Download PDF A Torch Against the Night An Ember in the Ashes Sabaa Tahir Books
Download As PDF : A Torch Against the Night An Ember in the Ashes Sabaa Tahir Books
THE #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
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.
Download PDF A Torch Against the Night An Ember in the Ashes Sabaa Tahir Books
"(Long sigh.)
Sabaa did it again. A Torch Against the Night is...perfect. There is nothing I can say against it. There are plenty of things I HATED while reading it - but it was only because MY HEART WAS HURTING SO MUCH BECAUSE OF THE TERRIBLE THINGS THAT WERE HAPPENING! But they were terrible things that NEEDED to happen! So I couldn't be mad!
So in this book, which starts MERE MOMENTS AFTER THE END OF AN EMBER IN THE ASHES, Laia and Elias set out to escape from the catacombs beneath Blackcliff Academy so that they can free Laia's brother from the terrible Kauf prison. As might be expected from the world's most perfect fantasy series, THINGS IMMEDIATELY GO TERRIBLY WRONG.
One thing leads to another, and Elias spends most of the book dying. That's as close to a spoiler as I'll go - but trust me, there is SO MUCH THAT GOES ON BECAUSE OF THE TINIEST THING THAT HAPPENS RIGHT AT THE BEGINNING OF THE BOOK. It is perfect and I hate it and I love it.
And of course, hero that he is, Elias tells no one. Meanwhile I'm sitting in my living room like, ELIAS, FRIEND, TALK TO LAIA. TELL HER YOUR FEELINGS. TELL HER YOUR SITUATION. But he doesn't because he is tortured and brooding and he feels like he's ruined everyone's life - and he's kind of right. His mom thinks he ruined her life (he didn't), and Helene is now Blood Shrike to a monstrous Emperor because of what Elias did in Ember, Elias's grandfather is on the run, most of his best friends are dead...
Elias is sort of a ruiner. And because of that, he turns into a brooder. WHICH IS FINE, EVERYTHING IS FINE, BUT THAT REALLY DOESN'T LOWER MY STRESS LEVELS. I THINK SABAA WAS REALLY NOT CONCERNED ABOUT MY STRESS LEVELS WHEN SHE WROTE THIS.
The addition of Helene's POV was a huge change in this book. I feel so bad for Helene - she's an example of a character who did her absolute best with the cards she was dealt. Best of intentions. Best work ethic. Most loyal of friends. And then what happens? A LOT OF HEARTBREAKING STUFF, THAT'S WHAT HAPPENS!!!
(...I can hear you cackling, Sabaa!)
The love triangles from An Ember in the Ashes came back stronger than ever in A Torch Against the Night - and I was so stressed out about the situation that I had to force myself to take a break for a couple of days. I kid you not. I literally had to shut the book and step away. And still - STILL - I couldn't be mad! The love triangles make sense! Everyone (except Elias with his new "I must never reveal my feelings to anyone" attitude) is behaving RATIONALLY!
See, it's stressful for me because I wanted all four people to be happy. Which was impossible. At this point, I don't know if ANY of them will ever be happy.
If I had to describe this book with a few words, those words would be: gut-wrenching, heartbreaking, perfection.
Elias's storyline is the best (and simultaneously the worst). Because of a ... dying situation ... he starts slipping into a between-place, a place where spirits go before they move on. AND THE DECISIONS HE MAKES THERE CHANGE EVERYTHING.
Look, this plot is the kind where every small thing ends up meaning something. There are no wasted words here, no wasted gestures. Sabaa did not waste her time on filler scenes or filler conversations. NONE OF IT IS A DRILL. IT IS ALL THERE FOR A REASON. The ending was PERFECT and HEART-STOPPING and I ALMOST LOST MY MIND. Absolute perfection, I cannot gush enough, I loved it.
And I just realized I haven't even mentioned Sabaa's use of jinn! ...well, that's pretty much it. She uses them. And I really love the jinn because they are not fantasy staples! The more I think about this book, the more I want to rave about it.
Look. Look. I could go on for days.
Just read the book. It's perfect. Strong five out of five for me, there is no second-book-syndrome here. This book is at least as strong as An Ember in the Ashes, if not more so.
I recommend to anyone who likes perfect books.
