Heir by Sabaa Tahir (audiobook)

 genre: fantasy

Set in the same world as the Ember in the Ashes series, this book takes place a generation later but with new evils to fight. There is a young woman searching for answers with a goddess of legend, a young man heir to a throne that is willing to put loyalty before his own desires, and a tracker with nothing to lose.  When poverty and starvation decimate some countries while others thrive, treaties and armies can only go so far as desperate times create desperate people.  These three individuals are all caught up in the ripples caused by this inequity, especially when a new menace slinks in shadows, murdering the innocent.

I WISH I had checked to see if this was a standalone before starting.  IT IS NOT. AND I AM SAD.  Because now I have to wait for the second half of what is apparently a duology.  But also, I am not sorry to have spent more time in this particular place.  It took a while for the individual storylines to come together and when they did, I didn't have it all figured out ahead of time and I loved that.  The horror here is real and pretty upsetting - Sabaa Tahir does not shy away from making her characters face truly horrific evil but I love the way they choose not to shy away.  I love the intricate plotting and the romantic threads - tropes and all.  Honestly, I feel like this book is easier to understand if you've already ready the Ember in the Ashes series.  It took a WHILE for me to feel like I was on solid ground at the beginning - so many new characters and places - that having some context helped.  The only reason I'm not giving it five glowing stars is because I feel like it jumped in with two feet a little too deep at the beginning.  Otherwise, it was an excellent listen.