A Sky Beyond the Storm (An Ember in the Ashes, #4)
Author: Sabaa Tahir
Publisher: Razorbill
Pages: 516
Age Group: 14+
Synopsis:
Prepare for the jaw-dropping finale of Sabaa Tahir’s beloved New York Times bestselling An Ember in the Ashes fantasy series, and discover: Who will survive the storm?
Picking up just a few months after A Reaper at the Gates left off…
The long-imprisoned jinn are on the attack, wreaking bloody havoc in villages and cities alike. But for the Nightbringer, vengeance on his human foes is just the beginning.
At his side, Commandant Keris Veturia declares herself Empress, and calls for the heads of any and all who defy her rule. At the top of the list? The Blood Shrike and her remaining family.
Laia of Serra, now allied with the Blood Shrike, struggles to recover from the loss of the two people most important to her. Determined to stop the approaching apocalypse, she throws herself into the destruction of the Nightbringer. In the process, she awakens an ancient power that could lead her to victory–or to an unimaginable doom.
And deep in the Waiting Place, the Soul Catcher seeks only to forget the life–and love–he left behind. Yet doing so means ignoring the trail of murder left by the Nightbringer and his jinn. To uphold his oath and protect the human world from the supernatural, the Soul Catcher must look beyond the borders of his own land. He must take on a mission that could save–or destroy–all that he knows.
Thoughts
It feels good to finally catch up and finish this series. It’s been unfinished on my shelf for too long, but I have to say, it didn’t quite meet all my expectations.
With this being the final book, anything can happen. Elias is no longer Elias and he and Laia are torn apart by war and death. She is focused on bringing down the Nightbringer, but it all comes at a cost. Who will survive the end?
I was devastated after Reaper, so of course I wanted to know what happens. The thing I had a big issue with is how too many chapters just didn’t excite me or wow me. They fell flat and didn’t really keep me too interested or make me gasp out loud. I thought the action was pretty good, but in my opinion, there could have been more twists or surprises. I might be the only one thinking this, though. It got more exciting near the end where everything pretty much explodes into action. I’ll just say that Sky felt like it had the second book syndrome that Torch had.
The characters weren’t an issue, though. I held my breath with Elias and Laia a lot because it’s like they were on the same bridge to what they used to be and then one of them would be swept away unfairly. I think they both tried hard, maybe one more than the other, to get back to each other. Mentally and physically, it always seemed near impossible but it kept their arc interesting.
I feel so bad for Helene. No spoilers of course, but she did not deserve a lot of what happened to her. Excuse my language, but damn. She deserved better, for real.
Keris and the Nightbringer…I’m sorry, I don’t have remorse. They caused so much trouble, regardless of their emotional baggage, and I just can’t forgive them or believe in any kind of redemption arc for them. Insert shrugging emoji.
Secondary characters were support characters for Helene, Laia and Elias and it was nice that so many people stood behind them and had such faith. Also, mentions of old characters pop up and that was pretty nice to see within all the violence and drama.
It’s not an ending to a series that is all dark, evil and depressing. There’s hope and power and strength. Regardless of the chapters lacking before the BIG happens, I think it’s a pretty fitting ending to this series. I may have picked it up too late in the game, but I can definitely see why readers got attached and why they would hold it close as their favorite and memorable series. I think Sabaa did pretty good justice to her world and I’m excited for what she has in store for the future.
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