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Tuesday, April 12, 2016

An Ember in the Ashes



An Ember in the Ashes (An Ember in the Ashes, #1)Title: An Ember in the Ashes
Author: Sabaa Tahir
Genre: YA; Fantasy; Dystopia
Pages: 464
Time to complete: 8 days


Book Summary:
Laia is a slave. Elias is a soldier. Neither is free. Under the Martial Empire, defiance is met with death. Those who do not vow their blood and bodies to the Emperor risk the execution of their loved ones and the destruction of all they hold dear. It is in this brutal world, inspired by ancient Rome, that Laia lives with her grandparents and older brother. The family ekes out an existence in the Empire’s impoverished backstreets. They do not challenge the Empire. They’ve seen what happens to those who do.
 
But when Laia’s brother is arrested for treason, Laia is forced to make a decision. In exchange for help from rebels who promise to rescue her brother, she will risk her life to spy for them from within the Empire’s greatest military academy. There, Laia meets Elias, the school’s finest soldier—and secretly, its most unwilling. Elias wants only to be free of the tyranny he’s being trained to enforce. He and Laia will soon realize that their destinies are intertwined—and that their choices will change the fate of the Empire itself.


Review:
Okay so I just had my feels crushed, stomped, risen from the dead and then squished again...then brought back to life. Yay! This book was a Goodreads Advanced Reading Copy book that I read forever ago but I thought it would be something great to blog about since I loved it when I read it the first time and now.

This book was one roller coaster of emotions. Scholar Laia just lost what family she has left and her brother is taken prisoner. Mask Elias wants freedom but it looks like he's not going to get it when he's entered into the Trials, a dangerous set of tests that will push him to his limits. I should explain. See, the Scholar's are like tradesmen and farmers. Mask's are military that have little to no conscious when it comes to killing people, especially their own members if they show weakness. 

While this book primarily frustrated me just based on what was going on (no spoilers) I have to admit I liked it. The twists were nicely hidden until they were meant to come to the surface, the slow build had me on the edge of my seat all the way to the end, and the characters were easy to love (and hate) even to the end. Granted I don't like the ending (again no spoilers) but if and when the next book comes out maybe it'll make up for it. Overall, I give this book a 9 out of 10! 


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