Reviews with content warning for Abortion - An Ember in the Ashes

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An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir

27 reviews

imds's review

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Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

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booksthatburn's review against another edition

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dark tense medium-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? It's complicated

5.0

The worldbuilding leans on characterization and brutality, with few aesthetic descriptions. The major groups are the Scholars, the Tribes, and the Martials, with the Rebels generally composed of Scholars who are trying to resist the Martials. There are a few other groups mentioned, but they weren't major players in this first book, and at a certain point it matters more whether someone is a Mask, slave, Augur, or part of the Resistance. I like books which are full of plans and political tensions over scenery, so I enjoyed this emphasis on individuals and factions.

For those who enjoy love triangles, this has an innovation on the form: Laia and Elias each have two people to choose between. As the protagonists they're of course drawn to each other, but Laia has a smoldering attraction to one of the rebels, and Elias is slowly realizing he might have romantic feelings for his best friend (the only female Mask in his generation). These tensions aren't completely resolved in this book either, leaving room for this to develop more in the next one. I like both options for each of them, and it feels like there's a genuine question over what they'll choose. For those who are a little less into such plots, it's a consistent but not overwhelming thread and there's plenty else to like.

The plot begins with Elias and Laia on two sides of the same raid, where Laia's grandparents are killed and her brother is kidnapped, while Elias is one of the Masks carrying out the invasion. The chapters frequently overlap, with each narrator sometimes beginning their chapter by telling their perspective on an event or a slice of time which was just told by the other. Since they generally have completely different experiences, I like this overlapping style but it took a little getting used to. It made it feel more like they were each narrating what was important to them, uncaring and unknowing of what the other described. Laia asks the Rebels for help getting her brother back, and is placed as a slave to the Commandant of the Academy where Elias is. Elias was planning to escape, but is told by an Augur that the only way to actually be free is if first he stays. The rest of the story unfolds as Laia tries to get information to the rebels and survive her enslavement, while Elias tries to survive the gauntlet of challenges to be the next emperor (a title he doesn't even want).

One thing I appreciate about this book is that in a system so controlling and overseen by (basically) mind-reading (probably) immortal Augurs who never explain their own goals, it would make very little sense for the heroes to have genuine agency over their lives at a macro level. So they don't. They don't have control over how things will go, their plans keep working out very differently than they even dared to hope, and they frequently suffer for it. They're constantly in danger and often get hurt, Laia from the Commandant's whims or Elias from the challenges themselves. When things do go well, an Augur usually turns up to tell Elias how he's done what they wanted, yet again. It's frustrating but completely in keeping with the brutality and sheer mind-fuckery of the situation. Because they have so little control, most of the plot focuses on how they feel and what they decided to do in the small moments they do have.

I enjoyed this and plan to read the rest of the series, this is an exciting and well-paced beginning to the quartet.

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bookish_kori's review

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adventurous challenging dark emotional medium-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

3.5

The book has a ton of high quality commentary and, though I’m not quite sure it’s in line with the booktok hype, the premise is really interesting and I’m excited to see if it gets better as the series progresses. Overall I felt it had a really strong beginning and a fairly strong ending with a lull in the middle. The focuses on the complexities of motivation, nature v. nurture, questioning those in power and their methods, and being close to people who end up forming completely different opinions and views of the world than you was super in-depth and a great read. The fact that *both* POV characters somehow required a love triangle and the way those relationships developed throughout the first book was off-putting for me, but I may be alone in that. I will be reading the rest of the series and I’m sure these characters will more than exceed my expectations from here :)

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