Review: A Fire Endless (Elements of Cadence, #2) by Rebecca Ross

Review: A Fire Endless (Elements of Cadence, #2) by Rebecca Ross 

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

When I picked up the Elements of Cadence duology, I had no idea what I was getting myself into. I had no clue that so many things about the first book would work for me and that I would call it a favorite! 

I finished the first book, A River Enchanted, eager to write its review. I not only wanted to get my thoughts out, but I also wanted to get into the second book as soon as possible! 

A Fire Endless continues this duology’s trend of leaving me on the edge of my seat with its story, characters, and conflict! I am honestly blown away by how much this series affected me!

As I am about to go into the sequel, certain events from the prequel will be mentioned. I recommend reading my review of it if you haven’t done so already. 

With that out of the way, let’s see what the story is about!

Summary

The story opens in the spirit realm where the king of the spirits, Bane, is holding a meeting. As the spirits gather, they learn that Bane is looking to stop Jack Tamerlaine from calling upon them with his music. When the spirits decide to rebel against Bane for this, a dangerous disease descends upon the eastern side of Cadence, rotting the orchards and befalling innocent people. 

On the isle, Jack is still trying to cope with Adaira leaving the east. When he discovers the rotting orchard and learns of the spirits’ struggles with Bane, Jack decides to travel west to find a way to restore the orchard and stop the fighting. 

In the west, Adaira is adjusting to her life with her parents. When she learns that Jack has traveled there, she quickly moves to help him in his quest. However, as Jack and Adaira continue to search for answers, they discover that the disease rotting the east may be just the beginning of Bane’s wrath as the sickness hangs Cadence’s future in the balance.  

Thoughts

There is a lot to unpack here. Despite that, though, Rebecca Ross continues the trend of weaving together every thread set out within the story. Seeing Jack and Adaira again and finally traveling to the western side of the isle ended up being different, but captivating! I love how the spirits’ stories are expanded upon and how they are aligned with what happens in the present. 

All the elements of the narrative coming together is fascinating. Seeing the full story of the spirits and their hierarchy along with learning more about Jack’s family history and meeting Adaira’s parents all work to further flesh out this world in intriguing ways!

Now that I’ve gotten that off my chest, let’s talk about characters!

Characters

Jack Tamerlaine 

Jack’s journey takes a different turn here. Seeing him get wrapped up in the spirits’ conflict expands upon one of the most interesting elements from the prequel! It was awesome to see him go to the west side and try to solve the problem concerning the spirits. I love how, as the mystery deepens, he becomes more determined to find the answers. Seeing him get wrapped up in the spirits’ story and what it means for him and Cadence is gripping! 

I also really like his personal struggle, too. His desire to learn more about his family is incredible! Seeing him realize he wants more for himself and the people he loves hooked me on anything concerning his background. His resolve to find out more about his family and how to move forward made for a highly compelling character arc! While I have seen character journeys like this before, seeing how his family history tied into the clans’ divisions was interesting! 

Now that I’ve discussed Jack, let’s talk about Adaira!

Adaira Tamerlaine 

This time around, we see a different side to Adaira and I love it! Seeing her back with her biological parents allows for new relationships to form. This new setting puts her in situations that show her unease in this new environment. I love how she is confident and commanding on the outside while harboring her own inner conflict. Seeing her try to find her place amongst the Breccans while still maintaining her Tamerlaine side is awesome!

This inner conflict is very interesting to me. While she has moments of incredible courage, she keeps her misgivings secret. Despite her unease, though, even she wants answers about her past and I love that she is not shy when asking her parents for more information. And some of the answers she received were jaw-dropping and kept me hooked on her arc!

With that said, I think that’s all I have on the characters. Let’s move on to the structure!

Structure

This story continues using a lot of the same structural characteristics as the prequel, but some elements are expanded upon. Seeing the Cadence mythos intertwined with the present-day story is awesome! I love how the mythology is connected to what the characters are contending with. While this was an element of the prequel as well, here it is given a direct spotlight. 

I also love how the happenings in the east and west are covered, and what they mean for Cadence. It is really awesome how the mythology of the isle directly ties into how the two clans run their sides of the isle. Not only did certain things make more sense after learning about the role mythology plays in the society, but it also made me want to know more about the history of the setting!

Now that I’ve gotten that off my chest, let’s discuss the writing!

Writing

While I loved the mood and tone of the prequel, the writing of this sequel affected me for a different reason. The mood isn’t as dreamlike as before, but the tension is through the roof! This darker and intense mood reflects the change in setting. The writing continues to be incredibly tight, which helped to make the significant pieces of information stand out when needed. The prose is clear and concise, making it very easy to follow despite the many different angles of the plot. 

That said, the pacing did start to drag a bit toward the end. I suspect this occurred because there is a lot to this story, so there were several things that needed to be wrapped up, but it was done over several chapters. This means that the ending wasn’t as concise as it could have been. While I do appreciate everything being wrapped up, I am wondering how it would have worked if certain closures had been shortened to include only the relevant information rather than entire scenes. As it is, it feels like there are too many different scenarios being mapped out in their entirety, bogging down the pacing. 

Well, I think that’s everything I wanted to cover. Let’s wrap this up!

Conclusion

I’m still surprised by how much I liked this series. There are several ideas in this duology that I find fascinating! The interesting magical elements along with the fascinating mythology and overarching plot all come together to create a beautiful world that left me intrigued, breathless, and in awe! 

While I am sad that this series is finished, I can say that it was an amazing story, and I will absolutely consider reading more of Rebecca Ross’ work in the future!