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A review by deena_
The Assassin's Blade by Sarah J. Maas
5.0
5 stars ★
Why did I ever let my stupidity lead me to believe I was ready for this? Why did I torture myself like that? Just why?!! Whoever persuaded me to read this, I love you but you guys can go find your respective places in hell, thank you very much.
My heart has been thoroughly shattered and scattered in the wind; it would take me forever to piece it back together and there's not another book in the series to help me with it.
I had every intention to swipe in The Assassin's Blade after Heir of Fire as the alternative reading order suggested, but somehow in between book 3 and 4, I lost track of the order and ended up skipping it. I pretty much had all the spoilers one could have without reading the book, at my disposal. I knew very well what was coming so I delayed the read for as long as I could, but damn, did it hurt any less? I'd rather eat shit than accept the ending it slapped on our face.
Sypnosis: The Assassin’s Blade includes five novellas taking place in the world of Throne of Glass, following everyone’s favorite assassin, Celaena Sardothien, as she goes on five different missions while trying to work by her own principles, against her master's orders.
Characters:
╰┈➤ Celaena Sardothien aka if the word 'trouble' had a face.
In the huge hot mess of the entire series, I almost forgot how much I missed Celaena and her pre-queen phase when her only worry was to wake up in the morning and be badass all day. It was nice to catch a glimpse of her wild youth and carefree persona before the shadows of unspeakable horror and the responsibilities of slaying demons and saving kingdoms fell upon her. I actually had to stop and remind myself that this 17 year old assassin and the young queen from Kingdom of Ash are the same person. I've always wondered about her life in the assassin's keep and I really liked what we were shown here, especially the missions, but only if they didn't wind up in trouble.
╰┈➤ Sam Cortland aka love of my god damn life.
He's the reason the sun rises, the birds sing, the wind blows, flowers bloom, and the earth rotates; he's the reason love exists. I can't spell love without him. All those edits and fanarts never did him justice. I can't begin to explain how precious he is and what big a place he has in my heart. Whoever said Rowan might be Aelin's mate but Sam was Celaena's, they were so right. Like seriously whenever he looked at her > Alexa play Mr. Loverman. I need more Samlaena moments like I need oxygen. He was the best part of the book, best part of the entire series, I refuse to hear any arguments.
╰┈➤ Arobynn Hamel aka trash given human from.
I want to dig him up from whatever hole he was buried in just so I can kill him again; I'd personally wipe my floor with his sorry ass, throw him in the washing machine and blow dry him on the freaking frying pan—such a waste of expensive space honestly. I'm surprised it took Celaena until Queen of Shadows to erase his existence from universe. He's the type of villain who would stab you in the back and say that they did it for your own good.
It's hard to say which one of the 5 novellas I liked best, they all were equally important. A lot of 'must know' information that would serve us well in the following books and make sure we're not missing out. I'll try to sum up my overall thoughts here.
The Assassin and The Pirate Lord
↳ 5 stars ★ (sam's first appearence, i'm biased don't judge)
-This novella takes us to Skull's Bay in the territory of Rolfe the Pirate Lord, carrying out one of Arobynn's infamous missions. Celaena is accompanied by her lifelong rival, Sam Cortland, who's been the king of assassin's second-best ever since she claimed his position as Arobynn's heir. As you can already guess, we have the childhood rivals to friends to lovers trope going on here. Their banter was top tier and all those sneering, glaring and muderous thoughts they had about each other—instant swoon—even the pirate lord and his companions teased them about their relationship.
--->when rolfe told celaena he had prepared two rooms for her and sam, celaena announced they'd just need one room. everyone gave her teasing looks, she realized how wrong it sounded and corrected that they needed a room with two beds; rolfe told her no one would mind if they shared a bed anyway. the glare she threw at sam for laughing at the whole misunderstanding, like you better watch your back tonight<---
-In this journey, Celaena realized she just couldn't complete this mission when it entails her bringing hundreds of slaves to her master. She, along with Sam, sets up their minds to grant them freedom even though it calls in great loss to their master's business, one they'll be heavily punished for. Okay so, seizing two ships, taking down pirates and freeing slaves from right under their nose was a big deal. I expected a lot more action but it kind of felt messy and rushed? I thought they would have a little more trouble with the security at least, but once Celaena charmed her way through them enough to strike while Sam handled the other part of it, things fell into place almost too smoothly. The best part of it was that those planning, plotting and taking such a big risk together, brought them closer. They might have lost fortunes but they walked away with a blooming friendship instead.
