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magicinthelibrary-blog · 7 years

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LONG overdue, but worth the wait. Flora and I have FINALLY gotten off our behinds and written our Empire of Storms review. It’s been a difficult month and a half as far as getting into any new books is concerned. After spending an entire month reading the Throne of Glass series start to finish, Empire of Storms just left me…well, you know that feeling you get when you find a snack you really, really like and for a while that’s the ONLY thing you want? It was kind of like that. Sarah J Maas writes such wonderful characters and amazing worlds that you just want to submerge yourself and never leave. I was in a reading slump for weeks after Empire of Storms. The only thing I could read was ACOTAR/ACOMAF (twice…or three times if you count going back and re-reading my favorite parts..).

We are finally coming out of the reading slump, though. And, to celebrate, we figured it’s probably time we write our Empire of Storms review. A little late to the party, I suppose, but here goes!

Oh, and you can expect there to be a few, mild spoilers below:

SEELIE’S REVIEW

I’ve had over a month to think about what I say and sitting here now I don’t even know where to begin. So, I’m going to begin with probably my favorite part of the book. It’s small, but makes me laugh every time:

Shout out to the moment in the book where Aelin calls Gavriel “Uncle Kitty Cat”. Every time I think about it I laugh out loud.

Okay, okay, in all seriousness though, this book was a BEAST because it was so packed full, I bet when I take the time to re-read it in a few months it will feel all new again because it covers so much ground. What I particularly liked about it was that it was the kind of story where nothing seemed to be going right for the heroes. I know, I know, I’m terrible. Because we ALL love badassary in our heroes, but when things go too good all the time, you stop being surprised. Aelin came out on top in the last book after killing Arobynn and shattering the glass castle and helping stop the King of Adarlan and then they were going home and things were going the way things go when the heroes are AWESOME.

But you want your heroes to experience hardship. The stakes need to be HIGH or else why bother reading the book? You want them to feel humbled and afraid so that you, as reader, can be encompassed by these feelings knowing that it HAS to turn out alright in the end. (Because it HAS TO, RIGHT?)

Sarah J Maas always keeps me guessing. (The next sentence is a SPOILER) I never expected the story to begin with her Uncle refusing to let her enter Terrasen. I never fathomed that they wouldn’t want her on the throne. Because, most of the time, in high fantasy, the long lost King or Queen is welcomed with open arms. And why wouldn’t you want a Queen capable of protecting you with fire at mere thought? It seems silly not to accept her, or at least, give her the opportunity? This is the first moment in the book where you realize that maybe things just aren’t going to go according to plan. Well, they will and they won’t (but I won’t spoil it for you).

I liked getting a glimpse at Maeve’s warriors. They are easy to fall in love with. Even Lorcan, who is abrasive and beastly, has a hint of something in him that makes you hope for him. Which reminds me, I loved Elide and Lorcan. I felt like their snippets were never long enough and I truly, truly hope that despite the way the book ended, they end up together.

And as for Manon and the Blackbeaks, it should come as no shock that they eventually meet up with Aelin’s court, but the journey there is enthralling. Probably the best parts of the book, to be honest. When Maas first introduced the Blackbeaks, I was disinterested in them and felt like their parts were an interruption. Now, a few books later, I look forward to seeing what will happen next with Ironteeth clans.

In this book, which sets us up for the final installment, Aelin has to spend the entirety of the book amassing an army for Terrasen and searching for some kind of lock that those confounded ancient royals keep insisting she needs and as she does this, some of her friends start to doubt. Many doubts of the “we aren’t going to live through this” and “this is not a good idea” variety. The tension is palpable and the ending is heart wrenching. Having to wait for the next installment is, as usual, pure torture. But if you loved Maas’ other books, you will find this one just as exciting. Maas does two things exceptionally well: well defined characters that are easy to love and/or hate AND plot twists that make your jaw drop. In my opinion, those are the best to elements to a riveting story. In my wildest dreams do I imagine I could ever pull of that kind of story telling! Maas is top of the class!

I have a few more things to add, but it is filled with spoilers about the end. I just need to get it off my chest. So, if you’ve read the book, scroll down to the bottom for my thoughts on the ending!

