough for this ARC!!! I’m left speechless.

I writes this in a state of tears….

Let’s start with The Jasad Heir. One of my favorites read of all time and so captivating with the story, characters, found family, banter, writing, world, creatures every damn thing. Read book one in 2023 and till this day I still think about that book …

Now to book two.

I’m in agony because it’s over and I have left one of my favorite worlds ever created.

I can’t even begin to describe how this books make me feel.

Sara Hashem is and absolutely beautiful storyteller and her world and characters come alive when you read.

The angst and the tension between the main characters are exquisite. The Egypt inspired world, the political landscape between four kingdoms with each of the heirs with a ”few” flaws are so fascinating to follow. How the stories moves by themself but are yet so connected to the whole picture and all the pieces fall in to place one by one. Not just with the present but the history hundreds of years back.

I want to share a Arin quote but I want you to read it for yourself, but I will say this, if you like a man on his knees saying things that will make kick your feet and giggle, please read this book.

A fantastic conclusion to two amazing books and with a fitting ending. Only wish there were 10 more books…

When I first read The Jasad Heir a few years back, I was stunned. I didn’t expect to be such in awe with the prose of the author, in so much pain with the stacks nor end up being so attached to the characters. For those reasons and more, I was so happy to get back in that universe. I missed it so much and was not disappointed by the second installment of that amazing duology. Thank you so much to NetGalley and Littlebrownbookgroup UK for this arc.

No spoilers here of course, but if you haven’t read the first book, what are you waiting for? The Scorched Throne saga is an Egyptian-inspired fantasy tale about a lost heir who ends up fighting as a champion to her worst enemy. The slowest-burn ever. It’s epic and tragic. The fight scenes are fantastic and don’t get me started on the magic system and lore of this incredible world. I think it’s safe to say that the second book was even better than the first. I loved the depth of the characters. The political plot was so intense, so good! It’s not a short book yet, I wanted more. I’m still not over the epilogue. CAN WE TALK ABOUT THIS EPILOGUE!! 😭 I feel so broken. We need a novella, please.

The only thing that was, while loving every character of this book, I didn't care much about the more secondary ones. But again, I'm not a fan of multiple pov in general so that's just my preferences.

There are minor spoilers for The Jasad Heir and The Jasad Crown in this review, so please be cautious.

This book deals with the aftermath of Sylvia’s actions at the end of book 1.
We get some additional POVs – Sefa and Marek – and Arin’s POV is more prominent here, almost equal to Sylvia’s, so we got more opportunity to be in his head, which was a plus for me. Her POV remains a first-person POV, the others are all in third person, and I preferred it that way. Marek’s doesn’t add too much to the story, even though I adore him, despite his personality seeming to begin and end with Sefa.
There was more romance in this instalment, which is great. Sylvia and Arin together equals chaos meeting order. And apparently beating each other up is their love language. Her magical creature basically adopts him – swoon.
The plot seemed to meander a lot and there were a variety of convenient things happening, supported by the soft magic system that allowed for just the right powers to be available when needed. One of the conveniences gave our two lovebirds the opportunity for fade-to-black sex in a freaky, magical part of the Essam Woods, though – so good for them, I guess. Otherwise, his magic-sucking ways would have turned this into a deadly experience for them both. A missed opportunity for some near-death thrill?
Both Arin and Sylvia were a bit too overpowered – Arin with his resistance to magic, his magic-depleting abilities, and his strategic mind always having a plan ready for everything, and Sylvia with her immense magical powers – so I never truly feared for their safety. It significantly lowered the stakes. Some adversaries have been got rid of way too easily to be believable, compared to their evil shenanigans in the past. I think that’s probably why I enjoyed Sefa’s side plot in Lukub so much – she had to rely on her more human-feeling abilities to survive and gather information there, her kindness being both strength and weakness. The threat of discovery and its consequences felt more real. I can understand the escapism and comfort that overpowered and highly competent characters can provide for a reader, though, so someone looking for that will probably find this aspect more enjoyable than I did.
So this is definitely more of a character-driven duology and my love for the main characters kept me reading. Sylvia’s downward spiral into madness the more magic she used was an interesting aspect that I would have liked to delve deeper into. I’d have liked to feel the danger of that looming consequence more. I liked Arin’s inner conflict concerning Sylvia's identity, and as he uncovered new truths, how it broke his cool façade. The rebels were surprisingly incompetent, acting way too impulsive. It’s telling when our chaos queen has more common sense than these people. How did they survive this long? I wish I could have got a better grasp for their characters that went beyond their individual powers being needed for plot reasons. The friction between the Sylvia-sceptical Efra and Sylvia was fun to read, though.
The writing excels in describing places, creatures and scenes – I could imagine everything vividly.
All in all, despite the weaker plot and lower stakes, I enjoyed my time with this sequel and can recommend it to anyone who loved the characters, Egyptian-inspired setting, political manoeuvring, and the hate-to-love, dagger-to-your-throat, forbidden romance of the first book.

