The editorial case for Ruthless Vows
What we liked
Separation, memory, divided loyalties, and renewed writing keep the relationship active under direct political and divine pressure.
What did not work for us
The gods remain archetypal, military resolution is compressed, and several side characters serve the couple's path more than their own.
Where it tested our patience
The opening must reestablish Roman's circumstances and Iris's response before letters and agency reconnect the two lines.
Does the ending reward the effort?
Yes. The couple and war receive clear closure, with grief acknowledged rather than erased by romantic reunion.
Best fit: Divine Rivals readers wanting direct continuation, wartime separation, recovered intimacy, and complete duology closure.
Reading Ruthless Vows closely
Iris returns to Oath bruised and grieving while Roman wakes in Dacre’s realm with his memories erased, and the story splits them onto opposite sides of the same divine conflict.
Instead of trying to top the swoony surprise of magical typewriters, Ruthless Vows leans into consequences: trauma, missing time, loyalty tests and the ugly realities of propaganda. Iris and Attie head back to the front as journalists, trying to tell the truth about a war their own city refuses to face, while Roman becomes the polished voice of a god he barely understands. The letters between them shift from meet cute magic to a lifeline that slowly stitches identity and trust back together.
In terms of age rating and content, this feels a touch heavier than Divine Rivals but still firmly in the YA bracket. The focus is on wartime danger, grief, nightmares and the cost of power, with several intense battle scenes and on page deaths. Romance wise, the relationship is passionate and tender with some implied intimacy and fade to black moments rather than explicit detail, so it suits readers who want emotional heat more than graphic spice.
For anyone wondering if Ruthless Vows is darker than Divine Rivals, the answer is yes in mood, not in nihilism. The stakes are higher, Dacre is on the page more often, and Roman’s amnesia hurts, yet the book keeps circling back to hope, chosen family and the idea that words can still change the tide of a war. Read in order as Divine Rivals first and Ruthless Vows second, it works as a satisfying conclusion that answers big questions without explaining every mystery away.
Three useful comparisons
Divine Rivals
Divine Rivals is more intimate, original, and required before this conclusion.
Best for: Readers wanting gentle enemies-to-lovers tension, magical correspondence, grief, war, and lyrical YA romantasy.
Mockingjay
Mockingjay offers a harsher account of propaganda, war, trauma, and young people used by rival causes.
Best for: Series readers prepared for propaganda, trauma, moral ambiguity, war, and a less crowd-pleasing conclusion.
Iron Flame
Iron Flame supplies more explicit romance and magic action but far messier relationship communication.
Best for: Fourth Wing readers wanting more rebellion, dragons, spice, and cliffhangers despite a messier structure.
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