An Ember in the Ashes

By: Sabaa Tahir

Narrated by: Fiona Hardingham, Steve West

Set in a terrifyingly brutal Rome-like world, An Ember in the Ashes is an epic fantasy debut about an orphan fighting for her family and a soldier fighting for his freedom. It’s a story that’s literally burning to be told.

LAIA is a Scholar living under the iron-fisted rule of the Martial Empire. When her brother is arrested for treason, Laia goes undercover as a slave at the empire’s greatest military academy in exchange for assistance from rebel Scholars who claim that they will help to save her brother from execution.

ELIAS is the academy’s finest soldier— and secretly, its most unwilling. Elias is considering deserting the military, but before he can, he’s ordered to participate in a ruthless contest to choose the next Martial emperor.

When Laia and Elias’s paths cross at the academy, they find that their destinies are more intertwined than either could have imagined and that their choices will change the future of the empire itself.

Pretty decent

A little heavy on the romance but if you like clean romance novels, this one is for you. It also has plenty of other elements. It's sort of a Roman fantasy novel. It's well written and does a good job of switching between the characters and narrators. The characters are well thought out and three dimensional. The story and the world are realistic and things happen the way you'd expect them to. The story is kind of predictable but is still a good read. There really isn't a lot of action but the writing is beautiful. I have already purchased book 2 but if things don't start happening, I probably won't continue the series. I recommend.

Good story but cringy reading

Fiona Hardingham's reading style is too theatrical and very cringy to listen too. i wish she could have read the story with out pausing between almost every word.

Sucks you right in.

I was surprised at how much I enjoyed the multiple perspectives offered by the author. I was hooked after just a few chapters and now I can't wait to find out where the story will go in the next book.

I had to listen to the book on 1.25 speed though, as I found the reader to sound a tad breathy and overly melodramatic. It actually sounded more natural with the increased speed.

Incredibly Written.

Anxiously waiting to hear what will happen next. Intense story. I cried for Laia and Elias, and then find hope that maybe it'll be okay for them in the future.

This Is The Series I Measure All Others Against

I’ve returned to this series again and again, and nothing else quite compares. I recommend it to anyone who asks for a book suggestion—it’s my gold standard. Adventure, romance, and a truly original story are woven together seamlessly. The narration is flawless and brings every moment to life. From the very first pages, the story launches forward and refuses to let go. The characters are layered and deeply human, their relationships evolving in ways that feel authentic and earned. The world-building is vivid and magnetic—rich enough to feel immersive without ever slowing the pace. This is the series I measure all others against.