Heir: A Guest Post by Sabaa Tahir

If you enjoyed the Ember in the Ashes series, then jump 20 years into the future and settle into Heir. The world is back to its fraught and fractured ways and it’s up to three young heroes to untangle their own lives in the heart of the Empire. Read on for an exclusive essay from Our Monthly Pick author Sabaa Tahir on writing Heir.

 

In the start of a ruthless and romantic fantasy saga, #1 New York Times bestselling author Sabaa Tahir introduces a new generation of characters set in the same world as the unforgettable An Ember in the Ashes series.

 

The idea for HEIR came to me in 2020, as I was wrapping up the writing of A SKY BEYOND THE STORM, the last book in the EMBER IN THE ASHES series. In Sky, a young woman named Helene becomes Empress and her baby nephew, Zacharius, is her heir. I kept thinking about this heir and wondering what his life was going to be like. I was curious enough to want to write about him. Very quickly, I realized there was a potentially gripping story there. However, I wanted to write it in a way that didn’t require readers to know anything about the EMBER series.

Now, of course, I’m about to release EMPIRE, which is the second and last book in this duology. EMPIRE was more difficult to write, even though I already knew what was going to happen. The “how” of it was tricky, especially since some of the characters have more cerebral battles, and I’m also introducing one entirely new character and one character we only saw a little of in HEIR. Writing this book felt like I was trying to put together a puzzle with my teeth. But the challenge it taught me a lot about character building and I always appreciate when I have areas I can still grow—it makes my work much more interesting. 

Finishing EMPIRE made me think about what I am trying to say with this series. On a character level, I have really loved exploring the idea of dedicated, lasting love. Not love that is necessarily flashy or heated, but the slow and steady burn of love through difficult times, love that is patient, love that is forgiving. This type of love is not just reflected in the romantic relationships of the book, but in the friendships and familiar relationships.  

From a more global and worldbuilding lens, I wanted to look at the hegemony instituted by a nation with superior weaponry. The Kegari attack and destroy the Empire extremely quickly, with no regard to the rules of war or combat, or really any understanding of them. Anyone living in our current world at this moment with even the slightest understanding of world events can cite multiple situations in which this type of warfare is still occurring.

I wanted to explore the inhumanity of such a thing, both from the perspective of those in charge and of those just following orders. I also wanted to explore the regret that comes when you’ve made these horrible choices—and now must live with the consequences. In that regard, this duology is less about the spectacle of war, and more about the impact of overwhelming force and the destabilization and generations-long consequences it leaves in its wake.