The Ascended

No — The Ascended stands on its own as the first book of the Aesymarean Duet. It's set in the same Sundered Realms universe as the Esprithean Trilogy (Riftborne and Duskbound), and several reviewers note that reading those books first deepens the emotional impact of certain moments, but it isn't required to follow the story.

The Ascended is explicit and open-door, with multiple fully on-page intimate scenes. Reviewers commonly rate it around 4 out of 5 on the spice scale.

The Ascended is adult romantasy, not YA. Its protagonists are adults in their mid-twenties, and the book contains graphic violence, torture, and explicit sexual content.