An Ember in the Ashes A Novel
Reviews
the beginning was kinda slow for me so it took me a while to get into it. overall though i did enjoy it but i just wanted more on certain characters, world building / history etc. i know it’s only the first book in the series so i’m hoping as i continue it gets better!
smashing the five STARS I LOVE YOU HELENE AQUILLA
there's just something about fast-paced fantasy series that gets me every. time.
This was a reread and I absolutely loved it ! It was way better than the first time I read it !
OMG I think this is one of my favourite series in 2018 !! This is totally amazing !! so small summary : Laia , of the Scholar race , must become a slave at the Martial Academy to spy for the Resistance hoping that she could save her captured older brother from prison. Elias, a student at the Martial Academy, he wears a mask that all the students must wear . They both live different lives but as the story goes on Laia discovers a ruthless way of living and is betrayed . Elias is trying to escape this academy but fails and is now in a difficult position. Third reread update: Still love the book though my excitement for the rest of the books did die down a bit perhaps it's because I knew what the twist was lol. Anyways can't wait for the reread of the second book. Rating this a solid 4.5/5 stars 🌟 because it lacked description and the pace was a bit too slow for my taste.
Nice. I really liked the incorporation of politics. The only issue was that even though I could connect to the characters, it was not a lot. Anyway, I will definitely read the next book in the series.
might not continue the series, didn’t intrigue me much
3.5
I loved this book! It's amazing YA. In a dystopian society, based on antique Rome, everyone against the empire is punished. Laia's brother is accused of treason and he is sent to prison. Laia joins the rebels and she infiltrates the military school to save him! I loved the main characters and the plot. It was a little bit predictable (as any YA is) but it was sooo enjoyable.
read may 15, 2016 reread july 22, 2017
3.5 i feel like me from 2 to 3 years ago would’ve liked this more. i’m not sure if it’s because i’m not fully immersed in it, but i only kept reading because i’m attached to the characters. i loved the worldbuilding and am still curious to learn more about the history—especially the tribals. how the words were woven together is also really caters to my taste, it’s not too fancy but sophisticated enough without being hard to read.
Entertaining but a bit superficial
5 star because it had everything This book had absolutely everything. Characters you genuinely cared about to a point where you care so much you struggle to read on at points! Some lovely and caring, others horrible and inconceivably cruel, all flawed and, as a result, very believable! A storyline you constantly want to read the next chapter of to see where it is taking you, hoping what you thought was going to happen happens and then ether satisfyingly does or also satisfyingly takes a brilliant twist. It's a book I feel the author could have kept on writing and I would have kept on reading. But I'm glad there's a sequel (and another book coming soon) as it allows me to break it up and get myself ready for the next installment as there's a lot of unanswered questions and little holes I want them to explore more!
???
i made a great decision to ignore their ages completely and i am glad.
This reminded my why I love reading. It was so beautiful and sad and thrilling. Elias and laia are going to break my heart. When I wasn't reading this I was thinking about reading it.
This book is such a sweet surprise because I had no expectation when I first started it and ended up loving it. It's the kind of book that will keep you guessing and wondering what's gonna happen next. I had so much fun putting all the pieces together and trying to grasp what the heck is happening.
A refreshing escape!
An Ember in the Ashes is the kind of book that is enthralling while you read it, and you cannot stop thinking about it when you're not. This series gained A LOT of hype and I have to say, it earned every single bit of it. The writing is incredible and the split perspective between Elias and Laia works like a dream (You won't need a Midnight Sun for this series!) The way Sabaa Tahir has brought the characters to life is incredible. Seriously, I think I went through the five stages of grief while reading this book. The pacing, storyline, everything is a work of art. It has everything one may want in a book, exciting and daring adventure, romance, magic, mystery, even a bit of a heist. I believe this book, if not the entire series, will be a favorite for readers everywhere for an extremely long time.
laia & elias, my beloveds.
