So Let Them Burn

De: Kamilah Cole

Narrado por: Keylor Leigh, Kamali Minter

Whip-smart and immersive, this Jamaican-inspired fantasy follows a gods-blessed heroine who’s forced to choose between saving her sister or protecting her homeland—perfect for fans of Iron Widow and The Priory of the Orange Tree.

Faron Vincent can channel the power of the gods. Five years ago, she used her divine magic to liberate her island from its enemies, the dragon-riding Langley Empire. But now, at seventeen, Faron is all powered up with no wars to fight. She’s a legend to her people and a nuisance to her neighbors.

When she’s forced to attend an international peace summit, Faron expects that she will perform tricks like a trained pet and then go home. She doesn’t expect her older sister, Elara, forming an unprecedented bond with an enemy dragon—or the gods claiming the only way to break that bond is to kill her sister.

As Faron’s desperation to find another solution takes her down a dark path, and Elara discovers the shocking secrets at the heart of the Langley Empire, both must make difficult choices that will shape each other’s lives, as well as the fate of their world.

"By turns hopeful and devastating, So Let Them Burn is a masterful debut with a blazing heart. I was captivated from beginning to end by Cole’s sharp, clever prose and by her protagonists—two remarkable sisters with an unforgettable bond." — Chelsea Abdullah, author of The Stardust Thief

Reseñas de la Crítica

Morally ambiguous and absolutely magical Black girls take the fate of their world into their own hands in this action-packed, cleverly crafted fantasy that will leave readers clamoring to know what happens next.—Booklist

Via the sisters’ expertly balanced dual POVs, each imbued with a lushly wrought, moving, and action-packed narrative, Cole delivers a raucously enjoyable debut that provides an insightful look into the ways in which violence and colonization can affect a populace long after a war has ended.—Publishers Weekly

Cole’s astute prose brings the world and its characters, who are predominantly Black, to life in refreshing and complex ways as it highlights themes of family, patriotism, war, identity, and sacrifice. An engaging new voice and a Caribbean-inspired fantasy to savor.—Kirkus

Tender, witty, and with a plot that will keep you glued to the page, SO LET THEM BURN is a beautiful exploration of what happens after becoming the chosen one—and how even when the legend ends, the story doesn’t.—Hannah F. Whitten, author of THE WILDERWOOD DUOLOGY

A riveting adventure, a deft exploration of colonialism, and a deeply moving tale of a fierce and complex sisterly bond. So Let Them Burn will keep you up all night reading, and then linger with you for long after the final page.—Ava Reid, award-winning and internationally bestselling author of The Wolf and the Woodsman, Juniper & Thorn, and A Study in Drowning

What happens after the chosen one wins the war? So Let Them Burn explores the aftermath of victory, contending with the responsibility and impossible pressure of power. Kamilah Cole’s sweeping, heart-pounding debut is a book about bonds: between warrior and country, rider and dragon, chosen one and the gods, and, perhaps most importantly, the complicated yet impenetrable bond between sisters. With characters who will grip you by the throat, a skillful commentary on colonialism, and an immersive world filled with dragons, danger, and deception, So Let Them Burn is a remarkable addition to the fantasy canon, establishing Cole as a powerful new voice in the genre.—Adrienne Tooley, author of Sweet & Bitter Magic, Sofi and the Bone Song, and The Third Daughter

Gods, dragons and mechanoids all war against each other in a deeply imaginative and fantastical twist on colonization and island history. With fierce protagonists and compelling conflicts, SO LET THEM BURN is a YA fantasy to root for!—Namina Forna, New York Times bestselling author of The Gilded Ones trilogy

So Let Them Burn elevates the game, asking hard questions about the power and agency of a chosen one whose destiny has been seemingly fulfilled. By the time you see the claws, they're already around your throat.—Margaret Owen, New York Times bestselling author of Little Thieves and The Merciful Crow

BookTok led me here... I'm glad

As the headline suggests, I stumbled upon this book through BookTok drama. And this time, it did not disappoint me. Overall, I enjoyed reading the book. The storytelling was excellent, although some parts were a bit slow for me. However, it's a slow-burn story, and when it picked up the pace, it really got exciting. The only thing that disappointed me was the lack of dragons in the book. Given the title of the book, I was expecting more dragons. In my opinion, the book should be called "Let Me Save My Sister" instead. If the author comes up with a sequel book, I will undoubtedly pick it up!

okay

It was good, but it'll be hard to like the main character. If that's a problem, don't read.

