An Ember In The Ashes Review

TITLE: An Ember in the Ashes
AUTHOR: Sabaa Tahir
PUBLISHER: Razorbill
PUBLICATION DATE: 4/28/2015
FORMAT: ARC
PAGES: 464
SOURCE: Amazon Vine
MY RATING: 

BACK COVER SUMMARY: 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.

OVERALL IMPRESSION: I was disappointed in this book. I had heard that a lot of people really liked it, so I was hopeful, but it just wasn't for me. The first chapter of the book was intense, but after that it was slow moving and boring to me. The second half of the book definitely picked up, and I was glad to have continued reading because I did enjoy the second half, I just had to really push myself through the first half. I wasn't a fan of the dual perspective. I get why it's necessary for this book, but I was much more interested in Laia's side of the story and found myself not wanting to read Elias's point of view.

The ending of the book was really intense, but I don't think for me it was enough to make me want to continue with the series. I would say that if you generally like fantasy, then you should give this book a try because you will probably enjoy it.

CHARACTERS: Like I said before, I was much more interested in Laia's story than in Elias's. I'm not really sure why that is. I like the character of "Cook" and "Kitchen Girl."

COVER: The cover is alright. I guess it fits in with the story, but it's nothing that blows me away.

**I received an ARC of this book from Amazon Vine for my honest review. My thoughts are my own and have not been influenced in any way.**

Silent Echoes by Carla Jablonski Review

TITLE: Silent Echoes

AUTHOR: Carla Jablonski

PUBLISHER: Razorbill

PAGES: 344

MY RATING: 4/5

INSIDE COVER BLURB: Sixteen-year-old Lucy Phillips lives with her father in nineteenth-century Manhattan where together they concoct schemes and cons to make a living. Then Lucy hears a real "spirit" speak to her at a seance packed with wealthy socialites, and she quickly gains fame and fortune as a talented medium who can share valuable knowledge about the future.

In modern-day New York City, Lindsay Miller is terrified by the girl's voice she's started hearing in her head. Worried she's losing her mind, Lindsay finally admits what's happening, and she's hospitalized for schizophrenia.

But when the two girls realize they are hearing each other's voices across time, they begin to see possibilities that will change both of their lives forever....

Author Carla Jablonski weaves together the riveting stories of two girls who live centuries apart into one unforgettable novel.

OVERALL IMPRESSION: I loved this book. It was so much fun to read. I loved the way the author wove the two stories together and that we got to see the story from two different sides. It was really interesting to be able to compare the life that I am more familiar with to the life from back in the nineteenth century. The ending of the book made me really happy too. I don't want to give anything away, but I'm glad it ended the way it did.

COVER: I'd give the cover a 3/5. I'm not sure who the girl on the cover is supposed to be, but I like to think it's a combination of the two girls, which I think is a great idea if that is the case.

CHARACTERS: I loved both the characters of Lucy and Lindsay. They had a lot in common both being teenage girls, but they were also so different because of the things they've grown up around.