I don't recommend to people with hypertension. This book will cause you problems."
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A Torch Against the Night An Ember in the Ashes Sabaa Tahir Books Reviews :
A Torch Against the Night An Ember in the Ashes Sabaa Tahir Books Reviews
- (Long sigh.)
Sabaa did it again. A Torch Against the Night is...perfect. There is nothing I can say against it. There are plenty of things I HATED while reading it - but it was only because MY HEART WAS HURTING SO MUCH BECAUSE OF THE TERRIBLE THINGS THAT WERE HAPPENING! But they were terrible things that NEEDED to happen! So I couldn't be mad!
So in this book, which starts MERE MOMENTS AFTER THE END OF AN EMBER IN THE ASHES, Laia and Elias set out to escape from the catacombs beneath Blackcliff Academy so that they can free Laia's brother from the terrible Kauf prison. As might be expected from the world's most perfect fantasy series, THINGS IMMEDIATELY GO TERRIBLY WRONG.
One thing leads to another, and Elias spends most of the book dying. That's as close to a spoiler as I'll go - but trust me, there is SO MUCH THAT GOES ON BECAUSE OF THE TINIEST THING THAT HAPPENS RIGHT AT THE BEGINNING OF THE BOOK. It is perfect and I hate it and I love it.
And of course, hero that he is, Elias tells no one. Meanwhile I'm sitting in my living room like, ELIAS, FRIEND, TALK TO LAIA. TELL HER YOUR FEELINGS. TELL HER YOUR SITUATION. But he doesn't because he is tortured and brooding and he feels like he's ruined everyone's life - and he's kind of right. His mom thinks he ruined her life (he didn't), and Helene is now Blood Shrike to a monstrous Emperor because of what Elias did in Ember, Elias's grandfather is on the run, most of his best friends are dead...
Elias is sort of a ruiner. And because of that, he turns into a brooder. WHICH IS FINE, EVERYTHING IS FINE, BUT THAT REALLY DOESN'T LOWER MY STRESS LEVELS. I THINK SABAA WAS REALLY NOT CONCERNED ABOUT MY STRESS LEVELS WHEN SHE WROTE THIS.
The addition of Helene's POV was a huge change in this book. I feel so bad for Helene - she's an example of a character who did her absolute best with the cards she was dealt. Best of intentions. Best work ethic. Most loyal of friends. And then what happens? A LOT OF HEARTBREAKING STUFF, THAT'S WHAT HAPPENS!!!
(...I can hear you cackling, Sabaa!)
The love triangles from An Ember in the Ashes came back stronger than ever in A Torch Against the Night - and I was so stressed out about the situation that I had to force myself to take a break for a couple of days. I kid you not. I literally had to shut the book and step away. And still - STILL - I couldn't be mad! The love triangles make sense! Everyone (except Elias with his new "I must never reveal my feelings to anyone" attitude) is behaving RATIONALLY!
See, it's stressful for me because I wanted all four people to be happy. Which was impossible. At this point, I don't know if ANY of them will ever be happy.
If I had to describe this book with a few words, those words would be gut-wrenching, heartbreaking, perfection.
Elias's storyline is the best (and simultaneously the worst). Because of a ... dying situation ... he starts slipping into a between-place, a place where spirits go before they move on. AND THE DECISIONS HE MAKES THERE CHANGE EVERYTHING.
Look, this plot is the kind where every small thing ends up meaning something. There are no wasted words here, no wasted gestures. Sabaa did not waste her time on filler scenes or filler conversations. NONE OF IT IS A DRILL. IT IS ALL THERE FOR A REASON. The ending was PERFECT and HEART-STOPPING and I ALMOST LOST MY MIND. Absolute perfection, I cannot gush enough, I loved it.
And I just realized I haven't even mentioned Sabaa's use of jinn! ...well, that's pretty much it. She uses them. And I really love the jinn because they are not fantasy staples! The more I think about this book, the more I want to rave about it.
Look. Look. I could go on for days.
Just read the book. It's perfect. Strong five out of five for me, there is no second-book-syndrome here. This book is at least as strong as An Ember in the Ashes, if not more so.
I recommend to anyone who likes perfect books.
