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tinkerbelle's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
i dont like that people are mad about this book, i think it wraps up the trilogy perfectly and i was glad to find that it wasnt all about bryce this time.
really excited to see what else sjm has to offer!!
really excited to see what else sjm has to offer!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Genocide, Gore, Torture, Violence, Murder, and War
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Death, Sexual assault, Vomit, and Death of parent
aloveh's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Genocide, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Addiction, Confinement, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Rape, Sexual violence, Slavery, and Injury/Injury detail
kowalskepie's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Cursing, Death, Genocide, Gore, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, and War
ronnieex's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Murder, War, and Classism
Moderate: Bullying, Child death, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Physical abuse, Slavery, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, and Colonisation
Minor: Sexual content
frantically's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
guys i thought this was about fairy sex u lied to me 😭😭
Fully convinced that Sarah keeps making these books >800pgs so that by the time we get to the end, we've all forgotten the messy things in the first half. Not with me, Sarah, not with me!! 😤😤
But still, be aware that it took me 20 days to read this (because i was sick and fantasy is hard) and I have probably forgotten all of it.
The beginning had suuuch weird pacing. Bryce spends a solid 200pgs...going through caves?? While her friends are trying to save her and themselves and oh, also the world and she's just acting like me when I go to a museum being like "omg look at that carving!!" "if i were to analyse this..." "well, as an ancient fae historian..." which was extremely relatable to me (as the annoying history student in museums) but I'm not sure if we really needed all of that.
While loads of storylines were satisfyingly ended in this final part, especially in the beginning, there were so many started storylines that just seemed so unnecessary and had no consequences whatsoever for the story.
I'll be the first person to say it – this shit too sci-fi for me. There. The urban fantasy thingy was cute in the first and second book but girl why are we talking about black holes 😭😭 literally read like they were NASA agents at the end iykyk
ACOTAR my love <3 sorry sarah u can't expect to open the multiverse and bring me back to the messy beautiful high fantasy of my heart and then go back to Crescent City. I'd take Azriel's ass over phones any day
wait i forgot about the exposition omg
yall remember that scene in city of bones where clary asks luke what happened with valentine and it just turns into this whole chapter where nothing happens for 20 pages except for luke telling clary what's up?? yeah clary and bryce can bond over that now!
thank god we always have trusty fae ancestors to tell us what went on 15000 years ago 🙏🏻🙏🏻 now available in holographic form!
Now, onto Bryce herself...Bryce, baby, I'm so sorry but you will never be Aelin Galathynius, no matter how hard you try!! Let's just say it like this – Bryce is a great main character, she knows what she wants and how to get it but that also makes her unlikeable at times especially in how she dealt with Hunt and his trauma. He's so understandably scared of going against the Asteri again, he's especially scared of losing her just like he lost Shahar and she basically just tells him to "get through it" 🙃 I wish we could've had more sweet scenes of them, I miss my babies!
Plot-wise (aside from weird physics at the end lol), I really enjoyed this! We've got most of the main cast working together and we get loads of Lydia and Ruhn kinda stepping in and leading everyone when Hunt and Bryce are gone. Goddd, that relationship!! Kill me!!! I love them so much 😭 Lydia has some secrets revealed and she becomes an even more fascinating character and her story has suchhh a good conclusion.
As was already teased at the ending of the last book, the Maasverse has been opened! 👀 Things...have happened and while this isn't ACOTAR 6 (sorry to disappoint), there are loads of new things we learn about Prythian! Can't say I was the biggest fan of that, idk I'm kinda an ACOTAR purist lmao, don't touch my OG trilogy!! but it was still so sweet to return to Prythian <3
There were also some TOG easter eggs and while I already knew, we were gonna have some ACOTAR stuff, I really didn't expect that haha, so that was what had me really screaming.
While I find there are loads of similarities between CC and TOG (esp when looking at Aelin/Rowan/Aedion and Bryce/Hunt/Ruhn, PLEASE tell me I'm not the only one), I feel that Sarah still managed to make this a series that stands apart from her other books. Her writing style, the world building and her plots have just gotten better and better and while I'm still not the biggest fan of urban fantasy, I can still appreciate that!
As I said above, I felt that some new storylines here were unnecessary but at least all old ones were finished. I found myself thinking "hmm haven't heard about [character] in some time, maybe they'll show up again, too?" and it seems like Sarah was listening because EVERYONE appears again – good job, Sarah. I promise, there are still several surprises to be had!
