Into the Black

For fans of Victoria Aveyard's Read Queen and Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner's This Shattered World, Eros and Kora's story about grief, fighting to be recognized, and a fracturing society and relationships continues in this sequel.

The world ruler is dead, technology foundational to their society destroyed, and Safara is on the brink of collapse. Half-human, half-alien Eros is the rightful heir to the world throne, but before he can return to the capital, he’s abducted by a rebel group of humans who call themselves The Remnant—and won’t release him until he swears to help them overthrow the very government he’s inheriting.

With Eros missing, ex-queen Kora is determined to stave off mad grabs for the throne. But as royalty from across the territories flock to the capital, and a new charismatic candidate takes the spotlight, Kora sets off into the desert with a skilled prince-turned-bounty hunter to find Eros before it’s too late for both the future king and his kingdom.

"Eros and Kora are back after Beyond the Red in a political adventure where the world ruler is dead, important technology is destroyed, and Safara is on the edge of destruction. Eros was named as the rightful heir to the world throne, but many are hesitant to accept a half-human, half-alien as their king—including Eros himself. Ex-avra Kora is determined to find Eros and have him face his destiny, but she cannot do it alone. Royalty across the territories are introduced, including Deimos, who is seemingly on team Eros, and the former ruler Ashen who will stop at nothing to keep Eros off the throne. Told in alternating perspectives, Kora and Eros are again together and torn apart as they navigate their roles as political leaders. The sequel is slower paced than the first, with many open-ended questions left for the trilogy’s conclusion. The exciting world-building of an alien civilization and attention to detail makes up for the lack of action. Sexual content and mature language makes this more appropriate of older readers. VERDICT Fans of Beyond the Red will be eager to see how Kora, Eros, and their new friends evolve in this series sequel. A good choice for postapocalyptic fiction shelves."—School Library Journal

Praise for Beyond the Red

"An engaging and amusing read for fans of sci-fi romance." —School Library Journal

"The breathless pace of the plot, smoldering romance between Kora and Eros, and inventive yet comfortably familiar world will engage science fiction and romance readers alike." —Booklist

"Jae's writing style is a perfect mix of stop and go, and her world comes to life within the first few pages." —Lindsay Cummings, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Zenith

"Dangerous, exciting, and fast-paced . . ." —Francesca Zappia, author of Made You Up