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A Reaper at the Gates
(An Ember in the Ashes #3)
by
Beyond the Martial Empire and within it, the threat of war looms ever larger.
Helene Aquilla, the Blood Shrike, is desperate to protect her sister's life and the lives of everyone in the Empire. Yet danger lurks on all sides. Emperor Marcus, haunted by his past, grows increasingly unstable and violent, while Keris Veturia, the ruthless Commandant, capitalizes on the Emperor ...more
Helene Aquilla, the Blood Shrike, is desperate to protect her sister's life and the lives of everyone in the Empire. Yet danger lurks on all sides. Emperor Marcus, haunted by his past, grows increasingly unstable and violent, while Keris Veturia, the ruthless Commandant, capitalizes on the Emperor ...more
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Hardcover, 458 pages
Published
June 12th 2018
by Razorbill
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Popular Answered Questions
Sarah Petrovafire
If you look on Tahirs website she announced it will be four books. But I also remember it orginally been advertised as a standalone.
Community Reviews
Showing 1-30

Start your review of A Reaper at the Gates (An Ember in the Ashes, #3)

“There are worse things than death,” I say. “Shall we learn about them together?”
4 1/2 stars. When it comes to heart-racing action scenes, I cannot think of another YA author who does it better than Sabaa Tahir. She plunges you into the chaos almost immediately and once again, for the third book in a row, she keeps the drama and bloodshed coming until the very end.
The ONLY reason I rated this book slightly lower than An Ember in the Ashes and A Torch Against the Night is that I felt like Eli ...more

Well, it seems like I’m in the major minority here.
Three books in and I’m still not attached to the characters. If any of them had died in this book, I would’ve shrugged it off.
Am I to blame? I don’t think so, since there barely was any backstory or development given to those characters.
Constant action, non-stop movement and not enough focus on our main characters. I had no option but to not form any attachment, since we weren’t given any breathing room for the plot to slow down and for it to ...more
Three books in and I’m still not attached to the characters. If any of them had died in this book, I would’ve shrugged it off.
Am I to blame? I don’t think so, since there barely was any backstory or development given to those characters.
Constant action, non-stop movement and not enough focus on our main characters. I had no option but to not form any attachment, since we weren’t given any breathing room for the plot to slow down and for it to ...more

Devastating and excellent. Can't wait for the final installment! My full booktalk discussion is up on my youtube channel (polandbananasbooks). =)
...more

Sabaa’s writing, characters, and storytelling deserves all the stars in the world. RTC!
******
Hey guys! So I'm seeing lots of turmoil in my feed but I thought I'd pop in. I'm not crazy about switching covers/etc in a series either, but before you go off on a huge tangent, go check out Sabaa's reasoning for the changes. My thoughts on the design/etc don't matter, and I happened to adore the old covers SO much, but this woman did a cool thing with her influence, and I'm so glad I know why! Link be ...more
******
Hey guys! So I'm seeing lots of turmoil in my feed but I thought I'd pop in. I'm not crazy about switching covers/etc in a series either, but before you go off on a huge tangent, go check out Sabaa's reasoning for the changes. My thoughts on the design/etc don't matter, and I happened to adore the old covers SO much, but this woman did a cool thing with her influence, and I'm so glad I know why! Link be ...more

whyyyyy, sabaa, whyyyyyyy???
(aside: mwahahahahahaha)
you know how they tell you that good things come to those who wait? i never bought into this school of thought bc i'm pretty much veruca salt when it comes to books. but, holy hell, is A REAPER AT THE GATES worth it. i was immediately drawn back into this darkly dangerous world and all its amazing characters. each POV is distinct and painstakingly wrought. the action is intense, and the angst made my heart hurt for days afterward. it's smart, s ...more
(aside: mwahahahahahaha)
you know how they tell you that good things come to those who wait? i never bought into this school of thought bc i'm pretty much veruca salt when it comes to books. but, holy hell, is A REAPER AT THE GATES worth it. i was immediately drawn back into this darkly dangerous world and all its amazing characters. each POV is distinct and painstakingly wrought. the action is intense, and the angst made my heart hurt for days afterward. it's smart, s ...more

