Ember in the Ashes

Ember in the Ashes:

I had a little difficulty with this book when I first started it. I found myself initially irritated with the character of Elias who kept self-sabotaging and (after years of intense training and self-control) somehow couldn't regulate his behaviour enough to keep from drawing the suspicions of his fellow trainees. I wanted this character to be smart and capable and he seemed to be having difficulty being either of these things...

However, as the book progressed I was sucked deep into this world and the conflicts it posed. Elias' storyline received an interesting supernatural complication (that satisfied my earlier frustrations) and I found both his story and Laia's story highly compelling! Laia's perspective as one of the conquered and oppressed people, alongside Elias' privileged and yet equally oppressive life, vividly depicted the many horrors that life in this world involved. I was quickly drawn into the story emotionally, eager to see how Laia and Elias would able to fight back against the many injustices they were faced with, and I'm looking forward to reading the next book in the series.