The Assassin and The Healer
↳ 3 stars ★
-Their encounter was the shortest yet the most impactful and a big turning point later in the series, it was everything I was looking for and some more. Yrene is as lovable as I remember. She was working as a barmaid at a local inn in a port city well-known for its crimes; her quest to reach the legendary healers' tower, Torre Cesme in the heart of Antica led her into the city, where she ran out of money and ended up staying, hoping to one day earn enough to sail to her destination. One night she noticed the arrival of a strange woman at the inn, clad in black leather and wielding wicked-looking weapons.
-Celaena was on her way to the Red Desert, as part of her punishment from Arobynn after costing him a lot of money by freeing the slaves in The Assassin and the Pirate Lord. She was so pissed and annoyed, she made sure to flash her wealth everywhere she went, hoping some fool would try to rob her so she could find a reason to start a fight. While looking for trouble herself she somehow managed to teach a young healer how to get out of it with the asking price that if she finds another woman who will listen, to teach them. Before Celaena leaves on her ship, she makes sure to leave Yrene a much-needed gift (also the famous note, yes). I thought this was a cute little story that sets up the events in Tower of Dawn nicely.
--->when celaena was giving yrene self defense lessons in the back alley of the inn, some robbers attacked them. celaena actually let one of them put a knife to yrene's throat so she could get out of the situation herself. it was such a rowan thing, the whole 'put your students in real danger to observe their learning progress', i had to laugh right there<---
The Assassin and The Desert
↳ 4 stars ★
-In the series, I never quite understood how she met Ansel and guess what? We got the answers and some much-needed drama during her training session in the red desert with the silent assassins. I was a little sad cause Sam didn't make an appearance again but at least we get to see Celaena's complicated feelings towards Arobynn and her endless confusion about what she feels for Sam. I think this is where she realizes she might be in love with him.
--->the scene where the master of the silent assassin's handsome son, who she flirted with for days on end, cornered her and they were about to have a moment but she pushed him away with an apology. later she was horrified to figure out it was sam's face in her mind that stopped her from crossing that line<---
-The desert did not just give her opportunities to physically train, but in a way, she got to see and understand how things didn't have to be so bad, it could be always better. She finds easy acceptance and makes friends. Ansel was a member of the silent assassin, I didn't like her to begin with but she's probably Celaena's first female friend and I can see why she feels close to her, she sees a dark part of herself in Ansel and finds it comforting to know she isn't alone. It also makes her miss her lost home.
The Assassin and The Underworld
↳ 5 stars ★
-This was probably my favorite of the novellas. This novella really touches on how twisted Arobynn is and what he did to finally make Celaena decide that she have had enough. After two books of missing him straight, we finally get more Sam and Celaena moments. I didn't think I could fall for him even more than I already did but there he was with his 'makes this world a better place' kind of smiles and I'm turning into a human-sized poodle. Both their jealousy and angry confessions were so cute I swear, my heart did silly little flips.
--->she retrieved a little amount of 'impossible to come by' the mythical stagian spidersilk from a strange merchant (yes, that very same merchant from the tower of dawn) during her stay in the red desert. she brought it back home and asked the master smith who made them the invincible suit arobynn requested, to add it around the inner chest pallet of Sam's suit so he'll always be protected when they are on missions<---
-I didn't believe Celaena when she said Lysandra used to be insufferable beyond measure, like look at her, how could she ever do anything wrong? But okay, I take that back, she actually was a little bitch. Sorry Lysandra, you had that flying daggar coming, be grateful Celaena missed, eitherway it's kind of meaningful as they end up being best of friends later in the series. At that point, I would have hated anyone who got between Sam and Celaena, especially Arobynn; he has a special place in my hate list, possibly red underlined so I have my priorities straight on which character to push under the bus first. When Celaena returns from the red desert with a letter of approval and a huge treasure—enough to pay back her debt and buy her freedom from Arobynn, that sick bastard still finds ways to manipulate her into staying and forces her hand to break her own principles by killing innocents. He knew very well that he had the upper hand and still chose to abuse it. I honestly felt so bad for those kids.
