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bibliorama's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
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? It's complicated
4.0
Enjoyment - 4
From what I've seen from other reviewers, this book is a turning point for whether or not readers like the direction that the series is heading. Some think that it changed for the worse, I would have to say I'm in the camp of enjoying this installment the best so far. This additional felt more magical and had some more horror-esq vibes, which I was in to. It also felt more grown up, which is definitely a different tone from the first two books. The setting was also more interesting and we finally got a ton of history for the world that the story is set in. That history and the exploration of Celaena's past was a lot of fun to read.
Start - 3.5
These books always seem to take me a minute to get fully into and the story seems to take a minute to get going as well. For this book it was in part because of Celaena's mental state, but I still remember this beginning a lot more than Crown of Midnights.
Characters - 4
There were some new additions to the cast, so I'm going to rank them each individually.
Celaena - Still the most interesting and she has a really big character arc in this book that was satisfying to go through. Learning about her history and seeing some flashback scenes really helped develop the world.
Manon - Next fave. I love the animal companion trope in books and Manon's storyline is filled to the brim with that. I also liked her morally gray nature and the expansion of the world the witches brought. It also gave us insight to more of the King's plans, which were very much needed. Plus she has a sick costume what can I say.
Chaol - Now, Chaol seems to be the punching bag of this series and here I would have to say, "No". Bro is literally the only thing keeping the plot going in Rifthold and actually taking steps to figure out the King's power. Without Chaol, no one would know how the King banished magic. This doesn't mean that I want him and Celaena together or that that's why I'm on his side. I'm on his side because for all the talk Dorian and Aedion and everyone seem to give about not being on Celaena's side, Chaol is the only one taking actions that will actually help her for when she gets back. Plus, he is the only one who remembered to let Eyllwe know that a certain person was back.
I said what I said. And in Crown of Midnight, he went back for the dog.
Rowan - Very broody, I like the back and forth between him and Celaena. No real strong opinions have been formed where he's concerned. I would like to see some interactions between him and the other Fae that he's known for centuries. I think that would give me better insight into who he really is.
Aedion - I like the connection he has to Celaena and to Terrasen. That's the extent of my opinions on him.
Dorian - Bro what were you even doing. He felt very bratty. Call it an unpopular opinion and I get he's got certain things going on at the moment, but so does everyone. Let's face it, someone had to be at the bottom of this list and he made it easy.
Atmosphere - 4
This book had the best vibes in the series so far. I love a good forest setting and this is that book. I really enjoyed getting to learn about some other creatures in the world like the Fae. I have to say one of my favorite parts was the storytelling in the kitchen at night. Those were great vibes and I wish we got told more of the stories about Wendlyn.
Plot - 4.5
The plot in this was a bit slower and a lot more character driven. However, I liked the character struggles that were at the forefront of this book and how they shaped the plot.
Ending - 4.5
Really fun battle that felt liked it topped every fight scene that we've seen so far, but not so crazy that we still can't grow beyond it. There feels like there's a nice power crawl happening and hopefully that continues.
Style - 4
SJM has a writing style and she sticks to it what can I say. But I think her style best suits the fairytale nature of this book the best.
Overall - Solid 4
From what I've seen from other reviewers, this book is a turning point for whether or not readers like the direction that the series is heading. Some think that it changed for the worse, I would have to say I'm in the camp of enjoying this installment the best so far. This additional felt more magical and had some more horror-esq vibes, which I was in to. It also felt more grown up, which is definitely a different tone from the first two books. The setting was also more interesting and we finally got a ton of history for the world that the story is set in. That history and the exploration of Celaena's past was a lot of fun to read.
Start - 3.5
These books always seem to take me a minute to get fully into and the story seems to take a minute to get going as well. For this book it was in part because of Celaena's mental state, but I still remember this beginning a lot more than Crown of Midnights.
Characters - 4
There were some new additions to the cast, so I'm going to rank them each individually.
Celaena - Still the most interesting and she has a really big character arc in this book that was satisfying to go through. Learning about her history and seeing some flashback scenes really helped develop the world.
Manon - Next fave. I love the animal companion trope in books and Manon's storyline is filled to the brim with that. I also liked her morally gray nature and the expansion of the world the witches brought. It also gave us insight to more of the King's plans, which were very much needed. Plus she has a sick costume what can I say.
Chaol - Now, Chaol seems to be the punching bag of this series and here I would have to say, "No". Bro is literally the only thing keeping the plot going in Rifthold and actually taking steps to figure out the King's power. Without Chaol, no one would know how the King banished magic. This doesn't mean that I want him and Celaena together or that that's why I'm on his side. I'm on his side because for all the talk Dorian and Aedion and everyone seem to give about not being on Celaena's side, Chaol is the only one taking actions that will actually help her for when she gets back. Plus, he is the only one who remembered to let Eyllwe know that a certain person was back.
I said what I said. And in Crown of Midnight, he went back for the dog.
Rowan - Very broody, I like the back and forth between him and Celaena. No real strong opinions have been formed where he's concerned. I would like to see some interactions between him and the other Fae that he's known for centuries. I think that would give me better insight into who he really is.
Aedion - I like the connection he has to Celaena and to Terrasen. That's the extent of my opinions on him.
Dorian - Bro what were you even doing. He felt very bratty. Call it an unpopular opinion and I get he's got certain things going on at the moment, but so does everyone. Let's face it, someone had to be at the bottom of this list and he made it easy.
