Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me an advanced e-copy of this book. I reviewed this title voluntarily and all opinions are my own.

I have loved Sabaa Tahir's Ember quartet and her more recent contemporary novel and have been anxiously awaiting another title from her. The Ember quartet is one of my all-time favorite series, so naturally I was SO happy to return to the same world and to get to revisit a few of the characters. I could hardly contain my delight at seeing the original trio again and there were a few scenes with each of them that I particularly enjoyed.

I do wish that I had re-read the Ember quartet prior to reading this because there were several characters/terms/locations that I did not remember clearly. I will definitely re-read the whole series before the sequel to this book comes out and would not recommend reading this book without reading the Ember quartet first. It was great to see the world and magic system being expanded in this book. I felt like there was a much more significant focus on magic, and I'm excited to see what more we learn in the second book.

I enjoyed the story. I thought it was a unique take on a multi-POV book and it built up the story in such an interesting way. The characters were great (especially Sirsha) and I didn't have the thing where I wanted to skip one of the character's POVs; they each contributed enough to the storyline that I wanted to keep reading. Tahir writes such wonderfully realistic characters with so much humanity, and it was great to see that in this book as well. I love that she understands how different characters with different experiences will come to make different decisions - which sometimes puts characters in opposition to each other. I felt that each character made decisions that were consistent with who they are, even when they are categorically terrible ones, and that's always something I love to see in a book.

The book delivered sweet romance, great pacing (while not crazy fast, never slow), and a cliffhanger ending which I KNEW would be coming (I actually paused reading the book at about 70% of the way through because I knew the last third of the book would be outrageous lol). I will say that I did not love this as much as the Ember quartet books - maybe mostly because how could I love another character as much as I love Helene - but I reserve the right to revise my opinion after the second book. I am so glad to be back in this world and I am happy that it's being expanded with new characters and cultures for this duology!

The world of Ember In the Ashes is back in this spinoff Duology! Thank you to Netgalley for the digital ARC!

The book largely follows 3 storylines. Aiz wishes more for her people, and comes up with a plan to help free them. However, the plan lands her in deep trouble and she seeks magic to get her out.

Quil is the nickname of Helene Aquila’s nephew, and heir to the Empire from the Ember Quartet. He does not wish to ascend the throne due to the legacy of his father’s awful rule, but must step up as a threat materializes that could bring down the Martial Empire.

Sirsha is a former Jaduna turned tracker. A mysterious man hires he to find the person who has been killing teens and children in the empire, but will it cost her everything?

Many familiar faces show up in this book, and I loved returning to this world. I also loved the additional romantic story lines, and excellently crafted twists and turns from Sabaa that I did not see coming!

While I felt that this was a five star book because of the story and the authors witting + world building, there was one thing that confused me. The magical element to the book was at times hard to understand, especially as the book was finishing up. It did not feel rushed, but it felt convoluted.

⭐⭐.25/5

Heir was one of my most anticipated reads of the year, but it unfortunately fell flat. I had never read Sabaa’s work (I still plan on reading the An Ember in the Ashes series), so I was excited to dive in. The story felt very long, and it did not hold my attention. A few of the romantic moments were cringeworthy, and overall, I wanted the romance to develop more smoothly. I felt the story would have worked fine with just two points of view, though I enjoyed the diverse views in the story. The characters were intriguing and fun, but I could not connect with them. The descriptions and action scenes were well-written, and I appreciated the ending. Some reviewers mentioned that fans of her previous series would likely really enjoy Heir, and I would still recommend readers pick up the story, even though it didn’t work for me!

Wow! Sabaa Tahir is bringing a new group of readers into her magical world with Heir. It had just enough references/cameos for AETA fans but was fresh and new enough for those that haven’t gotten there yet. My favorite thing about Sabaa’s writing is the way she writes about emotions. As a reader, I tend to feel deeply alongside the characters & many times the way she handles anger and grief and so on hit home. What a lovely start to this duology & I can’t wait for book 2.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
5/5 STARS

Genre: YA Fantasy/Dystopia

This is a sequel to the series An Ember in the Ashes which consists of four books that I would highly recommend reading first not only because they are so good but it will make this one even better.
It is set twenty years after AEITA & in the same world and you will recognize some of the characters:
- Laia & Elias’ son Sufiyan is a side character
- Helene Aquilla’s nephew is all grown up & the main character of the book. He goes by Quil.
-Aiz is a new character, an orphan on a journey to save her people
-Srisha is a new character, a tracker hired to find a murderer

I loved returning to this world and it did not disappoint! The characters all masterfully intersect in ways I did not expect. The world building was great and had a different feel to AEITA with mention of few old spots sprinkled in.

