“It is not such a hard thing, is it – to die for your friends.”
Blurb (Goodreads)-The long path to the throne has only just begun for Aelin Galathynius. Loyalties have been broken and bought, friends have been lost and gained, and those who possess magic find themselves at odds with those who don’t.
As the kingdoms of Erilea fracture around her, enemies must become allies if Aelin is to keep those she loves from falling to the dark forces poised to claim her world. With war looming on all horizons, the only chance for salvation lies in a desperate quest that may mark the end of everything Aelin holds dear.
Aelin’s journey from assassin to queen has entranced millions across the globe, and this fifth installment will leave fans breathless. Will Aelin succeed in keeping her world from splintering, or will it all come crashing down? Continue reading →
“Tonight. Let’s find out if you, Feyre darling, are all talk- or if you’ll allows a Lord of Night to take you out on the town.”
Blurb (Goodreads)-Feyre survived Amarantha’s clutches to return to the Spring Court—but at a steep cost. Though she now has the powers of the High Fae, her heart remains human, and it can’t forget the terrible deeds she performed to save Tamlin’s people.
Nor has Feyre forgotten her bargain with Rhysand, High Lord of the feared Night Court. As Feyre navigates its dark web of politics, passion, and dazzling power, a greater evil looms—and she might be key to stopping it. But only if she can harness her harrowing gifts, heal her fractured soul, and decide how she wishes to shape her future—and the future of a world cleaved in two.
**This review will be spoil free AT FIRST. I shall warn you before spoilers are coming**Continue reading →
She was fire, and light, and ash, and embers. She was Aelin Fireheart, and she bowed for no one and nothing, save the crown that was hers by blood and survival and triumph.
YES. THIS BOOK WAS AMAZING.
So, hello and welcome to Book Talk. If you haven’t read Queen of Shadows yet I’d recommend coming back once you’ve finished because this is just going to be full of spoilers and trust me, you don’t want to be spoiled for this book. If you haven’t even read this series, definitely read all four, then come back because you will be very confused if you don’t.
They’re so good, especially if you love fantasy and kickass characters.
**SPOILERS START HERE**
Guys, I can’t handle SJM right now. I was blown away by this book! Queen of Shadows is such a good installment in the series, I might like HoF a little more, but I still loved this! Let’s start out by talking about all of the amazing characters. Of course, we’ve got our original gang but Maas introduced new characters that I’m totally in love with. *cough* Lysandra! *cough*
…And then the past three days, of organizing and healing and Lysandra scaring the living shit out of everyone by shifting into a ghost leopard anytime one of Dorian’s courtiers stepped out of line.
I LOVE HER SO MUCH. I’m also immensely glad I read The Assassin’s Blade before this because it made Lysandra’s development so much more meaningful. I tossed her aside as a vapid shallow girl when she’s really this amazing character and friend. Aelin was in need of a true friend (not a friend *wink* (we’ll get to this)) and I loved reading her and Lysandra’s friendship. She’s so caring for Evangeline too, it warms my heart. I can’t wait to see more of her in the next two books. Plus, she killed Arobynn, so you go girl!
There were many, many debts to be paid before she left Rifthold and took back her throne. Starting now. Fortunate that she was in a killing sort of mood.
My love for Aelin will never die. She truly grew into her position as a Queen, and still did it while being her snarky, proper, kickass, amazing normal self. You would think that someone under the amount of pressure she is would lose themselves, but Aelin didn’t and I’m so excited to see fulfill her rightful heir to the throne with her court. I hope her and Dorian stay on good terms and there will be some sort of rivalry with Terrasen and Adarlan. NOW. Aelin and Rowan, I’m not too sure how I feel about this. I love Aelin and I love Rowan, but together? We’ll see. They do work quite well together and I do think they’re the best match for each other but they’re both very stubborn characters and I wonder how that will play out.
I do adore their banter and it got quite a few chuckles out of me. So, I’m pretty sure I like this, but there’s a little part of that’s sad about Chaol.
