About the Book

Book: Of Dawn and Embers (The Fireborn Epic Book Three) Author: Gillian Bronte Adams Genre: YA Epic Fantasy Release Date: January 13, 2026

He rides a dawnling, a steed of light and glory, destined to restore. Jakim Ha’Nor will save his people, or so says the prophecy that upended his life and drove his brothers to betray him. Now, he has returned as the dawnrider to fulfill his purpose and reconcile with his brothers—only to find himself embroiled in a war. Captured in the fallout of a deadly attack, Rafi grapples with the ghosts of the past. His brother is alive but no longer himself, and Rafi will stop at nothing to save him. Farther up the coast, Ceridwen strives to reignite the embers of the rebellion to burn the empire down. When Rafi is sentenced to execution before the imperial court, Ceridwen must rally every spear and steed she can for a blistering strike at the heart of the capital. But the empire’s schemes are already in motion, and Jakim’s two missions collide when an unexpected encounter with one of his brothers reveals the true threat behind the imperial thirst for ancient secrets. Hidden forces intend to unleash a cataclysmic power, spurring Ceridwen, Rafi, and Jakim to challenge the full, crushing might of the empire for the fate of the world. Stars weep and ash falls as the tides of battle propel the Fireborn queen, the Sea-Demon prince, and the Dawnrider priest toward a meteoric clash in this thunderous series finale.

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About the Author

Gillian Bronte Adams is a sword-wielding, horse-riding, wander-loving fantasy author, rarely found without a coffee in hand and rumored to pack books before clothes when she hits the road. Working in youth ministry left her with a passion for journeying alongside children and teens. (It also enhanced her love of coffee.) Now, she writes novels that follow outcast characters down broken roads, through epic battles, and onward to adventure. And at the end of a long day of typing, she can be found saddling her wild thing and riding off into the sunset, seeking adventures of her own (and more coffee).

More from Gillian

This is, at its core, a book about hope. I discovered that fact partway through the writing process. Of Dawn and Embers is the cataclysmic finale to an epic fantasy trilogy where warriors bond with elemental warhorses and the action sequences strike with ever-increasing intensity from page one, and I was halfway through drafting it before I realized that beneath the searing visuals, the blistering pace, and the moments that set your heart thundering in your chest, this story sings with hope as a powerful undercurrent. But you’re the author, you say. How could you not already know that? Some authors go into each project with a specific theme in mind. They begin fully aware of the deeper meaning of the story they want to tell, and they intentionally structure the sequences of the unfolding plot and character arcs to match. I, on the other hand—while an avid worldbuilder who loves creating layered fantasy stories with multiple characters facing their own paths of growth—often wind up surprised by the overarching themes that also surface through those characters’ individual journeys. Themes of identity and worth. Of finding the beauty in our broken stories. And, in this case, of hope. Not the soft and feathery kind, fluttering in your chest. Or the brightly optimistic kind that lends itself to cheerful sayings. But the kind of hope that dares to kneel in the ashes, with blood on its teeth and knuckles, and trust that the sun will rise again. The kind of hope that endures and keeps on enduring. The kind of hope that is as stubborn and resilient as an ember’s deep and fiery glow, waiting to be rekindled with a touch of the morning breeze. That’s the kind of hope that I find myself clinging to in my own life. Because we live in an age where discouragement can seem rampant, flung in our faces with each news cycle and with every moment spent scrolling on this or that screen. Even once I uncovered that underlying theme, it wasn’t until I reached the end of the first draft and started working back through that I realized just how deeply it had already been woven into the story. It was there in each breathtaking moment of connection between characters, in the first touch of gold breaking through the cloud-wrack, in the hearty meals shared around a fireside, in the friends who refuse to leave one another to face the darkness alone, and in the loyalty that proves a greater defense than any shield or weapon. It fairly came singing to me off every page, a reflection on hope at the heart of the book. On the ache of hope. The seeming foolishness of hope. The defiance of hope. The way hope can feel like fresh air to oxygen-starved lungs, and the way it can cause your chest to ache with the fear of losing it again. The way it holds you up and keeps you standing long after you expected to be on your knees. And the way a lack of hope can leave you grasping for some sense of control, lashing out in desperation to find your own way forward after you put your hope in something that proved incapable of enduring. In the prologue, one of the main characters, Jakim, compares holding onto hope in the midst of hardship as a candle flame that he has had to grip tightly to shield from the buffeting winds to keep it from going out. And “lately, it had felt like the only way to keep it alive was to grasp it so tightly it singed him.” If you’ve ever faced the long and aching wait for a hope to be realized, you know what it feels like for hope to sting. Proverbs 13:12 (NIV) talks about how “hope deferred makes the heart sick” but Hebrews 6:19 tells us where we can find that true and lasting hope that exists as “an anchor for our souls”: through the One who stepped into the darkest night in our place and took on our own hopeless state so that He could become our hope. A hope that endures. That breathes life. That does not falter or fail. That doesn’t slip away. That isn’t in danger of burning out if we grip it too tightly. A hope that holds onto us. Later on, Jakim comes to the restorative realization that “Hope was not a candle flame. It was the dawn. Rising again and again after darkest night.” Rising without any effort of his own. Rising beyond the pain of his circumstances. Rising steadfastly day by day. And throughout the wild ups and downs of this book, through the aching chill of the dark nights and the resplendent glories of the new dawns, I hope that readers will walk away with that same assurance singing hope into their souls.

