Summer Titles That Will Make You Laugh, Cry Or Just Feel Something". HuffPost UK. 2022-08-01 . Retrieved 2022-12-12. The Final Strife by Saara El-Arifi was one of my most anticipated reads of 2022, and unfortunately one of my biggest disappointments.

Sylah believes only what Sandstorm told her – that all Embers were bad. Anoor had a very sheltered upbringing – but a very keen curiosity and sense of fairness, and through Sylah discovers much about the privilege and destitution of the outside world. Both learn so much from each other, and become better people because of it. They also learn a truth about the empire, that they never in their wildest dreams would have considered possible. Hassan, as the lowest of the low, and as an unseen and ignored servant to Embers, sees all layers. El-Arifi does a lot of interesting things here. I want to applaud them by using blood magic in a way that felt inventive. I'm sure that out there in the universe exists another book where people use their blood to make runes that do magic, but what I was more impressed with here was story with blood magic present that didn't come off as self harm-y every time the characters went use their magic for something. It was also nice to see queer normative society. Like I said, the story that we get at the end is the story that I was interested in, but the bulk of the book had very little to do with that storyline. There are some books that when you read them, you just know. You know that these characters and their stories are going to live in your head for years. It’s set in a perilous empire, dangerous due to both the tidewind, a destructive blend of blue sand and salt air that sweeps through the land wreaking havoc every night, and the people in power. It mainly follows three young women—one from each social class based on blood color—striving to impact their world in their own way: by helping another prepare for a tournament to choose a guild’s leader, competing to become a Warden of one of the four guilds, or using the fact that she’s overlooked and underestimated to hide clandestine activities. All can join but not just anyone can win; it requires great skill and ingenuity to become the future wardens of Strength, Knowledge, Truth and Duty.

See a Problem?

The characters of the novel are equally fascinating. With loveable ones and hateful ones in equal measure. There is honestly nothing more I could have asked for with regards to characterisation. Even as I write, I am still blown away by the skill evident in The Final Strife. Saara El-Arifi is definitely one to watch out for. Like the fantasy aspects, the social aspects of the world were well done. Although it certainly has fun parts between the tournament and a developing friendship (or maybe romance), The Final Strife is largely a story about injustice. This setting does not have obstacles for women or LGBTQ+ people—as shown through the lives of the three main characters, a trans woman and two women who are attracted to each other—but instead, has divisions based on blood color. The different classes do not always fit neatly into boxes, even in addition to two individual characters’ situations being reversed: although clear-blooded servants and blue-blooded workers are definitely treated worse than those with red blood, many of the latter are just doing their best to make a living. There are plenty of red-blooded people who need to take jobs doing necessary tasks like cooking and cleaning for those people who actually are living in luxurious homes dining in splendor. Thank you, thank you, thank you Harper Collins U.K. and NetGalley for the arc of The Final Strife by Sara El Arifi in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

There’s also so much dialogue and inner monologue that I felt was unnecessary. Also, one supposed main character barely shows up too so not sure why this was mentioned in the synopsis. The audiobook was almost 20 hours if that tells you anything. I won’t be continuing this series and it wasn’t bad - just not for me. I seem to be an outlier here so don’t listen to me if you want to read this one but honestly, I was too bored. The Aktibar — a set of trials held every ten years to find the next Ember rulers of the Empire — is about to begin.

Review

The only reason it may not be the first title that jumps to your lips when someone asks for a recommendation is that you don’t want to share - Share these characters that you care for SO deeply - Share this world where they struggle and dance, laugh and cry, love and bleed… Saara El-Arifi does a fantastic job of world-building. The Final Strife is set in a complex, detailed world that the author brings to life beautifully. My ARC did not have the maps included which I believe will be a valuable resource for readers to get a better feel for the layout of the empire. I already can’t wait to get my hands on a hard copy to study the maps for myself. It takes the norms of the ‘chosen one’ trope or the ‘brooding assassin with a past’ throws them straight out the window. To be honest Sylah would definitely throw you out the window… and swear at you afterwards. El-Arifi writes beautifully. I’m usually a big-time highlighter, but I went a little heavier than usual with The Final Strife. I’d like to share a few of my favorite quotations. Of course, be aware these are from an advanced, unfinished copy. Even with three strong protagonists, I generally found the supporting characters memorable, as they are given clear personalities and well-thought-out roles. I just wished we had more of Jond's character as there is so much I wanted to know about his life - but maybe this will be revealed in the next book.

Because what if that don’t understand, what if they don’t understand and in doing that show that they don’t understand the piece of you that also lives there.I was absolutely blown away by this debut fantasy novel. Saara El-Arifi is a name to watch out for, and The Final Strife is undoubtedly a novel everyone should read. The politics, the intrigue, the twist and turn of the plot, the world building all leave you so immersed, so breathless that all you can do is want more

In conclusion this was a bad book with a decent premise. Similar to The Gilded Ones, there were a number of interesting ideas present that in the hands of a more skilled author might have been cool to read. But as per the usual new releases, these cool concepts were plunked down in front of us unceremoniously with the author going: "See look at how cool this is!" With no further work done. Epic in scope, its worldbuilding as intricate as filigree. The Final Strife sings of rebellion, love, and the courage it takes to stand up to tyranny, following three women whose journeys will keep you gripped to the last' —Samantha Shannon, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Priory of the Orange TreeWhat can I say, these are characters who love, bleed, love and try, live and dance and just won’t leave me. They feel so strongly and so deeply, they fight for their and the future of those they care for. Anoor is a rarity, having reached young adulthood after being left in another child’s place on the Night of the Stolen. Although most parents killed the replacement children, the Warden of Strength at the time did not. Too many people would question her ability to protect the empire if they knew she had failed to protect her own daughter, so she hid the fact that her child was taken. She raised Anoor as her own, sending her to an elite school and arranging for her to mix a dash of her blue blood into a servant’s red to do blood magic. However, the Warden despised Anoor and made it clear she resented her for not being her trueborn daughter. Wishing to prove herself after a lifetime of abuse and belittlement, Anoor enters the tournament that will decide the next Disciple of Strength, who will prepare to succeed her mother when her term ends in ten years. But when she agrees to teach Sylah blood magic in exchange for being trained for the various strength trials, Anoor comes to realize just how sheltered she’s been from the horrors the other classes endure—and determines to win so she can better their lives, blue- and clear-blooded alike. In a battle, the last battle, the only battle. And we name it now, so it sears into our flesh, the moment to come, the rebellion that will destroy the Embers and the empire they stand upon. The Dusters’ last stand. And it starts with you, my Stolen children, you are our last hope, you are The Final Strife.”