Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Mass

Rating: 4.9 stars

all the books in the Throne of Glass series (in order)

Written by Sarah J. Maas, Throne of Glass is a fantasy series comprising of 8 books, and following the story of Celaena Sardothien, an assassin. At first sight, it’s not what one would typically expect in a fantasy series, but regardless, it encompasses a variety of elements from across genres and will definitely please readers who stumble across it. I have to admit, I wasn’t particularly drawn to the series when I first started reading it, but as I progressed through the series I found myself longing to know what each of the characters’ futures held.

There were surprises in almost every chapter, adding new twists to the story, but even then, Maas managed to avoid making the series complicated, or hard to comprehend. No one is who they seem to be, and soon you find yourself inside each of the characters’ shoes. Although you probably aren’t an assassin or have a story similar to Celaena’s, you can relate with almost everyone on an emotional level, and empathize with them. I’m not going to pretend, this series made me cry in moments I least expected it, or made me want to hurl something across my room when a character was angry. The Throne of Glass series motivates you to do more, for yourself and others, and almost every character inspires you to be better. After reading these 8 books, you will be in awe of how hard the characters’ try to reach their goal, no matter how much they’ve been through and lost. I would have given this series a full 5 stars but there were points when I found the story too sad, and I just thought Maas shouldn’t have killed off certain characters. It’s not a problem with the books, but at certain points, it gets too melancholy for me to handle. Just the journey of Celaena, and how she discovers herself and her relationships with various people is captivating. This series is different and unique because it includes every characters’ point of view.

One of the issues in these books was the absence of diversity. There were only 2 genders included, and everyone was white (with the exception of Nehemia). I honestly would have loved if the book included more diverse culture.

If you look at other fantasy series, for example, Harry Potter, you would be reading the entire book from Harry’s perspective. You might have flashbacks that show you how much Snape loved Lily, or about Voldemort’s past, but you won’t have chapters dedicated to what characters other than Harry are thinking or feeling. That’s one of the reasons I loved Throne of Glass. I was able to see the events progressing through each character’s perspective. The imagery in this series was flawless and I was able to view and fabricate scenes of the story in my mind while reading. I couldn’t put any book in this series down, and although I might have felt sorrow at certain parts, I wanted to keep reading because of the amount of intrigue in these books. This series, as a whole, is engaging, melancholy, captivating, heart-wrenching, unpredictable, witty, thought-provoking, delightful, and has an exceptional storyline. After reading this series, readers will be desperate not to let go of its characters, the plot, and the evanescent feeling of being in the text. I was (still am) addicted to this series!! It’s astonishing how influential these books are, and although they might be somewhat lengthy, I would recommend it to anyone who’s looking for a good book. 

• 

•