An Ember in the Ashes (Ember Quartet, Book 1) Hardcover – 4 Jun. 2015

I didn't expect to like this book. I didn't even like the cover! But this is easily the best book I have read in a number of years. It sucks you straight in, drags you along like a high speed chase and spits you back out at the end with carpet burn all down your legs. And I absolutely loved it!The characters are complex, cleverly developed and made me smile in public places. The world-building is intricate, unique and felt so real I could picture each nuance in my mind. And the plot. Wow. That's some twisty-turny stuff right there; I had no idea what was going to happen at any point - this author isn't afraid to kill anyone, change direction at the drop of a hat and do the unexpected.Welcome to Serra, a World dominated by the Empire. It's people, the Scholars, squashed under the self-righteous thumb of the military elite army known as "Masks". Within Serra lives a girl, Laia. A girl you're about to wish you actually knew, for she has quite a journey ahead of her and is one hell of a character. Laia is a Scholar, but when Masks come into her home and slaughter her family and throw her brother into a pretty well fortified prison, she does all she knows how. She runs. The guilt eats her up, so she strikes a deal with a Resistance army. To save her brother, she must pose a slave girl and infiltrate Blackcliff.Blackcliff is essentially a training academy for the military elites, the Masks, and houses many young soliders training to become such elite killers. I absolutely loved the way this place is developed. Tahir really brings it to life in such a convincing way - the soldier heirarcy, nasty Commandant and the tortured slave Scholars keeping the place together really peaked my interest the whole way through.Within Blackcliff's walls is Elias. A Mask. Not the usual cold-blooded human weapon though. Elias, though very weapon-esk, has a soft spot for Laia. And his friend Helene. Another weapon. But let's not worry about that little love triangle for now. Masks are so named because they are faceless commanders of the law. They wear a silver, semi-magical, Mask which, over time, effectively becomes their face as it moulds and embeds itself into the skin. Elias' mask has yet to embed, a rare thing for his kind. But a lucky thing also, because he desperately wants to rip the ugly magic thing off and desert. A crime punishable by death."You will burn, for you are an ember in the ashes. That is your destiny."The two characters paths inevitably cross of course and the interactions between them were not as I anticipated. This is not a love story that you might expect it to be. This is an ugly, tortuous almost animalistic love story which never quite materialises because of the epic risks and nastiness this author weaves throughout the story. It's perfect. Perfectly not mushy, not instalove-y, not sparkly in the slightest but still has elements that made me, unashamedly, fall in love with Elias and Laia."For a second, I forget my name".This novel kept me chomping at the bit for the entire read. It is so full of secrets. I couldn't stop reading. I didn't care about how much that 6am alarm clock was going to hurt. I didn't care about anything but this book. And that has been a long time coming. I'm so tired of the same old, same old in YA books right now. Everything seems to follow a set formula with a happy ending and superficial, boring and predictable characters. If you love YA, as I do, you absolutely must read this book. It towers above the others within it's genre. Tahir writes truly beautifully. And I don't say that often. Her dialogue is witty, often humorous without being forced and makes the characters genuinely come alive for the reader."Shadows will bloom in your heart, and you will become everything you hate."A fantastical, slightly magical, ever changing novel with more twists and turns than a maze and beautiful, realistic, complex characters with an even more complex villain. I don't think we have even seen the best of this series yet, there are so many hints throughout this book for a magic-ridden, ghoulish sequel with a humongous dark villain and a totally unpredictable plot. I cannot wait. How could you resist?

