Reviews

Even though Tower of Dawn is my favorite in the series, this is the best in the series for two reasons:
1. The journey that Celaena goes through to become Aelin is beautiful, sad, and awesome.
2. Rowan.

avatarslayoshi's review against another edition

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Plot- or character-driven? N/A
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I'm a little fuzzy on exactly what went down during this book now that it's been over a month since I read it. I feel like most of it could've been cut down and repurposed into Throne of Glass or Heir of Fire. In a series that's already sooooo long, I'm going to be critical of what's included in each novel and unfortunately for this one, most of it didn't feel imperative to the series as a whole.

I believe this is the novel where Dorian is expanded on a bit? If so, I enjoyed that peek into his character. It doesn't make him much more interesting to me, but it does add some needed complexity to the plot. I wish we got to see more of the side characters without Celaena in this book. Heir of Fire was more interesting to me when it came to the side plots since it felt like they were given more of their own focus that didn't center around Celaena, but not here- this book still felt very focused on our main character to the point that it hindered the other plots from excelling as much as they could.

I think I'd skip this book on a reread, even though for me 3 stars is my default "I'd read this again" base line when rating books. Maybe read again, but skip any parts I find more on the boring side lol

bethanyschmitz13's review against another edition

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adventurous tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Again, this book left much to be desired for me until about 75% of the way through. The last 10% was the best part, and I will continue, but I’m still not convinced that I will become a TOG girly 🤣

vhylace's review against another edition

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5.0

sarah j. maas had the honor of bestowing this great novel that depicts “the calm before the storm” !!

celaena is such a masterpiece of a main character. i’ve known this the first two books, but this book just made me love her even more. when i thought i knew her from head to toe, from out to in, sarah j. hits me with more knowledge about her past and her fae powers she kept under lock after ten years.

we met so many new, unique characters in this book, all of which i have enjoyed reading about: rowan, aedion, maron, and sorscha. honestly, at first, i really didn’t like any of these characters solely because of the first looks i got into their personalities, but as i grew to learn more about them, my heart grew for them as well.

rowan, a fae prince that has seen most, if not all, of the darkness of the world that was tasked with training celaena. his relationship with celaena truly grew and i loved seeing them grow to understand each other along with the trust that built within them. he knew how to push celaena’s buttons and dragged out her true power that eventually led her to embracing her identity as aelin.

aedion, a general of the king of adarlan’s army, but also aelin’s trusted and beloved cousin who had to play an act in this war. it really made me relieved that he still has a heart for both aelin and his country after a decade of his kingdom being lost. he took the bullet for chaol at the end, marking himself as a traitor to ease chaol out of his death.

sorscha, the quiet and trusted healer that tended to celaena, dorian, and chaol’s wounds multiple times. despite knowing of what a relationship with dorian would lead to, she let him sweep her by her feet and helped him with his magic by making tonics for him. in the end, she met her doom by a sword to her throat, but she definitely was fierce with a strong heart.

maron, the blackwood heir and recently crowned wing leader. i noticed her strong will throughout reading her chapters. despite what was going around her, she followed her gut through and through. first with choosing abraxos as her wyvern, and second with saving petra from her doom. i still wonder how she’s going to be incorporated in celaena’s story and how her fate intertwines with everyone elses.

okay, enough about new characters. i want to talk about what the heck happened in wendlyn. it felt like a training arc for celaena, and honestly, i hate training arcs, but sarah j. really didn’t mess around when we got to the last pages. it was a beautiful depiction of what celaena went through. her memories, her acceptance, her growth. i loved every second of it.

and not to mention when celaena finally got to doranelle and put together the pieces sarah j. implanted in pages before that moment, the books before that moment. celaena standing up to maeve was the highlight of this novel. like this girl waited months for her answers, but she also got her own answers in those months and pieced together what she found in front of the fae queen.

anyways, yeah. it was a thrilling read and these characters have such a huge part of my heart. i don’t really know how i’m gonna be after i finish this series, but i’m enjoying every second of what i read.

and i really can’t wait to start calling her aelin from now on :)

mmlk's review against another edition

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4.0

OH MY HEARTTTT! Loved the multiple POVs in this book. Can’t wait for the next one!

booklvrkat's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

“Because I am lost," she whispered onto the earth. "And I do not know the way.”

Celaena Sardothien is not afraid, lost maybe, but definitely not afraid. She hasn’t had to train this hard since she was with Arobynn, but she will complete this task. Learning about a different side of yourself is hard, and I cannot imagine how hard it is to know that you have a power that is only known in tales. When Celaena agreed to Maeve’s deal to learn about her true “self” she had no idea. She did know, on sight, that she did not like Rowan Whitethorn, and he proves to be one of the most difficult challenges she sets out to meet. Meeting other magical creatures, the witch covens, and traveling back to the royal kingdom and cheering for Chaol & Dorian is part of my daily routine at this point. While I am enjoying all the other parts of this story, I’m here for Celaena. I'm highly enthralled in this series and am having a tough time reading everything else. Normally I have at least three books going, but this series has me by the throat. Truly fascinating to see how the world of SJM unravels.

“You cannot pick and choose what parts of her to love.”

Note: I am following the reading guide created by T.L. Branson and reading in the Romantic/Emotional order.

Content Warnings

megbee95's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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