Throne of Glass Review
Throne of Glass, written by Sarah J. Maas, was a series that I started reading a couple years ago and probably is still one of my favorites. The story is set in a fantastical kingdom with different races, apart from just the regular humans such as the Fae (something similar to a superhuman and elf combination with unnatural beauty) and shapeshifters (they look like humans but can change into any other species for a period of time).
The protagonist of this story is Celaena Sardothien, a young girl who is also known as the most feared assassin in all the lands. In the beginning of the story, she had a life sentence for murdering almost thousands of people but the King of Adarlan, who was in need a personal assassin, offered her a deal. Win the title of the King's Champion - competing against other thieves and murderers - and be free after working for the King for a couple of years. Eager to get out of the disgusting mine she was imprisoned in, Celaena readily agrees to this and is shipped off the castle to compete. While competing, Celaena is swept up in a romance between her and Prince Dorian while her mentor, Chaol Westfall, is also falling in love with her. However, not everything is lovey-dovey as there is a monster that is slowly killing the other competitors and Celaena just might be next.
Desperate to find an answer to the mysterious monster, Celaena unearths dark secrets in the castle and meets the spirit of the daughter of the last Fae king, Elena Galathynius Havilliard who helps her through her fight with the evil that is possessing one of the other competitors, Cain. After defeating Cain and winning the Champion's title, Celaena plans to peacefully carry out her duties until she can be free. Unfortunately, more danger comes for Celaena and she finds out that the demon Valg (a demon that acts like a parasite by inserting themselves into other bodies) king, Erawan, is returning after being sealed away and this time, he's stronger than ever. As Celaena travels down a rocky road full of hardship, mystery, and romance, she must realize who she truly is and who she can trust or all could be lost.
**SPOILERS AFTER THIS POINT**
The story was intriguing to read and to my delight, there were many plot twists which made me even more hooked. Even when I thought I could predict what would happen next, the author usually has another big surprise waiting for the readers. For example, Celaena Sardothien was revealed to actually be Aelin Galathynius, the queen of Terrasen (a fallen kingdom), the only surviving member of the Galathynius line and a Fae. While I was expecting Celaena to be some big, mighty character, I was pretty taken aback at the fact that she was a Galathynius because this family was put on such a high pedestal.
However, like all stories, Throne of Glass had its flaws. First of all, I thought the romance was over the top. Although I was pleased who Celaena/Aelin ended up with (Rowan Whitethorn who is a Fae prince), the author constantly switched up who Celaena/Aelin's partner was. First it was Sam, who was murdered so end of THAT story, then it was Prince Dorian, then it turned to Chaol Westfall and finally, it ended up at Rowan Whitethorn. Not only did I dislike the fact that Celaena/Aelin kept switching her love interest due to her uncontrollable temper and violent outbursts, I felt as though the author spent too much time on the romance. I (and lots of others) enjoy a good romance but the romance was so consuming that I sometimes felt that the story was going off track.
Secondly, the story was so complex that it was hard to remember previous situations that happened earlier in the series. I myself had a pretty hard time keeping track of all the different species and characters within the story and sometimes would need to go online to refresh my memory. Unfortunately for me, I haven't gotten to the final book and I'm already blanking when it comes to specific facts. Some might compare the complexity of Throne of Glass to Keeper of the Lost Cities where a reader has to constantly re-read to remember all the details within the story. I would even say Throne of Glass is harder to keep track of due to the four different story line's going on in one book.
Overall, Throne of Glass is a series I would definitely recommend to anyone who likes fantasy and action. It's decently paced and keeps readers hooked with the constant fighting and mysteries. However, in the later books, the story takes quite a dark turn and the fighting scenes can be quite graphic (someone gets tortured and its pretty gross since the author describes it so thoroughly). There is also quite a bit of mature content once the story hits the fourth book and if anyone is squeamish to this kind of material, stay away from this series.
The protagonist of this story is Celaena Sardothien, a young girl who is also known as the most feared assassin in all the lands. In the beginning of the story, she had a life sentence for murdering almost thousands of people but the King of Adarlan, who was in need a personal assassin, offered her a deal. Win the title of the King's Champion - competing against other thieves and murderers - and be free after working for the King for a couple of years. Eager to get out of the disgusting mine she was imprisoned in, Celaena readily agrees to this and is shipped off the castle to compete. While competing, Celaena is swept up in a romance between her and Prince Dorian while her mentor, Chaol Westfall, is also falling in love with her. However, not everything is lovey-dovey as there is a monster that is slowly killing the other competitors and Celaena just might be next.