it is with a heavy heart and sorrowful soul that i have to rate this book anything lower than 5 stars (i actually may change and round up because a 3 feels sooo harsh at the moment), because this series has been absolutely stellar up until this point.
i get that a story is meant to have opposition. a character grows and develops through it and because of it. without opposition, there would be no resolution. but i also feel that it is important for a character to have hope and to have success alo ...more
i get that a story is meant to have opposition. a character grows and develops through it and because of it. without opposition, there would be no resolution. but i also feel that it is important for a character to have hope and to have success alo ...more

Jun 30, 2016
Andreea Pop
marked it as to-read
THIS COMES OUT THIS YEAR. Holy moly, time has passed rather quickly. But I'm still not happy about the cover style change. Hmph.
Meaningly, my torturous, never-ending wait. Because freaking 2018. ...more

Meaningly, my torturous, never-ending wait. Because freaking 2018. ...more

Me: Nothing can be worse than the Tower of Dawn cover
A Reaper at the Gates: *exists*
#WhatTheFuck
An Ember in the Ashes is one of my favorite series ever. I don't deserve this. ...more
A Reaper at the Gates: *exists*
#WhatTheFuck
An Ember in the Ashes is one of my favorite series ever. I don't deserve this. ...more

It’s amazing how we willingly pay to be traumatized, but honestly I’d do it all over again if I could. I have to say, there is no one in the writing game quite like Sabaa Tahir when it comes to opening up EVERY book with heart-pounding intensity. With that being said I was already terrified to start this book knowing that and also because, let's face it, Sabaa is also not the kindest to her characters. When I read the first 80 pages of this book I NOPED and put it down so fast not because it wa
...more

The immediacy of Tahir's writing remains spot-on, but the beautiful prose found in An Ember in the Ashes is absent in the third installment of the series. Too much of A Reaper at the Gates reads like filler, and the narrative lacks compelling focus with characters seemingly running in circles. The plot hinges on a reveal that's been blazing red since the first book in the series. The Nightbringer remains a tool used for narrative convenience, and Tahir's continued underutilization of one of the
...more

Helene Aquilla could punch me in the face and I would thank her for her time

Jul 12, 2018
♥ℂĦℝΪՖƬΪℕÅ
rated it
it was amazing
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
fantasy,
romance,
dystopia-and-utopian,
favorites,
magic,
2018-reading-challenge,
young-adult
5 Sweet bleeding skies STAR'S
“The sword point is my priest. The dance of death is my prayer. The killing blow is my release.”

“Hope is stronger than fear. It is stronger than hate.”

Holly Mother!!! I don't even know what to say right now! I am completely speechless. 'A Reaper at the Gates' is utterly freaking brilliant! BRILLIANT! I was awestruck from beginning to end and I sure as hell didn't want to put it down. It's hypnotizing, once the pages started turning I couldn't stop. I have so many e ...more
“The sword point is my priest. The dance of death is my prayer. The killing blow is my release.”

“Hope is stronger than fear. It is stronger than hate.”

Holly Mother!!! I don't even know what to say right now! I am completely speechless. 'A Reaper at the Gates' is utterly freaking brilliant! BRILLIANT! I was awestruck from beginning to end and I sure as hell didn't want to put it down. It's hypnotizing, once the pages started turning I couldn't stop. I have so many e ...more

