Esta's Reviews > Heir

When I was much younger, I found escapism in books and authors like Enid Blyton, J.K. Rowling, and Roald Dahl. They were a good time, but let’s not pretend they were winning any diversity awards unless you count Moonface as a breakout star.

Fast forward and I’m so glad things have become more inclusive in literature since I was a child. Heir has the revolutionary concept of different skin shades and tones amongst main characters (same deal for AEITA), one of them being brown eyes, brown skin, and black hair on a three-dimensional FMC, Sirsha Westering, and portrayed like it’s the most natural thing in the world, as it should be.

It’s painfully obvious this book hit home for me, making me feel seen in ways my childhood reads never did. But it wasn’t just my sassy queen Sirsha stealing the show for me. I also felt supremely connected to the other MCs, Quil and Aiz, and even the supporting side characters were serving up personality, layers, flaws and shades of grey.

Additionally, I thought the world-building was mesmerising—rich with culture and even language. "Jaldi" is a word I caught which is Hindi/Urdu, some characters have names with glottal stops etc.

Moreover, the storytelling and plot were ace, with brutal and painful themes that are all too relevant today, for example, as we pray Palestine is freed. Mind your triggers: Genocide, colonisation, war, death, poverty/suffering/classism, child death, mentioned family violence and abuse.

Furthermore, I never felt bogged down by info dumps or suffocated by action scenes (which are plentiful). You can truly see how much Tahir has levelled up as a writer from her debut to this book. It’s classified as YA, but it didn’t feel overly young. There’s some mild fade-to-black spice, and the characters are aged around 20, so it strikes a good balance.

My one nitpick? I prefer shorter chapters, and some of them are quite long. But that’s a minor quibble in the grand scheme.

Now, let’s address my bold decision to read this series out of order. Let me save you the suspense: If you don’t want spoilers for An Ember in the Ashes , do yourself a favour and read that series first. I only read the first book before diving into Heir, and while I did spoil myself a bit, it was fine. That said, knowing a little about AEITA characters like Laia, Elias, and Helene added an extra layer of enrichment and enjoyment.
Bottom line: I highly recommend reading the entire AEITA quartet first. I’m not here to tell you how to live your life though, so if you wanna read this as a standalone, you definitely can.

I know I’ve seemingly given out plenty of 4 and 5 stars this year willy-nilly. Maybe I’m easily pleased, maybe I rate based on mood and enjoyment, maybe I have impeccable taste in bookish friends who filter out the duds (you know who you are), maybe I'm super picky with my reading choices, maybe I'm hyper-aware of what floats my boat, maybe I don't take star ratings seriously, maybe I'm a Starman waiting in the sky, or maybe it’s a mix of all that. Either way, yes, I’m giving this one another 5 stars (6 in my head) and I'm not sorry.

If you love high fantasy with incredible characters, you may need Sabaa Tahir in your life. Consider this my highest recommendation.

Special shoutout to my darling friend Heather, whose shared enthusiasm made this reading experience even more memorable. She wrote a fantastic review over here.

My heartfelt thanks to Hachette Australia & New Zealand | Atom for the arc in exchange for an honest review!

🔹🔹🔹

So I just finished An Ember in the Ashes book one, and am diving into this next. Am I reading out of order? Yep. Fingers crossed!