The gist is Srisha is hired to track and kill someone who is murdering people in the empire when she aligns with Quil & Sufiyan to see it through. Without spoiling it, they cross paths with unexpected monsters and magic in the hopes to rid the empire of evil.

It ends with a cliffhanger nicely setting up the story for the other half of the duology.

If you are a fan of An Ember in the Ashes, you will enjoy this one!

Thank you Penguin Teen for the gifted copy! 🖤

What a fantastic follow-up to the An Ember in the Ashes series. I was lucky enough to receive an ARC and couldn't put it down. This book takes place in the same world as the Ember books, and many of the characters are the children of the characters from those books. It's nice to read about the characters from a series I liked so much, but they are definitely ancillary characters here.The book is told (mostly) from the POV of three characters and I really don't want to give anything away, but the book weaves between storylines and in one other way that doesn't become apparent till Part 2, which I won't spoil here. I highly recommend you pick this one up!

"Heir" by Sabaa Tahir is a captivating masterpiece, intertwining the lives of three protagonists: Aiz, Sirsha, and Quil. Aiz, an orphan from the Kegari slums, seeks vengeance fueled by past tragedies. Her journey from the slums to a formidable prison is intense and compelling. Sirsha, a banished tracker with a mystical connection to nature, is tasked with hunting a child-killer. Her mission becomes complicated when she encounters a charismatic fugitive.

Quil, the reluctant crown prince, grapples with his father’s tyrannical legacy and his aunt Empress Helena’s expectations. His internal struggle and eventual acceptance of his destiny are profoundly satisfying.

Tahir's narrative is masterful, blending rich world-building and deep character development. Each protagonist’s story is engaging, making you root for them despite their flaws. Themes of love, power, and sacrifice are explored with depth, leaving a lasting impact.

"Heir" is a triumph in fantasy literature, filled with twists and turns that keep you breathless. It's a gripping, heart-pounding adventure, highly recommended for fans of Tahir’s previous works and fantasy enthusiasts. I couldn't put it down and eagerly await the next installment.

That ending though! So unexpected, I did not see it coming. I can’t wrap my head around the twist that it took and I hope that it is short lived. I really enjoyed the character development and how everything tied together. I also love badass characters and between the Empress, Quil, and Elias there was plenty of that. I am going to need the second book stat!

I see what Stephanie garner saw because OH. MY. GOSHHHHHH! I LITERALLY DEVOUERED THIS BOOK (i forgot to review earlier) SCREAMING CRYIBG ALL THE EMORIONS AGHHHH

This is a new series from Sabaa Tahir set in her world An Ember of Ashes series. This is a YA fantasy series with plenty of magic, lure, suspense with just a touch of romance. In this story, you’re introduced to three characters. Aiz who seeks revenge, Sirsha who possesss magic, and Quil a Prince. Each has their own journey and struggles. While this series is the first, due to the history of the world, I’d personally recommend reading her series before this, as I did find myself getting a little lost at times. Overall I enjoyed it and will be reading the next book.

This was my first book from Sabaa Tahir, and despite hearing such great things about her Ember in Ashes series, Heir missed the mark for me.

I think this story had potential, but it just didn’t flow well from start to finish . The “relationships” between various characters all felt so rushed and lacked ANY sort of depth.

Magical elements weren’t explained thoroughly enough, and characters seemed to pop in and out of the story at random. For example: one minute, character A was in a dungeon, and the next minute character A is attacking character B but we never knew how character A made it out of the dungeon in the first place?? Oh and then you just never hear about character A for the remainder of the book after her mystery escape/attack.

I didn’t like the FMC, I did NOT like the ending, and ***a slight spoiler here so read at your own risk***

…….but I didn’t like that certain dead people didn’t stay dead.

Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the chance to read the arc.

the year is only half over and i already know that heir is going to be my favorite of 2024, and were it not for the ember in the ashes quartet i read last year, my favorite of the last 5 years.

