The Embrace of Steel & Sorrow

A Celestials of Arcadia Standalone

De: K.L. DeVore

Narrado por: Amanda Leigh Cobb, Michael Gallagher

Before there was Griffin Silas, there was Chrome Freyr…

Two elite teen Kinetic Warriors must protect the princess at all costs, but they never anticipated that they would both fall in the process.

Chrome Freyr, the greatest Kinetic Warrior in living memory, is only sixteen years old. The only mission on his mind is to protect her, the princess. For reasons he can't explain, he feels an intense compulsion to save and nurture her, having been drawn to her energy since that fateful day on the playground when he was ten years old. However, King Forest does everything in his power to keep the two apart.

When asked to protect the princess in Chrome's stead, Slate Helair, a fellow elite warrior, doesn't hesitate. The plan to remove the king from power depends on the princess's well-being and strength, so he'll play his role in fostering her confidence and abilities. However, he doesn't expect to be drawn in by her simmering fire, which he is unable to resist during her training sessions.

The insurgency is in its infancy stages to permanently remove the king from power in order to spare the world from unfathomable chaos. The members must walk a delicate line to keep their secrets hidden and those closest to them shielded from the king's wrath. One slip-up could cost them everything they hold dear to their hearts.

The Embrace of Steel and Sorrow is the first installment of the interconnected prequel trilogy to The Celestials of Arcadia series. Leading up to the events of Devolution Day, twists and turns are revealed that lead to the mind-blowing ending in A Touch of Gold and Madness. With themes like angst, warrior bromance, betrayal, forbidden romance, and palace intrigue at the forefront, dive into the tragic past lying within the truths that captured fans of A Touch of Gold and Madness.

The Embrace of Steel and Sorrow is a dark urban fantasy romance centered around heavy topics regarding trauma and mental health. Although the characters are aged as teens, this is not a young adult story.

To avoid massive spoilers, it is highly encouraged that you listen to A Touch of Gold and Madness prior to the first installment in the prequel trilogy.

©2024 K.L. DeVore (P)2025 Podium Audio

Underrated

I bought this book originally thinking it was the 2nd book, not knowing that there was a prequel. I agree with the author this book is 100% important to read before going into the 2nd book. The story building and character building is amazing. It’s a terribly sad story at times but it made me realize so many things and understand the characters so much more. Ugh I loved it. Just wish the 2nd book was on audible too.

Nah.

I don’t know if it’s because I read a very well done fantasy book before this or not. But it just felt so juvenile (they are kids) in the writing style. The author tells you what they feel vs describing it. The triangle was strange. And half the plot lines in this book were erased from memory so what really was the point of this book? For me I won’t be continuing, but I would recommend it to a YA reader.

prequel not a standalone

This book answers many of the questions that took place before the events of A Touch of Gold and Madness. I truly believe it should be read after the main story to fully understand the direction the overall storyline is heading. While it’s labeled as a standalone, it honestly functions much more like a prequel. It ties so closely into the main series that I can’t imagine it being read entirely on its own without losing context.

The story is told from the perspective of the male lead, along with his closest friends and family, and reveals everything he endured at the hands of the king—and even his own mother. It sheds light on what was happening behind the scenes while the princess remained completely in the dark. This book is heavy with trauma and suffering; while it doesn’t go into graphic detail, there are strong references to disturbing events, so readers should be mindful of trigger warnings.

Overall, it answered a lot of lingering questions and left me even more excited for book two. I really enjoyed the plot and the depth of the characters—secondary characters included. The story adds significant layers to the worldbuilding and magic system, making it easy to fully immerse yourself in this universe.

this was awful

I did not like the male narrator that took over. He sounded robotic (ew) I gave the performance a 2 star because of the female narrator. This whole book was weird and I hate that it had nothing but teenage hormones and boners in it. The first book was decent and I was hoping the second would be awesome and im about to DNF this bad boy. I get that going back in time to explain certain things but i feel like this whole book is based on them being teenagers and seeing whos ding dong is bigger than the other and dont get started on grim. He was annoying AF.