“Don’t forget your cloak. You’d feel rather guilty when all those poor mortal women combust at the sight of you.”
“I’d say likewise, but I think you’d enjoy seeing men burst into flames as you strutted by.”
She winked at him, and his chuckle echoed through her bones and blood.
Chaol was being such an insufferable brat in this book, I couldn’t stand him! I miss the old Chaol, the Chaol that I swooned over in Throne of Glass. However, I was glad to see that he seemed to be resurfacing near the end and I’m glad he found happiness with Nesryn. I like her character and she’s a good fit for Chaol! She’ll be an interesting addition for the next few novels.
DORIAN, MY POOR BABY DORIAN. He went through so much pain and suffering, every Dorian chapter had me tearing up a bit. I’m unbelievably glad we got him back and that the King is dead, although the ending brought up some new questions. Is the King good, or is he bad? Will the Valg return?
Sarah J. Maas and her shipping, I never even considered Manon with Dorian (or anyone for that matter) but I think I like where this is going. Especially since Asterin brought up how love feels at then end and Manon flew back in with Abraxos, it’s all very sweet. Manon definitely grew on me even more during this book. SJM has a knack for switching perspectives at the perfect moment where I’d get annoyed that it was another Manon chapter, but then at the end I’d be annoyed we went back to Aelin! She’s such a cool character and the whole storyline with the witches, the breeding of the Yellowlegs, and the fact that Valg and Fae mated to make witches. That’s super cool mythology. PLUS ASTERIN’S STORY BROKE MY HEART.
Abraxos sucked in a great breath, tucked his wings in tight and fell off the side of the post.
He liked to do that- just tumble off as though he’d been stuck dead.
Her wyvern, it seemed, had a wicked sense of humor.
Is it weird if I say Abraxos is actually one of my favorite characters? He’s not even and actual character per say, but he’s got such a funny personality and I love reading how he switches from being a big scary dragon to sniffing wild flowers and being a picky eater.
I will always imagine Abraxos as similar to Toothless
Clearly, this novel was very character driven, but I actually thoroughly enjoyed that aspect! We went through a lot of character changes and it was wonderful for each character to be individually developed and have their own personality. Obviously there was plenty of action and beautifully written fight/action scenes but the thing that sticks out to me in this series is the characters!
Some of favorite scenes were when Manon and Aelin met (been looking forwards to that scene since HoF!), THE SAM MOMENTS, Aelin just being totally awesome, her teasing with Rowan, and when Aelin had her first encounter with Lorcan.
He studied the warehouse door. “I wouldn’t put it past Lorcan to return the favor you dealt him tonight. He forgets and forgives even less easily than you do. Especially when someone threatens to cut off his manhood.”
“At least I said it would be a big mistake,” she said with a fiendish grin. “I was tempted to say ‘little.'”
Rowan laughed, his eye dancing. “Then you definitely would have been dead.”
Can we also talk about how beautiful Sarah J. Maas’s writing style is? It’s so elegant and it flows so naturally. I love reading anything she writes because just soaking up the words is enough for me, but then she also has an amazing cast of characters and wonderfully complex and intriguing plot lines. I had forgotten how much I love this series!
I read this on my Nook and I’ve never had as many annotations, highlights and bookmarks as I did for this book and there’s so much that happened in this novel that if I talked about everything I want to, this would be 3000 words long. So, if you’ve read the book let’s discuss!
Kelsey at Don’t Shush Me has created a wonderful tag that allows us to all share our excitement for the QoS release in hopefully 9 short hours (for me, so long!). You guys might’ve noticed there’s been a lot of Sarah J. Maas on my blog the last few days but she’s queen and there’s going to be more, so why not add a little tag?
You have to give her some credit, I mean she’s turned us all into excited little blobs where we (at least for me) can’t do anything without be HECKA excited for this book to drop.
Favorite book by SJM and why?