Celaena was set off on her final mission with Sam before they moved out of the assassin's keep once and for all; lot of action, intrigue, betrayals and a surprise first encounter with Prince Dorian and Captain Chaol Westfall at a party, they both are major characters in the Throne of Glass series. Unexpected as it is, I'm shocked they didn't recognize each other afterwards.
The Assassin and The Empire
↳ 5 stars ★ (this book would be paying for my therapy)
/Throws book out of the window/ WHAT WAS THE REASON?!!!
Hating someone is one thing but I was legit disgusted by Arobynn in this book; he needs to be chained to the tower of Torre Cesme while the legendary blessed healers performed exorcism on him. We can justify the king of Adarlan's actions (because of the rent-free valg invasion and all) but how would you justify Arobynn's existence? How can one look at him and not want to slap his stupid face? And oh my Gwad! Why is he described as hot?! Y'all are out of your minds for starting a Arobynn x Celaena ship.
-He actually admitted to being in love (idk whatever his twisted definition of love is) with Celaena, the girl he practically raised since what? She was 8 or something. He was almost 40 in this book and our girl 17; jail! I always thought their relationship was weird, she even said that Arobynn never called himself her father, brother or lover, there was a blurred line always but fuck him if he ever thought eliminating Sam would make her love him back. I bawled for the two hours it took me to read this book, okay. I screamed at Celaena to just leave it and run away with Sam as far as possible, even if she had to build him a palace in the moon made of stars to keep him out of Arobynn's clutches, I don't care, do it. They had it all, they almost got away, they almost reached that happiness.
-It's a common factor in booktok that Sam Cortlant from TOG goes back to the heaven he came from like the precious angel he is, way too early. Even people who don't know about TOG, know that. Still, I was hoping like hell it wouldn't actually happen cause in the classic SJM way, we fall in love with one love interest in the first few books who then turns out to be a bitch and another all-too-perfect love interest pops up to save the day. We had Chaol, Dorian and Rowan for all that drama so surely Sam wouldn't have to be sacrified; say they just broke up and went separate ways—anything but the ending he received. He didn't even know his girlfriend was the queen of Terrasen. I have so much respect for Celaena for being able to survive another betrayal and most of all, the yearlong slavery she was sent for, so soon after the second biggest heartbreak of her life.
All those things (endless tears, empty tissue boxes, broken heart, 0 sleep, murderous thoughts) aside, I thought I would be bored reading the prequels, but I found them an interesting addition to the series. Celaena's personality was consistent to what we get in Throne of Glass, and the events in the novellas line up with everything we learned in the series. I really enjoyed them, despite the emotional ending (never the emotional ending).
Why did I ever let my stupidity lead me to believe I was ready for this? Why did I torture myself like that? Just why?!! Whoever persuaded me to read this, I love you but you guys can go find your respective places in hell, thank you very much.
My heart has been thoroughly shattered and scattered in the wind; it would take me forever to piece it back together and there's not another book in the series to help me with it.
I had every intention to swipe in The Assassin's Blade after Heir of Fire as the alternative reading order suggested, but somehow in between book 3 and 4, I lost track of the order and ended up skipping it. I pretty much had all the spoilers one could have without reading the book, at my disposal. I knew very well what was coming so I delayed the read for as long as I could, but damn, did it hurt any less? I'd rather eat shit than accept the ending it slapped on our face.
Sypnosis: The Assassin’s Blade includes five novellas taking place in the world of Throne of Glass, following everyone’s favorite assassin, Celaena Sardothien, as she goes on five different missions while trying to work by her own principles, against her master's orders.
Characters:
╰┈➤ Celaena Sardothien aka if the word 'trouble' had a face.
In the huge hot mess of the entire series, I almost forgot how much I missed Celaena and her pre-queen phase when her only worry was to wake up in the morning and be badass all day. It was nice to catch a glimpse of her wild youth and carefree persona before the shadows of unspeakable horror and the responsibilities of slaying demons and saving kingdoms fell upon her. I actually had to stop and remind myself that this 17 year old assassin and the young queen from Kingdom of Ash are the same person. I've always wondered about her life in the assassin's keep and I really liked what we were shown here, especially the missions, but only if they didn't wind up in trouble.