So in conclusion: this was long (too long, some people would say (it's me, I'm people)) but it was a solid ending to the trilogy. We met Bryce as this traumatised young woman and ended with her as someone determined enough to stand against the Asteri and everything that would entail. Without giving anything away about Hunt and Bryce's ending, we also got a relationship arc spanning a whole series!! Woop woop. Sarah truly showed us all that she's capable of writing, pulling together all the fantasy creatures she could think of and I'm so excited to see where she leads us to next 🫶🏻
Fully convinced that Sarah keeps making these books >800pgs so that by the time we get to the end, we've all forgotten the messy things in the first half. Not with me, Sarah, not with me!! 😤😤
But still, be aware that it took me 20 days to read this (because i was sick and fantasy is hard) and I have probably forgotten all of it.
The beginning had suuuch weird pacing. Bryce spends a solid 200pgs...going through caves?? While her friends are trying to save her and themselves and oh, also the world and she's just acting like me when I go to a museum being like "omg look at that carving!!" "if i were to analyse this..." "well, as an ancient fae historian..." which was extremely relatable to me (as the annoying history student in museums) but I'm not sure if we really needed all of that.
While loads of storylines were satisfyingly ended in this final part, especially in the beginning, there were so many started storylines that just seemed so unnecessary and had no consequences whatsoever for the story.
I'll be the first person to say it – this shit too sci-fi for me. There. The urban fantasy thingy was cute in the first and second book but girl why are we talking about black holes 😭😭 literally read like they were NASA agents at the end iykyk
ACOTAR my love <3 sorry sarah u can't expect to open the multiverse and bring me back to the messy beautiful high fantasy of my heart and then go back to Crescent City. I'd take Azriel's ass over phones any day
wait i forgot about the exposition omg
yall remember that scene in city of bones where clary asks luke what happened with valentine and it just turns into this whole chapter where nothing happens for 20 pages except for luke telling clary what's up?? yeah clary and bryce can bond over that now!
thank god we always have trusty fae ancestors to tell us what went on 15000 years ago 🙏🏻🙏🏻 now available in holographic form!
Now, onto Bryce herself...Bryce, baby, I'm so sorry but you will never be Aelin Galathynius, no matter how hard you try!! Let's just say it like this – Bryce is a great main character, she knows what she wants and how to get it but that also makes her unlikeable at times especially in how she dealt with Hunt and his trauma. He's so understandably scared of going against the Asteri again, he's especially scared of losing her just like he lost Shahar and she basically just tells him to "get through it" 🙃 I wish we could've had more sweet scenes of them, I miss my babies!
Plot-wise (aside from weird physics at the end lol), I really enjoyed this! We've got most of the main cast working together and we get loads of Lydia and Ruhn kinda stepping in and leading everyone when Hunt and Bryce are gone. Goddd, that relationship!! Kill me!!! I love them so much 😭 Lydia has some secrets revealed and she becomes an even more fascinating character and her story has suchhh a good conclusion.
As was already teased at the ending of the last book, the Maasverse has been opened! 👀 Things...have happened and while this isn't ACOTAR 6 (sorry to disappoint), there are loads of new things we learn about Prythian! Can't say I was the biggest fan of that, idk I'm kinda an ACOTAR purist lmao, don't touch my OG trilogy!! but it was still so sweet to return to Prythian <3
There were also some TOG easter eggs and while I already knew, we were gonna have some ACOTAR stuff, I really didn't expect that haha, so that was what had me really screaming.
While I find there are loads of similarities between CC and TOG (esp when looking at Aelin/Rowan/Aedion and Bryce/Hunt/Ruhn, PLEASE tell me I'm not the only one), I feel that Sarah still managed to make this a series that stands apart from her other books. Her writing style, the world building and her plots have just gotten better and better and while I'm still not the biggest fan of urban fantasy, I can still appreciate that!
As I said above, I felt that some new storylines here were unnecessary but at least all old ones were finished. I found myself thinking "hmm haven't heard about [character] in some time, maybe they'll show up again, too?" and it seems like Sarah was listening because EVERYONE appears again – good job, Sarah. I promise, there are still several surprises to be had!
So in conclusion: this was long (too long, some people would say (it's me, I'm people)) but it was a solid ending to the trilogy. We met Bryce as this traumatised young woman and ended with her as someone determined enough to stand against the Asteri and everything that would entail. Without giving anything away about Hunt and Bryce's ending, we also got a relationship arc spanning a whole series!! Woop woop. Sarah truly showed us all that she's capable of writing, pulling together all the fantasy creatures she could think of and I'm so excited to see where she leads us to next 🫶🏻
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, Blood, Murder, and War
Moderate: Genocide, Slavery, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Child death, Medical content, and Sexual harassment
sierrabowers's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
This was the best in the Crescent City series! I highly recommend to those who have already read ACOTAR. This book truly made everything come together and so much makes more sense. It ties up loose ends but also makes room for some new storylines. Was different than I thought it would be but also somehow better?
