School Library Journal Review
Gr 9 Up-Laia and Elias continue their perilous journey to rescue Laia's brother from the brutal Kauf Prison. The two face danger at every turn as Helene Aquilla, Elias's former best friend-turned-worst enemy, hunts them down for the Empire. There are brutal punishments, explosive action, and shocking betrayals, and the villains are plentiful and truly evil. Three perspectives frame the story: Laia (performed by Fiona Hardingham), Elias (performed by Steve West), and Helene (performed by Katharine McEwan). All three narrators do a terrific job becoming their characters. Listeners will observe Hardingham's Laia becoming tougher and more resourceful as the audiobook progresses. Along with skillfully portraying the tenacious Elias steadily weakening as poison wracks his system, West reads a creepy Warden of Kauf Prison. McEwan as Helene excels at interpreting the Blood Strike's anguish at targeting the man she loves in order to save her family and do her duty to the empire. VERDICT Fans of Sarah Maas or Leigh Bardugo will love this series. An essential purchase for those who have An Ember in the Ashes. ["This one is bound to be popular with fans of the first installment, making this a must-purchase": SLJ 8/16 review of the Razorbill book.]-Julie Paladino, formerly at East Chapel Hill High School, NC © Copyright 2016. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
The sequel to Tahir's bestselling An Ember in the Ashes picks up where the last installment left off: Laia and Elias, fresh from the Trials that made them both traitors, barely escape the city of Serra with their lives as a Scholar rebellion tears the city apart. Elias is sworn to help Laia rescue her brother, Darin, from the prison of Kauf, held there for his knowledge of steelmaking secrets that could bring the end of the Martial empire. But Helene Aquilla, the new emperor's Blood Shrike and Elias's best friend from childhood, has orders to hunt down both of the fugitives or forfeit her own family's lives. Watching them all is the commandant of Blackcliff, ruthless in her hatred and hiding a sinister agenda of her own. The shifting network of alliances and betrayals can almost be too elaborate to follow at times, but Tahir's skill with her characters is more than enough to hold readers' attention. This sequel has a darker tone and even higher stakes than its predecessor, setting the stage for a thrilling conclusion. Ages 14-up. Agent: Alexandra Machinist, ICM Partners. (Aug.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Horn Book Review
Tahir returns readers to the brutal, vividly imagined Roman-esque Martial Empire (An Ember in the Ashes). Laia--a member of the enslaved Scholar race--and Elias--a high-ranking traitor to the Empire--race to free Laia's brother while being pursued by Helene, Elias's conflicted former comrade. Complex, detailed world-building; sustained narrative urgency; and deeply felt emotional conflicts and connections reward readers. (c) Copyright 2017. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Booklist Review
*Starred Review* The sequel to Tahir's best-selling An Ember in the Ashes (2015) finds Elias and Laia on the run from Elias' mother aka the unspeakably evil Commandant and the vapid but vicious Emperor Marcus. Their destination: the Kauf Prison, where they hope to free Laia's brother, who knows the secret of serric steel, which just might save Laia's people, the Scholars, from extinction by the Empire. But Elias has been poisoned and his strength is ebbing, and their quest is further complicated by the presence of the rebel Keenan, who is Elias' rival for Laia's love. In the face of all this, how can they possibly succeed? Indeed, how can they survive? To answer these questions, Tahir tells her story from three first-person points of view, that of Laia, Elias, and interestingly Helene, once Elias' close friend but now, as the Blood Shrike, his sworn enemy, dispatched to capture him and Laia. Infusing her story with magic, Tahir proves to be a master of suspense and a canny practitioner of the cliff-hanger, riveting readers' attention throughout. As for her coprotagonists, they remain captivating characters who invite strong reader empathy, and their action-packed, breathlessly paced story is enthralling and surely thanks to unresolved loose ends to be followed by book three. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Major conference promotion we've already started seeing the skyscraper-size banners might push this to greater heights than the first book.--Cart, Michael Copyright 2016 Booklist