![]() (Hassa is playing a 4D chess compared to these two, but I won’t spoil her style of revolution). They also embody the complexities behind revolutionary politics: Anoor believes the empire can change from within if she is strong enough and respectful enough Sylah wants to watch it all burn and build something new from the ashes. Anoor may be naïve where Sylah is street smart Hassa is simply leagues above them in awareness, even if she lacks a particular physical strength. Hassa, Anoor, and Sylah are all intelligent, independently-thinking women, but El-Arifi makes it clear where they have been influenced and how the cruel world has shaped them into tools of service. This makes for interesting and complex conversations between the three of them as they navigate a hierarchy that they may be opposed to, but still participate in. Despite her hatred for Embers, Sylah herself is one, while Anoor occupies a much more confusing position. ![]() Hassa, our clear-blooded third protagonist, communicates mostly in sign language, as all Ghosts are mutilated by Embers to prevent any verbal communication between them. Clear is the blood of the slaves, of the crushed, of the invisible.” Blue-blooded (Dusters) and clear-blooded (Ghostings) people are forbidden from positions of power, whereas red-blooded people (Embers) frequently train in the blood magic that allows them so much power. Blue is the blood of the poor, of workers, of the resistance. Focusing on three characters-Hassa, a maimed spy and servant Anoor, daughter of the powerful Warden of Strength and Sylah, our revolutionary turned trainer for the enemy-the novel is also a commentary on slavery and hierarchy as explained through a blood-color caste system.Īs El-Arifi explains: “Red is the blood of the elite, of magic, of control. Teeming with secrets, privilege, revolution, and colonialism, Saara El-Arifi’s epic fantasy offers peril, sapphic romance, and complex characters navigating overwhelmingly unfair odds. The Final Strife is a sweeping African and Arabian novel featuring three powerful, capable women intent on changing (or in Sylah’s case, destroying) an empire that is built upon a cruel caste system. After encountering Anoor, the daughter of the Warden of Strength (and the most powerful ruler of the empire), Sylah begins questioning her methods, and even her heart. When the Aktibar-a series of trials of combat and skill designed to find new leaders for the empire-begins, Sylah realizes this is an opportunity to finish what the Sandstorm began a long time ago.īut destroying an empire has never been straightforward. Despite her tough demeanor and hard-earned combat skills, Sylah still dreams of a revolution that was brutally snuffed out years ago. But after witnessing the death of the revolutionaries that raised and trained her, she resorts to a sensory-dampening drug and occasional ring fights to sustain herself. Stolen as a child from the ruling caste by a group known as the Sandstorm, her entire upbringing, learning, and body have been formed to bring down the empire from the inside. These are the commanding-if not deeply traumatizing-words that drive our main protagonist, Sylah. “Love may give you strength, but retribution gives you purpose.”
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