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual content, Slavery, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
jessicarenz's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
All of the cut scenes and POV switches were annoying (seriously, going from an action-packed scene with one character to a dull by comparison single paragraph of another scene about a different character, then to yet another character’s completely different scene was not fun). But the third Crescent City book wasn’t bad like I’ve heard some people say; it was a pretty good ending for the characters and overall story while leaving room for spinoffs or additional books down the line. And of course I loved the ACOTAR tie ins.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Genocide, Gore, Physical abuse, Slavery, Excrement, Fire/Fire injury, and War
Minor: Confinement, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Excrement, Kidnapping, Grief, and Classism
bluehouseonthesalishsea's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Genocide, Gore, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Sexual assault
browneyesblue84's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
am so happy that I had a chance to read this book. I waited patiently for its release. I cleared my reading schedule just so that I would have enough time to truly immerse myself back into Bryce Quinlan‘s world. Not only did I pre-order is digital copy but I also ordered a physical copy. Yes, I am that much of a fan of this series.
I would be lying if I said that I was not nervous about reading this third Crescent City book. I truly like each and every character in this book whether they are a protagonist or an antagonist. However, I was worried about Hypaxia Enadore in the most. She’s my favorite character in the series. I was a little disappointed regarding the change in her storyline regarding Ruhn and well as the relationship with Celestina. I was afraid that she would end up sidelined, or become an irrelevant character and be killed off. However, Sarah J Maas not only introduced Hypaxia is an awesome way but gave her a very cool storyline.
I wasn’t a big fan of Ruhn and Lidia as mates but I think their relationship grew on me after reading HOFAS. I changed my mind about Lidia after a secret about her was revealed. Not once did I fathom that The Hind could be someone’s mom. It was cool that Tharion and Ithan played a bigger part in this story along with Declan and Flynn. The decision made to include some characters for a short time was cool as well. Despite the fact that I haven’t read the ACOTAR series yet I really like those characters as well.
Bryce Quinlan has changed so much since the first book. The same can be said about Hunt as well. I love their bond. The way that they are willing to sacrifice themselves for their friends and each other is beautiful. Beautiful. My favorite part of their story arc was each time they reconnected. So much happened in HOFAS and I am really looking forward to reading another book in this series. The only thing that I did not like about the story is that I’m going to have to wait another two years for another book. That doesn’t mean that I won’t be waiting patiently for the next release.
I rated Sarah J Maas’ House of Flame and Shadow five stars out of five . It was so good that I didn’t want it to end.
I would be lying if I said that I was not nervous about reading this third Crescent City book. I truly like each and every character in this book whether they are a protagonist or an antagonist. However, I was worried about Hypaxia Enadore in the most. She’s my favorite character in the series. I was a little disappointed regarding the change in her storyline regarding Ruhn and well as the relationship with Celestina. I was afraid that she would end up sidelined, or become an irrelevant character and be killed off. However, Sarah J Maas not only introduced Hypaxia is an awesome way but gave her a very cool storyline.
I wasn’t a big fan of Ruhn and Lidia as mates but I think their relationship grew on me after reading HOFAS. I changed my mind about Lidia after a secret about her was revealed. Not once did I fathom that The Hind could be someone’s mom. It was cool that Tharion and Ithan played a bigger part in this story along with Declan and Flynn. The decision made to include some characters for a short time was cool as well. Despite the fact that I haven’t read the ACOTAR series yet I really like those characters as well.
Bryce Quinlan has changed so much since the first book. The same can be said about Hunt as well. I love their bond. The way that they are willing to sacrifice themselves for their friends and each other is beautiful. Beautiful. My favorite part of their story arc was each time they reconnected. So much happened in HOFAS and I am really looking forward to reading another book in this series. The only thing that I did not like about the story is that I’m going to have to wait another two years for another book. That doesn’t mean that I won’t be waiting patiently for the next release.
I rated Sarah J Maas’ House of Flame and Shadow five stars out of five . It was so good that I didn’t want it to end.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Sexual content, Torture, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Cursing, Drug use, and Emotional abuse
Minor: Confinement, Genocide, Grief, and Abandonment
mary_catherine's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Gore, Torture, Violence, Fire/Fire injury, and War
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Genocide, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, and Classism