Bloodsinger (The Fire That Binds, # 2)
By: Juliette Cross
Narrated By: Blair Dade; Kale Williams
Publication: April 7, 2026 by Macmillan Audio
400 pages
Genre: Adult, Fantasy, Magic, Dragons
Source: Publisher via NetGalley (Thank you!!)
( Goodreads | Amazon )
*Note: The above link to Amazon is an affiliate links. Affiliate links support giveaways for Somewhere Only We Know readers.
Goodreads description--A spellbinding gift...
A plea answered by the gods...
An unforgiving world where dragons rule Rome.
Lela Bihari’s village was invaded on her wedding night, her betrothed murdered right in front of her. While her sisters were either dragged away or escaped, Lela was sold to Valerius, a consul of Rome.
When she tried to kill Valerius her first night as his slave, her bloodsinger gift manifested… and she was punished for it. Now she’s paraded in front of the other senators for their amusement.
But Trajan Tiberius, the newly elected tribune to the senate, is different. He has no love for the brutality around him. When he frees Lela from enslavement and hides her, Lela is set on a path of vengeance, and using her gift puts her in more danger than ever before.
Now trapped inside the walls of Rome while deathriders circle the skies, how can she possibly trust a Roman dragon? Especially when it is clear Trajan has ulterior schemes of his own? As her powers grow stronger, danger draws closer, and Lela realizes it isn't just her life at stake, but also her heart.
Bloodsinger is a fantasy with some dark themes, including elements of master/slave relationship, attempted sexual assault, and dubious consent—none of which is between the MCs. There is also a scene with self-injury. Listeners who may be sensitive to these elements, please take note.
I listened to the audio version of Bloodsinger which means that spelling or names and places is hard to get right. Also, I don't have any quotes to share or notes to refer back to. I enjoyed the dual narrators. They both did a good job and most of all enhanced the story and didn't take away from it at all.
Lela is Malina's sister that we met in Firebird. She was on the cusp of her wedding when her village was attacked, and her betrothed was killed in front of her. As the description states, she was sold as a slave to Valerius who tortured and abused her and made her wear a muzzle after her attempt to kill him with her bloodsinger gift. With one taste of anyone's blood she can command them to do what she wishes. But she has been abused and mistreated to the point of not having much faith in herself.
Trajan is invivted to Valerius's house often. After Julian's betrayal, Trajan has to stay close to the leaders to prove himself even though doubt is immediately thrust upon him simply because he used to be under Julian's command. And it's true, he has been plotting with Julian to take down Inniculus and the other vile dragon shifters that would take his place. He does everything he can to help Lela escape. Although, he knows Malina, he has no idea that Lela is her sister.
Trajan was sweet and took his time building his relationship with Lela given everything she's been through. Of course, there is on-page action which I usually skim over. And there's cursing which I also prefer to skip. It's more annoying to me in audiobooks because my eyes can jump over it while reading, but hearing it aloud is harder to ignore. Another frustration is that the endearments I complained about in the first book are the same used in this book even though the characters are different. Sure endearments can be cultural, but this is one of my pet peeves and an easy way to distinguish unique voices from character to character.
Bloodsinger was good. I listened to it quickly, and I did hate to have to put it down. I felt slightly less connection to the characters as well as the frustrations I mentioned above with the endearments having the lead characters sounding too simular to the characters from the previous book. I am excited about the sneak peek given into the next book in the series, and I look forward to continuing to unravel this world. Bloodsinger gets 3.5 Stars. Have you read or listened to Bloodsinger? If so, what did you think? Let me know!