This one will have to go to Throne of Glass because I picked this up on my nook on a whim considering how much the rest of the blogging community adores this series, and I LOVE IT. This series makes me so happy (especially since it’s six books) and I love it to death, plus it gave me a favorite new author!
Favorite character in Throne of Glass series and why?
Definitely Celaena. You guys know my love for this girl and I gush about her in every ToG review I write, but I can’t help it! She shows that it’s okay (in fact, it’s awesome) to be a strong independent woman but you can also be someone who loves to be feminine, eat candy and play music. I just truly appreciate that in a character.
Ok, which team are you on (Chaol, Dorian or Rowan)?
Team Sam? Okay, in all actually I’m team Aelin. For the first few books I was hardcore Team Chaol but after reading HoF, I’m not too sure. I think I would be fine with Dorian being endgame but (don’t hurt me!) I don’t want Aelin to become romantic with Rowan. I think he’s a great friend and creates support that she definitely needs, which she can’t find at the Glass Castle. We’ll just have to wait and see.
I’m I’ll let you know once I’m done. I’ll try to keep my Goodreads up to date while I’m reading so you guys can watch me freak out!
How long have you had to wait between reading Heir of Fire, & Queen of Shadows?
Heir of Fire was the first book I finished in 2015, so I read it a whopping 8 months ago. That was so long! tonight I’ll probably go through some of my old review and reread some sections of wikis online so I can refresh my memory of some characters, plotlines, ect.
What are your favorites out of the books that have helped you pass the time in between Sarah J. Maas book releases?
Oooh lots! The Game of Love and Death, Ignite Me, Daughter of Smoke and Bone, the Grisha trilogy and the Tales from Shadowhunter Academy ebooks. It’s been a long time since I’ve read a ToG book and I actually recovered from my mini-book hangover pretty quickly.
When do you think you’ll get a chance to read Queen of Shadows?
IT IS BEING READ TONIGHT. I’m very excited! Most of my favorite series end up being on my nook because I’m too impatient to wait for it to come in the mail or go to the book store. I’ve TMI, The Selection, two of the TID novels, and ToG on there. Hopefully I’m lucky on it might even go on the nook store before midnight, like The One did!
What would you say to recommend Sarah J. Maas books to someone who has never read them?
Quite honestly, I’d show them my reviews of the firsts in SJM series, so ACOTAR and ToG and be like, “Look at how much I loved these! Go read them, they’re amazing and perfect and SJM is a queen.”
Why do you guys think you’ve never seen a recommended reading post on this blog? I can’t ever put together coherent words about my love for a book/series.
The excitement for Queen of Shadows is real now and hopefully I’ll have it in my hands very soon! I hope it lives up to all of our expectations and happy reading!
“My name is Celaena Sardothien,” she whispered, “and I will not be afraid.”
Welcome to Book Talk! I’ve decided to have a little chat about the book rather than a review because my emotions are all over the place with this (mostly it’s me wanting to cry) and you’ll probably see one of these for Queen of Shadows too. Thanks Sarah J. Maas.
Let me just start out by saying, TEAM SAM! Sorry Chaol, Dorian, Rowan and Aedion (Celaena is popular!), but Sam has taken over my heart and there’s that stubborn part of me where I don’t want to admit he’s actually dead. My guess is he’s going to come back in Queen of Shadows and that body Celaena saw was a trick by Arobynn and Farran. There’s going to be a magical reunion where Celaena is going to threaten to kill him for leaving her then kiss him. Do you hear me Sarah?
“You’re a damned idiot,” she breathed. “You’re a moron and an ass and a damned idiot.” He looked like she had hit him. But she went on, and grasped both sides of his face, “Because I’d pick you.”
And then she kissed him.
It’s been so long since I’ve read a ToG book and getting back into the world was so amazing. Reading these novellas has me even more pumped for the release of Queen of Shadows. I also forgotten how Celaena is my favorite character ever. I feel like I can relate to her on such a level and then she’s also everything I wish I could do. Celaena and I share such a love for music and that makes her seem more tangible to me. Maas perfectly captured the way music can mean to some people and I truly appreciate when there’s a mutual agreement on something like this.
