Review: She Who Breaks Gods (Chronicles of Kesperen, #2) by R.L. Balladrael
With the worldbuilding established in Icara's Flight, She Who Breaks Gods is free to go full space opera-strange worlds, dangerous missions, impossible choices, and a slow-burn romance unfolding while an entire star system hangs in the balance.
I was happy to return to the Chronicles of Kesperen and catch up with Kiara, Esben, and the rest of this memorable cast of characters. R.L. Balladrael has created a science-fiction universe filled with unusual worlds, complicated relationships, and characters who continually find themselves facing choices with no easy answers. She Who Breaks Gods brings their journey to its conclusion with plenty of danger, heart, humor, and surprises along the way.
She Who Breaks Gods By R.L. Balladrael
Series: Book 2 of a Completed Duology (Chronicles of Kesperen)
Published by Mantarray LLC on January 2026
Genres: Romance, Science Fiction, Space Opera
Formats: eBook, Paperback
Pages: 392
She escaped the Council of Kesperen.
Now they’re hunting her across the stars.Icara’s only hope of stopping the republic’s next conquest—the alien Ephrina System—is a ragtag crew: a reckless pilot, a dangerous childhood sweetheart, and Esben, the rebel-turned-healer who keeps saving her life, unraveling her plans, and stirring feelings she can’t ignore.
From glittering casinos to deepwater cities, Icara is running out of time to outwit a god’s army. Can she save an entire star system without losing the one person she loves most?
This is Book 2 of the Chronicles of Kesperen. Start with Book 1: Icara’s Flight.
A sweeping sci-fi adventure with a slow-burn romantic payoff, She Who Breaks Gods delivers a gripping finale of sacrifice, hope, and love against impossible odds.
Reader Resources
Reader Info at a Glance
| Best For | Readers who enjoy character-driven space adventures, high-stakes rebellion, imaginative worlds, and slow-burn romance |
| Romance | Slow burn • Emotionally important but secondary to the main adventure |
| Pacing | Action-driven with substantial worldbuilding and character development |
| Themes | Rebellion • Sacrifice • Compassion • Mortality • Belief • Love • Right vs. Wrong |
| Setting | A far-reaching interstellar adventure through alien worlds, deepwater cities, casinos, and the Ephrina System |
| Series Reading | Read Book 1 first. Icara's Flight provides important worldbuilding, relationships, and backstory |
| Overall Feel | Expansive • Adventurous • Thought-provoking • Hopeful |
| Rating | ⭐⭐⭐⭐½ |
Quick Take: A sweeping, character-driven space opera that pairs high-stakes rebellion and imaginative worlds with difficult choices, unexpected humor, and a satisfying slow-burn romance.
Things to Know:
- Read Icara's Flight first. While you may be able to follow the central story without it, you'll have a much richer understanding of the characters, relationships, and world.
- The scope expands considerably. With much of the groundwork established in Book 1, this installment dives deeper into the politics, conflicts, cultures, and dangers of the Kesperen universe.
- Expect plenty of sci-fi terminology and worldbuilding. There are unfamiliar worlds, species, technologies, and concepts, but they fit together naturally and remain surprisingly easy to follow.
- The story explores some weightier ideas. Mortality, sacrifice, belief, compassion, prejudice, and questions of right and wrong all play a role.
- The romance remains a slow burn. Kiara and Esben's relationship develops alongside the larger adventure rather than overtaking it.
- This completes the Chronicles of Kesperen duology with a satisfying conclusion while leaving the universe feeling large enough for more stories.
Let's take a closer look at what made book two stand out.
My Thoughts
One of the things I appreciated about She Who Breaks Gods is that R.L. Balladrael doesn't spend much time reintroducing a world we've already gotten to know. Book one laid the foundation, and now we're off-traveling through strange worlds, trying to stay ahead of the Kesperens, destroying resurrection gates, and somehow finding time for a complicated romance in the middle of it all.
Kiara remains incredibly easy to cheer for. She's facing much bigger stakes this time, but what interested me just as much as the action was watching her and the other characters wrestle with mortality, their beliefs, and those uncomfortable questions about what is right when none of the choices are particularly good. There are plenty of external battles here, but some of the most important ones are internal.
The Kesperens make especially unsettling opponents because they're so fundamentally different from Kiara. Compassion simply doesn't enter into their thinking. Anything-or anyone-they consider different or unacceptable can be destroyed without remorse. That contrast gives Kiara's fight more weight. She's not simply trying to defeat an enemy; she's fighting against an entire way of viewing other lives.
And then there's Mott.
Mott may have stolen the show for me. Her snark, wit, and almost blasé fierceness brought some much-needed levity to a story dealing with some pretty serious ideas. I never quite knew what she was going to say or do next, and I thoroughly enjoyed her whenever she appeared.
There is a lot of science fiction packed into this story-different worlds and cultures, technology, unfamiliar terminology, political conflicts, and some wonderfully imaginative settings. That can occasionally be where a space opera loses me. Here, though, it all works together and makes sense. I never felt as though I needed to keep stopping to figure out what Balladrael was talking about, and that's a sign of strong worldbuilding and good writing.
Through all of this runs the slow-burn relationship between Kiara and Esben. I liked that their romance never needed to take over the story to matter. Their feelings develop while they're dealing with danger, disagreements, competing priorities, and the rather inconvenient business of trying to save an entire star system. By this point, I was definitely ready to see whether these two could finally figure things out.
And despite everything these characters go through, there's humor tucked into unexpected places. This exchange between a teenager and his friend made me laugh:
"But my friend is dead," he said, without taking his eyes off Kiara. "Enough. She's our liberator. Go eat some more fish. You always pick fights when you're hungry."
Tell me that doesn't make you think, You're not yourself when you're hungry. Have a Snickers. Apparently, that wisdom applies across star systems. 😂
By the end, I was satisfied with where Balladrael left Kiara and the people around her. The duology has a genuine conclusion and a happy ending, but the universe itself doesn't feel finished. There are still places to explore and possibilities lingering beyond this particular story. If Balladrael ever decides she's not quite done with the Kesperen universe after all, I wouldn't be surprised-or disappointed.
Final Thoughts
If you enjoy science fiction that gives you plenty of adventure without losing sight of the people caught in the middle of it, She Who Breaks Gods is well worth the journey-especially if you've already traveled through Kesperen with Kiara once before.
I would recommend this duology to readers who like imaginative worlds, complicated moral choices, memorable characters, and a little romance woven through their space opera. Balladrael manages to make a universe filled with unfamiliar places, cultures, and technology feel surprisingly accessible while still giving longtime science-fiction readers plenty to explore.
What I'll remember most, though, is the heart beneath all that worldbuilding. For a story about gods, rebellion, resurrection, and the fate of entire worlds, it ultimately comes down to compassion, the choices we make for the people we care about, and deciding what we're willing to fight for.
It's a satisfying farewell to Kiara's story-even if part of me suspects this universe may still have a few stories left to tell.
Before we wrap up, here's a little more about the author behind the book.
Meet the Author
Learn more:
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