A Torch Against the Night: 2 (Ember in the Ashes)

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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.” An average reader will spend approximately eight (8) hours reading this book. Is this book appropriate?

Me and Elias are alike. I will not begin to explain why, because it’ll be long, but our personality is similar. The book jumps right in where we left Elias and Laia off from Book 1. They are running from Martials and are branding as fugitives. Helene faces her own monsters as she is sent on a mission to retrieve Elias alive.

I still love this series, love all of my favourite characters, but I have so much I want to say. My main thing/person I want to talk about is Keenan. During my re-read I noticed so many little things leading up to the big reveal, and I'm honestly stunned that I didn't even realise. The manipulation used throughout was SO subtle and each time I noticed it I'd be screaming into my book. A Torch Against the Night is simply the superior YA Fantasy of the year. Hands down, there's no competition. Elias is still in love with Laia, and he doesn’t like Keenan a bit which results in some quarreling. You are my temple,” I murmur as I kneel beside her. “You are my priest. You are my prayer. You are my release.”

Thrilling…Tahir meticulously plots these novels, ramping up the suspense and including plenty of surprises.”— The Buffalo News Ladies and gentlemen, mesdams et messieurs, signore e signori, I welcome you to the cliché fair –with quotes. The sequel to Tahir’s bestselling smash An Ember in the Ashes finally comes out in August, and let me tell you, it does not disappoint.”— Book Riot Regardless, there is a sort of redundancy in both Elias and Helene's POVs as they both battle their own demons. Which is the only flaw of this book, in my opinion.First-time novelist Tahir has written an ambitious sword-and-sand adventure story that is notable for its suspense and scope.”— Booklist In the first book, she confused me. Big Time. In one episode I thought she was nice, in another I thought she was annoying, in another I said to myself "Oh! What a badass!”, And, in another chapter, I thought to myself, "What the hell?". So yeah, I couldn't even form an opinion about her. Which is why I am so happy that Tahir decided to add her point of view. Tahir’s deft, polished debutalternates 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 Elias Veturius is the twenty-year-old son of the Commandant, Keris Veturia, and the grandson of the leader of Gens Veturia, Quin Veturius, who has appointed Elias as his heir. There’s too much going on for that. But at the end of A Torch, a new door with new opportunities opens for them. How long does it take to read A Torch Against the Night?

Despite enduring a brutal life as a slave and living in constant fear, Izzi shows courage, optimism, and a willingness to trust others. She's generally soft-spoken, but is willing to be assertive when necessary. Didn’t the Scholar rebels understand what they would unleash when they revolted? Didn’t they realize the death and terror the Empire would rain down upon them? But while it’s true that Elias and Laia are inexcusably static, the third main character, Helene, gave me more food for thought. She is deeply torn between her due loyalty to her family and the Empire and the strong relationship that binds her to Elias, and from the very beginning she resolves to act according to the obligations of the first. Since she’s but a human being, she questions her decision again and again. I totally agree with the author’s choice to give Helene doubts about her doing, since seeing how strong Helene’s attachment to Elias and her loyalty to the Empire were, any other path for her would have felt like a bit out-of-character. The thing is that Tahir does not know how to give a character its due depth. Helene is complex only on the surface: deep down, she’s flat as paper, just like the others. She is the only interesting character of this book, and I could not care for her less than what she does.Note: There is apparently more books to come in this series! While this ending wouldn't be considered a cliffhanger, in my opinion, there are many unanswered questions. I think it's set up to be continued, so hopefully Tahir does that :D Delivers in every way…The stakes have never been higher, and the tension is acutely felt as Elias and Laia run for their lives.” —USA Today’s Happy Ever After blog But love, or the love stories here, never really has a time and place in this book, as with the last one. It is hinted at, it is used to offer strengths in times of hardships…or to further a plot point. But there is always so much more going on for it to be the focus. The characters face horrors, tortures, death, the manipulation of creatures far more powerful than themselves. They discover a loss of control on their personal destinies.