Soundtrack:

Big Bird in a Small Cage – Patrick Watson

Thoughts on the ending (SPOILERS):

I loved the ending. I know a lot of people were totally distraught over it, but like I said above, Aelin had TOO much going well for her at the end of the last book and I don’t think the story would be as good if Aelin just won every single battle. I’m not really worried for her as much as I’m curious to see how everything will be resolved. I can’t wait to see Rowan rescue her (and maybe the rest of Cadre, perhaps?). Plus, when she gets free, she’s going to make Maeve PAY and it’s going to be SUPER satisfying. I mean, the had to completely incapacitate her magic JUST to take her prisoner. They better look out once she gets it back.

I am completely, one HUNDRED percent heartbroken over Elide and Lorcan. I just can’t reconcile why he would throw himself at her fee like that. I think there is something we are missing…there just has to be. One one hand, it’s like he KNOWS Maeve is terrible and tries to protect the cadre at times from her and on the other hand he says he loves her, but I’m just not buying it. He came to love Elide during their journey and I think he would have to know the difference in what love looks like after that.

I have this…weird theory that maybe Lorcan is Maeve’s son. I’m probably way off, but they are described similarly. They have similar features, similar dark powers and the way he begs her not to cast him off, when it’s obvious he’s in love with Elide and should be happy to be free doesn’t make sense to me unless he love Maeve in an unromantic way. I imagine this kid growing up in the streets all rough and tumble with no family and no one to want him around. Maeve wouldn’t claim him as a kid cause she’s horrible, that is until she realizes how powerful he is, then she comes to collect him and cultivate him, as if she never cast him off in the first place, and that kid who was abandoned on the street might still yearn for her approval, even years later.

Like I said, I’m probably waaaaay off, but either way, he’s basically never had a family and has been physically and emotionally abused probably all of his life, so it just broke my heart that it ended the way it did, with Elide so completely finished with him. I can’t wait to see if they will resolve it or if it will end like Celaena and Chaol.

The last thing that broke my heart was Aedion and Lysandra. Aedion spends the entire book loving Lysandra but not saying anything to her about it because he doesn’t want to force anything on a woman who hasn’t had freedom of her own self and body for a really long time. He realizes she may never want to be touched again and he’s trying to be respectful of that. Now, she basically tells him they can’t be together because she has to pretend to be Aelin, but OH, can he help her make Terrasen some heirs that look like Aelin, since they have the same genes?

It’s such a slap in the face! He wanted to show her his country and he wanted to show her he loved her and he wanted to be with her because she wanted HIM, too. Instead, he’s getting shackled with secret trysts to make royal heirs, which is, AGAIN, a job in which Lysandra sells her body, even if it is by choice and for a noble cause. Aedion was ready to defend Lysandra’s right to NEVER have to give her body to ANYONE she didn’t choose and love again and she’s putting him in the terrible position.

I feel awful for him. It has to feel like someone just GUTTED him, on TOP of everything else, all the things he said to Aelin out of anger, only to have been wrong (AGAIN) and to know what happened to her and be powerless to do anything about it because now he has to go back to Terrasen and pretend everything is fine and that Lysandra, the woman he loves, is his cousin…

Seriously, a year is too long to wait for answers…

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magicinthelibrary-blog · 7 years

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Queen of Shadows Re-read

FLORA’S REVIEW

This is definitely my favorite book in the series, even though it contains one of my least favorite story arcs for a character. For being such a long book, it does little to actually further the plot. Instead it spends most of the time on lots character development and building potential romantic relationships.

Celaena goes back to Wendyn alone in order to check on Dorian and Chaol and tie up some loose ends. She also plans on finishing things with Arobynn and retrieving her necklace from him which contains a Wyrdkey. The homecoming was not at all what I had envisioned or hoped for. I knew things were going to be bad when she met up with Chaol but it was worse than I could have imagined. I knew he was angry at her but he seemed like a totally different person. It’s as if their entire prior relationship meant nothing to him or never happened at all. It absolutely broke my heart. He also remains a bitter asshole for 90% of the rest of the book. Chaol started to slowly become angrier and more prejudice in the other books but in this one his hatred was so extreme it almost seemed unbelievable. I’m just not sure I like where Maas has taken him as a character.

Other than that major disappointment, the book is great! Lol. Dorian’s POV chapters are extremely sad but luckily only a page or two. I also enjoyed the chapters with the Witches much more this time around. Manon and Asterin have really grown on me. I had been imagining what would happen when Manon and Celaena (I guess I need to start referring to her as Aelin now) finally met each other and the scene blew me away! There also seemed like a little something something might be brewing between Manon and Dorian……yes please!

