An Ember in the Ashes, Hardcover

Set in a terrifyingly brutal Rome-like world, "An Ember in the Ashes "is an epic fantasy debut about an orphan fighting for her family and a soldier fighting for his freedom. It's a story that's literally burning to be told.
LAIA is a Scholar living under the iron-fisted rule of the Martial Empire. When her brother is arrested for treason, Laia goes undercover as a slave at the empire's greatest military academy in exchange for assistance from rebel Scholars who claim that they will help to save her brother from execution.
ELIAS is the academy's finest soldier-- and secretly, its most unwilling. Elias is considering deserting the military, but before he can, he's ordered to participate in a ruthless contest to choose the next Martial emperor.
When Laia and Elias's paths cross at the academy, they find that their destinies are more intertwined than either could have imagined and that their choices will change the future of the empire itself.
"Vow your blood and body to the empire.
Keep your heart for yourself."

Sabaa Tahir was born in London but grew up in California's Mojave Desert at her family's 18-room motel. After graduating from UCLA, Sabaa became an editor on the foreign desk at "The Post." Three summers later, she came up with the concept for her debut novel, "An Ember in the Ashes." Sabaa currently lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her family.
For more information, please visit Sabaa at SabaaTahir.com or on Twitter @SabaaTahir.