╰┈➤ Sam Cortland aka love of my god damn life.
He's the reason the sun rises, the birds sing, the wind blows, flowers bloom, and the earth rotates; he's the reason love exists. I can't spell love without him. All those edits and fanarts never did him justice. I can't begin to explain how precious he is and what big a place he has in my heart. Whoever said Rowan might be Aelin's mate but Sam was Celaena's, they were so right. Like seriously whenever he looked at her > Alexa play Mr. Loverman. I need more Samlaena moments like I need oxygen. He was the best part of the book, best part of the entire series, I refuse to hear any arguments.
╰┈➤ Arobynn Hamel aka trash given human from.
I want to dig him up from whatever hole he was buried in just so I can kill him again; I'd personally wipe my floor with his sorry ass, throw him in the washing machine and blow dry him on the freaking frying pan—such a waste of expensive space honestly. I'm surprised it took Celaena until Queen of Shadows to erase his existence from universe. He's the type of villain who would stab you in the back and say that they did it for your own good.
It's hard to say which one of the 5 novellas I liked best, they all were equally important. A lot of 'must know' information that would serve us well in the following books and make sure we're not missing out. I'll try to sum up my overall thoughts here.
The Assassin and The Pirate Lord
↳ 5 stars ★ (sam's first appearence, i'm biased don't judge)
“If we live through this, Celaena, remind me to teach you how to play cards properly.”
“I’ve been shouting for you.”
“I figured you could wait a few minutes, given that I saved the day and all.”
“Sam smiled, his brown eyes turning golden in the dawn. It was such a Sam look, the twinkle of mischief, the hint of exasperation, the kindness that would always, always make him a better person than she was.”
“Come on, Sardothien, if you’re done liberating slaves and destroying pirate cities, then let’s go home.”
-This novella takes us to Skull's Bay in the territory of Rolfe the Pirate Lord, carrying out one of Arobynn's infamous missions. Celaena is accompanied by her lifelong rival, Sam Cortland, who's been the king of assassin's second-best ever since she claimed his position as Arobynn's heir. As you can already guess, we have the childhood rivals to friends to lovers trope going on here. Their banter was top tier and all those sneering, glaring and muderous thoughts they had about each other—instant swoon—even the pirate lord and his companions teased them about their relationship.
--->when rolfe told celaena he had prepared two rooms for her and sam, celaena announced they'd just need one room. everyone gave her teasing looks, she realized how wrong it sounded and corrected that they needed a room with two beds; rolfe told her no one would mind if they shared a bed anyway. the glare she threw at sam for laughing at the whole misunderstanding, like you better watch your back tonight<---
-In this journey, Celaena realized she just couldn't complete this mission when it entails her bringing hundreds of slaves to her master. She, along with Sam, sets up their minds to grant them freedom even though it calls in great loss to their master's business, one they'll be heavily punished for. Okay so, seizing two ships, taking down pirates and freeing slaves from right under their nose was a big deal. I expected a lot more action but it kind of felt messy and rushed? I thought they would have a little more trouble with the security at least, but once Celaena charmed her way through them enough to strike while Sam handled the other part of it, things fell into place almost too smoothly. The best part of it was that those planning, plotting and taking such a big risk together, brought them closer. They might have lost fortunes but they walked away with a blooming friendship instead.
The Assassin and The Healer
↳ 3 stars ★
“There was such irony, she realized, in them working together—the assassin and the healer. Two opposite sides of the coin.”
“There were so many of them now—the children who had lost everything to Adarlan. Children who had now grown into assassins and barmaids, without a true place to call home, their native kingdoms left in ruin and ash.”
“She hoped that an assassin’s jewel would pay for a healer’s education.”
“Yrene Towers would return to this continent, and maybe, just maybe, heal their shattered world a little bit.”
