On Rereads: Throne of Glass series by Sarah J. Maas

As the month is winding to a close (it's almost September. This year is almost 2/3rds over. I'm not freaking out, YOU'RE freaking out!) I was looking at my TBR pile and realizing that I am quite behind in this month's reading. I was hoping to have the two books I am currently reading finished by now and I only just started them both. But I'm trying not to stress out about that. I mean it's not the end of the world if I don't read all the books I wanted to, right? *hyperventilates*

But then I realized why I'm behind. Rereads. Before this month I really didn't do many rereads. I wanted to read new books and not spend my reading time focused on a book I had already experienced. But with so many series enders and series continuations happening this fall and winter I decided I needed some refreshers. For the foreseeable future I will be doing one reread a week so I thought I would do a new feature I'm calling On Rereads. They will be mini reviews where I talk about the books I reread and any different impressions I may have had after reading them a second time. Up first..

Throne of Glass Series by Sarah J. Maas

The Assassin's Blade -  (Amazon / Goodreads / Audible / My Review)

I was strongly urged to read The Assassin's Blade when starting this series and I still think that is was the right call. It just really develops Celaena's character in a way that makes her incredibly sympathetic. I'm just such a fan of her as a character. She's tough and badass but she's also vulnerable and with this moral compass you wouldn't expect in an assassin.

But what really struck me during my reread is how much stuff from the novellas comes into play during the rest of the series. I'm not sure when the novellas were originally published but they show a lot of foresight on the part of the author. It gives a lot of context to many things in the series. Plus people and situations come up throughout the rest of the books that were mentioned in sometimes a small way in this one. If you haven't read the novellas, get on that! I'm not a huge fan of novellas but with these ones they really do add a lot to the series and the five of them together reads like a novel.

Throne of Glass - (Amazon / Goodreads / Audible / My Review)

So the biggest change for me while reading Throne of Glass is that this time I listened to the audiobook. I had listened to the audio for The Assassin's Blade so I knew the general tone of the narrator but I was interesting to see how she would do the rest of the series. I had heard from a few people that they didn't really like some of her choices but for me it worked. She makes the characters a little cocky and conceited but I felt like it made sense for their characterization.

What I also really liked about the audio in this case is that it didn't make the multiple perspectives so frustrating. I still didn't love the narrative style and found there still to be a lot going on in terms of the plot development but it was all really good. I was kind of surprised by how much of the plot I did remember in Throne of Glass. And maybe it's because now I'm really invested in the series or maybe because the audio format just suited the book better to me, but I liked it more the second time around.

Crown of Midnight - (Amazon / Goodreads / Audible / My Review)

With Crown of Midnight I was surprised by how much of the plot I had forgotten. I of course remembered all the major plot points but that was about it. I remembered the big reveal at the end and the big sad thing that happens around the middle but other than that it was mostly like I was reading it for the first time. Which actually is kind of cool. With favorite series there is often this desire to want to experience it for the first time all over again and I feel a little bit like I got to do that. And of course things came flooding back to me as I kept reading but I had forgotten so much.

But the other great thing about Crown of Midnight, and this series in general, is the amount of foreshadowing there is. Knowing where the larger story is going, I can pick up the subtle little clues that I may have missed the first time. It really made for a deeper reading experience which is one of the reasons that I like doing rereads. I am the kind of person who prides themselves on being able to solve twists and after this reread I was kind of kicking myself for not solving this one.

Heir of Fire - (Amazon / Goodreads / Audible / My Review)

Heir of Fire was and still is my favorite book in the series so far. I love it because the world is mostly developed so we can spend time developing the characters a lot more. Celaena's arc in this book is amazing. But then there are all the new characters. Manon Blackbeak is one of my all-time favorite secondary characters and Aedion is so interesting as well. I know a lot of people are huge fans of Rowan but he just doesn't do much for me. Although this time around I can understand more why people like him.

I also really loved the audio for this book despite some of the names being pronounced in ways very different to how I originally pronounced them (like Manon). I liked it because there is also so much going on plot wise in this book and for me the audio translates better to that kind of storytelling. And it was also just as memorable and emotional story. I try to compartmentalize my feels for what happens in this book (DORIAAAAAN!) and when I reread all of them came flooding back and I was left feeling just as emotionally drained.

But now I am so ready for Queen of Shadows! It comes out next Tuesday so I just have to get through the next five days and then my e-book will magically get delivered to my kindle so I can start reading. And because I liked the audiobooks so much I think I'm going to grab the one for Queen of Shadows as well.

Have you done any rereads lately? What books? Do you like doing rereads or not? Tell me why. I hope you like this new feature. I'm hoping to do it once a month or when I finish a reread of a series. Thanks for stopping by and HAPPY READING!