Atmosphere - 4
This book had the best vibes in the series so far. I love a good forest setting and this is that book. I really enjoyed getting to learn about some other creatures in the world like the Fae. I have to say one of my favorite parts was the storytelling in the kitchen at night. Those were great vibes and I wish we got told more of the stories about Wendlyn.
Plot - 4.5
The plot in this was a bit slower and a lot more character driven. However, I liked the character struggles that were at the forefront of this book and how they shaped the plot.
Ending - 4.5
Really fun battle that felt liked it topped every fight scene that we've seen so far, but not so crazy that we still can't grow beyond it. There feels like there's a nice power crawl happening and hopefully that continues.
Style - 4
SJM has a writing style and she sticks to it what can I say. But I think her style best suits the fairytale nature of this book the best.
Overall - Solid 4
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Violence, Blood, and Death
Moderate: Colonisation, Slavery, Animal cruelty, Animal death, and War
Minor: Vomit
jen1804's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Mar 2022
I loved this one.
I think you can really tell that both the writing and the story are developing no end.
The introduction of all the magic in this book made my heart happy.
The writing at times made me weep and at others gave me goosebumps.
SJM does such a good job of weaving such complex relationships between characters and is able to tug on your heart strings.
The character development of Celaena is fantastic is this book and the story is not short of both epic and heartfelt moments which I have come to love from SJM.
Can’t wait for book five.
Satisfactory ending? Yes.
Jan 2023 re-read
This book is such a comfort read for me, I still love it. I still get emotional at times and I still get goosebumps at others. The introduction of all the magic, of the witches, and the introduction of Rowan, all makes me so happy. There are so many beautiful scenes and lots of beautiful and epic quotes I’ve highlighted from this re-read.
I also just needed to share that I feel like the fact SJM first describes Maeve’s eyes in chapter 8 as black, and then later describes them as violet in chapter 59, makes me believe SJM initially wrote them as black and later made the decision to change them to violet to intentionally relate Maeve back to the possibility of being related to Rhys(!) I think she simply missed changing them from black to violet on page 8, and I believe the Rhys/Maeve/Ruhn theories have got to have some welly behind them.
I loved this one.
I think you can really tell that both the writing and the story are developing no end.
The introduction of all the magic in this book made my heart happy.
The writing at times made me weep and at others gave me goosebumps.
SJM does such a good job of weaving such complex relationships between characters and is able to tug on your heart strings.
The character development of Celaena is fantastic is this book and the story is not short of both epic and heartfelt moments which I have come to love from SJM.
Can’t wait for book five.
Satisfactory ending? Yes.
Jan 2023 re-read
This book is such a comfort read for me, I still love it. I still get emotional at times and I still get goosebumps at others. The introduction of all the magic, of the witches, and the introduction of Rowan, all makes me so happy. There are so many beautiful scenes and lots of beautiful and epic quotes I’ve highlighted from this re-read.
I also just needed to share that I feel like the fact SJM first describes Maeve’s eyes in chapter 8 as black, and then later describes them as violet in chapter 59, makes me believe SJM initially wrote them as black and later made the decision to change them to violet to intentionally relate Maeve back to the possibility of being related to Rhys(!) I think she simply missed changing them from black to violet on page 8, and I believe the Rhys/Maeve/Ruhn theories have got to have some welly behind them.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Blood, Murder, Death, and Gore
Moderate: Death of parent, Torture, Animal cruelty, and Animal death
Minor: War and Vomit
alices13thdiary's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
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
4.75
it gets knocked down .25 stars just because i didn't understand some stuff and because i'm not a fan of insta-love so i felt like dorian and sorsha could have had more build-up.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture, Abandonment, Blood, Confinement, Death of parent, Genocide, Grief, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Slavery, War, Violence, Suicidal thoughts, Death, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Vomit
sarah_cameron's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
inspiring
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Loved the start and end of this book! The middle was a bit slow, mostly being a very long training and sleuthing montage, but the characters were enjoyable enough to carry me through (particularly Manon, this book was a great introduction to her character). Overall, it’s left me excited to see how the story continues!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood
Moderate: Vomit, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Slavery, Torture, and Violence
Minor: Alcohol, War, and Excrement
aaryar's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
hopeful
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
SUCH A GOOD BOOK. Aelins development is so good. Slow paced book plot wise, but a good book nonetheless
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood and Violence
Moderate: Vomit
_alyssar_'s review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Physical abuse, Torture, Blood, Death, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Slavery, Violence, Fire/Fire injury, and Death of parent
Minor: Kidnapping, Drug use, Trafficking, Vomit, Excrement, Suicidal thoughts, and War
katvou's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
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: Death, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Murder, Death of parent, Gore, and Grief
Moderate: War
Minor: Vomit, Excrement, and Alcohol
myapapaya6's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-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
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore
Moderate: Slavery
Minor: Vomit
ninaevan's review
adventurous
funny
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
This one was slower than the rest... felt like a way to build up the next book rather than something that stands well on its own, but there’s never a dull moment in this series so I really can’t complain. I’m enjoying this world a lot!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Grief, and Violence
Moderate: Abandonment, Animal cruelty, Blood, Death, and Torture
Minor: Body horror, Colonisation, Excrement, and Vomit
vicktorea's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
to whatever end ❤️
loved meeting Rowan & Manon.
Chaol & Dorian are my otp.
This is fun; I’m enjoying this series so far!
loved meeting Rowan & Manon.
Chaol & Dorian are my otp.
This is fun; I’m enjoying this series so far!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence, Torture, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Slavery, Vomit, and Death