With each beat of the drum, each trill of the flute and blare of the horn, she felt all of it along her skin, along her bones. The music broke her apart and put her back together, only to rend her asunder again and again.
Then there’s the part of me that wishes I could be as kickass as Celaena, but I don’t particularly want to spend my entire life under the rule of someone like Arobynn or spend a month training in a desert, so I’ll leave the assassin duties to her.
Each novella gets better and better than the last (obviously because of more Sam) but I think my favorite out of the five is The Assassin and the Desert. I loved seeing Celaena have to adapt to a completely new lifestyle and the different teaching techniques that the Mute Master uses. She goes through a lot of personal growth in this story and it’s nice to know that Celaena still has a friend (sort of) out there somewhere. I hope we get to see Ansel in QoS, it would make sense since she’s fighting against the witches and they make an appearance in HoF.
Maas has such a wonderful writing style and I flew through each novella while taking a small break in between each of them. I loved how they truly make a whole book with an over arching plotline because some other novellas I’ve read are just individual stories and don’t really connect together. I honestly just love seeing Celaena before Endovier and how she actually got there because we knew about her time in Endovier and how she escaped but not much before that. She goes through so much development, from losing allies (Arobynn, Ansel, basically the entire Assassin’s Guild) and gaining new ones (Sam, the Mute Master and his son) to her character development. She becomes more aware of how she effects other people and becomes a little less snotty compared to the first novella.
Okay, now let’s talk about everyone’s favorite new male interest, Sam. I love him so much and he definitely didn’t deserve what he got (unlessssss (see above)). He’s so compassionate and brings out such happiness in Celaena. It’s so nice to see someone care so deeply for Celaena because she needs someone like that in her life, whether she wants to admit it or not. Plus, Same certainly has a way of creating the most swoon worthy moments.
And suddenly, as the memory of the day echoed through her, she remembered the words Sam kept screaming at Arobynn as the King of the Assassins beat her, the words that she somehow had forgotten in the fog of pain: I’ll kill you!
Sam had said it like he meant it. He’d bellowed it. Again and again and again.
I just really want him to not be dead, okay?
So, if love the Throne of Glass series definitely pick these up because they’re fantastic and help a lot with the waiting for Queen of Shadows. These novellas reveal so many hidden little anecdotes that I probably missed when I read the first three books in the series and now I’m tempted to go back and reread them, just to pick up on hidden references.
Seriously, go read them and then we can cry together.
He brushed his lips against hers. “I love you,” he breathed against her mouth. “And from today onward, I want to never be separated from you. Wherever you go, I go. Even that means going to Hell itself, wherever you are, that’s where I want to be. Forever.”
Blurb: When nineteen-year-old huntress Feyre kills a wolf in the woods, a beast-like creature arrives to demand retribution for it. Dragged to a treacherous magical land she only knows about from legends, Feyre discovers that her captor is not an animal, but Tamlin-one of the lethal, immortal faeries who once ruled their world.
As she dwells on his estate, her feelings for Tamlin transform from icy hostility into a fiery passion that burns through every lie and warning she’s been told about the beautiful, dangerous world of the Fae. But an ancient, wicked shadow over the faerie lands is growing, and Feyre must find a way to stop it . . . or doom Tamlin-and his world-forever.
Thoughts: I don’t even know how to function right now. Sarah J. Maas is one of my favorite authors and she did not let me down with the start of her new series.
Maas wrote a beautifully complex fairy-tale retelling of Beauty & the Beast, it has compelling and unique characters with an intriguing plotline that has plenty of unpredictable twists.
Feyre was such a fun protagonist, we saw her go from riches to rags back to riches and see her struggle to adapt. I loves watching her relationships with Lucien and Tamlin grow and she spent more time in the palace.
Lucien and Tamlin were also great characters. Being thrown into the High Fae world was confusing at first, but you slowly adapt like Feyre does. Lucien’s snarky lines were a great comedic break and he has such an interesting history to him.