Book Review: Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas

Title: Crown of Midnight Series: Throne of Glass #2 Author: Sarah J. Maas Published: August 2013 by Bloomsbury Amazon Goodreads Synopsis: She is the greatest assassin her world has ever known. But where will her conscience, and her heart, lead her?   After a year of hard labor in the Salt Mines of Endovier, eighteen-year-old assassin Celaena Sardothien has won the king's contest to become the new royal assassin. Yet Celaena is far from loyal to the crown – a secret she hides from even her most intimate confidantes.Keeping up the deadly charade—while pretending to do the king's bidding—will test her in frightening new ways, especially when she's given a task that could jeopardize everything she's come to care for. And there are far more dangerous forces gathering on the horizon -- forces that threaten to destroy her entire world, and will surely force Celaena to make a choice. Where do the assassin’s loyalties lie, and who is she willing to fight for?

I have heard nothing but great things about this YA fantasy series and the more I read, the more I understand why so many people love it. Celaena's story continues in Crown of Midnight which is a great follow up to Throne of Glass with amazing characters, a compelling world, and lots of mystery.

My favorite thing about this series, without a doubt, is the characters. The more time I spend with Celaena, the more I love her. I have always been struck by the fact that she is a deadly assassin with a heart of gold. That she is cocky and conceited but cares about others more than she cares about herself. It makes her such a creative and well-rounded character. In Crown of Midnight we get to further see the contradictions of Celaena and her strengths and weaknesses. She seems doomed to repeat her past indiscretions and incredibly vulnerable so many times in this book. But she also shows incredible strength both physically and mentally. She has some amazing badass moments where she kicks some serious tail. We also get to learn so much more about her past in this book and it makes her such a compelling protagonist.

But of course Celaena is not the only amazing character who is back in this book. All the characters that I loved in Throne of Glass are back and the book is full of feels as far as these three main secondary characters are concerned. Nehemia is back and once again keeping secrets from everyone while simultaneously helping Celaena. Dorian is back being the perfect Prince. He becomes a little complicated in this book and I am really loving his development. His swoonworthy moments did decrease a little bit but I am still so invested in him and his success. Then there is Chaol who easily picked up the swooning mantle from Dorian. He and Celaena really seem to compliment each other so well. They are both full of contradictions, incredible warriors that care more about others. What Sarah J. Maas does so well is create characters who despite their deficiencies and weaknesses it is easy to love them and root for them to succeed. But then of course there is that character that you love to hate, the King of Adarlan whose odious personality and scheming makes it incredibly easy to dislike him. These are just fantastic characters that are perfectly suited to this interesting and creative world.

And that's exactly what the world of Crown of Midnight is, creative and compelling. In Throne of Glass the world of Adarlan was established but unlike a lot of fantasy novels, in this second book, the rules keep changing. There is one specific magical system at work that was set up for us in Throne of Glass and we do get to explore that further and see what it can do, but there is also so much more magic. This is a world where magic supposedly did not exist, but it seems like it might be slowly making a comeback. There were some great and interesting things happening in this book with magic and I have the feeling that it's only going to get better as the series develops.

But it isn't just magic that makes this world interesting and compelling. Despite the fact that there seemed to be far less action in this one, there is so is so much scheming and political intrigue. Erilea is a world where a single king who is not very well-liked has conquered other kingdoms and their not too happy about it. In Crown of Midnight we get to spend some more time with some of the rebels who are working against the king and of course there is his scheming and plotting to contend with. But what I really liked about this book was the mystery. There is of course the mystery specific to this book, but there is also the continued mystery that won't be revealed until later books. There were also so many plot twists and revelations in this book and holy crap, that ending blew my mind. However with all the twists and overlapping mysteries the plot did get a bit muddled at times. Major plot points were introduced incredibly late into the story, resolved, and then brought back in for the final climax. It still didn't feel like one connected rising action to me despite the fact that it was an interesting and thrilling read.

I did however still have some issues with the narrative style. I think that it really just isn't my favorite. I mentioned in my review of Throne of Glass that I didn't really like that the book, which is told in a third-person style, switched perspectives frequently and that this would sometimes take me out of the story because I would have to pause and think about who was speaking and who's head we were inside at any given moment. This persisted in Crown of Midnight and was particularly evident and frustrating during the climax of the story. Maybe this is because I started with the novellas which are all told in Celaena's perspective and I got used to that, or because I'm realizing more and more lately that I don't like this kind of narrative style.

I give Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas 9 out of 10

This book was an entertaining second book in a series that is constantly developing in new and compelling ways. It is full of amazing characters to love, a unique and interesting world, and despite having a muddled plot at times enough mystery and action to keep me reading from start to finish. I would definitely recommend this book to fans of Young Adult fantasies and those who loved the first book will not be disappointed by this next book.

Have you read Crown of Midnight? What did you think? Leave me a comment with your thoughts. Thanks for stopping by and HAPPY READING!