I don't recommend to people with hypertension. This book will cause you problems. - This book already has a ton of reviews, so aside from saying you should read it, I want to tell you something I really enjoy about this series, aside from the characters, the plot, the mythology, etc., and it's this I absolutely LOVE that the characters in this book TALK to one another. They're open about what's going on. They keep the people they care about informed of things that come up. They don't keep vital plot information from each other just to drag out the suspense, or cause unnecessary conflict that could have been avoided with a simple conversation. This happens in so many books, and it's so annoying when it does, so I really enjoy the fact that Sabaa Tahir's characters don't do this. It's refreshing. The first time I noticed it, I wanted to jump up and down and scream in joy because finally, FINALLY, we have rational characters going through crazy things and deciding to be open about the crazy things happening to them instead of hiding it for some stupid reason, like they're not all in this together. So, yes, you should read this book, because the story is compelling and the characters interesting, but mostly you should read it to find out how freaking awesome it is to see characters not hiding stuff so the author can drag out the story to five hundred pages.
- ***Review posted on The Uncharted Word blog***
A Torch Against the Night starts right where it left off in An Ember in the Ashes with Laia and Elias running for their lives as they are pursued by the Martials of the Empire. They are desperate to evade these men, as well as the Commandant, and to find their way towards Kauf where Laia’s brother is being held captive. Of course not all goes to plan, and there are some unforeseen events that take place along the way that ultimately provide a wide range of twists and turns that had me gasping out loud in some places, especially towards the end.
First, I have to say that Tahir is a gifted storyteller. Her writing is precise, powerful, and emotive. She doesn’t rely too often on embellished description nor does she attempt to elongate events that are not worth our time. As a result, the story is fast-paced and downright thrilling. Rarely do we have a moment to just breathe. There’s always something going down. Someone running for their lives, hiding, hunting, haunting, observing, scheming, lying, loving.
The sequel is just as brutal as the first book, if not even more so in its own way. Tahir isn’t afraid to harm her protagonists. Often in YA fantasies, the MC(s) are placed in a horrendously tragic world where all the bad things happen to everyone else around them. But not in this world. We learned this in the last book. Laia was beaten and scarred, and Elias was forced to do an unspeakable action that continues to haunt him to even the end of this book. Tahir doesn’t shy away from placing her characters in harm’s way and she makes sure to let us readers know that these events have weight and actively affect her characters’s behavior and actions.
There is just enough action to keep me invested and the romance was, thankfully, held in check. I’m just about done with insta-love connections, and so I’m grateful that Tahir chose a different path, one in which Laia has affection for two boys, and makes certain decisions that break her heart, but in the end, keeps it whole. It’s a slow-burn romance, so don’t expect too much romantic affairs in this one.
Elias is a wonderfully flawed, but still lovable character who can steal the heart of any girl. He is brave, competent, charming, intelligent, caring. All things good, basically. But I want to focus on the women for a second. This book was Laia’s book. This was her time to shine, to grow, to harden, and to rise up as a leader. She made many mistakes, but in the end she learned her lesson. Her character development was by far the best.
My biggest disappointment in this book just happens to be Helene.
“But you, Helene Aquilla, are no swift-burning spark. You are a torch against the night – if you dare to let yourself burn.â€
Yeah, she wasn’t burning bright enough, to be honest. I was excited to learn she would be given her own POV, but her chapters often fell flat for me. Her thinking was very much the same as the last book, and she didn’t rise up and take out Marcus from the inside as I had hoped. But there was some character development, just not in the way everyone would expect, which I suppose is a pretty smart choice for Tahir. Predictability in a book is never fun, so I suppose Tahir did well to keep us on our toes.
The villains are just as nasty as they were in the first book. The Commandant’s presence was dialed back a bit so Marcus’s character could be highlighted a bit more. He’s just as terrible as before, even more so if possible, but somehow, some way, Tahir made me actually feel sorry for him. He’s suffering from his horrible decision in the last book and his guilt and shame are constantly haunting him. Tahir adds some humility to his character and reminds us that even though he’s a despicable human being, he is human nonetheless, and his actions have taken a toll on him.
The book was, all in all, a very well-developed story with great characters, action, romance, and mystery. It’s definitely a powerful sequel to An Ember in the Ashes, and is quite possibly better than its predecessor. I can’t wait to see how this story ends.
