Quick Synopsis – Cayden Veles, renowned Demon Commander of Vareveth, overthrew the throne to save Elowen Atarah, the woman he searched for since childhood. Elowen has everything she thought she’d ever want. Finally reunited with her dragons, she now has an army to enact vengeance, but as events transpire, she begins contemplating if she wants more. Fighting and winning a war will require trusting Cayden, her partner in crime and now king to her queen; the man she both longs for and doubts, especially after opening her heart only to become a pawn in his game.

Navigating the shifting allegiances amongst all the kingdoms of Ravaryn will require all their strategy and strength, with devastating and bloody attacks on one side and cutthroat diplomacy for alliances on the other. But Elowen and Cayden must find a way to stand strong within the power they’ve gained, or risk losing everything.

Song This Reminds Me Of – Work Song by Hozier

Publication Date – July 26, 2025

Bookshop Link – Wrath of Dragons by Olivia Rose Darling (I get a small commission if you use my link to order)

My Review of the First Book – Fear the Flames by Olivia Rose Darling – Book Review

Content Notes – There is depiction of past violent child abuse for multiple characters, violence against animals, violence against dragons, and war throughout the book (more violence and blood). This is an adult romance with sexually explicit scenes. There is some misogyny and sexism.

Steamy Rating – 🌶️🌶️🌶️

Overall Rating – ⭐⭐⭐out of 5

Review – This is the second book in the series, you definitely need to have read the first to understand this book.

If you like Romance Fantasy as a genre, you’ll probably enjoy both books immensely. For me, I had several issues with the overall pacing and plot for this to be a 5-star read. I did enjoy the story, but I felt like the ending was a gotcha moment done for shock. It felt like the author ran out of ideas and that’s where she decided to take the story.

We start the story right after the events of the first book. The first 100ish pages are Cayden and Elowen rebuilding their relationship….which was about 50 pages too much. There was so much time spent mooning over each other and not enough time furthering the plot. Even when they go to rescue more of Elowen’s people, it’s still kind of dull. Once the pair get married, there is a swifter movement in the plot. I did enjoy the battle scenes and the political intrigue. Especially Cayden and Elowen meeting other royals. I felt like we had more opportunities for them to grow as a couple and individual characters. Cayden and Elowen also each had some separate story lines. I like it when characters can develop outside of the love story.

The main issue I had besides the pacing was that there were too many tropes. We have soul bonds, inappropriate use of a signet ring, magical tattoos, touch her and die, and other common tropes. It just felt like too many one right on top of each other. It just felt like the author was regurgitating other people’s writing. I just wished there had been more original writing. Also, no matter how many times there was evidence of Gods/Goddesses, both Cayden and Elowen would deny their existence. It was frustrating and also very naive. Like you have all this evidence around you that these beings are real and you’re just going to be like nah. That makes no sense.

Am I going to keep reading this series? Probably. Am I going to love it? I don’t know, I’m hoping the next book will exceed my expectations.

Thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine Delacorte Press for the advanced copy, all opinions are my own.