Scan barcode
A review by aldoregan
Queen of Shadows by Sarah J. Maas
1.0
Dorian said, "So here we are."
"The end of the road," Aelin said with a half smile.
"No," Chaol said, with his own smile faint, tentative. "The beginning of the next."
Before reading Queen of Shadows, I read a lot of bad reviews about this book. It's the reason why it took me so long to pick this up. I was very hesitant to read this, especially when I found out my ship was going to sink. There were loads of things that I hated and this series has completely turned into a different one from what I once loved.
The first parts were the worst. It took me one whole week reading the first half of the book. It was SO DIFFICULT reading those parts. I was so irritated and mad at all the things that were happening. It put me in a slump and I was so close to DNFing this book. I actually wished I could unread the whole series because of the first half. The characterization was all over the place. SJM completely disregarded it and it's what made me dislike this book. Writing style, plot, and worldbuilding are very important aspects when it comes stories but characterization is as important as well. To me, the characters's actions didn't make sense. Aelin was being a self-centered bitch. Chaol was the only person worrying about Dorian. And then all of a sudden these male fae warriors came strutting in to replace all of the main characters that I've grown to love so much. And the quick transition from Celaena Sardothien to Aelin Galathynius was completely unrealistic. Celaena was only a disguise but it's what shaped her to become who she is in the present. She is not Celaena but who Celaena is and what Celaena has gone through will always be a part of who she is. It was supposed to be character development but it came out as character assassination (literally). It felt like Aelin murdered Celaena and replaced her. That is not how you develop a character. It is absolute nonsense that she would immediately go and despise Celaena and be a completely different person. It's just not realistic. And I wanted characters who are real and relatable, but SJM failed in giving me that. The only parts I really liked were Manon's chapters. But after getting through those parts, things were beginning to get really good. The action scenes kept my heart beating in a fast pace, and I guess it's what saved this book for me. I started to loathe Aelin less and the entire second half was bearable.
The reasons why I'm only giving this a 1 star is because:
1. My ship sank in an unfair way;
2. Chaol and Dorian were set aside even when they were supposed to be main characters;
3. Nesryn wasn't really given importance even when she had the potential to be a great and awesome character;
4. The new trio (Aelin, Aedion, and Rowan) ughh;
5. The so-called-romance (*barfs*) between Aelin and Rowan happened way too fast. (I skipped ALL OF THEIR PARTS. I'm sorry I'm not sorry);
6. The feels that I had when I read the first three books and the novella were no longer there. It vanished into thin air, sadly.
7. And of course, the CHARACTERIZATION.
Sad that this book ruined the series for me. I’m just angry and very very disappointed at the same time ://
Despite all of those things that I hated about this book, I'm still gonna continue this series though because I’ve already wasted my time on it then why not just finish it right? I absolutely loved the other characters of this series (Manon and her Thirteen, Chaol and Dorian obviously, Elide, Nesryn, Kaltain *sobs*) and I'm going to go on with this for all of them.
01/21/16
Review to come
06/28/15
SARAH J. MAAS: Bloody. Steamy. Action-packed.
ME: *DIES*
"The end of the road," Aelin said with a half smile.
"No," Chaol said, with his own smile faint, tentative. "The beginning of the next."
Before reading Queen of Shadows, I read a lot of bad reviews about this book. It's the reason why it took me so long to pick this up. I was very hesitant to read this, especially when I found out my ship was going to sink. There were loads of things that I hated and this series has completely turned into a different one from what I once loved.
The first parts were the worst. It took me one whole week reading the first half of the book. It was SO DIFFICULT reading those parts. I was so irritated and mad at all the things that were happening. It put me in a slump and I was so close to DNFing this book. I actually wished I could unread the whole series because of the first half. The characterization was all over the place. SJM completely disregarded it and it's what made me dislike this book. Writing style, plot, and worldbuilding are very important aspects when it comes stories but characterization is as important as well. To me, the characters's actions didn't make sense. Aelin was being a self-centered bitch. Chaol was the only person worrying about Dorian. And then all of a sudden these male fae warriors came strutting in to replace all of the main characters that I've grown to love so much. And the quick transition from Celaena Sardothien to Aelin Galathynius was completely unrealistic. Celaena was only a disguise but it's what shaped her to become who she is in the present. She is not Celaena but who Celaena is and what Celaena has gone through will always be a part of who she is. It was supposed to be character development but it came out as character assassination (literally). It felt like Aelin murdered Celaena and replaced her. That is not how you develop a character. It is absolute nonsense that she would immediately go and despise Celaena and be a completely different person. It's just not realistic. And I wanted characters who are real and relatable, but SJM failed in giving me that. The only parts I really liked were Manon's chapters. But after getting through those parts, things were beginning to get really good. The action scenes kept my heart beating in a fast pace, and I guess it's what saved this book for me. I started to loathe Aelin less and the entire second half was bearable.
The reasons why I'm only giving this a 1 star is because:
1. My ship sank in an unfair way;
2. Chaol and Dorian were set aside even when they were supposed to be main characters;
3. Nesryn wasn't really given importance even when she had the potential to be a great and awesome character;
4. The new trio (Aelin, Aedion, and Rowan) ughh;
5. The so-called-romance (*barfs*) between Aelin and Rowan happened way too fast. (I skipped ALL OF THEIR PARTS. I'm sorry I'm not sorry);
6. The feels that I had when I read the first three books and the novella were no longer there. It vanished into thin air, sadly.
7. And of course, the CHARACTERIZATION.
Sad that this book ruined the series for me. I’m just angry and very very disappointed at the same time ://
Despite all of those things that I hated about this book, I'm still gonna continue this series though because I’ve already wasted my time on it then why not just finish it right? I absolutely loved the other characters of this series (Manon and her Thirteen, Chaol and Dorian obviously, Elide, Nesryn, Kaltain *sobs*) and I'm going to go on with this for all of them.
01/21/16
Review to come
06/28/15
SARAH J. MAAS: Bloody. Steamy. Action-packed.
ME: *DIES*