An Ember In The Ashes (4 book series) by Sabaa Tahir

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Journey deep into the Martial Empire and into “one of the best fantasy series of the last decade” (Buzzfeed) with the complete An Ember in the Ashes quartet by #1 New York Times bestselling author Sabaa Tahir.

• An Ember in the Ashes, One of Time Magazine’s 100 Best Fantasy Books of All Time
• A Torch Against the Night, A New York Times bestseller, A USA Today bestseller, A Wall Street Journal bestseller
• A Reaper at the Gates, An Entertainment Weekly Summer Reads pick
• A Sky Beyond the Storm, One of Amazon’s Best Young Adult Books of 2020

Synopsis

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.

About Sabaa Tahir

– Sabaa Tahir is a Pakistani-American young adult novelist best known for her New York Times-bestselling An Ember in the Ashes and its sequels.

– Two of her novels, An Ember in the Ashes and A Torch Against the Night, were listed among Time Magazine’s 100 Best Fantasy Books of All Time in 2020. In 2022, her novel All My Rage won the 2022 Boston Globe–Horn Book Award.

– Sabaa Tahir grew up in California’s Mojave Desert at her family’s eighteen-room motel. Her parents emigrated from Pakistan to the United Kingdom before moving their family to the United States. She attended UCLA, during which time she interned at The Washington Post. After graduation, she took a job there as a copy editor. There, she spent her time devouring fantasy novels, raiding her brother’s comic book stash, and playing guitar badly. She began writing An Ember in the Ashes while working nights as a newspaper editor. She likes thunderous indie rock, garish socks, and all things nerd. Sabaa currently lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her family.

– For more information, please visit Sabaa at SabaaTahir.com or on Twitter @SabaaTahir.

About An Ember In The Ashes (4 book series)

1. An Ember in the Ashes (Book 1)

An Ember in the Ashes is a fantasy novel written by Pakistani-American author Sabaa Tahir. It was published on April 28, 2015 by Razorbill, an imprint of Penguin Random House. It is the first book in the An Ember in the Ashes series, followed by A Torch Against the Night. In a fantasy world inspired by Ancient Rome, the story follows a girl named Laia spying for rebels against the reigning empire in exchange for their help in rescuing her captive brother; and a boy named Elias struggling to free himself from being an enforcer of a tyrannical regime. The novel is narrated in the first-person, alternating between the points of view of Laia and Elias.

BOOK ONE IN THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING SERIES

One of Time Magazine’s 100 Best Fantasy Books of All Time
One of Time Magazine’s 100 Best YA Books of All Time
Instant New York Times bestseller
From #1 New York Times bestselling author Sabaa Tahir
Amazon’s Best Young Adult Book of 2015
People’s Choice Award winner – Favorite Fantasy
Bustle’s Best Young Adult Book of 2015

• “This novel is a harrowing, haunting reminder of what it means to be human — and how hope might be kindled in the midst of oppression and fear.” — The Washington Post
• “An Ember in the Ashes could launch Sabaa Tahir into JK Rowling territory…It has the addictive quality of The Hunger Games combined with the fantasy of Harry Potter and the brutality of Game of Thrones.”—Public Radio International
• “An Ember in the Ashes glows, burns, and smolders—as beautiful and radiant as it is searing.”—Huffington Post
• “A worthy novel – and one as brave as its characters.” —The New York Times Book Review

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.

A Scholar girl by the name of Laia lives in the Martial Empire with her grandparents and brother Darin in the city of Serra. Their existence is a grueling one as they are seen as second-class citizens by the ruling Martial elite. Darin is arrested by Martial forces and accused of being an anti-Empire rebel. Laia seeks out the help of the anti-Empire group called the Resistance, and agrees to infiltrate an infamous military school for them if they help her break her brother free from prison.

At the school, called Blackcliff Academy, Laia meets a student named Elias Veturius. Along with his best friend Helene Aquilla and his two rivals Marcus and Zak Farrar, he has been chosen to take the Trials, a series of tests that will decide who the next ruler of the Empire is. But Elias has no wish to take the tests, or be ruler. He wants to escape the Empire.

When Elias meets Laia, the two realize that their destinies are more intertwined than they could have ever dreamed.

Read More: [Review-Quotes] An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir

2. A Torch Against the Night (Book 2)

A Torch Against the Night is a fantasy novel written by Pakistani-American author Sabaa Tahir. It was published on August 30, 2016 by Razorbill, an imprint of Penguin Random House. It is the second book in the An Ember in the Ashes series, preceded by An Ember in the Ashes and followed by A Reaper at the Gates. The story follows former slave Laia and former soldier Elias on a mission to save Laia’s brother; and Helene, the unfortunate blood shrike. The novel is narrated in the first-person, alternating between the points of view of Laia, Elias and Helene.

