An Ember in the Ashes

Have you ever had a book you couldn't stop thinking about? You run over the plot and characters in your mind while at work? You stalk the author for any information regarding book 2? Well...this was me for An Ember in the Ashes. This book blew me away. An epic story full of courage and wonderful diverse characters. A unique fantasy world that was cruel and wonderful at the same time. I just couldn't put this book down. Today's book is An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir. I honestly can say only one other book had me glued to the pages and kept by my side until finished. That was Victoria Aveyard's Red Queen. Now I found another book to hold me captive. An Ember in the Ashes was masterfully written. The pace flowed steadily to the point I just read and read. The world the book centers around is brutal, ruled by the Martial Empire who enslave scholars, taking from them libraries, books and their freedom. Scholars live in poverty serving the Martials as slaves. They aren't allowed to read or write for the punishment is death. To maintain such order, the Empire has special warriors with deadly weapons to keep the Scholars in their place. If a Martials' child is accepted into the Blackcliff academy, they train to become these deadly warriors known as The Masks. They must wear silver masks 24/7, so they can form over their faces like second skin, given the name. However, there is a resistance that has been rising for years against the Empire. Striking out when they least expect it. The book moves from two different point of views. Laia is a young Scholar who knows how to read. One night a Mask comes to take her brother Darin away, for illegally drawing images of weapons, burns their house down and kills her grandparents. She can only do one thing, join the resistance and go undercover in Blackcliff to spy so her brother can be freed. It's in the resistance she meets the handsome fighter Keenan who helps her during her time at Blackcliff. She endures much cruelty, especially by the Commandment, the leader of Blackcliff. A woman with much power and cruel determination to search out traitors from the resistance. Elias is a highborn student at Blackcliff, training to be a Mask. But he wants no part of it and plans to desert only to be pulled back in by the Trials. Whoever wins these tests become Emperor. Those that lose die. He must compete against his best friend Helene under the watchful eye of his mother, the Commandment. Elias starts to have conflicting feelings for his friend Helene and the slave girl Laia. His story was my favorite part of the book. I loved his turmoiled emotions and how he sets out to do the right thing. Love triangle haters beware, this book has a double whammy of a love triangle. I really don't like love triangles. Elias has feeling for both Helene and Laia. Laia has feeling for Keenan and Elias. But Elias and Laia's emotions are more connected with the moment rather than true feelings. He likes Laia's looks and it seems to be based on that throughout the book rather than her wit. So who knows where it will lead. I love the connection between Elias and Helene and look forward to see what happens in the next book. They seemed the most perfect for each other. So the love triangle wasn't really that bad because the story is what the book is all about. Sabaa did a wonderful job weaving a realistic story in this fantasy world. It's violent with bloody scenes that make the story much more intense. I gasped. I cringed. I yelled. I was a ball of nerves. The description of the world brought to life every detail of the characters and setting. The action was non-stop and with each turn of the page some sweat gathered on my forehead with concern for Elias...oh and Laia! Sabaa did a wonderful job at this debut novel. I can't wait to see what she has next because I eagerly wait for the sequel..which we will get! Wahoo! Should you read it? YES! What are you waiting for? This masterpiece of a story is something you can't miss. You won't put it down. Trust me. It's a wonderful add to your library collection.

