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vivelarevolution's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
I read and re-read this series in high school and I absolutely adored it. I still do, in many ways. However, there are definitely some things bothering me as I re-read these books as an adult. Most glaringly: the relationship between Elias and Laia. It is acknowledged multiple times, as they get closer and the impending romance is either hinted at or haltingly kindled, that the power dynamics between them make a consensual relationship completely impossible. He is a soldier, an Aspirant; she is his mother's slave. They kiss anyway. And at no point is their age gap--seventeen and twenty--ever acknowledged as a part of this power dynamic or treated as if it could be wrong.
It's partially for this reason that I have tagged this book with the content warning adult/minor relationship. There is another adult/minor relationship which is not acknowledged as such in this book because it is a spoiler that I remember from a later book.Keenan, who kisses Laia and actively attempts to develop a relationship with her in this book, is actually thousands of years old, not human, and (obviously) lying about his identity. Frankly I can accept the presence of the second relationship more than the first because at least he is portrayed as a villain over it.
I don't want to hate this book. A lot of things about it were compelling to me--especially Helene and Afya Ara-Nur and Spiro Teluman. But I don't understand why this type of relationship has to be so normalized. Why could Laia not have been an adult in this book? Why could the Blackcliff graduates not have been the age of high school graduates rather than in their early twenties? Why did the author feel the need to initiate their sexual relationship not just while they are a slave and a master, but in the specific context of Laia being "given" to Elias as a prize? I genuinely cannot imagine what must have been going through the author's mind to set up their relationship in this way and act like it's okay.
And honestly, rape was used as a plot device just about every three seconds. The author wants to remind us Marcus is evil and we need to hate him? Let's have him threaten to rape Helene again! The author wants us to know how Elias is such a Good Guy Who Will Protect Laia From the Commandant? Let's have him pretend to rape her as a "cover"! The author wants to just, I don't know, fulfill some sort of quota for how many times she wants to include the word? Let's have Marcus beat Laia nearly to death and attempt to rape her unconscious body! It's just constant and excessive, especially for a freaking YA novel.
And this is less egregious than my previously listed complaints, but sometimes I can't believe this book was written by a woman. Elias spends the entire book "saving" every woman in his life from various threats (mostly rape) despite the fact that Helene in particular is just as skilled as he is and should be able to defend herself. The petty drama of pitting Helene and Laia against each other over Elias is so tired. The Commandant is the closest that the author comes to a female character whose motivations are not exclusively about a man, and she is just the most cardboard cutout Evil Villain Lady in existence.
It's partially for this reason that I have tagged this book with the content warning adult/minor relationship. There is another adult/minor relationship which is not acknowledged as such in this book because it is a spoiler that I remember from a later book.
I don't want to hate this book. A lot of things about it were compelling to me--especially Helene and Afya Ara-Nur and Spiro Teluman. But I don't understand why this type of relationship has to be so normalized. Why could Laia not have been an adult in this book? Why could the Blackcliff graduates not have been the age of high school graduates rather than in their early twenties? Why did the author feel the need to initiate their sexual relationship not just while they are a slave and a master, but in the specific context of Laia being "given" to Elias as a prize? I genuinely cannot imagine what must have been going through the author's mind to set up their relationship in this way and act like it's okay.
And honestly, rape was used as a plot device just about every three seconds. The author wants to remind us Marcus is evil and we need to hate him? Let's have him threaten to rape Helene again! The author wants us to know how Elias is such a Good Guy Who Will Protect Laia From the Commandant? Let's have him pretend to rape her as a "cover"! The author wants to just, I don't know, fulfill some sort of quota for how many times she wants to include the word? Let's have Marcus beat Laia nearly to death and attempt to rape her unconscious body! It's just constant and excessive, especially for a freaking YA novel.