Ratings:

- Characters: 8/10 x4
- Relationships: 9/10 x4
- Atmosphere/Vibes: 10/10
- World-building/Setting: 7/10 x2
- Writing: 8/10 x4
- Plot/Pacing: 4/10 x3
- Enjoyment: 7.5/10 x5
Total: ~ 7.54 = 3.75*

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the e-Arc in exchange for an honest review.

The first book in this duology was utter perfection. The romance between Arin and Sylvia was all consuming and the world building was enticing.

The first half of this book was good, I enjoyed how Arin and Sylvia reacted and encountered each other. Their love language of fighting was fun to read 😊 I liked how Arin continued to be his amazing self throughout.

I like the side characters Sefa, Marek and even Jeru. Although I found the different POV chapters boring and all the new characters, especially the Urabi were very forgettable.

The story fell flat for me in this finale. I thought Sylvias choices and actions made no sense or were very rushed so they seemed to come from nowhere. I had no time to feel anything (view spoiler) or let it sink in what Sylvia was doing, then suddenly it was all resolved. The End.

Thank you to Netgalley, the author and publisher for an eARC copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to the publisher for the earc!

I made it no secret that I had many issues with book one. I loved the main idea, but a few extra rounds of edits would have been nice. But still, it was interesting enough to make me want to read the sequel. And oh my gosh, it was amazing.

The story doesn’t pick up exactly where it left in book one, but there wasn’t such a huge time between the end and the beginning. We learn what happened to Sylvia, Marek, Safe and how Arin processed everything that was revealed.

I love the characters. My biggest reason to continue the doulogy was the epilogue, because it was intriguing, especially being in Aron’s POV. Well, in this book we have so much more from his perspective! I was ridiculously happy about this. We also got chapters from Marek’s and Sefa’s POV (for reasons I’m not spoiling) and it was so interesting to see the world from their eyes. Though the fact that only Sylvia’s chapters were in first person added a twist to all the other narratives. For me it felt like it was to highlight the fact that she is the main character, but we need the others to get the full picture. And I think it worked really well.

I still love Arin, that’s all I can say about him. (I fear I’d spoil too many things, if I continue.)

But at the same time I forgot how much I love Sylvia too. Her sense of humor, her sarcasm, her strength, everything. I was really happy to be reminded of what an amazing character she is!

One of my biggest issues with the first book was the fact that it needed another (or two) round of edits. Sometimes things didn’t make any sense. Luckily it was not the case this time! This might be the reason why it took 2 years to release, but I’d rather take a longer break between books than have something that isn’t up to my standards.

I still wish the book had a glossary, it’s filled with (possibly) Egyptian inspired words, and I’m not sure what all of them mean. I could usually guess from the context that it must be a title or a food or a piece of clothing, but it’s really annoying to stop to figure out what they mean. Oh and also a map. I need a map. I’m so lost with all the kingdoms and cities and everything.

Also I’ll never forgive a few things (again spoilers) and those last 2 lines?! Cruel. I need another book or a short story or something.

Anyway I loved The Jasad Crown, it was a beautiful closure for the duology. If you read the first book, but weren't sure if you want to continue, trust me, you do. Just read my review for the first book and see the difference!