Hiya, everyone! Noreen here with a book review on“Throne of Glass” by Sarah J. Maas.
Violence, nobility, magic, oh my. “Throne of Glass” is a YA fantasy novel that follows the story of a teen assassin by the name of Celaena Sardothian. In a world where magic is outlawed and the King is taking over other nations, everything is rotten for Celaena. She is stuck in Endovier, a salt mine, as a slave. Something that I noticed during the beginning of the book, when she is in Endovier and when she is going to the palace, is that Maas describes Celaena as sickly looking and how she isn’t the most beautiful girl alive. Its refreshing to read a character that isn’t effortlessly perfect after they go through such things, like being a slave or just getting dirty.
I bet you’re wondering why she is going to the palace. The King wants a “royal assassin” to do his dirty work, so obviously the best way to decide this is an all out brawl between twenty-three criminals.
The first quarter of this book was a drag to read, due to setting up the whole love triangle, making sure we all knew the book’s history and lore. As you get more into the book, it gets extremely interesting. Surprising deaths, characters you want to punch, and trials that you can picture perfectly in your head.
Let me just get the love triangle out of the way. Our two other main protagonists, Prince Dorian and Chaol are entranced with Celaena. Now usually I hate when a love triangle pushes its way into a book I’m reading, but this one seems to just fit. Nevertheless, at some points I wished it would tone it down with the “She’s so beautiful.” and “Why can’t I be with her?” moments. If you’re not into cutesy love, don’t try with this book. However, if you can either ignore it or you happen to enjoy it, you are in for an amazing story.
There are so many parts in this book that show fear and clever on the spot thinking. There is a part mid-book where Celaena finds out something insane and magical, but there’s evil there too. You can just imagine what’s going on at these points and how Celaena must feel.
I have to say, Maas has done an amazing job creating a heroine. Calaena fits well with the word around her. Even with all the brutal tasks and crazy things going on in the palace, Calaena doesn’t have to sacrifice her femininity to do it. If you look past the fact she is an assassin, you notice that Calaena is just as normal as any other teen, that she has hobbies just like the rest of us. And the rest of the characters in this book are very well written as well. I found myself becoming very fond of the Princess of Ewllye, Nehemia. Nehemia seems the most interesting to me out of all the characters, and if you read this book you’ll know why. But even for the characters who I have an extreme dislike for, I enjoyed reading because of the fact that they aren’t just your average villain or hero. Each character brings a different personality and outlook on life to the table.
Overall, “Throne of Glass” is a spectacular book that had me at the edge of my seat once I got into it. During the trials to become the royal assassin, I could feel the adrenaline of the characters. Once things get more into the fantasy aspect, I couldnt wait to find out what was going to happen next, or who was going to die next. I say, if you’re a fan of “The Hunger Games” series, you will most likely love this book and its sequels. I definitely suggest this book to be one for your summer reading list.
If you’ve read the book or you just have something to say, comment it down below, just be sure to mark your spoilers. Thanks for reading!