And this is less egregious than my previously listed complaints, but sometimes I can't believe this book was written by a woman. Elias spends the entire book "saving" every woman in his life from various threats (mostly rape) despite the fact that Helene in particular is just as skilled as he is and should be able to defend herself. The petty drama of pitting Helene and Laia against each other over Elias is so tired. The Commandant is the closest that the author comes to a female character whose motivations are not exclusively about a man, and she is just the most cardboard cutout Evil Villain Lady in existence.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical content, Sexism, Sexual harassment, Blood, Slavery, Sexual violence, Kidnapping, Adult/minor relationship, War, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Physical abuse, and Violence
Moderate: Sexual assault, Rape, and Torture
Minor: Suicide and Child death
No-one is raped in this book, but there are multiple scenes of attempted rape. It is mentioned frequently throughout the book, mostly in the context of the constant threat of rape experienced by enslaved women. The two main characters, Elias and Laia, develop a romance over the course of this book despite the fact that Elias is an esteemed and powerful soldier and Laia is his mother's slave. They share their first kiss after Laia is "given" to Elias as a prize. Additionally, there are multiple scenes in which the Laia is beaten, branded, or otherwise brutalized due to her status as a slave. All of the enslaved characters have endured significant torture and violence, most of which took place before the time of the book and is mentioned in the past tense.anovelbeauty's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Book TW: ❗️multiple on-page sexual assaults❗️, rape, physical abuse, murder, child abuse, abandonment, torture, physical abuse, emotional abuse, slavery
An Ember in the Ashes was a RIDE. It took me a few chapters to really get engaged with the characters, but once I did, I was really, truly hooked. I cared about every character I was supposed to and even the beastly characters get their brief moments of humanity to solidify them (namely Marcus and the Commandant). But I truly loved and adored our three main players: Elias, Laia, and Helene. I would say of the three, Elias is my favorite because it’s really fascinating to follow a good and moral character in a brutal, cruel situation. I love following him as he grapples with the morality of his forced training to be an assassin and killing machine. He’s complex and sweet and deserves all the good things. Helene is equally fascinating. She’s interesting though because she’s more morally grey in that to cope with the brutality of their world, her loyalty and goodness is reserved for a select few whereas Elias applies these qualities across the board and to everyone. Both make sense to the characters, but it’s also good to see them work through this (somewhat) together over the course of the book. Laia follows a little bit more of a traditional path in terms of goodness and her plot purposes, so while I still loved her, she didn’t quite capture my attention the way Elias and Helene did because I knew the choices she was going to make throughout the book.
A lot of the side characters were also engaging and I’m interested to see the roles they play in later books. All of the character interactions and chemistry is *chef’s kiss.* The only one that I didn’t care about quite as much as I think I was supposed to was Keenan, but I think he may have more room for development in future books. He just didn’t seem quite as engaging as most of the other characters in my opinion.
The plot is fast paced and twisty, with lots of little moments of humanity placed into a brutal, cruel world. Having studied a lot about Roman culture in the last couple years, I did love seeing the Roman inspired world and I hope we’re able to see more outside of just the military/resistance (from all the cultures) out of future books. However, what we did get, especially little gems like the Scholar’s moon festival or the Marshal’s parties were really well done. The magic and mythos were more hinted at in this book, but definitely are hinted to be playing /much/ larger roles in as the series goes on. So I’m interested to see how that plays out.
There were a lot of moments in the book where I just gasped and stopped the audiobook because my feelings were being played like a violin. Tahir seems like a “kill your darlings” writer... I haven’t read beyond the first book, but based on what I’ve read- that’s my prediction. Do with that as you please. The ending was heartstopping and intense and oh my goodness the character stuff it’s setting up for the next novels?! I loved the spy stuff mixed with quest/trial stuff in this novel and it added so many layers of tension to the plot and was well-written.
Seriously though, it was such a good first instalment and if it weren’t for the rest of my Readathon tbr books I’d be picking up Book 2 immediately. I HAVE to see what happens next. I’d definitely recommend it if you’re in the mood for a brutal, dark, fast-paced YA fantasy with great character work and a spying/trials subplot.
An Ember in the Ashes was a RIDE. It took me a few chapters to really get engaged with the characters, but once I did, I was really, truly hooked. I cared about every character I was supposed to and even the beastly characters get their brief moments of humanity to solidify them (namely Marcus and the Commandant). But I truly loved and adored our three main players: Elias, Laia, and Helene. I would say of the three, Elias is my favorite because it’s really fascinating to follow a good and moral character in a brutal, cruel situation. I love following him as he grapples with the morality of his forced training to be an assassin and killing machine. He’s complex and sweet and deserves all the good things. Helene is equally fascinating. She’s interesting though because she’s more morally grey in that to cope with the brutality of their world, her loyalty and goodness is reserved for a select few whereas Elias applies these qualities across the board and to everyone. Both make sense to the characters, but it’s also good to see them work through this (somewhat) together over the course of the book. Laia follows a little bit more of a traditional path in terms of goodness and her plot purposes, so while I still loved her, she didn’t quite capture my attention the way Elias and Helene did because I knew the choices she was going to make throughout the book.
A lot of the side characters were also engaging and I’m interested to see the roles they play in later books. All of the character interactions and chemistry is *chef’s kiss.* The only one that I didn’t care about quite as much as I think I was supposed to was Keenan, but I think he may have more room for development in future books. He just didn’t seem quite as engaging as most of the other characters in my opinion.