My favorite characters in this book are Aedion and the wonderful Lysandra! The parts where Aedion and Aelin see each other for the first time and then get to talk and catch up are so heartwarming. He has so much love and loyalty towards her. I find the fact that he is pretty much her male counterpart hilarious. I’m really hoping he and Lysandra get together in the future because it’s so obvious that they like each other, despite their denials.

When I’d heard that Lysandra would be in this book I couldn’t wait to see how she would tie into everything and what she’d be like after all these years. I was not disappointed! I think she’s my new favorite character. I love her sass and snarkiness. It made me view her previous actions when she was younger a totally different way and let’s be honest, Aelin was a stuck up brat back then, too. The big surprise about her being a shifter was genius! I loved every part of the book with her in it.

The other big character change in this book I think was Aelin herself. She’s no longer the selfish assassin Celaena but a fire breathing bitch queen ready to take on the world for her people. My favorite part of the whole book is when she surprises everyone by having changed Arobynn’s will into leaving everything to her. It was such a strong, cunning move that everyone and I mean everyone, was left with their jaws hanging open.

Lastly, we have to talk about the other major gasp moment of the book besides Chaol being an ass. The forming of my new favorite ship, Rowaelin! Do I think it came out of left field? Sure. So much of Heir of Fire harped on the fact that their relationship was strictly platonic. Do I care that their feelings for each other seemed to spontaneously change? Not one bit! I love it. Rowan is a much better fit for Aelin. She needs someone who is strong, brave, powerful in their own right and will love her unconditionally. I can’t wait to see how their relationship grows in Empire of Storms.

I don’t know if I can handle the rest of the wait before Empire of Storms comes out. I think I might just reread Queen of Shadows again!

Soundtrack:

Lou Reed- A perfect day.

This song started playing in my head while reading the scene in the Assassin’s Keep where it’s announced that Arobynn left everything to “Celaena” in his will. When she was walking down the stairs to the torture room and viewing Arobynn’s body, I could hear the slow piano at the end of the song and Lou Reed quietly singing the words, “you’re going to reap, just what you sow”.

SEELIE’S REVIEW

Holy CARP!

I don’t have words for how good this series is. I mean, I know, I know I said it wasn’t my favorite and that the first two books were kind of okay…I still stand by those words, but SHEESH, does this series become one of the most unputdownable series on the face of the PLANET.

The first time I read this series, I was so crushed by Chaol being a huge turd and Aelin getting with Rowan, but the second time around, it all just makes so much more sense. Flora and I were talking about it today over Margaritas (yes, they were peach margaritas. Be jealous) and we were recognizing that the progression from reluctant friends, to carranam, to lovers was appropriate course of action for me to buy into Rowaelin. Neither Rowan, nor Aelin were in the right place for a relationship when they first met, so they slowly helped each other come to terms with the things that had happened to them. It created a bond that went pretty deep and, I mean, how can you not fall in love with Rowan once he wakes up and smells the ‘beautiful half fae queen”.

Where I found Manon and her story to be an interruption during Heir of Fire, I couldn’t get enough of it in Queen of Shadows. I love where it leads. It doesn’t matter how awful she tries to be, Manon is GOOD. She cares, even when she doesn’t want to and she’s starting to realize that this isn’t necessarily a bad thing and it’s BEAUTIFUL.

I still love Aedion. I loved his rescue. I can even forgive him for calling Aelin that foul name when he finds out she’s bonded with someone else because in the end he tries to protect Rowan. He’s got such a big heart for a man who spent most of the past ten years being the King’s butcher.

The ending with Dorian and Aelin fighting is SPECTACULAR. There isn’t a part of that, from the moment she walks into the castle as Celaena, to when she goes out and threatens the people of Rifthold to behave that I didn’t eat up. Gosh, Maas is amazing.

Questions for Empire of Storms: OF course we are wondering if Manon and Dorian are going to end up together, it would be an interesting relationship because Dorian has turned out to be, not only quite powerful, BUT he also seems like he might be a little dark after everything that happened to him. Definitely up for seeing where this goes.

Also, in the end, it sounds like Manon is still going to fight for the bad guys? I hope she has a plan in mind to get her sisters free from those insane-o demons and get rid of grandmother dearest.

