An Ember in the Ashes (An Ember in the Ashes #1) by Sabaa Tahir
4/5 stars
Premise- (3/5) Honestly, I was not super impressed by the premise for An Ember in the Ashes. A big part of the reason I picked it up was because a lot of other people were really impressed by it. Don’t get me wrong, the premise didn’t look bad by any means. It just didn’t jump out at me. It seemed fairly standard YA: girl and boy should be enemies because of the dystopian state/fantasy world, but end up falling in love. I was skeptical.
Characters- (5/5) There were so many well-written characters and they were all so different, which is great. Laia was very different from a lot of YA heroines because she started out very afraid and she acknowledged her fear and she talked about how she didn’t want to be working against the Empire, she was just trying to save her brother. That’s really unusual to see, and it was refreshing, especially since we got to see her grow and develop throughout the course of the book. Elias was interesting to read about as someone who’d progressed to the very top, but hated the system. And Helene was really compelling. I’ll be very curious to see what her arc is in the next book. The other supporting characters were interesting too, Izzi, Cook, Darin, Keenan, Mazen, and Marcus all had their own motivations and stories and I can’t wait to see more.
Plot- (4/5) Right now, the plot is still a smaller scale than I was expecting. So far, there is no bringing down the Empire, which I think is sort of what I expected as the goal of our characters. But Laia’s goal is just to save her brother, and while Elias definitely wants the downfall of the Empire, he’s not in a position to do a lot about it yet. I loved the concept of the Trials, though I admit they felt a little rushed. I was disappointed that Marcus won the Trials, but it was a smart move on Tahir’s part to shake things up and up the stakes. Regardless, I’m excited to see what Marcus and Helene will do as the new Emperor and Blood Shrike, and how Laia and Elias will get her brother out. And, I really liked that the Rebels weren’t necessarily cut and clean. They’re willing to do pretty much anything to take down the Empire; the end justifies the means. And that makes them very interesting.
World- (4.5/5) There’s still lots to be explored in Tahir’s world, but I’ve loved what we’ve seen so far. I am so excited that the Empire is based off ancient Rome (what do you expect, I’m a classics major), and I felt the world was very well constructed. The details of Blackcliff, as well as the Scholar quarters and Rebel base gave the world a sense of depth. I would love to see more of some of the less explored places, such as Marinn and the Tribal Desert. Hopefully the wonderful world-building will keep happening in the next book.
Writing- (4/5) Tahir’s writing was nice. Not quite as beautiful as some authors, but very readable, and I loved the issues she touched on like race and class. Though her writing may not be as poetic-prose-ish as some authors, she conveys important ideas and creates complex characters within a well-shaped world.
Overall- (4.1/5) Sabaa Tahir has developed a detailed and fascinating world and populated it with compelling characters. She weaves in important social issues and themes while drawing audiences deeper into the world of the Empire. Readers should be aware that this book covers some heavy stuff, including sexual assault and some fairly graphic violence. Still, I thought Tahir handled these topics well. I loved her characters, their moral dilemmas, uncertain ethics, and the shades of grey they had to deal with in their personal situations. I can’t wait to see more in the next book!