Now. Tamlin. Tamlin. Oh my god, my heart. He’s a fabulous love interest and that twist at the end made his actions even more heart tugging. I don’t really know how else to say this, but this is a hot book. Tamlin and Feyre have a true, slow-burning romance that creates some heart pounding scenes.
Throughout the novel, Feyre is put in some pretty difficult situations and I could feel myself struggling to make a decision along with her. Yes, she doesn’t always make the smartest choices but it will be interesting to see the consequences of those in the next book.
Before I get into the totally spoil-y section, let me just say that that I stayed up until 1 AM reading this book, and if that doesn’t tell you how good it is, I don’t know what will.
Spoiler Discussion: HOLY CRAP! Everything about this was intense. Feyre killing Andras, Lucien and Tamlin, all of the freaky creatures like the Bogge, the naga and Attor.
I need to talk about the ending, so if you have not read this book, I beg of you, stop reading this right now because you don’t want to spoiled.
First of all, Feyre why would accept that deal with Rhysand? Why? Although, I have to admit, I hated Rhys when we first got to know him, but he did grow on me. His actions weren’t as romantic and obvious as Tamlin, but he does care for Feyre and I can’t wait to watch their relationship grow.
I can not believe those challenges that Amarantha set for her. The way that she killed the worm was so bad ass, so you go girl. I think the second challenge was definitely the worse, did Amarantha know Feyre couldn’t read? Did Rhys tell her? It was so painful to read and to see Lucien cry out to her.
Having the answer to the riddle be love was cruel. All Feyre had to do was say I love you, and it kind of came back to bite her in the ass. However, now that Amarantha is dead I’m curious about who the antagonist will be in the next book.
“You look… better then before.”
Was that a compliment? I could have sworn Lucien gave Tamlin an encouraging nod.
“And your hair… is clean.”
Aww, now I know why he was so awkward at first! That tugs at the heart strings a bit.
So basically, I loved this book and want more of this amazing world and cast of characters. I definitely recommend it for a good high fantasy novel.
Blurb: Celaena has survived deadly contests and shattering heartbreak—but at an unspeakable cost. Now, she must travel to a new land to confront her darkest truth . . . a truth about her heritage that could change her life—and her future—forever. Meanwhile, brutal and monstrous forces are gathering on the horizon, intent on enslaving her world. Will Celaena find the strength to not only fight her inner demons, but to take on the evil that is about to be unleashed?
Thoughts: First of all, holy crap. What a book. I’m so pumped that there’s going to be three more books in this series because I can not get enough of it right now. I loved this book and Maas beautifully set up the plot for her next novel in this book.Okay, enough fangirling, let’s talk about this book.
We meet a bunch of new characters in this sequel and I was surprised by all of them. First of all, we have all the witch chapters following Manon’s point of view and her Thirteen. I didn’t particularly like Manon in the beginning, and I didn’t want to because I know that her and Celaena are going to meet and neither of them are going to walk away unharmed. However, she really began to grow on me. I loved the whole aspect about her not being born with a soul or a heart and seeing Manon develop these feelings, especially with Abraxos. The whole mini plot line with Abraxos, him killing Titus and then recovering enough strength to do the Crossing was so great. I couldn’t stop picturing the Wyverns as dragons, even though I know they’re different. Then, they became like mini dragons and the whole scene with Abraxos sniffing the flowers, only eating the goat meat, made them seem awfully cartoony. So, now the Wyverns are miniature, cartoon dragons.
One of our other new characters was Rowan. He was such an ass in the beginning, I didn’t understand why people liked him so much. Watching both Celaena and Rowan grow throughout Celaena’s training was so wonderful, especially seeing Celaena gain so much control over her magic. Much like Manon, Rowan really began to grow on me to more we got to know his character. I felt as if I really started to like him during the Skinwalker attack, he was so different then in training and that was the first time when Celaena kind of had control over her magic (at least until she burned the Skinwalkers and the surrounding area to ash.) I also loved the scene where Rowan makes the blood oath the Celaena, that was very touching.
