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bibliorama's reviews
157 reviews
The Girl in the Tower by Katherine Arden
adventurous
hopeful
fast-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
5.0
5 star series through and through.
The Wicked King by Holly Black
4.0
Had a much better time with this one compared to the first. Still some slower moments, but not as much as the first I felt. And I freaking flew through the audiobook.
Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas
adventurous
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Reread
Enjoyment - 3.5
I first read this book on audio and after rereading it on ebook, my first rating still stands mostly. This was a quick read, not as quick as the novella was, but considering I started a new job and still ended up finishing this in around 2 weeks that's pretty darn good for me. My enjoyment dipped because Celaena's character felt closer to the way she was at the beginning of the novella rather than how she was at the end, which doesn't entirely make sense. Plus, a lot of this first book just isn't as memorable.
Start - 3.75
The plot feels the most cohesive at the beginning. This is also where the writing felt the strongest. However, overall the writing felt weaker on the whole from the novellas, but considering this was written first I'll take that as a good sign for the rest of the series.
Characters - 3
The stereotypes that each character falls into is clear and they are consistent within those stereotypes, the characters just don't go much beyond them; hence the 3 stars. Like I said before, Celaena feels like she regressed a bit as a character, which makes sense since this was written before the novellas, but since this story is chronologically after them it feels like a detriment to her character. I still like her overall, and like my first read through thoughts I wish I had read these books as a teenager. The rest of the characters felt pretty weak and only their base level characteristics are what we get.
Atmosphere - 4
I like the environment and little details sjm adds to bring out the setting. It's not an extreme medieval setting, but it gives a slight feel of that.
Plot - 3.5
Let me state this here, despite what other reviews say, you do in fact get to read about the competition. Not all of the tests are dramatized out in full scenes, which is fine considering these tests are like games that knights would go through and not life and death tests like the Hunger Games. I counted like 3 tests besides the dual at the end that you get to read in full. However the plot is pretty clear in the fact that it is setting up much more important plot points for the future books, like Elena, wyrdmarks, and Celaena's backstory etc. My rating is only a 3.5 because it felt like a setup for other books, and it wasn't as concise as the novellas where, meaning there are some fluff scenes in here as well.
Ending - 3
Not as strong as the beginning in my opinion. It gives what it promised to give though, nothing too plot twisty or surprising. But that's where I say, man I would've loved it as a teenager (sorry to my younger self for being robbed and thinking I had to read "serious" and "classic" books).
Style - 3
I'm comparing it to the novellas, and again I think those were more clean and concise with what they wanted to say and I think this book would've benefitted from that kind of editting.
Overall - 3.5
Recommendation - read this first, then the novellas, and then if you're feeling really spicy reread this first book before going into the second.
____________
Not as bad as some people make it out to be. There were some annoying tendencies in the writing where there would be contradictions in a sentence, example her feet were heavy and light at the same time. To me this just cancels out what the author was trying to convey making it meaningless. It happened enough time to be a bother. I also found the plotline to be predictable, but for a YA made in 2012 I don't think I can fault it that much.
Surprisingly, I liked Celeana's character traits. I read some reviews calling her vain, and while I think in some parts sure that's probably accurate. However, other media characters in similar positions (as in assassins) also share the trait so it didn't bother me. It helps that there are scenes that showcase other parts of her personality to balance her out.
Listened to the audiobook
Would classify as a 'Romance' Fantasy.
Enjoyment - 3.5
I first read this book on audio and after rereading it on ebook, my first rating still stands mostly. This was a quick read, not as quick as the novella was, but considering I started a new job and still ended up finishing this in around 2 weeks that's pretty darn good for me. My enjoyment dipped because Celaena's character felt closer to the way she was at the beginning of the novella rather than how she was at the end, which doesn't entirely make sense. Plus, a lot of this first book just isn't as memorable.