DAMN
.
That was sexy af.
Reading Vlog here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lEldQ...
5 STARS ALL THE WAY
Twitter | Bookstagram | Youtube | ...more
That was sexy af.
Reading Vlog here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lEldQ...
5 STARS ALL THE WAY
Twitter | Bookstagram | Youtube | ...more

im trying to imagine how it would feel to finish a book and NOT BE WORRIED ABOUT THE FATE OF MY BABIES IN THE FINAL BOOK
👏LET👏ELIAS👏AND👏LAIA👏BE👏HAPPY👏ᵖˡᵉᵃˢᵉ
4.5 stars
buddy read with this readingdisaster machine
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
what the heck happened to the matching cover designs????
the title is 💯💯💯👌👌👌💯💯 but the cover is so OFF AND NOW IM SAD AND CONFUSED WHY DONT WE HAVE MATCHING COVERS!!!!
. . . also. . .is anyone gonna mention how gorgeous elias looks??!?!?!! ...more
👏LET👏ELIAS👏AND👏LAIA👏BE👏HAPPY👏ᵖˡᵉᵃˢᵉ
4.5 stars
buddy read with this reading
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
what the heck happened to the matching cover designs????
the title is 💯💯💯👌👌👌💯💯 but the cover is so OFF AND NOW IM SAD AND CONFUSED WHY DONT WE HAVE MATCHING COVERS!!!!
. . . also. . .is anyone gonna mention how gorgeous elias looks??!?!?!! ...more

oooh, goodreads choice awards semifinalist for best young adult fantasy 2018! what will happen?
this book is an inch-and-a-half thick and i was bored and shocked by my boredom until maybe the last quarter-inch.
i’d been looking forward to reading this tremendously, and when i finally carved out the space to get to it, i dove in like a fox in the snow

but my elation was dampened by the slog of it, and i got sadder and sadder as the book refused to be as awesome as the first two.

it’s very convolute ...more
this book is an inch-and-a-half thick and i was bored and shocked by my boredom until maybe the last quarter-inch.
i’d been looking forward to reading this tremendously, and when i finally carved out the space to get to it, i dove in like a fox in the snow

but my elation was dampened by the slog of it, and i got sadder and sadder as the book refused to be as awesome as the first two.

it’s very convolute ...more

“Curse this world for what it does to the mothers, for what it does to the daughters. Curse it for making us strong through loss and pain, our hearts torn from our chests again and again. Curse it for forcing us to endure.”
Look, I'm gonna do something a bit weird here and start with the negatives I REALLY, really enjoyed reading this book but at the same time I had some niggling little issues that I was waiting for some action on and it never came. I need to talk about them.
this is an excel ...more

Love cannot live here.
When one of your favorite authors in the world has a new book coming out, it generally becomes your whole world. You have laser focus. Books lose that quality that always seems to drag you in. You obsess and rant and annoy so many people, yet you just could care less-until the day comes and you finally have it in your hands and you can’t devour it quick enough. This is that book.

I just so happened to be one of those lucky Bloggers/Bookstagrammers that was a par ...more

"In this fiery hellscape of a world, this mess of blood and madness, justice exists only for those who take it. I'll be damned if I'm not one of them."
1) An ember in the ashes ★★★★☆
2) A torch against the night ★★★★★
4.5
First things first: nothing will ever be as badass as Helene covered in blood fighting with her war hammer
Anyway, A reaper at the gates was fantastic. Everything came full circle (even if there's still one book left) and some little things that didn't make sense in the previous ins ...more
1) An ember in the ashes ★★★★☆
2) A torch against the night ★★★★★
4.5
First things first: nothing will ever be as badass as Helene covered in blood fighting with her war hammer
Anyway, A reaper at the gates was fantastic. Everything came full circle (even if there's still one book left) and some little things that didn't make sense in the previous ins ...more

Spoiler Free Review :)
”Pain is a choice. Succumb to it and fail. Or defy it and Triumph.”
Words cannot express how blissfully happy I am with this. I mean for me it was everything that I could of wanted. I was wondering where the story would go after A Torch Against the Night We got updates in what had happened throughout the time on the travels and nothing was left un-said. This time around there’s so much foreboding and it’s setting up the final book perfectly. We see characters grow from stren ...more
”Pain is a choice. Succumb to it and fail. Or defy it and Triumph.”
Words cannot express how blissfully happy I am with this. I mean for me it was everything that I could of wanted. I was wondering where the story would go after A Torch Against the Night We got updates in what had happened throughout the time on the travels and nothing was left un-said. This time around there’s so much foreboding and it’s setting up the final book perfectly. We see characters grow from stren ...more