Desperate to find an answer to the mysterious monster, Celaena unearths dark secrets in the castle and meets the spirit of the daughter of the last Fae king, Elena Galathynius Havilliard who helps her through her fight with the evil that is possessing one of the other competitors, Cain. After defeating Cain and winning the Champion's title, Celaena plans to peacefully carry out her duties until she can be free. Unfortunately, more danger comes for Celaena and she finds out that the demon Valg (a demon that acts like a parasite by inserting themselves into other bodies) king, Erawan, is returning after being sealed away and this time, he's stronger than ever. As Celaena travels down a rocky road full of hardship, mystery, and romance, she must realize who she truly is and who she can trust or all could be lost.
**SPOILERS AFTER THIS POINT**
The story was intriguing to read and to my delight, there were many plot twists which made me even more hooked. Even when I thought I could predict what would happen next, the author usually has another big surprise waiting for the readers. For example, Celaena Sardothien was revealed to actually be Aelin Galathynius, the queen of Terrasen (a fallen kingdom), the only surviving member of the Galathynius line and a Fae. While I was expecting Celaena to be some big, mighty character, I was pretty taken aback at the fact that she was a Galathynius because this family was put on such a high pedestal.
However, like all stories, Throne of Glass had its flaws. First of all, I thought the romance was over the top. Although I was pleased who Celaena/Aelin ended up with (Rowan Whitethorn who is a Fae prince), the author constantly switched up who Celaena/Aelin's partner was. First it was Sam, who was murdered so end of THAT story, then it was Prince Dorian, then it turned to Chaol Westfall and finally, it ended up at Rowan Whitethorn. Not only did I dislike the fact that Celaena/Aelin kept switching her love interest due to her uncontrollable temper and violent outbursts, I felt as though the author spent too much time on the romance. I (and lots of others) enjoy a good romance but the romance was so consuming that I sometimes felt that the story was going off track.
Secondly, the story was so complex that it was hard to remember previous situations that happened earlier in the series. I myself had a pretty hard time keeping track of all the different species and characters within the story and sometimes would need to go online to refresh my memory. Unfortunately for me, I haven't gotten to the final book and I'm already blanking when it comes to specific facts. Some might compare the complexity of Throne of Glass to Keeper of the Lost Cities where a reader has to constantly re-read to remember all the details within the story. I would even say Throne of Glass is harder to keep track of due to the four different story line's going on in one book.
Overall, Throne of Glass is a series I would definitely recommend to anyone who likes fantasy and action. It's decently paced and keeps readers hooked with the constant fighting and mysteries. However, in the later books, the story takes quite a dark turn and the fighting scenes can be quite graphic (someone gets tortured and its pretty gross since the author describes it so thoroughly). There is also quite a bit of mature content once the story hits the fourth book and if anyone is squeamish to this kind of material, stay away from this series.
This is a great review! You summarized the book in a concise way that makes it easy to understand, and you gave you're opinion on the book, which gave me an idea of what I should expect from the book. This book sounds pretty interesting, and I might read it soon! Good job!
ReplyDeleteThis is a very detailed and interesting review! I like that you specifically explained both strengths and weaknesses of the books in addition to including a summary. I was especially interested in your comment about there being "too much romance", since this is not a common thing. I have actually wanted to read this book for a while, and based on what you have said, I think I definitely should try it. Also, if you want a series like this to read, I would suggest "The Mortal Instruments". It is similar to what you just described. Great review!
ReplyDeleteThis book seems to have a really intriguing premise. I feel like it's easy for books like this, that are set in fantasy worlds with kings and different magical races, to all feel really similar but it sounds like the plot of this is somewhat unique in the sense that it's not just one long quest to the end, but rather a quest to simply just survive. I have heard of this series before and read the first few pages of the first book but never finished it. However, it sounds like a great series. Good job on this review!
ReplyDeleteI thought the summary you gave was really well formed and concise which made it easier to read and understand the book. The comments you made were very insightful and helped me make my decision to check this book out. You included things that were really crucial to the making of a good book such as whether the plot is easy to follow and understand. Great review!
ReplyDeleteI was a bit wary about reading this novel because I didn't enjoy Sarah J. Maas' other book series, A Court of Mist and Fury (the themes of over-the-top romance remained constant in that novel as well), however I might have to give the author a second chance. I appreciate your concise, yet incredibly descriptive summary as it clearly gives me a look into the overall contents of the novel. I also like how to included a spoiler warning, and then stated your opinions on the novel. Overall, great job!
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed how you summarized the story, and it gave me an idea of how complicated the story is which later fed into your critique. It was nice to see you point out the strong suits of the story while also being fair and critical of its flaws (romance). Although Throne of Glass does not seem to be the series for me, I can appreciate the seemingly intriguing plot and story.
ReplyDeleteI really liked your review! I read this series a while ago - this really reminded me to check out the latest, haha. I enjoyed how you approached the series as a whole, not just a single book. I will make sure to reread this series, and thank you for the review!
ReplyDelete