Reviews with content warning for Hate crime - An Ember in the Ashes

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An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir

15 reviews

theresamothinmyroom's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense medium-paced

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

3.5

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linde_ahobbit's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

A great book that keeps you interested and on your toes. It's well written, in a way that makes it easy to get lost in the book. Only the romance(s) felt a bit lackluster to me. I would've loved it more if it had begun with a friendship instead of instant attraction. But that might be just me. I will read the rest of the series for sure.

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cemmalyn12's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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chronicacademia's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

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bree_h_reads's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense medium-paced

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

2.5

I had heard this book was rather popular, so I was cautiously optimistic as I’ve found my agreement with the masses about the quality of popular books is on and off. I think my cautious optimism is what kept this book at 2 stars, because I wasn’t wildly disappointed when I found some parts lacking.

I think the book started strong and I loved how everything felt and was conveyed, but it was more the middle and ending I had some issue/fell off. I think some of the issues I had later in the book were also foreshadowed by issues I had at the start, though at the time they were minor.

To start for what I liked. The beginning from Laia’s POV was very strong and didn’t have an overly long info dump of an introduction which I appreciated. It treated the reader like they were intelligent and let them infer a lot about the world and what’s happening. I also liked that Laia was just a very normal girl, I’ve read a lot of YA fantasy books where the MC is Extremely Special And Different and while not a bad thing it’s nice to see the variety. I thought the setup with the resistance was interesting and liked their internal politics and struggles, it felt very realistic and indicative of what we could expect from Laia’s plot line. I really liked the writing style, especially in describing characters and setting the scene. I also thought the author did a good job in establishing relationships and dynamics between characters. The Commandant was perfectly established as a frightening figure in the book and I liked the way her dynamic with Laia and Elias was so quickly established. Laia’s POV was easily the best written in my opinion, I was always interested in what was happening with her and her development. I think this is where the author’s skill in building tension and unease especially shines. I also found the world building fascinating and was always eager to learn more.

However, there were plenty of things I disliked as well. I personally found Elias’ whole thing rather boring and inconsistent. I especially hated the wag femininity and religion was treated in his chapters, especially regarding his alleged best friend Helene. I noted several times he was upset with her for being feminine/a heterosexual girl in general and at least one instance of him calling her stupid for being dedicated to the religion she had been raised in. I also found issues with showing vs telling with Helene. The book told us over and over again how strong she was and how much better she was than Elias, but was also so frequently damseled across his chapters, it was a bit of a let down. The trials too felt very repetitive with them all being combat, I’ve read other books that took place in trial-based settings and felt that each trial was unique and brought something new to the table in a way I felt this was just lacking. While each trial WAS different, it just got old after a while. There was just also a general feeling of inconsistency and plenty of times I thought that characters weren’t allowed to linger in their emotions for long enough. The romances too I generally found a bit flat and frustrating.

Overall I think it has a lot of potential and is interesting, but found it was dragged down in a few key ways, especially with Elias and his POV (which isn’t ideal for a duel POV book or having 2 MCs.)

Outside of that I thought that audiobook narrators were great and loved their performances.

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bittennailbooks's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes

4.75

What the hell was in this book?! This has to be the most sickening romantacy I have ever read in my life [positive].

Thumbs up: I was surprised to read that it took folks awhile to get into the story because I felt this one knocked me to the ground and dragged me through every brutal chapter like a spider monkey. This book is so bloody and ruthless that you forget it is a YA novel. The torture, SA threats, and enslavement is definitely enough to turn your stomach. That being said, the writing was very accessible which made it quick to burn my eyeball nerves speed reading because I was terrible engrossed in this story. A new favorite on my shelf for sure.

Thumbs down: I don't have much in terms of criticism for this one. Just make sure you check out the content before diving in [a lot of threats of rape but nothing on page]

Was it a nail biter? When I literally have to cover the bottom half of the page so I stop reading ahead due to my stomach dropping anxiety for these characters? I'm surprised I have fingers left. 4.75/5.

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esconce's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I have read this whole series but just wanted to write my final reviews, the characters in this book definitely get better as the story and series as a whole progresses. I personally really disliked Helene in the beginning but over time she became my favorite character by the end of the series. It definitely has a couple “Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire” sort of moments, but it deals with a surprising amount of classism racism and more that honestly just fits really well. The world building is just top tier and Keenan stays as one of my favorite characters from the beginning to the end. :D 9/10 would read again

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