'You never want to be the person who comes into the sandbox and accidentally tips it over!' remarked Andelfinger. Andelfinger called the story Tahir told in An Ember in the Ashes 'truly inspiring,' and said it was an honor and a dream to collaborate with Tahir and Liao, but also 'a bit nerve wracking' to work on a prequel to a bestselling book series. Nicole Andelfinger has written for several comic book series from BOOM! Studios, including Jim Henson's Dark Cyrstal: Age of Resistance, Adventure Time, Regular Show, Rugrats and Steven Universe, and she's also worked on the Munchkin series from Simon & Schuster. She began writing while working nights as a newspaper editor. She grew up in the Mojave Desert, at her family's 18-room motel, and occupied her time by reading fantasy novels, stealing her brother's comics and playing guitar.

While A Thief Among the Trees is Tahir's first foray into writing comics, she's been a reader of comics since childhood. Working on it forced me to be a better storyteller and I loved that.' 'Some stories are best told through prose, but this kind of story, which to me was both heavy on action and emotion, needed very strong art and a strong script. 'It forces your brain to work in an entirely different way,' said Tahir, who had not previously written a story for a graphic novel. But working with writer Nicole Andelfinger on the script and artist Sonia Liao on the art 'was a joy.' Writing An Ember in the Ashes was generally 'a very solo process,' she explained, and at most she collaborated with a single editor. The most surprising part of the process, she found, was how much fun it was to work as a team. When it came to writing A Thief Among the Trees, Tahir said she wanted to explore the themes of friendship, sacrifice and choices. As they try to complete their mission, Tavi, Helene and Elias will uncover some shocking truths about the Martial Empire and make difficult choices in order to survive. They quickly find themselves facing plenty of surprising foes, including other Martial Empire recruits. The trio is sent on a dangerous mission to Isle South to steal a heavily-guarded poison. The story follows Elias, Helene and Tavi, Fivers training at the Blackcliff Academy to become elite military recruits for the Martial Empire. In A Thief Among the Trees, the first volume in a new graphic novel prequel trilogy, readers return to the world of Sabaa Tahir's bestselling YA series An Ember in the Ashes. A Thief Among the Trees by Sabaa Tahir and Nicole Andelfinger, drawn by Sonia Liao (On Sale Now)

The Sacrifice of Darkness by Roxane Gay