-Their encounter was the shortest yet the most impactful and a big turning point later in the series, it was everything I was looking for and some more. Yrene is as lovable as I remember. She was working as a barmaid at a local inn in a port city well-known for its crimes; her quest to reach the legendary healers' tower, Torre Cesme in the heart of Antica led her into the city, where she ran out of money and ended up staying, hoping to one day earn enough to sail to her destination. One night she noticed the arrival of a strange woman at the inn, clad in black leather and wielding wicked-looking weapons.
-Celaena was on her way to the Red Desert, as part of her punishment from Arobynn after costing him a lot of money by freeing the slaves in The Assassin and the Pirate Lord. She was so pissed and annoyed, she made sure to flash her wealth everywhere she went, hoping some fool would try to rob her so she could find a reason to start a fight. While looking for trouble herself she somehow managed to teach a young healer how to get out of it with the asking price that if she finds another woman who will listen, to teach them. Before Celaena leaves on her ship, she makes sure to leave Yrene a much-needed gift (also the famous note, yes). I thought this was a cute little story that sets up the events in Tower of Dawn nicely.
--->when celaena was giving yrene self defense lessons in the back alley of the inn, some robbers attacked them. celaena actually let one of them put a knife to yrene's throat so she could get out of the situation herself. it was such a rowan thing, the whole 'put your students in real danger to observe their learning progress', i had to laugh right there<---
The Assassin and The Desert
↳ 4 stars ★
“Sam—when had she ever thought of him as desirable? He’d laugh until he died if he ever knew she thought of him like that.”
“Celaena stared at the ceiling, suddenly homesick, strangely wishing Sam was with her. At least if she were to fail, she’d fail with him.”
“To making amends—and fond memories.”
“To being the most fearsome and imposing girls the world has ever seen.”
“One warrior might not make a difference against two hundred, but she was Celaena Sardothien.”
“And maybe when she makes her next move to reclaim her title, she will remember the assassin from the North and the kindness you showed her.”
-In the series, I never quite understood how she met Ansel and guess what? We got the answers and some much-needed drama during her training session in the red desert with the silent assassins. I was a little sad cause Sam didn't make an appearance again but at least we get to see Celaena's complicated feelings towards Arobynn and her endless confusion about what she feels for Sam. I think this is where she realizes she might be in love with him.
--->the scene where the master of the silent assassin's handsome son, who she flirted with for days on end, cornered her and they were about to have a moment but she pushed him away with an apology. later she was horrified to figure out it was sam's face in her mind that stopped her from crossing that line<---
-The desert did not just give her opportunities to physically train, but in a way, she got to see and understand how things didn't have to be so bad, it could be always better. She finds easy acceptance and makes friends. Ansel was a member of the silent assassin, I didn't like her to begin with but she's probably Celaena's first female friend and I can see why she feels close to her, she sees a dark part of herself in Ansel and finds it comforting to know she isn't alone. It also makes her miss her lost home.
The Assassin and The Underworld
↳ 5 stars ★
“After so many years of treating him awfully, she didn’t know how to slide back into that newfound respect and camaraderie they’d discovered for each other”
“Well, I care what you think of me. I care enough that I stayed at this disgusting party just for you. And I care enough that I’d attend a thousand more like it so I can spend a few hours with you when you aren’t looking at me like I’m not worth the dirt beneath your shoes.”
“You said you didn’t care what I thought. Or what I did. Or if I died, if I’m not mistaken.”
“I lied! And you know I lied, you stupid bastard!”
“From today onward, I want to never be separated from you. Wherever you go, I go. Even if that means going to Hell itself, wherever you are, that’s where I want to be. Forever.”
-This was probably my favorite of the novellas. This novella really touches on how twisted Arobynn is and what he did to finally make Celaena decide that she have had enough. After two books of missing him straight, we finally get more Sam and Celaena moments. I didn't think I could fall for him even more than I already did but there he was with his 'makes this world a better place' kind of smiles and I'm turning into a human-sized poodle. Both their jealousy and angry confessions were so cute I swear, my heart did silly little flips.