I was so excited to read this book! And why not? The cover is gorgeous, the plot intriguing, and oh the hype! I really enjoyed watching the book community rally around Sabaa Tahir, and quickly elevate this book to a MUST READ! But, when I finished An Ember in the Ashes I came away feeling….undecided. Did I like the book? Yes. Did it leave me with burning questions and haunt me for days after reading? No. What I liked: The Characters Sabaa Tahir did so many things well in this book. An Ember in the Ashes is written from the dual perspectives of Laia, a Scholar slave, and Elias, a Martial training to be an elite assassin. Tahir moves between their stories effortlessly. The characters are so well developed, that even if the chapters weren’t labeled accordingly, there wouldn’t be any doubt who’s POV we were reading. What I loved most was that every single character was strongly written and well fleshed out, even the secondary characters. You walked away feeling that you knew Cook, Izzy, and Keenan just as well as Elias, Helene, or Laia. The Commandant is scary guys. JUST SAYING. The World Building As a product of her environment, the world of Ember is equally as terrifying as the Commandant. The Empire Is broken into the Scholars and the Martials. The Scholars are a conquered people living under the iron rule of the Martials. The Martials train their children to be assassins, carrying out the will of the Empire. Horrifying thought, right? The only confusing part for me was that some Scholars were slaves while others lived free. But Ember’s world is so much bigger than that. We are briefly introduced to the land of Marinn and the Tribal deserts that boarder the empire as well. Tahir fills Ember with vivid imagery and expertly weaves in touches of folklore and mythology until the world becomes a living breathing thing that jumps off the page. The Romance What I found really interesting is that Tahir didn’t fall back on the expected romantic plot devices. Was there a love triangle? Kind of. It was more like a quadrangle….rectangle…. diamond? Each of the main characters had more than one love interest. Elias had Helene and Laia, but Laia had Elias and Keenan. Laia and Elias never made sense to me. I was, and still am, firmly entrenched in Camp Helene. She’s his girl, mark my words. I also liked that Tahir kept it clean. What I didn’t like: There’s not much. It was a rough read in terms of the wanton brutality of the Martial class. I can’t count how many times I read the word rape. It wasn’t a pleasant aspect of the book or the world. Tahir did a pretty good job of tying up all the loose ends while still leaving you with a WHAT HAPPENS NEXT feeling. There was only one part of the book that I didn’t feel was tied up in a neat little bow by the end. Midway through, we are introduced to a…..ally of the Commandants. She calls him by a certain title and we hear a reference to him in one of the stories told to Laia. We get the idea that this ally is the one behind the scenes, pulling the strings, yet we never really hear anything more. All and all, I did enjoy this book. I was very fond of Elias and Helene. Their strength and honor were very appealing to me, as was their tried and true friendship. The world had a brutal beauty that was equally horrifying and mesmerizing. And while it didn’t necessarily leave me wanting for more, it’s solid!

This is what YA Fantasy should read like. An Ember in the Ashes had everything I love about YA in one fantastically gripping book. It had a dystopian society, it had a wondrous world, it had heartbreak and angst, it had strength and cunning, it had a swoon worthy romance, and a bit of paranormal sprinkled throughout. Two protagonists, Two story lines. I wasn’t sure when they would connect, but when they did it was magical. Laia’s home was just invaded by the Masks. They took her brother and killed her grandparents. Her parents are long dead after being caught and killed as rebels to the empire. Laia is on the run and catches up with the rebels to see if they could free her brother. They strike a deal and all Laia has to do is spy on the Commandant to get information. Her servitude to the Commandant is heartbreaking. Will she get enough info before getting herself killed in order to save her brother? Elias has just graduated. His next mission is to go into the trials. He will fight to become the emperor, the emperor’s second, like his mother before him, or die trying. He hates it. He is thinking of leaving. He is so disillusioned by the empire, he just wants to desert. He is caught the night before by his mentor, Cain. Forced to go through the trials, he discovers more about himself then he thought possible. Each story is gripping. Laia is a fantastic heroine. She is “normal” and very conflicted. She is beautiful and driven. She is tortured in this book and then she gets to interact with Elias. ELIAS! *sigh* I need a heroine like that. He is strong and damaged. He has a conscience and wants more for his world. He goes for the girl most likely to be complicated. They were both very developed characters. We also get a good look at their motivation. Even the secondary characters had great appeal and stories of their own. We get so much out of each person and they don’t exist just to move Elias and Laia together. Nothing is easy for these two and I loved that things don’t just magically fall into place for them. This ship is complicated. I still ship them both so hard. The world building in this book was fantastic. We get to see an ancient Rome in all its treachery through a fictional mask. Speaking of masks, their is a whole militia of them to enforce the Emperor’s rule, and Elias is the front runner in a trial for the power to rule the empire. The trials are brutal and heart wrenching. This world is full of brutality. There is child abuse and abandonment, slavery, and rape. Despite all of the dangerous aspects of this world there is this underlying feeling of hope throughout the story. It is hard for me to write a review about this book since I loved it so much.This book destroyed me. I thought I knew good writing, I was wrong. Considering An Ember in the Ashes was a debut book, I was expecting so much less. I am blown away. Bring on the sequel.