Interview with the Author

Do you read books in this genre? If so, who do you like to read?

I have always been an epic fantasy reader, and I likely always will be. It’s not the only genre I read (I also love a fast-paced, high-action sci-fi or a wild, twisty thriller), but it is the genre you’ll find the most on my shelves. I have a large stock of books by Tolkien, Brandon Sanderson, and Robin Hobb, as well as a bunch of books by authors from my publisher, Enclave Publishing, and also a ton of indie published epic fantasy as well! I’m forever looking for new favorites, and nothing makes me happier than discovering the exact book I’ve been dying to read that very few people have heard of yet.

If a reader were to ask you what author you are like, what would you answer?

I tend to say that if readers are looking for something with the epic scope and richly layered storytelling of Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings, the deep themes and sweeping action sequences of Sanderson’s The Stormlight Archive, and the fantastic horse/rider relationships of The Black Stallion books (which were some of my favorites growing up!), they’ll love The Fireborn Epic.

What helps you to write? Do you eat snacks, listen to music?

Coffee, always. I love having a hot coffee on hand while I’m typing. I don’t tend to snack a ton until I’m pulling long hours on editing deadlines. But I do almost always have an epic film score playing in the background, and when I’m drafting, I look for something with a fierce driving beat to keep me typing fast.

If you could travel back in time, what time period would you go to?

Hmm, that’s a tough one. I don’t know that I actually would love to travel back in time to another time period, because as beautiful as nostalgia might make a specific time period seem, I know it always comes with its own struggles and ills. I think I prefer the fantasy version of specific time periods! I don’t actually want to travel to any medieval time period … but if I could travel to the fantasy world version where there are magical warhorses (and no Black Death!) I’d love it! That said, I do love history, and I find research so fascinating, and if I hadn’t become a fantasy writer, I probably would have become a historian of some sort.

What is your favorite book and why?

The Lord of the Rings has been my answer for years. My dad read it aloud to us when I was very young and then gave me my own copy when I was seven, and to this day, there’s just something so special about that world and the characters who inhabit it. I also adore Words of Radiance by Brandon Sanderson. It’s the second book in The Stormlight Archive, and it is, without a doubt, the best of them all. The action, the character work, the epic, heart-pounding moments … it is a masterpiece.

What is your favorite hymn and why?

It’s not actually a hymn, but one of my favorite worship songs is Way Maker by Sinach. The lyrics are so powerful and such a reminder that God is at work, even when we can’t see it. The words prompt you to reflect on each truth they declare about God, that He is “Promise Keeper” “Light in the Darkness” and on and on, and each one helps reposition my hearts on Him as I sing.

What is one thing readers would be surprised to learn about you?

I don’t know that readers would be particularly surprised by this fact but I am sadly lacking in my awareness of most pop culture. I have long since reconciled myself to the fact that I generally can’t talk music or current films, but if you want to nerd out with me about random historical battles or the intricacies of storytelling, I’m your person.

What inspired you to write this book?

Of Dawn and Embers is the third and final book in The Fireborn Epic, and this series truly is a sort of love letter to all of the things that are near and dear to my heart. I grew up riding and spent many years as the equestrian director at a youth camp where I built an incredible working relationship with my horse. Getting to capture the beauty of that bond of trust between horse and rider in an epic fantasy story where horses just so happen to have magical abilities was a dream come true. Add in a dash of epic heroics, cinematic action sequences, friendships forged through the fire of adventure, fierce male and female leads fighting side by side, and an undercurrent of hope that doesn’t give up but finds the courage to kneel in the ashes and wait for the sun to rise, and you’ve got a story that’s my heart and soul on the page. I love this series, and I can’t wait for readers to get to experience this final installment.

Share with me a few of your favorite things.

My “hobbit hole” mug that I drink coffee from every morning—it has a round green hobbit hole door on the side, and for some reason, this specific mug keeps my coffee warm longer than any other mug I have! My cozy, overstuffed “Sherlock Holmes” armchair on wheels that I use as my desk chair. It’s so comfy and it feels like it belongs in a dark wood library filled with books and maps. My saddle. I bought it when I was sixteen, and it was the most expensive thing I’d saved up to purchase until that point, soon after followed by my horse. To this day, my saddle is still a special thing. I love long summer days, mountain hikes, and big pots of soup. And my dog, Took, and my cat, Wolf—they’re not things, but they are my favorites!

What is one question you would like readers to ask you? What would be your answer?

One question readers often ask me is where is the best place to buy my books, which is so sweet. And the answer is honestly anywhere! But in addition to Amazon, they can order through my publisher’s direct storefront (where they can get 20% off books all the time, which is amazing) or for signed and personalized copies through my own online shop, where I also have some fun series-inspired merch like t-shirts, mugs, and more. Nothing makes me more excited than getting to ship signed books off to readers or seeing them post photos in their t-shirts on social media, so I love that I get to do that!