i’m speechless this book is AMAZING!! it has so many elements and depth and ahhhh i’m in love
This is my second time reading this book because I want to read "A Torch Against the Night" and I all I really remembered about this book was that I loved it. And I do have to stay I loved it just as much now as I did before. This is truly probably one of my favorite books I have ever read for some reasons I cannot explain. It is one to the longest books I have read in a while, but also one of the fastest. While the book is in fact a chunker, there is an amazing world packed into these 446 pages. I have so many jumbled thoughts on this masterpiece that I could ramble for probably days. The characters are so well developed and thinking back in the book, unlike most books I read, I cannot pick out one moment in the book that I felt unnecessary or boring. The work development is extraordinary. I have a feeling that if this book was made into a movie, 1 they would probably ruin it for me in so many ways, 2 I would freak out and go see it instantly, and 3 there is so much that happened, that I think it would have to be at least 2 parts. Anyways, this will always remain one of my favorite books in existence (as far as now) and I can see my self re-re- and re-reading this many times. Anyways, would highly recommend to anyone into fantasy, fighting/combat, or basically just any person because it is a great book. NOW ONTO A TORCH AGAINST THE NIGHT YAY
Book #28 Read in 2015 An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir This book better have a sequel to it and it better come out soon! Martials have overtaken the government and have enslaved Scholars. Elias is a Martial who is graduating from an academy that will teach him how to be heartless and cold. Laia is a Scholar who joins forces with the resistance in an effort to save her captured brother. The two connect in a way that shouldn't be possible and are drawn to helping each other. This book had good action, romance, interesting characters and a plot that made the over 400 pages fly by. I received a copy of this book from the Amazon Vine program in exchange for a honest review. http://melissasbookpicks.blogspot.com
Highlights
"This life is not always what we think it will be, Cain says. 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.' kclilt
Life is hard enough without having to avoid entire rooms in my own head.
Life is made of so many moments that mean nothing. Then one day, a single moment comes along to define every second that comes after.
They both wore their scars proudly-proof of their ability to survive. Be strong like them, Laia. Be brave. But l'm not strong. I'm weak, and I’m sick of pretending I'm not.
NOOOOO LAIA PLEASE BE OKAY I LOVE YOU
"And suddenly, I don't feel bewildered or defeated. This - this - was what Cain spoke of: the freedom to go to my death knowing it's for the right reason. The freedom to call my soul my own. The freedom to salvage some small goodness by refusing to become like my mother, by dying for something that is worth dying for."
Elias
"Such foolish hope, to have thought that despite being raised to violence I might one day be free of it."
Elias
"'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. That is your destiny. Being a Resistance spy - that is the smallest part of you. That is nothing.'"
Augur Cain
"'There are two kinds of guilt,' I say softly. 'The kind that's a burden and the kind that gives you purpose. Let your guilt be your fuel. Let it remind you of who you want to be. Draw a line in your mind. Never cross it again. You have a soul. It's damaged, but it's there. Don't let them take it from you, Elias.'"
Laia at Elias after the Third Trial
"You will survive,' Keenan says. 'All of the rebels have lost someone. It's why they fight. But you and me? We're the ones who've lost everyone. Everything. We're alike, Laia. So you can trust me when I say that you're strong, whether you know it or not. You'll find that entrence. I know you will.' They are the warmest words I've heard in so long. Our eyes lock again, but this time, Keenan doesn't look away. The rest of the world fades as we whirl. I say nothing, for the quiet between us is sweet and graceful and of our own choosing. And though he, too, doesn't speak, his dark eyes smoulder, telling me something I don't quite understand. Desire, low and dizzying, unfurls in my stomach. I want to hold this closeness to me as if it's a treasure. I don't want to release it."
Keenan and Laia at the Moon festival
"At his touch, my skin comes alive as if warmed by the sun."
Keenan and Laia dancing
"In the end, I don't answer her question. She doesn't answer mine. Instead, we sit without words, watching the city, the river, the desert beyond, our secrets heavy between us."
"In another flash of insight, born of the awareness that kinly makes itself known deep in the night, when the mind opens strange doors, I realize something else. This is not a quiet lie. It is violent and shattering."
Elias' thoughts
"The field of battle is my temple. The swordpoint is my priest. The dance of death is my prayer. The killing blow is my release."
Elias
“It will get better. You'll never forget them, not even after years. But one day, you'll go a whole minute without feeling the pain. Then an hour. A day. That's all you can ask for, really.”
:(
“There are two kinds of guilt. The kind that's a burden and the kind that gives you purpose. Let your guilt be your fuel. Let it remind you of who you want to be. Draw a line in your mind. Never cross it again. You have a soul. It's damaged but it's there. Don't let them take it from you.”
!! Laia my most beloved
“Life is made of so many moments that mean nothing. Then one day, a single moment comes along to define every second that comes after. Such moments are tests of courage, of strength.”
<3
"I live with the guilt. But there are two kinds of guilt, girl: the kind that drowns you until you're useless, and the kind that fires your soul to purpose.
Darin didn't let fear control him. If I want to save him, I can't let fear control me either.
Teluman's words come back to me. I never saw your brother afraid. He never seemed to focus on what could turn out wrong. He only ever thought about how things could turn out right.