I. Fucking. Object.
The Incendiary
L.J. Claren
The Selvaren, book two
ebook, 618 pages
Published September 8, 2026
ASIN B0GK9HH9K4
ISBN 9781807222178
A searing slow-burn romantasy packed with yearning and heartbreak, non-stop action and devastating plot twists, The Incendiary is the sequel to bestselling BookTok phenomenon The Silversmith.
They thought she was powerless. Now she is unstoppable.
Everything that Ary thought she knew was a lie . . .
She has been caged and controlled, lied to by the ones she loved. Now she is finally free—with untamed magic sparking in her veins.
They say she is destined to lead an army against corrupted darkness. They say the man she loves is dangerous—that she will never see him again.
But Ary is done listening to what they say. She will choose her own destiny. It's time for her to burn.
My ideal FMC is one whom has had the worst of the world thrown at her and still comes out a sweetheart. Think Suren... Auren... Tisannah.
Ary is not that gal.
Rife with gender stereotypes and crowned with that Don’t hit me, I’m just a girl privilege seeking.
Two new characters and the author still couldn’t manage to break from the mold of oversexed males and the wilting females who recoil at the audacity of a crude comment.
Ary, under disguise as Fera, has finally arrived at Commencement, firm in her quest to free Gavin from his blood oath, prove herself among her people, and assert her authority over her betrothed, Commander Elias Winterton.
She is a capable fighter. She will not yield. And she will run her defiant mouth at every possible opportunity. But strike her and she’s going to cry out for the mercy of gender privilege. Insert eye roll, deep sigh of exhaustion, and the muscle twitching urge to hurl the book into the nearest bin.
I enjoyed Elias more than I thought I would. Far more than Ary at times. And yet, at other turns, each disgusted me equally.
Gavin is his typical I-decide-what-you-deserve simp self through a timeline bounce-back of four hundred years as readers get to experience their love story.
Ary has been neglected, lied to, abandoned, and starved. She's pissed. And I get it.
But the double standard was grating on my nerves, and I desperately needed the gender disparity bullshit to cease and desist.
This author overwhelmingly writes males preoccupied with sex and innocent little women whose ears burn at any lewd quip.
Oddly enough, it was Elias, the sluttiest slut that ever slutted, that actually had a mind capable of managing multiple tasks. Now, was he love interest material?
Hell no.
And for that, I appreciate the author's seemingly single-minded focus on not making Ary some fickle main character lured by any and all romantic contenders.
What I loved: (1) The timeline of Gavin and Aryella’s love story, (2) the chapter headings that depicted letters between the two, and (3) the villainy.
3 out of 5 stars. I don't know if I'll continue this series, but if I do it will be for Gavin... and Elias... and Simeon and Molochai. Those villains are villaining. But this felt like a chore to read. And Ary is a hot mess.
Available in ebook | paperback | audiobook
Previously in the series:
2026/45