THIS BOOK. IS EVERYTHING. if i was granted three wishes by a benevolent fairy, i’d burn two of the three on immortality for both sabaa and i so i’d never have to be without a new release from her. the third i’d spend lobotomizing myself every year so i could reread her entire catalog all over again for the first time.

i love this series, this world, and this author, and heir met every single expectation i had and more.

heir tackles the story of a character from the ‘ember’ world, but all grown up, burdened by the responsibility of his title, his empire, and his family legacy. we meet quil — also known as zacharias — as an adult, struggling to bear the weight of the martial empire, the expectations of his aunt, and his own desire for freedom. the story dovetails beautifully with POVs from new characters aiz, a downtrodden orphan in a far-flung kingdom, on a holy mission desperate to save her people, and sirsha, a former jaduna-turned-tracker-for-hire, given a deadly and dangerous mission to hunt down a murderer plaguing the kingdom by killing young children in horrific, brutal ways.

as the story comes together — replete with cameos from beloved characters from the ‘ember’ series — sabaa gifts us a story that will make you rage, weep, and cheer, with painful, heartwrenching parallels to today’s political climate. how far is too far? there’s a quote from ‘heir’ that will live with me forever — “when you sacrifice other people’s children on the altar of your ambition, it’s only a matter of time before you’ll be willing to sacrifice your own.”

5 stars. infinity stars. the entire night sky’s worth of constellations. sabaa is a true kehanni herself, writing stories that are so hauntingly beautiful they stay with you for years after you’ve read them, and heir shines just as bright as the original ember series.

AND FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS SACRED IN THIS WORLD, DO NOT READ HEIR WITHOUT READING THE EMBER SERIES FIRST, PLEASE. i promise this will hit a thousand times harder emotionally if you’ve already familiarized yourself with this world and these characters.

absolutely magnificent, moving, and beautiful in every way. many, many thanks to netgalley and penguin for the absolute privilege of reading an advance copy. counting down the days until it releases and i can put it in the place of ‘made me sob into my coffee’ honor on my shelf.

I lovedddd this book! The multiple povs were easy to follow and I was waiting for when they crossed paths. Sometimes multiple povs don't work well but in this book it was done so well. I liked seeing it come full circle of what they were looking for and more importantly who they were looking for. I can't wait to see what comes next for these characters!

I can’t believe we get to return to the Ember universe in this spinoff duology!! In this series, we follow three main characters - Quil (Marcus and Livinia’s child), Sirscha, and Aiz. While they each have their own goals, their storylines weave together in a satisfying way. I loved the twist that happens about halfway through the book and, while the story became slightly predictable at that point, it really made me re-think everything I had already read. I love the characters in this (not as much as Laia and Elias, but that makes sense). They all have their own development, with Quil grappling with the fact that he is the hair to the empire, Sirscha being exiled by her family and relying on magical tracking, and Aiz doing whatever it takes to save her people. I really enjoyed this book and the ending makes me need the next book asap!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!

I enjoyed this one immensely. I haven't read the original series in years but seeing the main cast again felt like seeing old friends you lost touch with.

I completely forgot how much I enjoy Tahir's writing; she makes the exact kinds of plots I love so much. Her characters feel so real and, despite their flaws, don't frustrate me like a lot of protagonists do.

The cliffhanger was rough I won't lie. I have no idea why I do this to myself because now I have to wait who knows how long for book two, but despite that, it was worth it.

As always, thank you to Netgalley for the ARC!

I haven’t read the Ember series and I’m happy to say you do not have to in order to completely enjoy this series because I sure did! It took me a minute to get into the world and the characters but once I did, I was hooked.

HEIR by Sabaa Tahir is the first in a Young Adult Fantasy duology set in the An Ember in the Ashes world from her previous series. We get to see more locations in this world, and also revisit beloved characters from the original series, twenty year later. The three main POV characters are all beautifully crafted and the story itself is truly engaging, exciting, enraging, and first-rate. I loved this book and can't wait for the next installment. Before I gush on more, let me share the setup.

The story revolves around three main characters:

Aiz has grown up with tragedy. As an orphan in the slums of Kegar, she has seen people she loves die from fire, starvation, and war. After she's thrown into jail, she connects with a spirit that promises Aiz can save her people, but only if she does what the spirit says. I won't spoil anything here, but there was a point when I was reading this book when I understood something about Aiz, and if I'd only been skimming, I might have missed it.

Quil is the heir to the Martial Empire's throne, but he doesn't want to lead. He's afraid the power will corrupt him as it did his father, who was Emperor prior to Empress Helene who is currently ruling. In his first POV chapter, he discovers a child who has been killed in the same way that two masks had been killed recently, and he's upset and angry to discover from his grandmother that more have died and he wasn't informed. When the Empire is attacked, he goes on a quest to find a crucial object that will help save his people. Together with his cousin, Arelia, and his best friend, Sufiyan (Elias and Laia's son!), they escape the attackers and sail in search of Tas who has the object.

They encounter Sirsha, a tracker who is exiled from her family and people, the Jaduna. She's broke, so she's agreed to a contract to find the assassin who has been killing children across the Empire and other lands. When it appears that Sirsha can help Quil and company, she manipulates them to come along with her on her secret tracking mission. She saves them from the Empire's attackers, and Quil saves her at a crucial time.

