Before We Burn by Ophelia Reign (Born From Ashes #1)

SYNOPSIS

Vampire Marzana is trying to make up for her past as an assassin by ushering newly turned vampires into the world as a teacher at the Bloodlust Academy.

When the academy is raided, she crosses paths with human, Everett Hill, a soldier trained to hate and take out vampires and witches.

Both are forced to self-reflect and rethink what they’ve known.

What could happen?

RECAP AND REVIEW

Thank you to the author for an arc!

Happy Release Day!

This is the first book in a dystopian, paranormal, sci-fi, story and I DEVOURED it. Like seriously, this might be the fastest I’ve read a book this year as someone who tends to be a slow reader™️.

This book was one of my anticipated reads because what do you mean vampires in a dystopian world?? I was sold on that alone and this book DID NOT disappoint. I just finished last night (9/8/26) and already wish I could read it again for the first time.

There are a few vital characters in the story, and I enjoyed all of them. They all felt like distinct characters and each of them had their own backstories, traumas, and motivations that made them all feel like real and layered beings. No one in this story is perfect. Almost everyone involved in this story has done horrible and questionable things, and some of their mindsets were flawed, but I loved reading about all of them for different reasons.

This is probably my favorite use of the found family trope I’ve read this year because of how seamlessly they fit together even in moments of apprehension.

At the center of the story we have Marz, the former vampire assassin who can’t remember her human life, regrets her life as an assassin, and has a disdain for humans. Her longtime friend, considered an elder in their world, is Constantine, who carries hard memories from her own past. Opposite Marz is Everett, a human soldier who hates vampires and is used to following orders, though his blind loyalty becomes shaky. His closest friend, practically family, is Benny, who works beside him in the military. And lastly, there’s Bunny, who is so unsettling I have to appreciate her from a distance even though, for me, she stole the show in a lot of the scenes she was in.

Normally, I’m not a fan of multiple POVs, but I think in this case it added a lot of depth to the story and the characters.

Aside from the romance aspects (which is there but not the main focus), there is nothing in this book that I saw coming. Reading this book I really wanted to know how they’d get through each situation they were in. I think the first few chapters are good backstory to understand the world and the characters before some of their worlds collide by chance. The world feels dark and gloomy, and in some ways, scarily mirrors aspects of our own. Once their worlds collide, the pacing of the story picks up.

Before We Burn has everything I love: Black characters, mysteries that need to be solved, morally grey characters, personal reflection and some character growth, vampires, humor and banter, chemistry and spice, action scenes, badass FMCs, feminine rage, and more.

There’s also thoughtful commentary on war, power, greed, politics, the military complex, and propaganda. There are gems in here about regret, hope, death, sacrifice, and memories.

Read this for:

🩸 Dystopian Sci-fi

🩸 Found Family

🩸 Unlikely Allies

🩸 Repressed Memories

🩸 Black Witches and Vampires

🩸 Gems About Life & Timely Commentary

SYNOPSIS

Overall, if you can’t tell, I thoroughly enjoyed this read and am giving it a 5 out of 5 stars. This book was really made for me.

I don’t support ever characters’ wrongs or thought processes, especially in the beginning, but it’s interesting to read from point of views that differ from my own. There was a lot of growth in this story and though it shouldn’t have taken certain circumstances for certain characters, it is a start. The story did ultimately remind me to hold onto hope in the face of despair.

There’s a lot of quotes that stood out to me (you can see a few of them on instagram). I have to check out Until Dawn by this author to tie me over until the next book in the series comes out.