--->she retrieved a little amount of 'impossible to come by' the mythical stagian spidersilk from a strange merchant (yes, that very same merchant from the tower of dawn) during her stay in the red desert. she brought it back home and asked the master smith who made them the invincible suit arobynn requested, to add it around the inner chest pallet of Sam's suit so he'll always be protected when they are on missions<---
-I didn't believe Celaena when she said Lysandra used to be insufferable beyond measure, like look at her, how could she ever do anything wrong? But okay, I take that back, she actually was a little bitch. Sorry Lysandra, you had that flying daggar coming, be grateful Celaena missed, eitherway it's kind of meaningful as they end up being best of friends later in the series. At that point, I would have hated anyone who got between Sam and Celaena, especially Arobynn; he has a special place in my hate list, possibly red underlined so I have my priorities straight on which character to push under the bus first. When Celaena returns from the red desert with a letter of approval and a huge treasure—enough to pay back her debt and buy her freedom from Arobynn, that sick bastard still finds ways to manipulate her into staying and forces her hand to break her own principles by killing innocents. He knew very well that he had the upper hand and still chose to abuse it. I honestly felt so bad for those kids.
Celaena was set off on her final mission with Sam before they moved out of the assassin's keep once and for all; lot of action, intrigue, betrayals and a surprise first encounter with Prince Dorian and Captain Chaol Westfall at a party, they both are major characters in the Throne of Glass series. Unexpected as it is, I'm shocked they didn't recognize each other afterwards.
The Assassin and The Empire
↳ 5 stars ★ (this book would be paying for my therapy)
“He was so beautiful—so full of all the things that she wanted, all that she hoped for. How had she never noticed that until this year? How had she spent so long hating him?”
“The only secret I’ve borne my entire life is that I love you. It was the one thing I believed I’d go to the grave without voicing.”
“You want to hear something ridiculous? Whenever I’m scared out of my wits, I tell myself: My name is Sam Cortland … and I will not be afraid. I’ve been doing it for years.”
“She opened her eyes and found him watching her, his face a mixture of pride and wonder and such open affection that she could see that far-off land where they’d find a home, see that future that awaited them, and that glimmer of hope that promised happiness she’d never considered or dared yearn for.”
“She would tuck Sam into her heart, a bright light for her to take out whenever things were darkest.”
/Throws book out of the window/ WHAT WAS THE REASON?!!!
Hating someone is one thing but I was legit disgusted by Arobynn in this book; he needs to be chained to the tower of Torre Cesme while the legendary blessed healers performed exorcism on him. We can justify the king of Adarlan's actions (because of the rent-free valg invasion and all) but how would you justify Arobynn's existence? How can one look at him and not want to slap his stupid face? And oh my Gwad! Why is he described as hot?! Y'all are out of your minds for starting a Arobynn x Celaena ship.
-He actually admitted to being in love (idk whatever his twisted definition of love is) with Celaena, the girl he practically raised since what? She was 8 or something. He was almost 40 in this book and our girl 17; jail! I always thought their relationship was weird, she even said that Arobynn never called himself her father, brother or lover, there was a blurred line always but fuck him if he ever thought eliminating Sam would make her love him back. I bawled for the two hours it took me to read this book, okay. I screamed at Celaena to just leave it and run away with Sam as far as possible, even if she had to build him a palace in the moon made of stars to keep him out of Arobynn's clutches, I don't care, do it. They had it all, they almost got away, they almost reached that happiness.
-It's a common factor in booktok that Sam Cortlant from TOG goes back to the heaven he came from like the precious angel he is, way too early. Even people who don't know about TOG, know that. Still, I was hoping like hell it wouldn't actually happen cause in the classic SJM way, we fall in love with one love interest in the first few books who then turns out to be a bitch and another all-too-perfect love interest pops up to save the day. We had Chaol, Dorian and Rowan for all that drama so surely Sam wouldn't have to be sacrified; say they just broke up and went separate ways—anything but the ending he received. He didn't even know his girlfriend was the queen of Terrasen. I have so much respect for Celaena for being able to survive another betrayal and most of all, the yearlong slavery she was sent for, so soon after the second biggest heartbreak of her life.
All those things (endless tears, empty tissue boxes, broken heart, 0 sleep, murderous thoughts) aside, I thought I would be bored reading the prequels, but I found them an interesting addition to the series. Celaena's personality was consistent to what we get in Throne of Glass, and the events in the novellas line up with everything we learned in the series. I really enjoyed them, despite the emotional ending (never the emotional ending).