Now we have the whole Sorscha/Dorian deal. I’m glad that Dorian found somebody that he could talk to and trust since he thought he couldn’t trust Chaol and Celaena had left for Wendlyn. However, there was always something about Sorscha that confused me; why was she so willing to help hide Dorian’s secret about his magic? She never told anybody and it didn’t surprise me that she was a spy in the end. I was reading the end of the book in class (which wasn’t a good idea) and I had this idea in the back of my mind the the King wouldn’t really kill Sorscha, maybe he’d keep her alive in the prison just to torture Dorian. When she was killed, I had let out a little gasp and everyone in the (silent) room turned to look at me, but it was worth it.
All of the big fight scenes were so beautifully done, in fact a lot of scenes were so well done I could rant about them forever, but let’s talk about the fight scenes. When Celaena was fighting the Valg princes and had stepped out of the barrier, I was so confident that she would be able to fight them because she’s faced them before. Seeing Celaena’s true power when the the Fae were defending the fortress was a little scary, but it showed us how much she’s grown in those months of training with Rowan. I definitely think that the Valg princes will be back in the next novel, especially that the King snapped that collar onto Dorian. There’s going to be some huge war between Terrasen and Adarlan and it’s going to come down to Dorian and Celaena fighting each other.
Romantically, I don’t really have a side. I would much prefer Rowan and Celaena to stay the good friends that they are, just because I don’t think they would work well as a couple. They act too much like siblings to be a couple. However, I still don’t really like Celaena and Dorian together because now I definitely don’t trust Dorian with that collar thing around his neck. My gut feeling is to not trust Dorian since he’s the King’s son. Although, he definitely rebelled against his father in this book so we’ll see. I’m still kind of a Chaolaena shipper, but it’s not as strong as it was in the previous two books and I doubt it will happen since Celaena took her amethyst ring off at the end.
So, overall I loved this book even though it was a bit slow moving at the beginning. It has great new characters, an intriguing plot, a new set up for the upcoming novels, awesome battle/action scenes and it makes me want the next book so bad. If you still haven’t picked up this series, I highly recommend it if you’re in the mood for a kick ass fantasy series.
Blurb: From the throne of glass rules a king with a fist of iron and a soul as black as pitch. Assassin Celaena Sardothien won a brutal contest to become his Champion. Yet Celaena is far from loyal to the crown. She hides her secret vigilantly; she knows that the man she serves is bent on evil.
Keeping up the deadly charade becomes increasingly difficult when Celaena realizes she is not the only one seeking justice. As she tries to untangle the mysteries buried deep within the glass castle, her closest relationships suffer. It seems no one is above questioning her allegiances—not the Crown Prince Dorian; not Chaol, the Captain of the Guard; not even her best friend, Nehemia, a foreign princess with a rebel heart.
Then one terrible night, the secrets they have all been keeping lead to an unspeakable tragedy. As Celaena’s world shatters, she will be forced to give up the very thing most precious to her and decide once and for all where her true loyalties lie…and whom she is ultimately willing to fight for.
Thoughts: What a fantastic sequel. Typically, I find the second book in a series to be dull, a let down compared to the first, but Crown of Midnight didn’t disappoint. The story started out full of action, and it kept that pace throughout the whole story. Not only was there plenty of action to keep us entertained, but there were mysteries, romances, and sassy assassins.
I loved how much more we got to know our characters. Seeing Celaena switch from being a caring young woman to a totally kick ass assassin was very entertaining to read. In Throne of Glass I was sometimes unsure of why she won the competition so easily (easy compared to the stuff she goes through in this book) but that was cleared up in this book. Celaena is stealthy, quick, and not afraid to do what she has to do. I loved the scenes where she negotiates with Archer, I found them so funny because she never backed down and always got the time frame that she wanted, not what Archer had suggested. Also, seeing how Celaena and Chaol’s relationship developed made me unbelievably happy because I find that she works so much better with Chaol then Dorian. Chaol is also such a sweetheart in this book, reading about Celaena from his point of view just melted my heart. When he brought he the chocolate cake, that also melted my heart.