Will Quil and gang find the object that can save his people on time? Will Sirsha fulfill her contract before the magic that binds her to it drives her mad? Will the perpetrator of the killings be stopped? Read this excellent book and find out.

What I loved most:
- I thoroughly enjoyed the twists and turns. Knowing a big reveal sooner than some of the characters added to my enjoyment of the story.
- The main POV characters were phenomenal, as were the supporting cast. I think my favorite POV character was Quil. My favorite supporting character has to be Sufiyan, followed closely by Ruh.
- Seeing beloved characters from the original series was wonderful.
- Sabaa addresses loss and mourning in an honest, sometimes raw way that really resonated with me.
- Aiz's story in particular was a portrayal of the suffering many people are going through in our world, and I found it tragic, deeply sorrowful, and incredibly well-written.
- The romances (yes, there are more than one!) were well-written. The tropes used were just... *chef's kiss*
- The role of religion and culture in this world and how your point of view and beliefs can change everything were two strong themes (of many) that make this book a must-read for teens.

What didn't work:
- Honestly, I can't think of a single thing that needs improvement. Bravo!

HEIR is a pacey, satisfying read brimming with action, adventure, romance, and tragedy, with a strong cast of characters. I highly recommend it. Run, don't walk, to purchase this fantastic novel!

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Young Readers Group | G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers for providing me with an eARC of this book for my honest feedback.

Okay, longer review to come soon but I just finished reading this (shoutout to Penguin Teen for sending me an ARC after I begged them to) and OMG I AM SCREAMING CRYING THROWING UP TEARING MY HAIR OUT FALLING TO THE GROUND KEELING SOBBING WHHHYYYYY

I don’t know how this is possible but Heir exceeded my already super high expectations?!? I started it right after finishing the Ember Quartet read-along and it was the best decision because it made the experience so much better. But even if you don’t read the Ember books beforehand, this is going to blow your mind!

Sabaa Tahir proves once again why she is the proverbial Kehanni. Her words are magic. And with this magic, she weaves in Heir an intricate tale of love, loss, friendship, betrayal, war, and pain. There is heart-fluttering romance, yes, but there is also terrible, crushing heartbreak (after all, it wouldn’t be like Sabaa to not make her characters suffer).

There is magic and some truly incredible world-building. Empires and powers familiar to readers of the Ember books along with entirely new awe-inspiring lands and peoples and abilities.

Old characters stop by, sometimes with a warm hug and sometimes with a punch to the gut that leaves you bleeding and in tears. New protagonists make you love them, worry for them, laugh with them, cry with them, and cry for them.

There is a mind boggling twist that will leave you reeling for days and a cliffhanger so unfair that you’d give up maybe both of your kidneys to be able to read the sequel RIGHT NOW!

And underlying it all is the most searing, beseeching, heartfelt, furious, and heart-rending plea: for us, humans, to stop starting wars and stop spearheading genocides in the name of the divine.

“How holy can your task be if it requires the destruction of another land?”

NO NOTES. ONLY APPLAUSE.

I couldn’t believe when I got the email for this ARC I was so excited! This book definitely didn’t disappoint, I loved it. Heir hit all my favorites: adventure, political intrigue, interesting magic, romance, surprising plot twists.

Heir takes place in the same world as An Ember in the Ashes but takes place years later. Heir starts by focusing on three main characters POV. Aiz, an orphan girl from Keagar who is plotting the death of a high ranking general, when her plot fails she finds herself in prison with the clerics who raised her. Quil is the heir to the Martial empire, he is having difficulty accepting the crown as he tries to come to terms with a recent tragedy. And Sirsha is a tracker, outcast from her people and down on her luck she agrees to track down a killer who has been taking the hearts of children.

Sabaa Tahir does an amazing job of weaving the three main characters stories together and managing to surprise me with the twists the stories take. I love watching the characters connect and develop and the bonds they form with each other, I found myself really interested in these characters and what was going to happen to them. I did think that it was a little slow to start but once the first plot twist occurred I was fully invested. I can’t wait for the next book!

Thank you NetGalley and PENGUIN GROUP for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A beautifully plotted and described continuation of the story and world created in the ember in the ashes quartet. Now we get to see the next generation, the children of Eliasa and Laia and nephew of Helene, and how they weave into the aftermath of the previous wars. Nothing and no one is who they seem and get ready to weep and rend teeth as Tahir pulls out all of the stops. A must read.