I have received this book from Penguin First To Read in exchange for an honest review. This has no affect on my opinion of the book or the content of my review. my review bugsThere is this nasty thing floating through the bookish community, I like to call it the hype monster. It sinks its claws into people by promising them a truly riveting story. This monster is very deceiving and fools even the most seasoned reviewer. That being said, EVERY SINGLE RAVE YOU HAVE HEARD REGARDING THIS BOOK IS TRUE!! The brutally terrifying setting paired with characters who are willing to risk it all for freedom, makes An Ember in the Ashes one of the hands down most thrilling, edge of my seat, nail biting reads I have ever had the pleasure to encounter. I’m sure by now you get the gist of the story. This is about Laia, a girl who’s family was brutally murdered in front of her eyes and her only living relation, her brother Kian is captured for treason. Laia then does the only thing she can think to do now that her home has been razed to the ground. She goes in search of the Rebels, a group of Scholars like herself, who try to fight the tyrannical Marshall rule. The most fierce and deadly of these Marshall’s are an elite group of soldiers called Masks. Not only are they the most perfectly crafted solider ever to exist but they are ruthless and unfeeling as well making them damn near invincible. With there silver masks that bond to their faces as a sign of loyalty to the empire, they reminded me exactly of these fellows from the movie 300. photo immo_zpsknqk3zdk.gif Elias is the most elite of the elite, the top performing soldier in his squadron so it’s not a surprise that he is picked for the Trials, a brutal series of tests that will determine who will be the next ruler of the Martial Empire. The only thing is Elias was ready to desert the night before. After a disturbing warning from a source he thought was a myth, Elias is now on the fast track to the life he never wanted, the life he was ready risk death to escape from. The alternating perspectives between Elias and Laia gives a clear, concise picture of how each faction differs from the other. One lives and breathes brutality and the other’s life is nothing but fear. Not only were the characters flawed to perfection but the the setting couldn’t have been more atmospheric. The rich yet disturbing scenes that bloomed before my eyes were quite often brutal but done in a way that not only probed the mind but the heart as well. Should loyalty be absolute in all cases? Do a few dare defy the masses? I was kept guessing though the entirety of this lengthy book! The romance was a slow kindled work of art. Even though I’m sure some could claim love triangle if they really wanted to, I didn’t see it that way. There was some attraction but not LOVE hence, NOT A LOVE TRIANGLE. I’ll try to bring my ranting about this work of art to a close now. Even as I write this review I long to re-read this story since there were so many meticulous details I’m sure I can pick up on something I missed. Just so you know how rare an automatic re-read is for me, the only other books I have done so with are The Hunger Games series, Deathly Hallows, Crown of Midnight/Heir of Fire, & A Song of Ice & Fire. This book is truly among the elites in my mind. You will not regret preordering this in the least. If you do well…. :-P.