Chaol is always there for Celaena, he helps her train and he helps her through times of trouble. Such as when Celaena is poisoned by Davis, Chaol is there to make sure she recovers. When that demon from the portal was attacking her and Fleetfoot, Chaol was there, even if they weren’t on the best of terms at the time. Their relationship makes me so happy and I hope that they get a sweet reunion in Heir of Fire.
I must admit, I teared up a bit when Nehemia died. I always liked her character, even though she was shrouded in mystery. There’s still so many unanswered questions that I have about Nehemia that I hope Celaena and Chaol can figure out. Although I’m quite satisfied with Celaena’s procedure in avenging Nehemia, it was very clever (and funny) to give Mullison Grave’s head.
The mystery/story that was set up in this novel, the Wyrdkeys and Wyrdmarks was super fascinating and I want to know more about the castle and Dorian’s family/bloodline because Maas set up a very intriguing story line with the magic. I do hope that Celaena will be able to uncover more about the keys in Wendlyn. I also can’t wait to read about how Celaena’s fae blood plays out.
Blurb:In the dark, filthy salt mines of Endovier, an eighteen-year-old girl is serving a life sentence. She is a trained assassin, the best of her kind, but she made a fatal mistake: she got caught.
Young Captain Westfall offers her a deal: her freedom in return for one huge sacrifice. Celaena must represent the prince in a to-the-death tournament—fighting the most gifted thieves and assassins in the land. Live or die, Celaena will be free. Win or lose, she is about to discover her true destiny. But will her assassin’s heart be melted?
Thoughts (spoiler-free): Throne of Glass has been seriously hyped up so I was a bit nervous to start reading it, but overall I found it quite an enjoyable read. Maas creates unique and likeable characters which she places into a beautifully complex world. She gives us opportunities to understand the characters and know their back story, which I loved.
Celaena Sardothien is a great character, she’s cunning, sassy, powerful (with or without a weapon), and still an elegant lady. Although, there was a big plot hole in Celaena’s character, I didn’t always get the impression that she was Ardalan’s deadly assassin. Yes, she had moments (especially in the beginning) where I could totally tell why she was dangerous, yet at other times it seemed unlikely. At one point, Celaena makes the hinges on the door to her bedroom very loud whenever someone enters yet she still sleeps through when Dorian or Chaol enter her room. Then again, when she was fighting Verin at the end, that was totally awesome. Perhaps the author chose to make Celaena at bit rusty on the assassin side because she was locked up in Endovier for several years,
The love triangle between Chaol, Dorian, and Celaena was very well executed to me. It was interesting to see how Celaena’s relationships with both men developed throughout the book. Personally, I like Chaol better just because Dorian is a bit of a pushover and he thinks he has so many issues because he’s the prince and he loves a woman who will probably end up killing his dad. Nehemia was also one of my favorite characters because she’s very mysterious and is also quite a badass character. She definitely has her secrets and Nehemia brought more of the magic into play which I’m very intrigued about how it works.
The world building was very well done and the world itself sounds absolutely stunning. There wasn’t any major info-dumping which really gives the readers time to learn about the world themselves and not be confused for the entire book. The history behind all of the cities such as Endovier, Eyllwe, and Ardalan was fascinating.
Overall, I definitely recommend this book if you love a good high fantasy novel with a touch of romance and mystery. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this novel, even though it has its flaws. I do plan on continuing with this series because I’ve heard it just gets better and better.
Kelsey at 
Heir of Fire was the first book I finished in 2015, so I read it a whopping 8 months ago. That was so long! tonight I’ll probably go through some of my old review and reread some sections of wikis online so I can refresh my memory of some characters, plotlines, ect.
Bookish Things and Tea 