The plot is fast paced and twisty, with lots of little moments of humanity placed into a brutal, cruel world. Having studied a lot about Roman culture in the last couple years, I did love seeing the Roman inspired world and I hope we’re able to see more outside of just the military/resistance (from all the cultures) out of future books. However, what we did get, especially little gems like the Scholar’s moon festival or the Marshal’s parties were really well done. The magic and mythos were more hinted at in this book, but definitely are hinted to be playing /much/ larger roles in as the series goes on. So I’m interested to see how that plays out.
There were a lot of moments in the book where I just gasped and stopped the audiobook because my feelings were being played like a violin. Tahir seems like a “kill your darlings” writer... I haven’t read beyond the first book, but based on what I’ve read- that’s my prediction. Do with that as you please. The ending was heartstopping and intense and oh my goodness the character stuff it’s setting up for the next novels?! I loved the spy stuff mixed with quest/trial stuff in this novel and it added so many layers of tension to the plot and was well-written.
Seriously though, it was such a good first instalment and if it weren’t for the rest of my Readathon tbr books I’d be picking up Book 2 immediately. I HAVE to see what happens next. I’d definitely recommend it if you’re in the mood for a brutal, dark, fast-paced YA fantasy with great character work and a spying/trials subplot.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Sexism, Slavery, Physical abuse, and Murder
Moderate: Torture, Child death, Child abuse, Abandonment, Blood, Colonisation, and Death
Minor: Death of parent and Xenophobia
serena08's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
relaxing
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? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Sexual violence, Death, Death of parent, Torture, Slavery, Sexism, Pregnancy, Physical abuse, Murder, Grief, Cursing, Blood, and Abortion
destdest's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Not really a review but more so some rambling thoughts
-Easy to read. I breezed through pages like it was nothing. I looked up and half the book was already read.
-The different people, the scholars, martials, masks, and so… the racial makeup was hard to get a grasp on. I think scholars are pale, lighter-skinned and martials are generally darker, whether in skin or hair color. But some people are blonde, redhead, dark-haired and so on. Maybe it’s more of a cultural thing than a general look because every character’s looks ran the gamut.
-Marcus was horrid. Like a hyena laughing at brutality, grossness, and violence. I don’t think he had any redeeming value. It’s unfortunate placement the first line about him refers to his darker skin, then him being called ugly.
-I’m not sure why only one girl is allowed each year, and in a school of boys raised to be brutish and barbaric.
-Things are cruel at the academy for everyone, the students and, especially, the enslaved. The threat of being raped is a very real, ever-present thing here for the female characters and slaves. In addition, the carnage rises high and children are not spared. There’s a constant sense of peril, which runs throughout the story.
-I’m ambivalent about the Helene-Elias stuff. I didn’t really care for the romance aspect in general, but the strain it put on their friendship was interesting to watch. I wonder why Helene is SO loyal to him.She’s is staking life decisions on one dude.
- I <b>loved</b> the Cook, the real MVP! Also, Laia has some good character development.
- hormones are all powerful. Characters close to death and being actively tortured in ENSLAVEMENT, but got time for their hearts to go doki doki. Well, okay, even during tragedy, people fall in love.
- I'm ready for the Commandment to get rocked.
I guess the real friends we made were the sexism and battle weaponry we met along the way.
In all seriousness, I’ll read book two. I want to see where this goes.
-Easy to read. I breezed through pages like it was nothing. I looked up and half the book was already read.
-The different people, the scholars, martials, masks, and so… the racial makeup was hard to get a grasp on. I think scholars are pale, lighter-skinned and martials are generally darker, whether in skin or hair color. But some people are blonde, redhead, dark-haired and so on. Maybe it’s more of a cultural thing than a general look because every character’s looks ran the gamut.
-Marcus was horrid. Like a hyena laughing at brutality, grossness, and violence. I don’t think he had any redeeming value. It’s unfortunate placement the first line about him refers to his darker skin, then him being called ugly.
-I’m not sure why only one girl is allowed each year, and in a school of boys raised to be brutish and barbaric.
-Things are cruel at the academy for everyone, the students and, especially, the enslaved. The threat of being raped is a very real, ever-present thing here for the female characters and slaves. In addition, the carnage rises high and children are not spared. There’s a constant sense of peril, which runs throughout the story.
-I’m ambivalent about the Helene-Elias stuff. I didn’t really care for the romance aspect in general, but the strain it put on their friendship was interesting to watch. I wonder why Helene is SO loyal to him.
