A review by nataliebootlah
House of Flame and Shadow by Sarah J. Maas

adventurous challenging dark informative medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

Oooookay, here we go. 

I finished this a few days ago and still can’t decide how I feel!!! After such a mic-drop moment at the end of CC2, my expectations were obviously through the roof for CC3. So why didn’t this hit the mark for me like everything else SJM has ever written??? Am I alone here?!

Let me try to get through this spoiler-free. As always, SJM knows how to weave a fantastical, complex plot together and she’s a master at world-building. But this book felt like one big info dump. There was too much going on (while simultaneously not a lot going on) and too many POVs to feel close to any of the characters, except Ruhn and Lidia—loveeee them. 

Sadly, I wasn’t in the SJM chokehold I usually am when a new book of her’s comes out. This just wasn’t it for me. But as always, eager to see what’s next. 
Expand filter menu Content Warnings