An Ember in the Ashes (An Ember in the Ashes, #1) by Sabaa Tahir

Narrated by Fiona Hardingham & Steve West

Synopsis (via Goodreads): 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.

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An Ember in the Ashes was a phenomenal read! I flew through the audiobook and looked forward to being in the car for a little extra listening time (quietly, since the kids are too young for this book). Steve West and Fiona Hardingham are amazing narrators and really brought this story to life. I could listen to them for hours, and I did! I cannot wait to listen to the rest of this series on audio, and I've already purchased physical copies for my shelves. Sabaa Tahir has created a very unique and compelling story, although I wish she was a little nicer to Laia and Elias (she seems to really like making my heart stop and creating scenarios that take my breath away).

The characters in this book are memorable and relatable. Laia didn't start off wanting to change the world, she just wanted to get through the day without drawing attention to herself. When she loses her family, her brother becomes her priority, and she learns that she's stronger than she thinks. We see her go from someone that doesn't want to be noticed, to a person that's willing to sacrifice herself for others. There's very obvious character growth, but it happens over the course of the entire book, which made it more honest and believable.

Elias doesn't want to be a soldier. He doesn't want to spend his life killing for the Empire, so he makes secret plans of his own. When those plans are unexpectedly thwarted, he finds himself battling friends and foes alike. It's hard to know who to trust in this book, since everyone seems to have ulterior motives or they know something we don't. I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop, but was still surprised when it finally did. There is so much going on in this book -- so many threads -- that it's mind-blowing. Everyone and everything is connected. One small action ripples out until it causes unexpected waves. I absolutely loved it!

Even the secondary characters were well-written and fleshed out. Elias treasured his friends and their place in his life, and he never wanted his actions to impact them negatively. The members of the Resistance, Cook, Izzy, Helene -- all wonderfully written. I could clearly see them in my mind, and I cared about what happened to (most of) them.

An Ember in the Ashes is extremely violent. People are tortured, murdered, and forced into slavery. We see a very dark side of human nature, and how scary it is when one group of people thinks they are better than another. The Martials believe they are superior to the Scholars simply because there was a fight and they won. They kill freely and without mercy, and were even willing to do it to their own comrades. Tahir has painted a very frightening picture that rings true in certain aspects of the world today.

The world-building was incredible! It was so vivid and realistic! I felt like I was there experiencing the world with Laia and Elias. I walked through the catacombs and hidden tunnels, scaled precarious mountain trails and danced at a Moon Festival. Unfortunately, that also meant I shared in Elias and Laia's pain and discomfort (like their emotional turmoil wasn't bad enough -- eesh).

I'm kicking myself for waiting so long to start this series, but hopefully the fourth and final book is published before I finish the third! I already know I'm not going to want to wait once I get that far. I'm going to need answers! If you haven't read An Ember in the Ashes, I highly recommend it! Once you start, you're not going to be able to stop.