Also, Lorcan. Lorcan. Is he bad? Is he good? I have my money on good. My guess is that he isn’t there because he cares what happens to Maeve, he’s there because he knows with that kind of power, Maeve would make the Cadre’s lives even worse than they are. I think he is nasty to Rowan because he feels betrayed by Rowan for leaving them and when he goes back to help them, I don’t think it’s because of Aedion, but because he realizes he can’t leave his brother underground with those creatures to die. Don’t let me down, Lorcan. Let me be right.

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magicinthelibrary-blog · 7 years

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The Assassin’s Blade Re-read

FLORA’S REVIEW

The Assassin’s Blade is a collection of five novellas that are prequels to Throne of Glass. I absolutely LOVE these short stories. When Seelie complained to me that she really didn’t like Celaena as a character, I told her she had to read the novellas. They completely changed my opinion of her and gave me a much better understanding of the world in which she grew up in. In particular, with Arobynn Hamel and the Assassin’s Keep. They take place a couple of years before the events in Throne of Glass and are instrumental in helping you understand who Celaena is and what made her that way.

In the stories, we see Celaena as a teenager going on different jobs for Arobynn, forming some of the most important relationships of her life and finally the events that lead up to her imprisonment in Endovier. I loved learning more about Arobynn. He is such a huge part of Celaena’s past and present and I don’t think you could possibly get the full effect of any of the books without knowing more about him and their history together.

In The Assassin and The Underworld you meet Lysandra for the first time. I found this especially fun since now Queen of Shadows has come out. The first time I read the novellas she was a new character. I thought she was a prissy, snobby brat and couldn’t stand her. Now, after having read about her in Queen of Shadows (and loving her!) I interpreted her character a totally different way. I felt nothing but sympathy for her. I saw how much she had been trying to compete with Celaena and make her own place in the keep. I loved her over the top sass and flirting this time because I knew it was all a rouse and just part of the dry sense of humor that I came to love.

The part that broke my heart into pieces, and I knew it would, was learning all about Sam Cortland. He was such a kind and understanding person. I loved how their relationship formed and seeing the brief happy times they had together. For me however, it was all over shadowed by the sense impending dread that I felt.

The last novella, The Assassin and the Empire, is the story of how Sam got murdered and Celaena got captured and put into Endovier. Even though I knew it was coming, knew what would happen, it was still heart wrenching to read. I only read what happened to Sam the first time I read the story, and have no plans to read that part again. It also cemented by deep seated hate for Arobynn.

I actually wasn’t going to do a reread of these novellas because I found them so heartbreaking but now I’m glad that I did. These are a must read for anyone who reads the series and I highly recommend reading them directly after reading Throne of Glass. They explain so much of the world the story takes place in and about Celaena herself. I also have a feeling that some of the characters we get introduced to may be important in future books, just look at Lysandra for example.

Next up will be my review of Queen of Shadows and it’s sure to be a doozey so stay tuned…….

SEELIE’S REVIEW

Like I said, this is the FIRST time I have completed the entire book of novellas. I tried to read them at the beginning of the year, but I couldn’t get past the story about the healer and thought “This isn’t important” and decided to read something else. Flora assured me that I couldn’t not go into the next book ignorant of what happens in the novellas, so I decided to give it a second shot. I was definitely pleased with it the second time around and, in my humble opinion, I think that reading it before Heir of Fire was the PERFECT place for it. You get the set up of the first two books, then you get to see her background more clearly, THEN you go into Heir of Fire, which is a total change of pace and relies heavily on your knowledge of her past to understand what she’s going through. So, if you haven’t re-read them yet, consider reading the novellas after the second book!

I still think the healer’s story is boring, but I’m hoping Maas is true to character and brings in the healer in the next book. I won’t go into detail since we haven’t reviewed the fourth book yet…*grins*

My favorite story was, of course, The Assassin and the Desert was my favorite. I really liked when she gets away and has the opportunity to see what a community of assassins can live like when they aren’t ruled by fear. I like Ansel, though I’m sorry she thought it was necessary to hurt the people who helped her in order to get revenge. I think she was a good example of how violence and loss can damage a person. I think we will see her again and I hope that she becomes an ally to Celaena in the books to come. I think she felt remorse over what she did, even if she didn’t show it and I think she sent Celaena away not just because she didn’t want to have to kill her, but because she knew what she was doing was wrong and that Celaena would try to stop her.