THE PLOT Laia is a Scholar. Elias is a Martial. Under the Martial Empire's iron fist, the Scholars are fighting to survive. If you are a Scholar, you are either working class or a slave, and few rebels (or suspected rebels) are left unharmed or undetected. When Laia's brother is taken from her, she is willing do anything to save him—even if it means going into Blackcliff and never coming back. Blackcliff is a military academy where Martials like Elias Veturius are trained to become Masks, the assassin-soldiers of the Empire. Supervised and lead by the cold-hearted Commandant, even Blackcliff's students must face the violence and cruelty of the Empire. This cruelty and violence is part of the reason that Elias Veturius plans to desert. An Ember in the Ashes is a breathtaking dystopian novel based on the Roman Empire with fantastical and mythical elements woven in. As long as I can remember, I've been fascinated by not only Roman mythology, but Ancient Rome in general. The politics, military strategy, and social structure of that era is a fascinating topic in history, and I'm happy to say that Tahir's twist on the era did not disappoint. THE CHARACTERS Before focusing in on Elias and Laia, I'd like to take a second and point out that Tahir did a phenomenal job crafting the slew of characters seen in An Ember in the Ashes. Even the characters with the smallest role in the novel were three-dimensional—not a single one seemed flat or a copy of any other character. I often find that secondary and minor characters are not as finely crafted and can seem very similar to one another, but I was pleasantly surprised by Tahir's cast of characters. She truly honed in on each and every one of her characters, big and small, and thought through how each of their minds worked and how they'd play a role in the plot. These seemingly minor details about the lesser characters really helped me appreciate An Ember in the Ashes even more, and proceeded to further my understanding of the main characters and their emotions as well. Elias “Always victorious." The words of Elias Veturius' grandfather and the motto of Gens Veturia always ring in Elias' mind. As the heir to Gens Veturia and the star student at Blackcliff, it is only understandable the immeasurable amount of pride his grandfather feels towards him, and also the immeasurable pressure put on Elias as a result. Yet fame and strength are not on Elias' mind—all Elias truly wants is freedom. I absolutely adore Elias as a character. He is a strong character who knows right from wrong even when others do not. Although he makes mistakes (he is human after all), he is willing to make amends and fix his errors. In a society where it is easy to accept social standards and leave people to suffer and die, Elias is willing to fight for justice. He is an extremely caring person who looks out for his friends and even for people he doesn't know. Laia “But I’m not strong. I’m weak, and I’m sick of pretending I’m not.” Laia lost it all, and she's struggling to reclaim the one person she might be able to save—her elder brother, Darin. Although she may be able to save him, she knows it won't be easy, yet she's still willing to take the risk. Laia has a lot of expectations to live up to, and tries her best to do everything she can to make her dead family, and her brother, proud. I admire Laia's determination and strong will. Although she falters once in a while, she always finds the strength to get back up and fight again. I believe that despite her flaws, and despite her belief that she is weak, she is in her own way unbelievably strong for trying over and over and over again. FINAL THOUGHTS Tahir's writing is exquisite, and I was captivated from beginning to end. She was able to perfectly mix the world-building, character development, dialogue, and action. The book was a delectable treat that went beyond satisfying my recently book-deprived heart and soul. Tahir told Laia and Elias' story beautifully, and I cannot wait to see how the rest of their lives unfold. "You will burn, for you are an ember in the ashes."

The novel An Ember in the Ashes written by Sabaa Tahir is her fantasy novel. This novel is about a slave girl named Laia and a Martial Soldier named Elias. Laia is working with the resistance in order to help free her brother who was captured by a Mask in the middle of the night. Meanwhile Elias just graduated from Blackcliff Military Academy, where he was training to be a mask and is the best in his class. However, he hates the empire and wants to run away and be free, however a wrench is thrown in his plans when he is one of four selected to be in the Trials, which is a test of survival to become the next Emperor. Laia doesn’t start out as a slave girl, instead she is in a home living with her grandparents, because her parents were killed. One night the Empire raids their house, kills her grandparents, and captures her brother Darin. She escapes and runs to find the resistance. The resistance then sends her to spy on the Commandant in Blackcliff Military Academy in exchange they will break her brother out of jail. The Commandant is one of the cruelest people in Blackcliff and is known for torturing and even killing slaves that work for the resistance. Elias has to go through hard trials in order to prove that he is worthy to be Emperor; however, he does not want to be Emperor. He just wants to run away and be free from all the killing. Through the trials Elias struggles to find who he really is. He doesn’t want to kill but that is what he has been trained to do all his life. Laia is going through struggles of her own mainly with the Commandant. She has been abused many times most notably being when the Commandant carved a K into her chest. Elias and Laia end up meeting and share their goals of freedom. They find a way to work together for a common goal of freeing Laia’s brother. I really enjoyed reading this fantasy novel. It was one of those novels that took you to another place, where you completely forgot about reality and were lost in the story. I couldn’t stop turning the pages. It was like I could feel the characters struggles and successes. I also love how the book was written in the first person of two characters. The first chapter was about Laia and the second was about Elias and it alternated throughout the whole book. I’ve never seen this type of writing style, but I really enjoyed it and liked how I got to see two different perspectives throughout the book. There are many Roman mythology references throughout the book; from the chapters using Roman numerals to the Empire. The character development brought out the theme of loyalty and duty to self, family, and country as they struggled to find the balance in loyalties. While many may consider it a dark novel with many skirmishes and deaths, I found it to be an inspiring story of overcoming one’s destiny and survival to pursue one’s passions. I plan to read the sequels in order to continue the journey with Laia and Elias.