Start - 3.75
The plot feels the most cohesive at the beginning. This is also where the writing felt the strongest. However, overall the writing felt weaker on the whole from the novellas, but considering this was written first I'll take that as a good sign for the rest of the series.
Characters - 3
The stereotypes that each character falls into is clear and they are consistent within those stereotypes, the characters just don't go much beyond them; hence the 3 stars. Like I said before, Celaena feels like she regressed a bit as a character, which makes sense since this was written before the novellas, but since this story is chronologically after them it feels like a detriment to her character. I still like her overall, and like my first read through thoughts I wish I had read these books as a teenager. The rest of the characters felt pretty weak and only their base level characteristics are what we get.
Atmosphere - 4
I like the environment and little details sjm adds to bring out the setting. It's not an extreme medieval setting, but it gives a slight feel of that.
Plot - 3.5
Let me state this here, despite what other reviews say, you do in fact get to read about the competition. Not all of the tests are dramatized out in full scenes, which is fine considering these tests are like games that knights would go through and not life and death tests like the Hunger Games. I counted like 3 tests besides the dual at the end that you get to read in full. However the plot is pretty clear in the fact that it is setting up much more important plot points for the future books, like Elena, wyrdmarks, and Celaena's backstory etc. My rating is only a 3.5 because it felt like a setup for other books, and it wasn't as concise as the novellas where, meaning there are some fluff scenes in here as well.
Ending - 3
Not as strong as the beginning in my opinion. It gives what it promised to give though, nothing too plot twisty or surprising. But that's where I say, man I would've loved it as a teenager (sorry to my younger self for being robbed and thinking I had to read "serious" and "classic" books).
Style - 3
I'm comparing it to the novellas, and again I think those were more clean and concise with what they wanted to say and I think this book would've benefitted from that kind of editting.
Overall - 3.5
Recommendation - read this first, then the novellas, and then if you're feeling really spicy reread this first book before going into the second.
____________
Not as bad as some people make it out to be. There were some annoying tendencies in the writing where there would be contradictions in a sentence, example her feet were heavy and light at the same time. To me this just cancels out what the author was trying to convey making it meaningless. It happened enough time to be a bother. I also found the plotline to be predictable, but for a YA made in 2012 I don't think I can fault it that much.
Surprisingly, I liked Celeana's character traits. I read some reviews calling her vain, and while I think in some parts sure that's probably accurate. However, other media characters in similar positions (as in assassins) also share the trait so it didn't bother me. It helps that there are scenes that showcase other parts of her personality to balance her out.
Listened to the audiobook
Would classify as a 'Romance' Fantasy.
The Queen of Nothing by Holly Black
4.0
I'd say this was more 3.5. I definitely think the Wicked King is my favorite of the trilogy, but I'd say I like the Queen of Nothing more than the first book. The beginning was a bit slow, but I ended up being okay with that. I'm also not mad at the off screen death that happened and some of the other convenient plot points mostly because I'm not diehard in my investment of this series. I used this read to destress and it worked well. By the end I came to enjoy reading from Jude's perspective and liked her as a character.
On a side note, I've seen a lot of negative opinions about Taryn and I'm just not on board with that. I didn't see her as the evil sister, just a character who had her own motivations that didn't always align with her sister's. I also don't think the whole Locke and Taryn situation makes her evil as well. That relationship was bound to be unequel in power and not in Taryn's favor (this opinion is based off of the trilogy only I don't know anything about the novella story that might flesh Taryn out in other ways). I appreciate that Holly Black didn't make her an "enemy" of Jude.
On a side note, I've seen a lot of negative opinions about Taryn and I'm just not on board with that. I didn't see her as the evil sister, just a character who had her own motivations that didn't always align with her sister's. I also don't think the whole Locke and Taryn situation makes her evil as well. That relationship was bound to be unequel in power and not in Taryn's favor (this opinion is based off of the trilogy only I don't know anything about the novella story that might flesh Taryn out in other ways). I appreciate that Holly Black didn't make her an "enemy" of Jude.