Full review to come soon! Let's just say after this:
I still love Helene
Elias is amazing and my heart for him..
Laia, I've really grown to enjoy her character.
So many plot twists I did not seeing coming...like at all!
The ending....what???
Amazing book, I expected nothing less from this series! ...more
I still love Helene
Elias is amazing and my heart for him..
Laia, I've really grown to enjoy her character.
So many plot twists I did not seeing coming...like at all!
The ending....what???
Amazing book, I expected nothing less from this series! ...more

I need sleep. Desperately.
..........................
8 hours later and I’m still in denial. I mean, what in the hells was that fucking ending???????? Sure, go ahead and rip the very soul from my body, laughing while you do it, won’t you?!
All I can say is that this book and series definitely live up to their ...more
..........................
”Curse this world for what it does to the daughters. Curse it for making us strong through loss and pain, our hearts torn from our chests again and again. Curse it for forcing us to endure.”
8 hours later and I’m still in denial. I mean, what in the hells was that fucking ending???????? Sure, go ahead and rip the very soul from my body, laughing while you do it, won’t you?!
All I can say is that this book and series definitely live up to their ...more

Edit:
Ok, so I am mad that it wont match my other hardback covers. If you're buying the books with these covers, the older editions also got revamped, and together they look alright I guess...but my bookshelf feng shui is going to be thrown off. I dunno, I was just such a fan of the original. Here are the remakes of the original covers, in case you haven't seen them.


So at least the color hues are similar....
Cover reveal:
Kept seeing these comments about the book cover, and I kept scrolling cause I ...more
Ok, so I am mad that it wont match my other hardback covers. If you're buying the books with these covers, the older editions also got revamped, and together they look alright I guess...but my bookshelf feng shui is going to be thrown off. I dunno, I was just such a fan of the original. Here are the remakes of the original covers, in case you haven't seen them.


So at least the color hues are similar....
Cover reveal:
Kept seeing these comments about the book cover, and I kept scrolling cause I ...more

Even though these books are super sad like they are the ultimate level of sadness i still keep reading these books because
i
just
want
Elias
to
be
happy
someone
let
my
baby
be
happy
please
why
Sabaa
why
you
evil
witch
i
hate
you
please
let
him
be
happy
he
deserves
all
the
happiness
in
this
world
and
i
hate
Laia
but
please
let
them
be
happy
together
and
have
babies
p
l
e
a
s
e
and
you
hag
you
evil
cruel
witch
i
hate
you
so
damn
much
LET
HELENE
AND
HARPER
BE
HAPPY
.
.
.
.
.
i
still
hate
you
i
just
want
Elias
to
be
happy
someone
let
my
baby
be
happy
please
why
Sabaa
why
you
evil
witch
i
hate
you
please
let
him
be
happy
he
deserves
all
the
happiness
in
this
world
and
i
hate
Laia
but
please
let
them
be
happy
together
and
have
babies
p
l
e
a
s
e
and
you
hag
you
evil
cruel
witch
i
hate
you
so
damn
much
LET
HELENE
AND
HARPER
BE
HAPPY
.
.
.
.
.
i
still
hate
you

Yoooo this was bloody amazing and so much better than the last one, I loved it!! My heart hurts for my poor soul catcher and Helene who is still my queen 👏🏼 I don’t give two shits about Laia lol but I do really like the mythological side the plot has taken and I can’t wait to read about what will go down in the last book😊

Okay but why did you change the cover because I own the first two and now they won't match and I mean it's super cool looking and I love it but can we finish one edition and then start the other because I'll have them both
...more