I liked this book. It wasn't the best thing I've ever read but it was enjoyable. The writing was skilled and to the point although not what I would call beautiful or poetic. There are a lot of action sequences and events to keep anyone interested. Some moments you don't want to stop reading until you've gotten through them but then there are others where you won't mind putting the book down. I don't remember having a hard time getting into it and considering it's written in first person and switches POVs between two characters (something I usually hate) that's quite the feat. I think that although I liked the story I never really felt emotionally invested in any of the characters and that's what was holding me back from truly becoming engrossed in the tale. I also anticipated almost every turn the book took which I'm going to blame on the less than subtle foreshadowing. Again, I liked this book but the thing that bothered me more than anything else was the supposed romance(s). There are basically two love triangles and I didn't believe or really root for any of the three potential relationships (main female character w the main male character, main female character w the side male character, or main male character with the side female character). I usually love romances in fantasy epic tales (as long as they don't take over the story) but that wasn't the case with this book. I actually think it would have been better without romance at all. Minor thing: the ending didn't exactly feel like an ending. It kinda abruptly stopped in my opinion but there is another book so I figure that's technically allowed. In conclusion: In the beginning of writing this review I thought I'd be giving An Ember in the Ashes a higher rating but after putting my thoughts together I think I enjoyed it a little less than I originally believed. However, I would recommend it because it truly was an eventful read. With that said I'm rating this 3.5/5 stars. **on another note: I ended up having to return this book due to one-click settings being attached to the wrong payment method. So I guess I'll never be able to read this again. Really upset because I ordered 3 books on a family member's card before noticing the error and couldn't return the rest**

I've already named An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir one of my favorite books of 2015, and probably one of my favorite books ever. This book absolutely blew me away. It took me a long time to even find the words to describe how much I absolutely loved this book. Obviously, with that lead-in, it's clear I gave it 5/5 STARS. This book is not a light read--let me make that clear. You should not pick up this book unless you are ready for some pretty heavy themes, and some heavy feelings. I'm not talking lovey-dovey, will-they-kiss, who-will-she-choose emotions. I'm talking, HOLY-SHIT-WILL-SHE-LIVE!?! Emotions. Emotions with a capitol E. Because you don't know. You do not know, while reading Tahir's amazing writing, that any character is safe. Because they aren't. She proves that again and again. This book kept me reading because I was genuinely concerned for the lives of these characters that I become attached to. This book is dark, there are definitely some serious, scary themes here--torture, murder, child abuse, rape, and slavery, to name a few. But they truly ADD to the story. They are all there, and everything happens with a purpose and a reason. I pre-ordered this book on my Kindle. And then about halfway through, ordered it in hardcover, and if you follow me on Twitter, you know that immediately after I finished it, I launched a giveaway for a copy. Because I had to share it. An Ember in the Ashes is told from the perspective of two characters--Laia, who trades pretending to be a slave in order to spy on the elite military academy to the rebels for a promise to rescue her brother from police custody, and Elias, a promising soldier at said academy. I enjoyed both perspectives equally (which is not usually the case for me), and I greatly enjoyed that they told two, actually separate perspectives. Too often, multiple points of view are simply re-hashing the same idea, and this book did not do that. I felt that every moment in both character's heads was necessary, exciting, and engrossing. If I had to choose, however, I would say that I preferred Laia to Elias, because Laia had some raw and real emotions. I felt that her reactions and responses were as true to life as this hellish place could be. She was truly terrified, honestly angry, and clearly heartbroken, in a way that made her physically present while you were reading. Elias was great, and the ruling class perspective is usually my favorite in fantasy books, but Laia felt so real to me. I will admit, my only complaint about this book was the rebels. All of the characters that were part of those sections of the story were eye-roll worthy to me. I wish there had been fewer, more flushed out characters. If you've read the book, and since this is spoiler-free, I won't name names, but the particular male character was especially annoying to me.