“You are an ember in the ashes, Elias Veturius. You will spark and burn, ravage and destroy. You cannot change it. You cannot stop it.”This book had some serious hype to live up to. Thankfully, it was up to the challenge.Anyone who knows me knows that I have an unbridled passion for anything remotely related to ancient Greece and Rome. So when the blurb for this book was released it automatically went to the top of my 'Most Anticipated' list. It was, perhaps, less Rome-like than I was hoping for, but there is absolutely no doubt that it draws heavily upon Roman culture from the naming conventions to slave brutality.This book definitely has a lot going on. We follow two main characters - Elias and Laia - in alternating chapters in which we come to learn their stories and meet the supporting casts of both their lives. The alternating narratives gives us a wonderful insight into the polarity of their lives, and yet how they still manage to maintain the same core ideals. It actually takes a while before the two meet, but once they do the story kicks into overdrive and all the things start to happen. But between the two character's stories and arcs there is a lot going on. However, instead of being overwhelming or confusing, Tahir manages to keep the plot tight and neat and through her wonderful writing has it running effortlessly. The writing is gorgeous and makes reading this book a dream.“The voice is deep and soft, not a sound so much as a feeling. It is storm and wind and leaves twisting in the night. It is roots sucking deep at the earth, and the pale, sightless creatures that live below the ground. But there’s something wrong with this voice, something diseased at its core.”That doesn't, however, take away from the gravity of the novel. This book is dark and gritty. Tahir does not shy away from the gruesome topics we are confronted with; topics such as rape and torture and child abuse which Tahir explores with unapologetic realism. This book is evocative. It makes you feel so completely for the characters and the things they are forced to endure in their attempts to do what they believe is right in a world which will see them dead for trying.Laia as a female MC was surprising to me. Mostly for the fact that I quite like her. Her journey from start to finish is wonderfully done. She begins as a timid, scared young girl who has lost her family and who lives in constant shame that she will never have the courage that her Mother had. When we leave her at the end of the book Laia is strong and capable and has found the courage that she needs to move forward and save her brother. It's satisfying watching her grow as a person through everything that happens to her.“My brother is still fighting, and his screams slice right through me. I know then that I will hear them over and over again, echoing in every hour of every day until I am dead or I make it right. I know it.”Elias when we meet him is a dispirited soldier who is on the verge of fleeing a life, and Empire, he has come to hate. His character arc is more complicated than Laia's and I did find it slightly more compelling. Elias, first and foremost is a soldier - a Mask, elite. Taken at the age of six and then raised to manhood within the walls of Blackcliff. And yet, he has the strength of character to maintain his own ideals about what he believes is good and right. We watch a young man on the verge of desertion grow into something so infinitely more. I can't really say much without heading into spoiler territory - but trust me, there is a reason this guy is a love interest to two women!The supporting cast of Resistance and Mask characters are diverse and irresistible. The Commandant is one of the most chilling villains that I have come across in a long time. My level of hatred for her is right up there with Dolores Umbridge. Helene is one of the characters that is hard for me to come to terms with; we see her through Elias' eyes and so through his narrative she is cast into a favourable light, and yet we are given enough information about her to know that she is, inherently, not a nice person - anyone who can agree with the enslaving of an entire nation and the annexation of their lands purely because she believes that "might makes right" does not strike me as a good person And yet it his Loyalty to Elias and her willingness to do anything for him that stops her from becoming one of the bad guys. The augurs are a great plot device and are very, very cleverly done. If this does have a second book, I can certainly see that there is a lot more to them and their story than we have been led to believe. And Izzi. Poor Izzi. She is the Neville Longbottom of our story: scared, timid, but someone who wants to fight and has a heart made of fire and hope.And this is just a small sample of the wonderful secondary characters that we come across.The love quadrangle - or whatever it was - is what lost this book a star for me. Mostly, the instalust! between Elias and Laia is what I found it hard to cope with. Tahir does a good job of making the feelings between Helene and Elias feel real, but then the rest all feel very forced. I think it's because it's more a case of Tahir has told us instead of shown us and I couldn't connect with their feelings. Still, it is definitely better done than a lot of romances that I've come across.The book has an exciting start, slows down briefly and then is explosive for the last 50%. I think one of the things I like best about this book is that it constantly kept me guessing but never gave enough away that I knew what was coming. The plot twists were big surprises and it made for a much more exciting read.A phenomenal book that is worth the hype and is more than worth the read!If you liked this, you'll definitely like Sacrificed by Emily Wibberley.“You are full, Laia. Full of life and dark and strength and spirit. You are in our dreams. You will burn, for you are an ember in the ashes.”

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Ai fazia tempo que eu não lia um livro que me deixou tão compenetrada! Parece que tem 900 páginas de tanta coisa que acontece! Adorei <3

I loved this book, and cant wait to read the rest of the series. It was a very unique world and story, and i got swept in it right away. Really recommend!!!

There are two kinds of guilt: the kind that drowns you until you’re useless, and the kind that fires your soul to purpose.I could tell this was going to win my heart from the first few pages. The fact that anything is possible makes fantasy such a daunting yet satisfying genre. You don't have to adhere to reality's rules; you can fabricate whatever you want as long as you can sell it. Fantasy can go horribly wrong or horribly right, and An Ember in the Ashes got it right.When Laia's family is murdered and her brother is imprisoned by a Martial, she vows to fight for his freedom and survival. Laia's only way of saving him is to work as a slave in Blackcliff Academy, spying for rebels.Elias is a top student at Blackcliff. Disobedience promises a public lashing at best, and a miserable death at worst, as a Martial in training.The problem is that Elias is repulsed by the school, unable to bear the killing and tyranny he is subjected to. He intends to desert before graduation, but no deserter has ever made it out alive in Blackliff's history.The characters were extremely well-written. My favorite character was Laia. Despite being a meek heroine, she was willing to go to any length to save her child. She was always afraid, but once she thinks about him, she snaps out of her stupor and goes about her business. In the end, she demonstrated incredible development and resilience. Personally, I like seeing underdogs rising to prominence, so I'm excited to see how Sabaa's character develops in A Torch Against the Night.In this novel, the twists and turns, the adventure and the romance, the passion and the befuddlement are all skillfully intertwined. It is intertwined, and it is dispersed. Folk tales, as well as the nightmare influence, have their own allure. Simply reading this book will break, hurt, and restore your souls. I adored it. Even though I believe this is not the case for all, I enjoyed the cruelty and sheer evilness of some of the characters.The prose was superb. And though I knew that no one would die or that it would happen, I nevertheless felt tightness in my chest and the urge to cry. The characters, as I previously said, were excellent, as was the production, especially Laia's. I'm relieved she isn't a badass, except that she, like most, was apprehended and disciplined. Helene was incredibly obnoxious when she was jealous, and she made some poor judgments. Elias. Ok, despite the fact that he is terrible with women, I am completely enamored with him.I'm determined to tell more about what about this story drew me in so completely. What made it an instant favorite and kept my stomach churning was the fact that it was so simple to make. For the first time in a long time, the romance was not what drew me in. Yeah, I enjoyed it, but it was also so much more. It was about family and friendship, love and death, fighting and betrayal...making choices that no one should have to make at their age. It delves into topics that few people dare to discuss, but the author makes them so appealing that you can't take your eyes off it. It was more like a beautifully woven spider web, designed to catch and constrict its victims, and there was grace in its depravity. Even now, as I reminisce about what happened and what our lead characters had to endure, I find myself gasping for air.Sure, the world creation should have been more complicated, but I figured we had enough information to make it work, and since this is the first of four books, I suppose there's still time to fill in the gaps. I really loved how the beginning of the book had us confused about just how much magic there is in this world, whether it's true or just superstition and mythology.Simply described, An Ember in the Ashes was a thrill coaster. Sabaa Tahir's writing style drew me in right away, allowing me to easily slip into both Elias and Laia's shoes. The stakes are high from the first chapter, implying a never-ending climactic adventure for readers.