THE #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

One of Time Magazine’s 100 Best Fantasy Books of All Time
Book two in the New York Times bestselling series
A USA Today bestseller
A Wall Street Journal bestseller

“Spectacular.”—Entertainment Weekly

“Fresh and exciting…Tahir has shown a remarkable talent for penning complex villains.”—A.V. Club

“Even higher stakes than its predecessor… thrilling.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review

“[An] action-packed, breathlessly paced story.” —Booklist, starred review

Set in a rich, high-fantasy world inspired by ancient Rome, Sabaa Tahir’s AN EMBER IN THE ASHES told the story of Laia, a slave fighting for her family, and Elias, a young soldier fighting for his freedom.

Now, in A TORCH AGAINST THE NIGHT, Elias and Laia are running for their lives.

After the events of the Fourth Trial, Martial soldiers hunt the two fugitives as they flee the city of Serra and undertake a perilous journey through the heart of the Empire.

Laia is determined to break into Kauf—the Empire’s most secure and dangerous prison—to save her brother, who is the key to the Scholars’ survival. And Elias is determined to help Laia succeed, even if it means giving up his last chance at freedom.

But dark forces, human and otherworldly, work against Laia and Elias. The pair must fight every step of the way to outsmart their enemies: the bloodthirsty Emperor Marcus, the merciless Commandant, the sadistic Warden of Kauf, and, most heartbreaking of all, Helene—Elias’s former friend and the Empire’s newest Blood Shrike.

Bound to Marcus’s will, Helene faces a torturous mission of her own—one that might destroy her: find the traitor Elias Veturius and the Scholar slave who helped him escape…and kill them both.

Read More: [Review-Quotes] A Torch Against the Night by Sabaa Tahir

3. A Reaper at the Gates (Book 3)

A Reaper at the Gates is a fantasy novel written by Pakistani-American author Sabaa Tahir. It was published on Jun 12, 2018 by Razorbill, an imprint of Penguin Random House. It is the third book in the An Ember in the Ashes series, preceded by A Torch Against the Night and followed by A Sky Beyond the Storm. The story follows Laia, a scholar girl, on a mission to defeat the night bringer; Elias, the current soul catcher, tries to learn the ways of soul catcher and Helene, the blood shrike; tries to defeat the enemies of the empire. The novel is narrated in the first-person, alternating between the points of view of Laia, Elias and Helene.

BOOK THREE IN THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING SERIES

“Thrilling and hard to put down, readers will absolutely devour Tahir’s latest.” –BuzzFeed

An Entertainment Weekly Summer Reads pick!

“The perfect summer read.” —The Washington Post

The highly anticipated third book in #1 New York Times bestselling author Sabaa Tahir’s EMBER QUARTET.

Beyond the Martial Empire and within it, the threat of war looms ever larger.

Helene Aquilla, the Blood Shrike, is desperate to protect her sister’s life and the lives of everyone in the Empire. But she knows that danger lurks on all sides: Emperor Marcus, haunted by his past, grows increasingly unstable and violent, while Keris Veturia, the ruthless Commandant, capitalizes on the Emperor’s volatility to grow her own power–regardless of the carnage she leaves in her path.

Far to the east, Laia of Serra knows the fate of the world lies not in the machinations of the Martial court, but in stopping the Nightbringer. But in the hunt to bring him down, Laia faces unexpected threats from those she hoped would help her, and is drawn into a battle she never thought she’d have to fight.

And in the land between the living and the dead, Elias Veturius has given up his freedom to serve as Soul Catcher. But in doing so, he has vowed himself to an ancient power that demands his complete surrender–even if that means abandoning the woman he loves.

Read More: [Review-Quotes] A Reaper at the Gates by Sabaa Tahir

4. A Sky Beyond the Storm (Book 4)

Prepare for the jaw-dropping finale of Sabaa Tahir’s beloved New York Times bestselling An Ember in the Ashes fantasy series, and discover: Who will survive the storm?

Picking up just a few months after A Reaper at the Gates left off…

The long-imprisoned jinn are on the attack, wreaking bloody havoc in villages and cities alike. But for the Nightbringer, vengeance on his human foes is just the beginning.

By his side, Commandant Keris Veturia declares herself Empress, and calls for the heads of any and all who defy her rule. At the top of the list? The Blood Shrike and her remaining family.

