A review by iftheshoef1tz
House of Flame and Shadow by Sarah J. Maas

adventurous emotional tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

Although this book was narratively sounder and much more like SJM at her best, it was still not my favorite read. Bryce was insufferable the whole book, which surprised me because I used to be a Bryce apologist. It suddenly seemed to obvious to me that she had done nothing with the character development she had gone through by the end of HOEAB. She is the same at the end of HOFAS as she was at the beginning of HOSAB, and it really rankled. Hunt’s very recent trauma in the dungeon was treated like
a pesky, over emotional response that was getting in the way of Bryce super special secret plan, and her apology was bullshit. She only apologized when she needed him to comfort her.
I was glad that
Sigrid
was killed off instead of shoe-horned into being
Ithan’s mate. Perry
isn’t a great substitute IMO, but at least that was left open-ended. I also didn’t care for DayNight, especially because Ruhn seemed to recover so quickly from his shock and horror at Lidia being the Hind. Of all the romances to not leave open-ended, this one is the most baffling to me. Lidia is forgiven so quickly
(and by her kids’ gay mer dads, who have only ever known her as a merciless killer/torturer and suddenly they’re like best bros by the end and both her kids love her and call her mom - UGH)
 

Ithan and Tharion had such incredible chemistry, starting from HOSAB. That continued through HOFAS, and yet they are both pushed into heterosexual pairings, at least one of which feels utterly contrived because of how little she was ever mentioned.
I think Perry was referenced like…twice in HOSAB?
At least with
Tharion and Sathia,
she has a former lover who she clearly still loves. It’s possible their marriage of convenience could turn them into something More, but I sincerely hope not. 

Overall, I had an okay time, especially any time Nesta was on the page. It fell flat in a lot of ways and suffered from bloat like HOSAB. Not to mention they spent time in caves TWICE. Why?? Girl, why??????

Tropes:
Crossover
Ruhn’s
hand
should join the Addams family
Local woman withholds all details
Failing upwards (x2)
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