- I <b>loved</b> the Cook, the real MVP! Also, Laia has some good character development.
- hormones are all powerful. Characters close to death and being actively tortured in ENSLAVEMENT, but got time for their hearts to go doki doki. Well, okay, even during tragedy, people fall in love.
- I'm ready for the Commandment to get rocked.
I guess the real friends we made were the sexism and battle weaponry we met along the way.
In all seriousness, I’ll read book two. I want to see where this goes.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and Slavery
Moderate: Sexual assault, Child death, Sexism, Death, Death of parent, and Bullying
Minor: Rape
totallyshelfaware's review against another edition
I wanted to like this one, I really did. It came heavily recommended and had all the ingredients I normally gravitate towards, but:
- It's written in first-person multiple POV which, if I'm not immediately drawn in to by the character's voice, I tend to find quite distracting.
- Stuck with it anyway and got about halfway through when I realised I still wasn't particularly invested in any of the characters
- Too many rape threats and sexism sprinkled into casual conversation made this intensely uncomfortable to read
- Not a fan of how little agency the women in this have, at least from the 51% I've read. I'm hoping it gets better, but I'm not willing to stick around to see if it does
- I found the world-building and plot flimsy at best. The stakes and consequences seem to all be a product of the characters decisions, and not the setting. And since I don't find the characters engaging, it didn't make sense for me to continue 🤷🏽♀️
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Sexism, and Torture
Moderate: Rape
michelejenn's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I was very surprised at the number of times rape was casually threatened in this book. I understand why, and the characters doing so were very obviously supposed to be despicable, and that is why they would so casually threaten something so horrible. Didn't make it any less jarring to have the threat tumble so easily out of major character's mouths every other time they showed up on the page.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Slavery, Stalking, and Violence
Moderate: Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, and Sexual assault
briggs4598's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Physical abuse, Slavery, Torture, and Violence
Moderate: Bullying, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Rape, and Medical trauma
Minor: Vomit, Sexism, Misogyny, Medical trauma, Grief, Emotional abuse, Death of parent, Child death, Blood, and Gore
ohkmurr's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
hopeful
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
I'd seen this series all over BookTok, so deciding to add it to my reading list was an easy decision—and I'm so glad I did. This story is so gripping; I could not put this book down and finished it in two days. The story is so fascinating and so high-stakes, and it had me on the end of my seat (and audibly reacting) the entire time.
I can't count the number of times this book blue-balled me with its slow burn romance. I said aloud multiple times: "Oh, come on!" But I still can't wait to see where the slow burn goes, because I know it's going to feel so satisfying when they finally get together.
Plus, two love triangles?! More like a sexy Venn diagram! I'm such a sucker for a will-they-won't-they, and this book gave me three of those at once. I was LIVING for it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Death, Emotional abuse, Murder, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, and Violence
The violence is best described as "Game of Thrones Lite," so take that as you will. Attempted/intended sexual assault.og_tomatogirl's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
hopeful
inspiring
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I understand the hype.
I was a bit salty at first with the heavy handed Roman Empire influence. LIKE OKAY WE GET IT. But that's really just a personal issue with me that stems from the History channel only showing that, vikings and WWII (all the historical fiction settings I avoide like the plague 😌). I quickly got over it because this has to be one of the fastest past books I've ever read. Every chapter had a cliff hanger so I was reading ~100 pages per session. Also HOW IS THIS YA?!?!??!!!?!??!?!!?!??!?!!
EXPLAIN YOURSELVES MARKETING! This book is *almost* as dark as The Poppy War. So much CW: threating of/sexual assault, gore, slavery, violence. Despite some pretty dark themes the story overall didn't seem so dark. Maybe it's because the two MCs are so goddam HORNY all the time.
I was a bit salty at first with the heavy handed Roman Empire influence. LIKE OKAY WE GET IT. But that's really just a personal issue with me that stems from the History channel only showing that, vikings and WWII (all the historical fiction settings I avoide like the plague 😌). I quickly got over it because this has to be one of the fastest past books I've ever read. Every chapter had a cliff hanger so I was reading ~100 pages per session. Also HOW IS THIS YA?!?!??!!!?!??!?!!?!??!?!!
EXPLAIN YOURSELVES MARKETING! This book is *almost* as dark as The Poppy War. So much CW: threating of/sexual assault, gore, slavery, violence. Despite some pretty dark themes the story overall didn't seem so dark. Maybe it's because the two MCs are so goddam HORNY all the time.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Slavery, Torture, and Violence
Moderate: Grief and Sexism
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