Dawn of the Firebird, Sarah Mughal Rana
Dawn of the Firebird, Sarah Mughal Rana
List: $39.99 | Sale: $28.00
Club: $19.99

Dawn of the Firebird

Author: Sarah Mughal Rana

Narrator: Sarah Slimani

Unabridged: 19 hr 45 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 12/02/2025


Synopsis

For fans of The Poppy War, She Who Became the Sun and The Will of the Many, a breathtaking fantasy novel about the daughter of an overthrown emperor from an exciting new voice

Khamilla Zahr-zad’s life has been built on a foundation of violence and vengeance. Every home she’s known has been destroyed by war. As the daughter of an emperor’s clan, she spent her childhood training to maintain his throne. But when her clansmen are assassinated by another rival empire, plans change. With her heavenly magic of nur, Khamilla is a weapon even enemies would wield—especially those in the magical, scholarly city of Za’skar. Hiding her identity, Khamilla joins the enemy’s army school full of jinn, magic and martial arts, risking it all to topple her adversaries, avenge her clan and reclaim their throne.

To survive, she studies under cutthroat mystic monks and battles in a series of contests to outmaneuver her fellow soldiers. She must win at all costs, even if it means embracing the darkness lurking inside her. But the more she excels, the more she is faced with history that contradicts her father’s teachings. With a war brewing among the kingdoms and a new twisted magic overtaking the land, Khamilla is torn between two impossible choices: vengeance or salvation.

About Sarah Mughal Rana

SARAH MUGHAL RANA is a Muslim author and student who completed her bachelors with honours at the University of Toronto and is now at Oxford University, pursuing her career at the intersection of human rights and policy. She is a BookTok personality and the co-host of ON THE WRITE TRACK PODCAST where she enjoys spilling tea with her favourite authors about the book world. Her debut YA novel, HOPE ABLAZE, published in February 2024. Outside of school, she falls down history rabbit holes and trains in traditional martial arts.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Jaime on November 23, 2025

The writing is BEAUTIFUL in this book! So poetic & descriptive (and the FOOD descriptions??? 🤤) This story follows such a unique FMC who is struggling to find a sense of belonging, while dealing with trauma from a young age. The way she manipulates her own memory throughout the book is so interesting......more

Goodreads review by Dilara on July 13, 2025

READING IS SUBJECTIVE! Had to start by saying that this book just wasn’t for me. This is definitely a high fantasy with very intense world building. I definitely enjoy high fantasies but this for me was too much world building I felt like I couldn’t get into the plot of it. Every time I felt like I w......more

Goodreads review by Kianna on August 09, 2025

I want to preface this by saying that I don't think this was a bad book, it just wasn't for me. The plot had a lot of potential and at times I was interested in the story, but overall I just didn't end up connecting with it. A young girl lives in a nomadic clan raised by her mother and on the path t......more

Goodreads review by Hayley on August 23, 2025

I want to start by saying how grateful I am to have received an advanced reader copy of this book through netgalley. Unfortunately, I was not able to finish it. While I always strive to give each book a fair chance, I ultimately found that this one just wasn’t for me. The writing style felt inconsist......more

Goodreads review by Asal-Honey Reads on January 16, 2026

Finished the book, review to come, for now!!! 5 stars (4.8 if you wanna get specific I had one qualm that I'll talk about). Must gather all my notes from trusted old notes app. I see there are still people rating the book 1 star, no reviews, just accounts made in January claiming their account got '......more