An Ember in the Ashes 01

In the Martial Empire, is it the soldier or the slave who's truly free?

Zusatztext 79901803 Informationen zum Autor Sabaa Tahir Klappentext BOOK ONE IN THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING SERIESInstant New York Times bestsellerFrom #1 New York Times bestselling author Sabaa TahirAmazon's Best Young Adult Book of 2015People's Choice Award winner - Favorite FantasyBustle'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 territoryIt 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. 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. I. LAIA My big brother reaches home in the dark hours before dawn, when even ghosts take their rest. He smells of steel and coal and forge. He smells of the enemy. He folds his scarecrow body through the window, bare feet silent on the rushes. A hot desert wind blows in after him, rustling the limp curtains. His sketchbook falls to the floor, and he nudges it under his bunk with a quick foot, as if it's a snake. Where have you been, Darin? In my head, I have the courage to ask the question, and Darin trusts me enough to answer. Why do you keep disappearing? Why, when Pop and Nan need you? When I need you? Every night for almost two years, I've wanted to ask. Every night, I've lacked the courage. I have one sibling left. I don't want him to shut me out like he has everyone else. But tonight's different. I know what's in his sketchbook. I know what it means. You shouldn't be awake. Darin's whisper jolts me from my thoughts. He has a cat's sense for trapshe got it from our mother. I sit up on the bunk as he lights the lamp. No use pretending to be asleep. It's past curfew, and three patrols have gone by. I was worried. I can avoid the soldiers, Laia. Lots of practice. He rests his chin on my bunk and smiles Mother's sweet, crooked smile. A familiar lookthe one he gives me if I wake from a nightmare or we run out of grain. Everything will be fine, the look says. He picks up the book on my bed. Gather in the Night, he reads the title. Spooky. What's it about? I just started it. It's about a jinn I stop. Clever. Very clever. He likes hearing stories as much as I like telling them. Forget that. Where were you? Pop had a dozen patients this morning. And I filled in for you because he can't do so much alone. Which left Nan to bottle the trader's jams by herself. Except she didn't finish. Now the trader won't pay us, and we'll starve this winter, and why in the skies don't you care? I say thes...

Named one of the best books of the year by:
Amazon
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The Wall Street Journal
Buzzfeed
LA Weekly
Bustle
Paste Magazine
Indigo
Suspense Magazine
The New York Public Library
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Hypable

“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] thrusts its readers into a world marred by violence and oppression, yet does so with simple prose that can offer moments of loveliness in its clarity. This complexity makes Ember a worthy novel—and one as brave as its characters.” —The New York Times Book Review

“Sabaa Tahir spins a captivating, heart-pounding fantasy.” —Us Weekly

“An Ember in the Ashes mixes The Hunger Games with Game of Thrones...*and adds a dash of *Romeo and Juliet.” —The Hollywood Reporter

“Blew me away...This book is dark, complex, vivid, and romantic—expect to be completely transported.” —MTV.com

“Fast-paced, well-structured and full of twists and turns, An Ember in the Ashes is an evocative debut that has left me invested in knowing what happens next.” —NPR
 
“Once you get caught up in the story, it’s addictive, and there’s no way you can put it down before you figure out what happens to the characters you have fallen for over the course of the 400 some-odd pages. So I didn’t.” —Bustle 
 
“One thing I can say for sure: this is a page-turner. There comes a moment when it's impossible to put it down. Sabaa Tahir is a strong writer, but most of all, she's a great storyteller.” —The Huffington Post

“This epic fantasy set in the Martial Empire has it all: danger and violence, secrets and lies, strong characters and forbidden romance and a touch of the supernatural.” —The Atlanta Journal-Constitution 

“A setting inspired by ancient Rome; a fierce battle for freedom in the face of tyranny; and a villain who makes Cersei Lannister and Dolores Umbridge look like a pair of pathetic amateurs...An Ember in the Ashes is at the top of our must-read list for 2015.” —MTV.com

“Be prepared to be blown away by this fantasy-thriller-adventure.” —Girls’ Life

“An Ember in the Ashes is a book that's too good to put down.” —RedEye
 
“Perfect for fans of Maggie Stiefvater's *The Scorpio Races *or Sarah Maas's Throne of Glass series…The book is already set to be a film, which will be EPIC!” —TeenVogue.com

* “Tahir’s deft, polished debut alternates between two very different perspectives on the same brutal world, deepening both in the contrast. In a tale brimming with political intrigue and haunted by supernatural forces, the true tension comes from watching Elias and Laia struggle to decide where their loyalties lie.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review
 
“Tahir’s world-building is wonderfully detailed and the setting is an unusual one for fantasy novels. All of her characters, even minor ones, are fully realized....For fans of Game of Thrones and of Melina Marchetta’s Finnikin of the Rock.” —School Library Journal
 
“An original, well-constructed fantasy world...truly engaging.” —Kirkus Reviews 
 
“An *epic fantasy debut…