***** Spoilers ahead! *****
Reading this after the A Court of Thorns and Roses (ACOTAR) series caused a fair amount of reader shock and I found myself struggling to get through the first half of the first book… The writing is wonderful (no surprise there) but it has a significantly different feel than the ACOTAR series and Celaena isn’t much like Feyre so I had to be patient and allow myself to adjust.
I will continue to update this page as I progress through the series.
The Assassin’s Blade
This specific book is a prequel to the rest of the series and I did enjoy how it lets you get to know Celaena Sardothien on a more personal level and learn about how her character was formed before diving into the main storyline.
The five short stories that comprise this book build on each other and establish a thorough understanding of Celaena’s way of life across the Kingdom of Adarlan – from navigating her hometown of Rifthold to training with the Silent Assassins in the desolate Red Desert.
The dive into the human side of a Sarah J. Maas’ world is quite a refreshing approach, but it does tend to feel slower at times and this is the first of her books where I felt like there were filler chapters. I’m curious to see how she continues building this world with seven more books!
Although I’m still on the fence when it comes to Celaena, her love of music and dancing is definitely winning me over!
Throne of Glass
First, I definitely recommend starting this series with The Assassin’s Blade! So much of Calaena’s character development in this book stems from her triumphs and failures in Assassin’s Blade and they don’t spend much time in this book going over the details of her experiences mentioned. For example, Sam and her journey to the Red Desert while reading Throne of Glass were mentioned several times but I would have been absolutely lost having started this series with this book. It also helped to put a perspective on things and understand what exactly she was going through during her imprisonment and the champion tournament.
Second, I am extremely curious how she will develop all these side characters! There is a wide variety of characters and although we got a glimpse into the personalities of some, the encounter felt brief and left me wanting more. The one character I didn’t care for was Prince Dorian. He isn’t the type of character I particularly enjoy and his infatuation with Celaena felt exactly as she described it – she was different and exciting and he was only looking for a distraction from his Crown Princely duties. Plus, he was almost more of a distraction for Calaena during the tournament than actually a positive influence on her as a person. Overall, that romance felt very shallow so I found myself skimming through their interactions… Not the kind of lovers’ plot I was hoping for.
Chaol on the other hand – that’s a whole other story! I’m always drawn to the quiet brooding type, so the flamboyant prince didn’t stand a chance in my eyes. And who doesn’t like a warrior with a conscience as well as a soft spot for those he cares about? However, are we going to talk about the ring Choal gave her that she didn’t notice on any other women in the court’s hand? And how and why do the King and Duke have magic rings of their own? I’m starting to get a feeling from Choal that there is more than meets the eye…
I love plots that have an underlying mystery laced throughout with a big ‘Ah-Ha’ moment at the end but I was honestly disappointed in the climax of this book. It left me feeling a bit like ‘Was that it’? I knew right away that Cain was going to be the bad guy, but I had hoped her encounter with the Valg would have lasted longer than a quick run down a hallway or we would have gotten more detail about how Cain learned to summon the Valg in the first place. It did hint that the King was behind it, but I felt as though I could put the book down at any given moment during that final battle which was a big disappointment.
Looking ahead – I’m rooting for Choal in the upcoming books but if I’ve learned anything from ACOTAR it’s that SJM does like to flip the script when it comes to the love interest so I can’t wait to see who Celaena gives her heart to in the end!
Crown of Midnight
(February 3rd) I’m struggling… I’ve been trying to make it through this book since early December and I am still in the first half!
I had hoped things would move along faster now that we know Celaena has a connection to magic, but it feels like we’ve taken a step back so she can go back to being an assassin. Plus, I thought magic was ‘gone’ or at least snuffed out publicly? So why are there now multiple people in this castle with magic abilities all coming to light at the same time? Seems a little disappointing that the ‘ah-ha’ moment at the end of Throne of Glass is getting overshadowed by Darian and Nehemia while their magic is so easily exposed. How does the king not notice this??
(March 7th) Well, that explains a lot… I finally finished this book and can confidently say that SJM is a fan of stuffing all the plot twists into the last few chapters. I still stand by my original review that this book was slow and a struggle to get through, but I am glad we finally have answers to why magic is popping up everywhere.
It was heartbreaking to find out what happened to Nehemia, but I honestly felt more remorse for the close call Fleetfoot encountered than when Celaena found her on the bed. I’m not a huge fan of characters who sacrifice themselves intending to cause more trauma to ‘free them’ instead of just talking about their plan together so my love for Nehemia faltered a bit.
Another disappointment with SJM’s stories is that I wish she would stop having ‘the answers’ given to the main characters as a poem/riddle. I guessed Amarantha’s riddle within seconds and did the same with this riddle from Elena’s tomb. I immediately knew that the first Wyrdkey was in Elena’s crown on her sarcophagi so I had to wait, and wait, and wait until Celaena finally figured it out. Made me appreciate Mort a lot more – she isn’t as clever as everyone thinks.
Finally, I’m still a fan of Choal. I get why Celaena got mad, but to write him off completely for keeping some information from her when she kept her entire life secret from him was quite out of balance and an overreaction on her part.
Heir of Fire
Wow…. this has been a struggle. This book took me over 6 months to finish due to my lack of interest in Celaena’s journey…
The plot is very much like the last book and follows the same “Celaena” pattern:
- Gets outcast due to her own actions or inability to make a choice
- Blaming everyone around her for the misfortunes that fall on her when everyone has been asking her to change/act from the start
- Some hot guy beats her up in the name of ‘training’
- She has chemistry and sexual tension with the guy beating her up
- Something traumatic happens and she figures out she’s strong
- She leaves with some new plot and agenda
Plus, I still don’t see what Rowan offers her that’s any different than what Choal or Dorian did. He’s aloof, a good fighter, and has helped her unlock yet another piece about herself. These men in this story really fall short compared to those in ACOTAR – except for Sam!!! I’m still not over his death. He has been the only man in Celaena’s life that didn’t treat poorly before devoting himself to her and I’ll never forgive SJM for what she did to him.
The only saving grace is Manon! Her character was my only lifeline throughout this book and I kept cringing at the number of chapters I had to read before getting back to her and Abraxos.
Here’s hoping Manon is mentioned more often in the upcoming books otherwise this is going to take me a while to finish.
Queen of Shadows
** currently reading **
Empire of Storms
TBR
Tower of Dawn
TBR
Kingdom of Ash
TBR
The Anna Today 