Laia of Serra, now allied with the Blood Shrike, struggles to recover from the loss of the two people most important to her. Determined to stop the approaching apocalypse, she throws herself into the destruction of the Nightbringer. In the process, she awakens an ancient power that could lead her to victory—or to an unimaginable doom.

And deep in the Waiting Place, the Soul Catcher seeks only to forget the life—and love—he left behind. Yet doing so means ignoring the trail of murder left by the Nightbringer and his jinn. To uphold his oath and protect the human world from the supernatural, the Soul Catcher must look beyond the borders of his own land. He must take on a mission that could save—or destroy—all that he knows.

Read More: [Review-Quotes] A Sky Beyond the Storm by Sabaa Tahir

Highlights in these books

What are popular highlights?

Book 1 – An Ember In The Ashes

“Life is made of so many moments that mean nothing. Then one day, a single moment comes along to define every second that comes after. Such moments are tests of courage, of strength.”

“All the beauty of the stars means nothing when life here on earth is so ugly.”

“Life is hard enough without having to avoid entire rooms in my own head.”

“There are two kinds of guilt. The kind that’s a burden and the kind that gives you purpose. Let your guilt be your fuel. Let it remind you of who you want to be. Draw a line in your mind. Never cross it again. You have a soul. It’s damaged but it’s there. Don’t let them take it from you.”

“You are an ember in the ashes, Elias Veturius. You will spark and burn, ravage and destroy. You cannot change it. You cannot stop it.”

Book 2 – A Torch Against the Night

“Because sane plans never work, girl,” she says. “Only the mad ones do.”

“When the fear takes over, use the only thing more powerful, more indestructible, to fight it: your spirit. Your heart.”

“Few people want witnesses to their pain, and grief is the worst pain of all.”

“Your emotions make you human. Even the unpleasant ones have a purpose. Don’t lock them away. If you ignore them, they just get louder and angrier.”

“Failure doesn’t define you. It’s what you do after you fail that determines whether you are a leader or a waste of perfectly good air.”

Book 3 – A Reaper at the Gates

“Curse this world for what it does to the mothers, for what it does to the daughters. Curse it for making us strong through loss and pain, our hearts torn from our chests again and again. Curse it for forcing us to endure.”

“Love. I sigh. Love is joy coupled with misery, elation bound to despair. It is a fire that beckons me gently and then burns when I get too close. I hate love. I yearn for it. And it drives me mad.”

“Strange how monsters can reach from beyond the grave, as potent in death as they were in life.”

“Skies save me from the men in my life and all the things they think they know.”

“You are my temple. You are my priest. You are my prayer. You are my release.”

Book 4 – A Sky Beyond the Storm

“Emifal firdaant. May death claim me first.”

“I wish I could live a thousand lives so I could fall in love with you a thousand times”

“You are broken. But it is broken things that are the sharpest. The deadliest. It is broken things that are the most unexpected, and the most underestimated”

“Would that we all knew the cracked terrain of each other’s broken hearts. Perhaps then, we would not be so cruel to those who walk this lonely world with us.”

“You got there first my love, I envy you so, for how will I endure without you?”

Review (4 book series) by Sabaa Tahir

1. BRITT Review (4 book series) by Sabaa Tahir

I really enjoyed the (4 book series). I also really recommend the audiobooks. I’m in love with Jack Farrar’s voice. I made such a great decision to reread the first three books before finally reading A Sky Beyond the Storm.

Sabaa Tahir’s writing is just so good. The battle scenes were movies in my head. The quiet character moments made me fall in love with the characters. They are so well written, very distinguishable. All have their dreams, the hopes that they fight for.

I really recommend the (4 book series) if you are looking for a YA fantasy series with a little bit of romance, great fight scenes. But also, if you want to have your heart destroyed. Like good books do.

2. TRACEE QUINN Review (4 book series) by Sabaa Tahir

Outstanding! Reminds me of Sarah Maas many series. I binged the series on audible, and the narrators did an outstanding job.

This series is great for teens but there is alot of violence. I loved the world building. In many scenes I internally felt the stress, and could not always guess where the story was going.

3. OANA BIANCA BUSE Review (4 book series) by Sabaa Tahir

(4 book series) by Sabaa Tahir – Amazing series

This series was so good I have recommended it to everyone! Definitely worth a read, I really liked that it kept me on my toes and the story constantly went to places I did not anticipate. I also very much like the insertion of cultural elements that you don’t normally find in fantasy books, but overall they created a really beautiful atmosphere. Love love love!

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