The Assassin and the Pirate Lord was enjoyable. I liked the friendship that blossoms between Celaena and Sam, though I don’t buy that he was in love with her for years, something we learn in The Assassin and the Underworld. She’s just such a brat (brat is not the word I WANT to use…) and I can’t accept that he was enamored with her when she was such a pompous, spoiled turd. I would have believed their romance if he had fallen for her after freeing the slaves in the first story, rather than claiming to have loved her when she was so unlovable all those years. That being said, love can be a silly thing and sometimes we love someone because they are unattainable and beautiful before we actually love them for who they are, so maybe that was what Sam loved in the beginning?

The Assassin and the Empire was heartbreaking, OF COURSE, but, like Flora said, it was necessary to see a view of Arobynn. We are definitely going to see more of him in Queen of Shadows, but reading this last novella will really make you ready for Celaena’s eventual revenge!

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magicinthelibrary-blog · 7 years

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Heir of Fire Re-read

Today we are re-reading Heir of Fire by Sarah J. Maas. If you are re-reading the Throne of Glass series in preparation of the release of Empire of Storms, stop by and see what we have to say about one of our favorite series!

Seelie’s Review

Oh. My. Goodness. If you’ve been reading my other reviews so far, you’ll know that, while I liked the first two books, I wasn’t enthralled by them. They are good and, for the sake of seeing where this book goes and how the characters react, I’ll keep reading, sure. But then we get to Heir of Fire and all bets are off. I can’t put this book down. I even want to go back and read it again. I just finished it. Its absurd how badly I want to rewind and re-read it. Now I can see why Flora skipped the first two and just went straight to re-reading this one.

Its not the first time I’ve read Heir of Fire and, yes, I remember being unable to put the book down the first time as well. Its just that time passes and you forget sometimes just how much you enjoyed reading a certain book. Especially when you read as many books as we do.

Heir of Fire is wonderful. For the first time since starting the series, when I get to this book, I actually can’t wait to see what happens next. The first time I read the book, I THOUGHT that what drove me to read it so quickly was because I wanted to get to the part where Celaena(Aelin in this book) is reunited with her friends/lover in Rifthold. Of course, she never is in Heir of Fire and by the time we get to Queen of Shadows and see the reunion, it’s so disappointing that I think I just wiped out the memory of all the enjoyment I got from Heir of Fire and just sank into a pit of despair.

The second time around I was able to read through it with a clear head, knowing what happens when she returns to Rifthold, I paid more attention to the events in Heir of Fire that lead to her strained relationships in the fourth book. When I accepted the fate of Celaena and Chaol and accepted what was between Aelin and Rowan, I was a much happier reader. And while we’re on the subject of Rowan, he’s definitely grown on me in the second read of this book. I’d go so far as to say he’s my second favorite. He can’t take Aedion’s place. It just won’t happen!

Flora says below that she didn’t like the parts with Chaol in this book because he’s so frustrating and he’s kind of a jerk. I think he is exactly who Aedion and Dorian call him out as, though. He just doesn’t know who he is yet, a lot like Aelin/Celaena. I think this book is a book of discovery. Aelin discovers who she is and who she wants to be and she isn’t always someone you like, but she’s getting there and figuring it out. It’s the same thing with Chaol. He isn’t always someone we like, but he’s TRYING to be the person who is worthy of the friendships he’s forged in this tale. You have to give him credit, it takes him awhile to get there, but he figures out whose side he wants to be on. Even if he is a jerk in the next book…lol

I don’t care of the parts with the Manon and the Ironteeth witches. At least, not in this book. I don’t hate it, but I agree with Flora, in that I spent a lot of time wondering the relevancy of this side story and why it interrupted my Aelin/Rowan time! That being said, I find their story to be more compelling in the next book.

I haven’t re-read Queen of Shadows yet, so I can’t say for sure. But I think Heir of Fire might be my favorite. I’ll let you know next week when I finish Queen of Shadows. And then, of course, Empire of Storm could totally be a game changer, so…I get to change my mind at least twice within the next few weeks… *grins*

Flora’s Review

Hello everyone, its Flora here. I hope you all have been enjoying our re-read of the Throne of Glass series, by the wonderful Sarah J. Maas. I know I’m a little late to the party but I decided to hand over the reins to Seelie for the first two books in the series since I’ve honestly read them more times than I can count.

