Category: Throne of Glass

Throne of Glass #6
Reading this book just makes me want the series finale even more! A great edition to the storyline, Tower of Dawn follows Chaol and Nesryn as they travel to the Southern Continent during the events of Empire of Storms. While our main character Aelin is most notably absent, I feel like this novel was a long time coming. For a while now I’ve felt that Chaol’s character fell flat after what happened between him and Celaena in Crown of Midnight. And this was finally Chaol’s time to shine. I really loved every moment of his journey, almost as much as Aelin’s in Heir of Fire. He’s been blaming himself for things for a long time and finally gets a chance to face that darker part of himself; so satisfying to read.

I was surprised by how much I liked Nesryn’s character in this. She never really stood out for me in Queen of Shadows, but she really comes into her own here. And her storyline accounts for most of the action in the book, which was fun and exciting and added a lot to the mythology of the world. And speaking about that mythology…it is definitely built up in this book, way more that I expected. I also loved the new character’s introduced, especially Sartaq and Hasar, though I find the whole khagan clan quite interesting. It took me a moment to remember Yrene from The Assassin’s Blade, but I enjoyed delving more into her character (so feisty). I love how Maas is bringing in characters from the short story collection here for the final showdown. As I said, now I just want the final book even more!

There was one thing that I really disliked about this book, but I can’t discuss it without major spoilers, so my rant is hidden below. Spoiler

Throne of Glass #5
Loved Empire of Storms! And I know that this series has some serious “Deus ex machina” going on, but I love it anyway! War is on the horizon and things are really coming together in this one. And such a dynamite ending! It’s gonna be hard waiting a year for the series finale. A lot of great tie ins from the Assassin’s Blade prequel stories as well. I’m so glad I continued with this series after my lackluster feelings about book 1, Throne of Glass. It has grown into something truly epic and wonderful and I love it (did I say that already?)

Throne of Glass (Short Story Compilation)
I loved finally getting more background on Celaena the assassin, and getting to meet Sam. And I just love love loved Sam! And what a piece of work Arobynn is! Glad to get this bit of background on Adarlan’s Assassin and get a true feel for her past, and not just the quick glimpses we get in the rest of the series. The tales were remarkably well connected, making them really feel like a prequel and not just a set of novellas. My only complaint was that there wasn’t enough Sam!

Throne of Glass #4
Loved loved loved this installment on the series! This had all the action and adventure of Crown of Midnight (book 2), with the great character growth of Heir of Fire (book 3). And Aelin has shown herself to be quite the devious little schemer. Queen of Shadows promises a new beginning for our little band of heroes. One of their biggest challenges is finally overcome, but a darkness still looms on the horizon. I can’t wait for the next installment!

Throne of Glass #3
Celaena’s transformation in Heir of Fire is a sight to behold! I’m glad to see her finally dealing with the demons of her past and accepting her fate and future. I love how every time we think we’ve learned everything there is to know about Calaena, we learn a little bit more. And what an ending! Sarah J. Maas certainly knows how to make you come back for more.

The bond between Celaena and Rowan is a wonderful, amazing, truly beautiful thing, and I can’t wait to see more of it. I love Aedion’s unwavering loyalty to his people and his queen; I look forward to more from him. I enjoyed seeing Dorian finally make a stand against his father, and I hope he will come out of the series relatively unscathed in the end. Adarlan needs the King we all know he can be. I’m curious about how Manon’s character will fit into the future of the series, though I have a few theories. Way too much time was spent on her to just become “villian.”

I have only two complaints about this installment. The first, I found the continual POV shifts distracting, but they seemed to mellow out towards the end. And the second, it was hard to sludge through Celaena’s well of depression and sorrow, and it went on just to the point of feeling too far, when the author started to bring it back. The strong ending more than made up for the sludge of the beginning, which is what ultimately elevated this one to 4.5 stars.