A Reign of Embers

The Royal Spares, Book 4

By: Eva Chase

Narrated by: Meg Sylvan, Aaron Shedlock

Can you make peace with the god of war?

The balance of power has finally swung in my favor—on the mortal plane. It seems one of our gods objects to my new position and will stop at nothing to unseat me.

I'll have to rely on every trick up my sleeve, all the devotion the men I love have to offer, and the faith that's kept me strong through so many trials before. Even if that means watching my princes walk away.

Will my schemes end up destroying the continent I've fought so hard to protect? Or is it still possible to build a better world out of all these embers?

*A Reign of Embers is the fourth and final book in the Royal Spares series.*

©2025 Eva Chase (P)2025 Eva Chase

The Big Conclusion for Aurelia

What a beautiful end to a story filled with seemingly insurmountable challenges. This was a great way to end the series, and I loved how the author was able to round out and redeem seemingly irredeemable characters. The narrators did a great job bringing the characters to life. I particularly enjoyed hearing Aaron Shedlock. I've heard him voice some of my favourite characters in other audiobooks and he always does a particularly great job. I find his voice to be extremely appealing. The story balances the spice, with the love between the characters, and with the violence.

This last installment of the series built upon all of the very carefully laid groundwork that the author laid in the previous books. There wasn't much world building since the majority had already been thoroughly flushed out. The major character growth took place within one particularly important character, while the other characters returned like old friends.

The author created a believable and gradual shift in the way the courtiers, common folk, and other individuals in the story viewed Aurelia that made the story progress seamlessly. The level of angst in this book was markedly kess than in the previous books. The first book had the most with how high the stakes were and the level of violence. The level of cruelty between some of the characters was also dialed way back. These things were to be expected with the culmination of the story.

This story has love, loss, and all the feelings. I'd say it was a bit hard to get into at first, but I felt that way about books two and three, and only because of the emotional toll they took, and amount of violence in the first three books.

If you're looking for a somewhat serious, heavy, why choose romance, with not a whole lot of spice (two to three scenes in a pretty long book), with a pretty different take on a fantasy world, then you should take a try with this series. It was a heavy read with no comic relief and a lot of angst, so I'll definitely need a lighter pallette cleanser after this read but I have to commend the author for her creativity in crafting this world. I can honestly say the abilities, rule set, and general world is unique. It was very well done, especially the FMC.

HEA

The preamble to the war was longer than the actual battle; blink and you miss it.
A fitting ending to this story, the main characters get their HEA.

Soo good that I'm going to do it again...

“Sometimes blood must be shed to clear the ground for peace.”
—Aurelia

Conspiracies everywhere in this much-anticipated end to one of the most compelling series I’ve experienced.

What’s not to love about a slow-burn rebellion?!
I do recommend reading this series in order (and in completion). A lot happens in every installment and it’s a wild ride—every little detail makes the big picture even juicier.


🔥 Written in alternating, multiple POVs, like the rest of the series.
👑 Second chances.
🔥 Hardcore training.
👑 Strong female lead, one of the strongest I’ve met.
🔥 Fight scenes.
👑 Vi0lence, sometimes graphic.
🔥 Royals drama.
👑 Enemies-to-friends-to-lovers.
🔥 Endless conflict.
👑 Danger.
🔥Group scenes.
👑 War strategizing.

Overall:
There’s so much planning, plotting, scheming and danger—with those high stakes. I love it.
This entire series is binge-worthy and I will SO be back to do just that (assuming none of these titles inconveniently just disappear from my AudibleLibrary, like others before it have🤞🏻).

🎧 Audio:
Stunning—completely flawless production with a beautiful performance to boot. 5 stars.

Loved

Everyone gets their happy(ish) ending here—love interests, messy families, and Marcus, who deserves a medal for being the group’s emotional anchor. Was I hoping for a few more crossed swords? Absolutely. (What can I say, Why Choose is my kryptonite.) Still, the romantic moments hit hard, and the drama is just as addictive as in book one.

Aurelia is still a little too perfect—good, right, and adored by basically everyone—but I’ve decided I’m okay with it. Sometimes I want the girlboss fantasy, and she pulls it off with surprising softness. Think drama, romance, and a big ol’ heap of escapist fun, tied up with a satisfyingly messy bow.

Victory

This book brings to a close the Royal Spares Series; all the protagonists are present, and all survive the battle. The book shows just how strong the connection between Aurelia and her four husbands, yes, husbands, she married them all.

The ending was satisfactory and wrapped up the story well, but to get to the end, there was a lot of political intrigue as well as some incredible chemistry between the five leading characters

The narration by Meg Sylvan and Aaron Shedlock is excellent; each brought every character they portrayed to life beautifully