We’re now at the third book in the series, Heir of Fire, which is one of my favorites. Mainly because of the introduction of Prince Rowan (swoon). More on him later. This book is much slower paced and has a lot less action than the previous books.

Celaena still breaks my heart every time I read this book. She is full of guilt, sorrow and loneliness, all while trying to come to terms with her Fae side. She spends most of the book in Wendlyn training with Rowan in order to learn how to shift into her Fae form and master her powers.

I love how many new, main characters are introduced in this book. There’s of course Rowan and then Celaena/Aelin’s cousin Aedion. Both of whom are two of my favorite characters in the entire series. Then an entire side story comes in with the introduction of the Ironteeth Witches, mainly Manon Blackbeak and her Thirteen warriors. At first, I was thinking, who are these characters? Why do I care and when will it go back to the main story? Now I really enjoy the scenes with the Witches, especially Manon and her wyvern, Abraxos. Although, I have to admit I picture Toothless from How to Train your Dragon, the entire time.

Celaena grows exponentially in this book and becomes a true Fae warrior bad ass! Rowan really grows on me more and more every time I read this book. He too, is dealing with a lot of loss and guilt and their friendship is very slow building and believable the more I read it. I think they are exactly what each other needed at that point in time to help them start to heal from the past and start becoming who they were destined to be

Then there’s Chaol. He’s just goes more and more downhill in this book. I’m actually glad he doesn’t get a ton of page time because I just want to slap him. He does try to do the right thing at some points but his internal monologue shows the bitter person he’s become. Boo Chaol.

For those of you who have read the series, you know that this is an unfortunate foreshadowing of things to come with Chaol. That makes the next book, Queen of Shadows, both my favorite and least favorite at the same time. I’ll be re-reading that one next and posting my review shortly after. I can’t WAIT for Empire of Storms!

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magicinthelibrary-blog · 7 years

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Crown of Midnight Re-Read

Seelie’s Review

Flora is going to join us on the third book which I look forward to because she is a Throne of Glassexpert and a big fan of Celaena. I will admit that in Crown of Midnight, Celaena grows on me. She starts out the book as a hero. She has moments in the book where she doesn’t accept the calling to be a hero, but instead of it being selfishness, it seems to be a very real fear that something bad will happen to the people she has grown to care about. I think that gives her some points in my book, for sure.

I love her slow building relationship with Chaol, as reckless as it is. I love when it all falls to pieces. That scene is amazing, probably my favorite. I would love one of my favorite artists online to do the a picture of Chaol when he’s crying in the broom closet after Celaena finds him in her room. That scene makes me tear up. I get when she realizes that Chaol would choose Adarlan and his job as Captain of the Guard over her (despite saying he’d leave with her earlier in the book) and I understand why that gives her conflicted feelings. But…but…they leave on…well, not terrible terms in this book and I don’t understand the switch that flips in the books to come.

I love when she gets cray and kills everyone. Yes, the more I think about it, Celaena is way cooler in this book than the last, and a lot more willing to dig deeper into the mystery of the evil force in the castle instead of trying to ignore it! The story gets more involved and again, the characters are awesome. I especially like Mort. Just sayin’. Also, the scene where she opens the portal and fights the creature (after Mort tells her not to do whatever it is she’s about to do) is just WAY to cool.

You know, as I was reading it, especially since I’ve read it before, I was thinking, yeah, it’s good, but i’m ready to move on to the next book. But, now that I’m reflecting on this book, I’m realizing it’s got a lot of really sweet scenes and all of the characters are that much more REAL when compared to Throne of Glass. I’m suddenly REALLY looking forward to re-reading the rest.

The next book I will review is the compilation of novellas that take place BEFORE Throne of Glass. Yes, yes, I know, going backwards, but I’ve never actually read them. I started them a while back and couldn’t get into them. But now that I’ve re-read the first two books(it had been a few years), the stories in the novellas actually relate to things mentioned and it makes them more exciting! Stay tuned…or, you know, we don’t tune-in to blogs, so stay…vigilant? Nerdy? Well, I’ll certainly have to come up with something more relevant…

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magicinthelibrary-blog · 7 years

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Throne of Glass Re-Read

Seelie’s Re-read

I’m assuming you’ve read this book, but if you haven’t, click on the picture at the top and it will take you to the goodreads synopsis page.

