Author: Sarah J. Maas
Date of Publication: September 2 2014
Pages: 562
Source: Library ebook

Lost and broken, Celaena Sardothien’s only thought is to avenge the savage death of her dearest friend: as the King of Adarlan’s Assassin, she is bound to serve this tyrant, but he will pay for what he did. Any hope Celaena has of destroying the king lies in answers to be found in Wendlyn. Sacrificing his future, Chaol, the Captain of the King’s Guard, has sent Celaena there to protect her, but her darkest demons lay in that same place. If she can overcome them, she will be Adarlan’s biggest threat – and his own toughest enemy. 

While Celaena learns of her true destiny, and the eyes of Erilea are on Wendlyn, a brutal and beastly force is preparing to take to the skies. Will Celaena find the strength not only to win her own battles, but to fight a war that could pit her loyalties to her own people against those she has grown to love?


This review will be written as a letter to Sarah J. Maas.

Dear Sarah J. Maas,

I'm sorry that we got off on the wrong foot. I truly am. You see, I was not a fan of Throne of Glass. I did not like Celaena, I thought Chaol was dull (maybe that hasn't changed), and I thought the story was not all that original. It could have also been that I was in a terrible mood, because I am a mood reader. I was completely ready to give up on this series, and I would have, had not literally everyone, including my co-blogger told me to continue.

When the positive reviews for Crown of Midnight rolled on, one major theme I saw was that people said this was better than Throne of Glass. Still, I was skeptical. I had, at that time, made it a goal of mine to be much more selective about the books I read and I'm sorry that I didn't have much faith. It's not even like I hated Throne of Glass-- I just didn't seem to connect to any part of the story. With the urge of the blogging community and Mari, I gave it a try.

I think I approached Crown of Midnight in a "show me what you got" kind of way, and I was really happy when it started to click for me. I mean, look at the shining enthusiasm of my review!

Crown of Midnight is an entertaining novel. It has an interesting plot and mythology that, I admit, I was suspicious of, up to a certain point where it completely won me over. 

But there was hope. I was soooooo happy with a certain plot twist that was just brilliant because it raised the level of the whole series. I was so hopeful that the next book would be good.

Sarah J. Maas, I was so freaking wrong. I was soooooooo wrong about this series because it is special, thrilling, and fun. Celaena is a phenomenal character, and the world is fascinating. I'm so happy that I've enjoyed every book you wrote even more. Case in point: I read Heir of Fire in two sittings-- when I went to bed yesterday, and it was the first thing I did when I woke up today (#summervacation!!). And it was engrossing, and fun, and thrilling, and superlative superlative superlative



You converted me into a major fan. I am so happy I continued with your books and I am so sorry I doubted your brilliance. I mean, this is me right now.



I am now a total fan of Celaena and her world, and am so totally dying for the next book. Also, there's a good chance I'm going to devour A Court of Thorn and Roses too.

Now let's get to what I love about Heir of Fire.

ZOMG new characters! They were brilliant! I loved the new characters so much. I loved how you developed them, and I loved that they were complicated and fascinating and strong. There are obviously some I loved more than others (I'll keep it spoiler free and not mention who) but I'm still squealing and swooning over one character so yayy.



I mean, these characters were so fierce and they had their own back stories. I loved that there was a (don't kill me for this comparison) but Game of Throne-esque situation in which different characters and actors from all across this lovely world were doing their own thing and building their own storylines and it felt like watching Dani train her dragons while Robb was learning to be king and you just know that these story lines will converge one day and it shall be spectacular. So, this part, the split perspectives and managing to make each story engaging in its own way, was wonderful.

Perhaps the biggest turnaround is my new love for Celaena. I just never connected with her and felt there was something off until the twist of the last book, and in this book, I began to truly love her. This poor girl and I finally built a relationship and I thought she was so strong and charming. I could connect with her and I even shed a few tears! I thought the character development in Heir of Fire for Celaena was extremely strong because her character was at a point where she could refresh herself and build herself up to be stronger. I thought that learning about what made Celaena tick, learning about her past and her regrets and fears truly made me sympathize with her and I finally started to connect to her. I think this sort of character development, most pronounced in Celaena's plot but subtly in all the characters' POVs is an essential part of what makes Heir of Fire good. I loved that they were all learning about life and sometimes it was uncomfortable for them, but I loved moral ambiguities and characters having to make tough decisions. I'm evil in that way.

And the magic and mythology! It was so much fun. I was happy dancing at some points because I thought the story was so much fun. I loved the triumphs of some of the characters and there were a lot of OMG YESSS but there was also one character who got a super tough deal and seeing as they are a favourite of mine, I hope they're okay. The magic was exhilarating. We all got past ice-breakers and introductions and finally we're getting to the core of the story, and I love that you, lovely author, are still doing new things and introducing major surprises. So thanks for keeping it fresh!

