Review: The Final Strife (The Ending Fire #1)
The Final Strife (The Ending Fire #1)
By Saara El-Arifi
Published By: Harper Voyager
Publication Date: June 23, 2022
Date Read: November 11, 2023
Genre: Adult – Fantasy
Source: Bought
Format: Hardback
Pages: 467
From Goodreads:
Red is the blood of the elite, of magic, of control.
Blue is the blood of the poor, of workers, of the resistance.
Clear is the blood of the slaves, of the crushed, of the invisible.Sylah dreams of days growing up in the resistance, being told she would spark a revolution that would free the empire from the red-blooded ruling classes’ tyranny. That spark was extinguished the day she watched her family murdered before her eyes.
Anoor has been told she’s nothing, no one, a disappointment, by the only person who matters: her mother, the most powerful ruler in the empire. But when Sylah and Anoor meet, a fire burns between them that could consume the kingdom—and their hearts.
Hassa moves through the world unseen by upper classes, so she knows what it means to be invisible. But invisibility has its uses: It can hide the most dangerous of secrets, secrets that can reignite a revolution. And when she joins forces with Sylah and Anoor, together these grains of sand will become a storm.
As the empire begins a set of trials of combat and skill designed to find its new leaders, the stage is set for blood to flow, power to shift, and cities to burn.
“Remember my friends, love gives you strength, but retribution gives you purpose.”
The Final Strife is without a doubt one of the best fantasy books I have read in a long time. I have been in such a book slump for months. While I have still been reading, anything I picked up has taken me forever to get through and I have struggled to find the motivation to read anything… until I picked up this book. While The Final Strife does take some time to build up this brutal world, I was so fascinated and intrigued by this world and the concept of the different ‘bloods’ I was immediately obsessed with this book. It just got better and better as it went on and I honestly cannot recommend this enough.
The Final Strife is a bit of a heavy read at times. It tackles some real important issues such as drug addiction, discrimination and family violence. While these are some heavy topics, it is done in a fantastic way that makes you feel so much for the characters, and you don’t end up feeling depressed by it. This book is fast paced and action packed and I just couldn’t get enough. While I was at work I was constantly thinking about this book and I couldn’t wait to get home to pick it up to find out if the characters would recover from their addictions or violences and I just loved every second of this book.
This is one of the best fantasy books I have picked up this year. This is not a romantasy! If you’re looking for that, you’re not going to find it here. There is a little but of a sapphic romance which was so sweet and adorable but it is definitely a sub plot and not a main focus! Although the stories are very different, I kind of got Daevabad vibes from this book. Don’t get me wrong plot wise they are nothing alike but I would just categorise them together as really strong, female dominated, plot focused fantasy books… i.e. my favourite kind!
If you’re looking for a new fantasy book to lose yourself in, become obsessed and for it to shake you to your core… look no further. This is it! There were so many twists and turns that I did not see coming. I genuinely was left mouth agape at the end of this book going…. WHAT?!?!?! I will definitely be starting book 2 as soon as I can. I loved everything about this book. It was utterly fantastic!
“Each step you take today, is one you’ll be thankful for tomorrow.”
K-Books
I’m Kayleigh, a teacher and blogger who is obsessed with all things bookish. I love reading YA books of all genres and I am happiest when sharing my love and passion for books.