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emilyraerae's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars. Kinda felt like a filler book. Plot not as interesting as the first book. Could have been a four star read if Keenan didn’t exist
dandelioneyes's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
taliadevereaux's review against another edition
5.0
I loved this book even more than the first. Laia and Elias are still great protagonists. I loved that we got POV chapters from Helene because she's one of the characters I found most interesting in book one. I want to know more about the Waiting Place and Shaeva. Still waiting to know more about the Augurs, too. I want to know if I'm right about them.
Sabaa continues her trend of mercilessly killing people off and ruining my life. I won't spoil who dies, but I really fooled myself into thinking they'd be safe because I'm too used to books where authors are scared to kill off likable characters.
THE PLOT TWIST THO WITH THE NIGHTBRINGER AND THE SILVER. I KNEW I SMELLED A RAT. I KNEWWWW IT. AND I KNEW I DIDN'T TRUST THAT BASTARD FOR A REASON.
I definitely hate Marcus way more in this book than I did in the last. Like bro, what is your pROBLEMMMM? Same with Keris. Like girl, who hurt you? Why are you like this?
10/10
Sabaa continues her trend of mercilessly killing people off and ruining my life. I won't spoil who dies, but I really fooled myself into thinking they'd be safe because I'm too used to books where authors are scared to kill off likable characters.
THE PLOT TWIST THO WITH THE NIGHTBRINGER AND THE SILVER. I KNEW I SMELLED A RAT. I KNEWWWW IT. AND I KNEW I DIDN'T TRUST THAT BASTARD FOR A REASON.
I definitely hate Marcus way more in this book than I did in the last. Like bro, what is your pROBLEMMMM? Same with Keris. Like girl, who hurt you? Why are you like this?
10/10
elisetheaudiobookworm's review against another edition
3.0
#ATorchAgainstTheNight took me a lil longer to finish than I thought it would... Not gonna lie.. The first 150 pages dragged.. But after that, the excitement slowly kicked in.. The twist.. Ahh. Interesting.. The deaths
lilmouse11's review against another edition
5.0
The author's passion with storytelling truly shows with with this series. I engaged deeper with the characters throughout this book. I felt the character's emotions, anguish and hope. Beautifully written. I don't feel as attached to the world as I did with the AV's Red Queen series, but this came pretty close.
elizabethb22's review against another edition
3.75
i preferred the first one, but I think life events may have limited my enjoyment of this because i was usually unable to focus which made me take longer to read it- likely lowering my rating. a lot of it was traveling, though, which is my least favorite part of fantasy quests.
inkdrinkah's review against another edition
3.0
It took me forever to read this book and I can't figure out if that's my fault or not. That being said the pace of this book felt really slow in the first half, and at certain points almost hopeless. More to the point of pacing — I feel like there were several time jumps that occurred simply because there was no other to progress the plot and I think there's an aspect to that that's lacking. I have an issue with how the Warden's character was dealt with, it seemed to be a very swift death that was swept under the rug despite how vicious he was and the role he played.
I felt like Helene watching almost her entire family butchered in front of her was written very casually and not like, you know... she watched her entire family butchered? And the polarizing one month later skip after she experienced that left me scratching my head. I recognize that the author maybe didn't want to spend too much time divulging into Helene's inner monologue and feelings but I do think shedding light on just how terrible the fall out was to her would really solidify her plans for vengeance.
I felt like Helene watching almost her entire family butchered in front of her was written very casually and not like, you know... she watched her entire family butchered? And the polarizing one month later skip after she experienced that left me scratching my head. I recognize that the author maybe didn't want to spend too much time divulging into Helene's inner monologue and feelings but I do think shedding light on just how terrible the fall out was to her would really solidify her plans for vengeance.
celia_thebookishhufflepuff's review against another edition
5.0
Summary: In the second book of the Ember Quartet, Laia and Elias venture to escape Darin from Kauf Prison. Meanwhile, Helene fights with herself over the question of loyalty in chapters of her own. Many beloved characters from [b:An Ember in the Ashes|27774758|An Ember in the Ashes (An Ember in the Ashes, #1)|Sabaa Tahir|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1519425615s/27774758.jpg|39113604] reappear, as well as a few new ones who add so much to the novel as a whole.
Warning: Spoilers for [b:An Ember in the Ashes|27774758|An Ember in the Ashes (An Ember in the Ashes, #1)|Sabaa Tahir|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1519425615s/27774758.jpg|39113604], the first book in the Ember Quartet.
I am thoroughly impressed by this series, far more than I was expecting. The character development is everything I could have hoped for and more, and the plot is more twisty than even I could have wanted.
I mentioned this for [b:An Ember in the Ashes|27774758|An Ember in the Ashes (An Ember in the Ashes, #1)|Sabaa Tahir|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1519425615s/27774758.jpg|39113604], but the character development is absolutely amazing. I might consider it even better than that of [b:A Court of Thorns and Roses|16096824|A Court of Thorns and Roses (A Court of Thorns and Roses, #1)|Sarah J. Maas|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1491595796s/16096824.jpg|21905102], and that's really saying something. Laia is the character who has changed the most throughout the two novels, and now I think I understand what the title [b:An Ember in the Ashes|27774758|An Ember in the Ashes (An Ember in the Ashes, #1)|Sabaa Tahir|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1519425615s/27774758.jpg|39113604] means, even more than I did before. She is truly the face of triumph in adversity.