Do you ever read a book and go I wonder how would I feel if I read this in a different time or in a different format?
I do that with a lot of my books, especially the ones I love. But for this one, I have no doubt I would've loved it no matter what, I was just hooked from the first chapter till the last one.
AND
I
FRICKEN
LOVE
ELIAS ...more
I do that with a lot of my books, especially the ones I love. But for this one, I have no doubt I would've loved it no matter what, I was just hooked from the first chapter till the last one.
AND
I
FRICKEN
LOVE
ELIAS ...more

“Curse this world for what it does to the mothers, for what it does to the daughters. Curse it for making us strong through loss and pain, our hearts torn from our chests again and again. Curse it for forcing us to endure.”
...
Ya know, I shouldn't even be surprised at this point. I knew from Sabaa's instagram feed that this book would rip my heart out, but man. A Reaper at the Gates successfully made me a shell of my former self, and I honestly don't know what I'm going to do until the fourth ...more
...
Ya know, I shouldn't even be surprised at this point. I knew from Sabaa's instagram feed that this book would rip my heart out, but man. A Reaper at the Gates successfully made me a shell of my former self, and I honestly don't know what I'm going to do until the fourth ...more

Jun 30, 2017
Hari ~Brekker-Maresh~
marked it as to-read
8/14/17
WE HAVE A TITLE, I REPEAT. WE HAVE A TITLE. THIS IS NOT A DRILL.
I am the definition of sHOOKETH by the TITLE BUT THE COVER????? AM I THE ONLY ONE SLIGHTLY DISAPPOINTED AND BY SLIGHTLY I MEAN WTFFFFFF
Hun, take a look at the rest of your fam.
Do. You. Look. Like. Them? No.
Are. You. Still. Pretty. Anyway? Maybe.
I'm not cover hatingexcept I totally am but like... Um. Ok. Let's just be happy we have a cover with pretty pictures.
WADDUP BROWN PRIDE!
But why couldn't you match 😫
And maybe it' ...more
WE HAVE A TITLE, I REPEAT. WE HAVE A TITLE. THIS IS NOT A DRILL.
I am the definition of sHOOKETH by the TITLE BUT THE COVER????? AM I THE ONLY ONE SLIGHTLY DISAPPOINTED AND BY SLIGHTLY I MEAN WTFFFFFF
Hun, take a look at the rest of your fam.
Do. You. Look. Like. Them? No.
Are. You. Still. Pretty. Anyway? Maybe.
I'm not cover hating
WADDUP BROWN PRIDE!
But why couldn't you match 😫
And maybe it' ...more
topics | posts | views | last activity | |
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What is the future of Laia's and Elias's relationship? | 27 | 1003 | Dec 02, 2020 09:29PM | |
Jinn | 1 | 3 | Dec 01, 2020 02:38PM | |
2021 Reading Chal...:
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5 | 23 | Sep 16, 2020 11:48AM | |
Bookalicious Book...: A Reaper at the Gates Book Club Discussion | 1 | 18 | Oct 01, 2019 09:26AM |
**My apologies if I don't respond to emails or friend requests right away! Come find me on Twitter or Instagram @sabaatahir, or on my web site: www.sabaatahir.com
Sabaa Tahir grew up in California’s Mojave Desert at her family’s 18-room motel. There, she spent her time devouring fantasy novels, raiding her brother’s comic book stash and playing guitar badly. She began writing An Ember in the Ashes ...more
Sabaa Tahir grew up in California’s Mojave Desert at her family’s 18-room motel. There, she spent her time devouring fantasy novels, raiding her brother’s comic book stash and playing guitar badly. She began writing An Ember in the Ashes ...more
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An Ember in the Ashes
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“Curse this world for what it does to the mothers, for what it does to the daughters. Curse it for making us strong through loss and pain, our hearts torn from our chests again and again. Curse it for forcing us to endure.”
—
185 likes
“Hope is stronger than fear. It is stronger than hate.”
—
140 likes
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