Sabaa Tahir

Sabaa Tahir is an American young-adult fiction writer, who is best known for her 2015 New York Times bestselling novel An Ember in the Ashes, as well as her recently released 2016 novel A Torch Against the Night. She was formerly a Washington Post editor who has published her recent work through Razorbill, an imprint of Penguin Random House.

Biography

Tahir grew up in the Mojave Desert where her parents owned a small motel. Since she did not have cable, she grew up surrounding herself with Books. She attended UCLA, during which time she interned at the Washington Post. She took a job at the Post after graduation. She now lives in the San Francisco Bay Area "surrounded by awesome tech nerds".^[1]

An Ember in the Ashes

Tahir's first novel was published on April 28, 2015. The story takes place in an ancient fantasy world where a teenage girl is fighting to save her brother from prison, and a soldier battles to free himself from the regime. The novel instantly jumped to being a New York Bestseller where it held the number two spot. Amazon ranked it the best book for May, the best young adult book for 2015, and the fourth best book overall. It was ranked by Goodreads for a 4.3 out of 5 and Barnes & Noble as a 4.6 out of 5. Tahir sold the film rights to Paramount Pictures before the book was released, and it is now slated to be produced by Mark Johnson (The Chronicles of Narnia, The Notebook, Breaking Bad) and Haroon Saleem.

A Torch Against the Night

Tahir's second novel was published in August 2016 and is a continuation on the story from her previous novel. Penguin Random House describes this addition to the series as such: “Set in a rich, high-fantasy world inspired by ancient Rome, Sabaa Tahir’s An Ember in the Ashes told the story of Laia, a slave fighting for her family, and Elias, a young soldier fighting for his freedom. Now, in A Torch Against the Night, Elias and Laia are running for their lives."^[2] Goodreads ranks this novel as a 4.4 out of 5, and Barnes & Noble as a 4.7 out of 5.

Reception

Both An Ember in the Ashes and A Torch Against the Night have garnered a positive response, with the first being and instant New York Times Bestsellers, and the sequel landing the #1 spot on the New York Times Best Seller list for three weeks straight.

References