The City Beyond The Stars - Zohra Nabi

Yara longs to return to the Kingodm of Zehaira and free her mother from the clutches of the alchemist.  But when her mother sends Yara a cryptic message, it sets her on a different path.  Yara must find a secret magic, one so powerful that it could defeat the alchemists once and for all.  But power is dangerous in the wrong hands, and the wicked alchemist Omair Firaaz will stop at nothing to get hold of it...

I first met Zohra last year at a Simon and Schuster event where she talked about her debut novel, The Kingdom Over The Sea, and I was immediately intrigued and desperate to read it (you can read my review here).  The book has been a huge hit in school and is rarely on my shelf, and both myself and my class have been waiting (im)patiently for the sequel and conclusion to this duology.  When I returned to school after the Easter holidays one of my class was reading it and was desperate to be able to talk to me about it, so I dived straight in.

Zohra's writing is, once again, rich and alive with details that make reading the book a feast for the senses that transports you on the journey with Yara in the most vivid way.  The magic that weaves its way between the pages, both in terms of the writing and that used by the characters, is enchanting and we are introduced to a new kind of magic with the potential to do immense good or immense harm, depending on whose hands it is in, and this leads to some very thought-provoking questions about history - it certainly made me think.

There is such a strength within Yara, which is what drives her through this journey - that and the love she has for those she now knows as her family, which shines brighter than ever.  She has some tough choices to make but her loyalty and her desire to do what's right is always at the forefront of her mind. 

The City Beyond The Stars is a wonderful conclusion to Yara's story and one that will take your breath away. It's a compelling read with twists that will leave you shocked and certainly left me with a tear in my eye (ok, I sobbed!).  I know that there will be much discussion when I get to school with the child who is also reading this, and that my copy will undoubtedly not make it to my shelf before it is whisked away.  This has been a truly special duology, and one that I won't forget in a hurry.  If this is how Zohra writes her first two novels, then I can't wait to see what's next.