Jamaican culture and dragons that’s a first for me!

I love stories with dragons and being Jamaican myself found it cool that it had Jamaican cultural references sprinkled throughout the novel. However, i thought that voice actor could have made a better attempt to say the Jamaican words better and the description of the food was explained in a very white-washed way. Still a good book though.

A fair start

A good start for a new author. I enjoyed many parts of this book, particularly the characters and the theme of forgiveness, how hard that can be. I did not like the ending, and that it seemed to take a while for the story to pick up. If i do read the second book, i hope the writer corrects this.

The love of two sisters

I enjoy the book, I didn’t like how it ended… but I would recommend it to others

The Ending Could’ve Been Solved With Open Communication

Not long enough. Powers could’ve been explored more. Dragons were kinda in the book. The whole ending could’ve have been averted with one simple conversation.

Wow

A great book. I am so ready to read the next one! WOW
Was not expecting the ending

Why are people mad?

The basis of the book is sending dragons from a different plane back to their realm by way of emotional and relatable narrations from two sisters while including subjects like colonialism, racism, and sexism.
Reasons I liked it:
1. Excellent world building
2. Caused self-reflection
3. Kept my distractible brain engaged
4. Story was deep with many layers
5. People mad about the lack of dragons need to re-read the book
6. Great narration with distinguishable voices for each character
7. Maintained universal laws (physics) and all deviations were explained/accounted for
8. Started in what felt like the middle of the story which accelerated the action to earlier in the text, not relying on half the book being background info
9. My pattern recognition wasn’t able to solve the mystery/there was an unexpected ending

I am the queen of dishonesty!!

What a great book! I absolutely loved “So Let Them Burn.” I enjoyed the Jamaican inspired YA fantasy. It had a great diverse representation, and a good plot to it. In my opinion it’s a lot better than Fourth Wing 🤷🏽‍♀️

I wanted so badly to like this book...

So Let Them Burn is a young adult fantasy with magic, dragons, and gods, heavily inspired by the authors Caribbean roots. You can feel her reverence for her culture on every page. It is so refreshing to have a story where European culture is not the focal point. Sadly, that is one of the few things I enjoyed about this story.

Our story has split POV, following Faron, the Childe Empyrean who has the unique ability to channel the gods, and Elara, her older sister who ends up bonded to an enemy dragon. Our two main characters are strong, shaped by their love for each other and the war they fought as children. A war that has not left any visible signs on the girls, or the queen. There is only a slight mention of what sounds like a PTSD attack from Faron, and other than that both she and her sister seem to be perfectly fine though they fought on the front lines during their early adolescence.

Relationships also make very little sense, both romantic and platonic. One of the longest platonic relationships in this narrative is Faron and Queen Aveline. At 11 years old Faron became the chosen one and her first instruction from the gods was to find the princess and crown her queen. The issue is, the princess didn’t know she was a princess, so she was removed from the only life and family she knew and forced to rule a nation. Faron looks at her with respect and admiration, but Aveline still holds resentment towards Faron for that, though it has been years, and she is an adult now. She wants Faron to be an obedient trained monkey and wants nothing to do with her any other time, lashing out at her often when they are alone. Then there are two romantic relationships and neither of them are believable. Signey Soto and Elara seem to have nothing more than their bond and physical attraction... Faron absolutely hates and distrusts Reeve. Yet somehow, they all fell in love. The author didn’t spend enough time establishing the change in feelings to make it believable.

There are also worldbuilding and plot inconsistencies. Travel from Deadegg to where they are looking for the drake's new pilots is through the mountains, yet Elara can walk there in less than 12 hours without being tired and gross? Then she joins the military, is assigned a squad, and arrives in the capital in less than 24 hours? Unless there is time travel or the drake pilots offer a ferry service in their downtime, that’s not possible. We have a map of the area and it’s just not feasible. Often, foods you could eat today (jerk chicken, hot sauce, and bag juice), are referenced on the pages, and it might be nit picking, but I don’t like to recognize much of the food from my fantasy novels, for me it breaks my immersion, nor was it explained how they have disposable plastic when they get around on horse drawn carriages. There are also phrases used that don’t make sense in a fantasy setting. Things like “apartment-style” dorm rooms or the “quick recap” the sisters need to give each other are far too modern. Final point, why does our villain have four identities? The third name they gave was completely pointless and didn’t benefit the story.