Now, if there is one more request I have, seeing as I'm a picky reader and seeing as how you have delivered in everything I wanted in my last review, it's to make sure this story stays dark. There are some lovely moments of triumph, and I relish them. However, these moments are made all the more impactful by the hard times. I thought Heir of Fire was great because it was the darkest story so far and the characters had to go through tough shit. Sometimes, the lure of destiny is a little too strong and although this story could easily go in the way of a black vs white, good vs evil conflict, I think it's stronger when the heroes are tragic. The characters have made certain choices and I'm really hoping that we see them have to consider the impact of their choices, and live with some of the negative consequences too. Of course, this is a personal preference of mine and Sarah J. Maas, you can do whatever the hell you want to do.

Also, why did you leave with that ending? Why? Is it because you hate your readers? You want us to suffer in agony as we desperately crave the rest of Celaena's story? Authors are really cruel sometimes.



I love you all anyway.

In any case, I was wrong, I'm so happy with this series, I'm eagerly anticipating the next book, and omg leave a comment so we can fangirl about some of the stuff that happened! Thank you Sarah J. Maas and I'm so excited for the sequel!

Thanks again and I'm sorry for doubting you,


P.E.

A discussion between Mari and P.E.

We talk a lot about books we love on TSC. That's wonderful and we should keep it that way because talking about good books makes us happy. However, it's healthy to take a break sometimes and go against the norm. Today, lets talk about some books that other liked and we utterly despised. P.E?

I don't feel comfortable saying I've ever despised a book, except for that one book that killed off one of my favourite characters (but most people weren't into that book either). I will say that some books have not lived up to the hype. One that comes straight to mind is one I recently read, and a book I know you won't like hearing this about: Such a Rush by Jennifer Echols. I couldn't get into it, and I honestly don't understand the hype it gets. (Sorry, Mari.)

I feel like you're going to be stuck on that one for a long time. Honestly, I think it was more your fault (dragged it out too long) than the book but you're not the only one who didn't like it so no worries. Since we're going head on, I'm going to mention The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater (ohhh ya). I was so crazy about this book, always ogling at it in the book stores until I finally got it from the library and it disappointed me. I know you're going to argue that the book was supposed to be slow and sensual with fantastic writing. I'll give in, the writing was great but I wanted more, some action, some relationships, anything to move the plot forward.

Oh snap, you did NOT go there. The Scorpio Races was subtle and gorgeous! And the characters were fantastic, how could you not like it?! Speaking of books we disagree on, how about Throne of Glass? I was expecting a badass read but I thought the book was all talk without much action. Celaena spent more time fawning over boys then really being the kickass heroine she was supposed to be. I was actually pretty disappointed in that one. 

Oh yes I did! I read to save myself from boredom and TSR didn't help at all. As for Throne of Glass, I completely agree. Celaena, a starved assassin turned prisoner is released and instead of exacting revenge she jumps around looking at dresses and shaking in her corset every time she sees the king. But, I'm going to writing it off as a human flaw. You for one should understand her predicament. Everyone see's her as tough, or super studious in your case, but when exposed to frilly dresses you both melt. 

No I don't- *looks at tweets about Oscar dresses* *shuts up* Regardless, I didn't think her characterization was consistent. You'll chalk it up as a human flaw, and I'll see it as a flaw in the story. I'm going to bring up another book that everyone seems to adore but me. I'm not that into Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi. The story is so slow and the writing is interesting, but I get bored of it pretty quickly because the characters don't interest me either. What did you think of that one?

I actually really enjoyed Shatter Me when I read it but it's been a few years now and it really didn't leave a lasting impression. I don't feel like reading the next books so it has been put to the side for me. I'm not sure exactly why, but I think it's the back story which I found weak. I do really like Warner though.

I think I didn't mind Shatter Me too much, but the sequel really let me down. I guess I'm not that into Warner and I didn't like Juliet's flip flopping between Adam and Warner. Any other book that comes to mind?

This one I've been confused over for a while. Glass Houses, the first book in the Morganville Vampire series. I plain did not like it. The characters were nothing special, the vampire town was weird and her parents were never around. Who sends there kid to a backwater town to study at a community college rather than Princeton, Harvard etc, especially when they are a genius. No, the excuse of her being too young does not suffice.

At this point you have to be trolling me. I enjoyed that series. The dynamic between the vampires and the humans, the danger, poor little Claire slowly growing up and proving people wrong... it was lots of fun. I don't have an explanation for your complaint (I read that book years ago) but I remember being completely okay with the bizarre world and the fascinating characters. Another book for me that would make this list is The Tyrant's Daughter. My review is upcoming for it so I won't say too much besides that it disappointed me so much, and I'm honestly shocked that I seem to be alone in that regard. I even scoured Goodreads searching for a low star reviews but I couldn't find any. 

I think I might have been impressed if I had read it when I was 14 or something, but by 16 I had already outgrown the plot and characters. 

What Do You Think?