I was very grateful that author [a:Sabaa Tahir|7770873|Sabaa Tahir|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1390501945p2/7770873.jpg] included Helene's perspective as well. I kind of expected she would, and her character was just so interesting that it was almost impossible not to. One thing I found fascinating was that her character and Laia's sort of switched roles. In [b:An Ember in the Ashes|27774758|An Ember in the Ashes (An Ember in the Ashes, #1)|Sabaa Tahir|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1519425615s/27774758.jpg|39113604], Helene had been the confident one, and Laia was the one discovering herself and realizing more and more secrets. In [b:A Torch Against the Night|25558608|A Torch Against the Night (An Ember in the Ashes, #2)|Sabaa Tahir|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1463675717s/25558608.jpg|45355236], Helene becomes the one who questions everything and struggles with her place in the world, while Laia is becomes a genuinely confident young lady who struggles with questions of bravery and loss. I found myself hoping that Helene's choices would bring her closer to Laia, and that they could somehow be friends, despite everything that pulled them apart. I'm still hoping for that in the rest of the series. I see so much potential in both of them.
Most of the plot twists, on the other hand, came within Elias's character. I was absolutely impressed at the way he fought the ills placed upon him, even knowing what his future held. I can't say too much about what those ills were, because it would be giving away so many spoilers, but Elias is altogether an amazing character.
I am glad that I am mostly caught up to everyone who was impatiently waiting for two years for [b:A Reaper at the Gates|30809786|A Reaper at the Gates (An Ember in the Ashes, #3)|Sabaa Tahir|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1507476834s/30809786.jpg|51397188]. I cannot wait to read it, although if I'm being honest the wait at my library will probably be so long I should just hold off until September, when the school library will have it and most people will have already read it over the summer. Still, I am very grateful I started to read this series at the time I did.
Warning: Spoilers for [b:An Ember in the Ashes|27774758|An Ember in the Ashes (An Ember in the Ashes, #1)|Sabaa Tahir|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1519425615s/27774758.jpg|39113604], the first book in the Ember Quartet.
I am thoroughly impressed by this series, far more than I was expecting. The character development is everything I could have hoped for and more, and the plot is more twisty than even I could have wanted.
I mentioned this for [b:An Ember in the Ashes|27774758|An Ember in the Ashes (An Ember in the Ashes, #1)|Sabaa Tahir|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1519425615s/27774758.jpg|39113604], but the character development is absolutely amazing. I might consider it even better than that of [b:A Court of Thorns and Roses|16096824|A Court of Thorns and Roses (A Court of Thorns and Roses, #1)|Sarah J. Maas|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1491595796s/16096824.jpg|21905102], and that's really saying something. Laia is the character who has changed the most throughout the two novels, and now I think I understand what the title [b:An Ember in the Ashes|27774758|An Ember in the Ashes (An Ember in the Ashes, #1)|Sabaa Tahir|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1519425615s/27774758.jpg|39113604] means, even more than I did before. She is truly the face of triumph in adversity.
I was very grateful that author [a:Sabaa Tahir|7770873|Sabaa Tahir|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1390501945p2/7770873.jpg] included Helene's perspective as well. I kind of expected she would, and her character was just so interesting that it was almost impossible not to. One thing I found fascinating was that her character and Laia's sort of switched roles. In [b:An Ember in the Ashes|27774758|An Ember in the Ashes (An Ember in the Ashes, #1)|Sabaa Tahir|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1519425615s/27774758.jpg|39113604], Helene had been the confident one, and Laia was the one discovering herself and realizing more and more secrets. In [b:A Torch Against the Night|25558608|A Torch Against the Night (An Ember in the Ashes, #2)|Sabaa Tahir|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1463675717s/25558608.jpg|45355236], Helene becomes the one who questions everything and struggles with her place in the world, while Laia is becomes a genuinely confident young lady who struggles with questions of bravery and loss. I found myself hoping that Helene's choices would bring her closer to Laia, and that they could somehow be friends, despite everything that pulled them apart. I'm still hoping for that in the rest of the series. I see so much potential in both of them.
Most of the plot twists, on the other hand, came within Elias's character. I was absolutely impressed at the way he fought the ills placed upon him, even knowing what his future held. I can't say too much about what those ills were, because it would be giving away so many spoilers, but Elias is altogether an amazing character.
I am glad that I am mostly caught up to everyone who was impatiently waiting for two years for [b:A Reaper at the Gates|30809786|A Reaper at the Gates (An Ember in the Ashes, #3)|Sabaa Tahir|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1507476834s/30809786.jpg|51397188]. I cannot wait to read it, although if I'm being honest the wait at my library will probably be so long I should just hold off until September, when the school library will have it and most people will have already read it over the summer. Still, I am very grateful I started to read this series at the time I did.
kate_jur's review against another edition
4.0
Wow, it was one crazy ride of a book!
In my humble opinion, it was a worthy sequel. Not one part was forced or dragged (except, maybe, all the parts which involved love quadrangle!). Oh, and the best part of the book? Helene's POV. Honestly, she was like a breath of fresh air.
And, quoting Hermione and Harry from the Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban movie:
In my humble opinion, it was a worthy sequel. Not one part was forced or dragged (except, maybe, all the parts which involved love quadrangle!). Oh, and the best part of the book? Helene's POV. Honestly, she was like a breath of fresh air.
And, quoting Hermione and Harry from the Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban movie:
- And now we wait?
- And now we wait.