The first time I read Throne of Glass, I thought it was pretty good. It kept my interest, though I can say that I didn’t really relate to Celaena on any level. I think the mystery of everything kept me reading, knowing that she keeps hinting at her past and I was also wondering how her relationships are going to turn out, what the evil is in the castle, and if she’ll win the tournament. So, it was a pretty good read.

I have to say, before I go on, that the events in the books to come have colored how I feel about this series. We aren’t talking about those books right now, so I’ll refrain from saying anything specific, but while I LOVE how much characterization and back story Maas gives her characters, I have such a hard time with some things that happen later. Like, I try to rationalize it, but I just can’t believe some of the behavior.

Which takes me to how I feel about Throne of Glass. Reading it again, knowing what I know now, is definitely an experience. You read into EVERYTHING a lot more, to see if there were any hints from the beginning on how things would turn out later.

I will say, you can tell how far Maas has come as a writer when you go back and read that first book. It’s less mature in writing ability, but a solid first book. The story is good and the characters are ones you are interested in learning more about. I, personally, didn’t care for Celaena. In fact, I didn’t even really like her at all until Chapter 15, when we saw a glimpse of the things she has been through. She just felt stilted and forced and I wasn’t buying that the two men were charmed by her. I actually started to think when I was reading this book that it might have been better for me to start the series with the novellas, so that I can actually like Celaena when the first book begins. I don’t think it helps that she’s the opposite of what you expect in a hero and she’s constantly telling the ghost of the first Queen that she’s NOT going to figure out how to stop the evil and that it’s not her problem (at least, that’s how i felt about it). When an ancient ghost uses magic to tell you your destiny, you listen, friend, you listen!

Except, I do see it as character building, so I get it. Of course, she’s a reluctant hero and as you read on throughout the series you learn why and you see the change in her, which is pretty spectacular and Maas’ writing really takes off and makes you crave more. I have to keep reading, but I DO think Celaena grows on me. She’s a little too broody and self pitying for me, sometimes, but I like her story and I love the supporting cast, especially as we get further into the tale.

So, all in all, I would say that Throne of Glass is a SOLID beginning to a pretty entertaining series. It’s not all downhill from here, but if it wasn’t good, we wouldn’t be re-reading it…right?

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magicinthelibrary-blog · 7 years

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The Raven Cycle Review

Seelie’s Review

I don’t know how to accurately describe how wonderful this series is. I’m not going to review just the book, but make a quick review on the series as a whole, since I devoured them all in a matter of days.

The first time I read The Raven Boys was in 2013. I had expectations, they were not met. I was disappointed. Let me be clear that it wasn’t the book that was disappointing, but the fact that it didn’t fulfill the expectations I had for it. I get in these moods where I want to read a specific genre and I sometimes want it to follow the standard formula that goes with that genre. You expect that to be pretty standard. You read the synopsis on Goodreads:

“Every year, Blue Sargent stands next to her clairvoyant mother as the soon-to-be dead walk past. Blue never sees them–until this year, when a boy emerges from the dark and speaks to her.

His name is Gansey, a rich student at Aglionby, the local private school. Blue has a policy of staying away from Aglionby boys. Known as Raven Boys, they can only mean trouble.”

and you think this story is going to be a love story. A YA about a girl and a boy meeting and their ill-fated love.

That’s not what this is. It’s not a love story at all. I mean, there’s love in it. Obviously she will kiss Gansey at some point, doi, but this is more of an adventure story to appeal to your inner Goonie! We know love is a part of the deal, but it’s a minor character in what is an amazingly well-fleshed out and original story. At its core, It’s about four kids discovering themselves, not just the supernatural sides of themselves (this is a book about dreams, magical woods, ley lines, fortune tellers and magicians), but also who they are as people. Gansey is so rich, his friends can’t see who he is past his affluent, affected persona to the boy who is scared he is going to die and frightened he won’t solve his mystery before he does. Ronan hides a strange magic inside himself, both frightening and awesome, the same magic his father had before he was murdered for misusing it. Adam, who lives in a trailer park with his abusive family, is so self-conscious that he is the only poor one of the group that he doesn’t love himself enough to except love from others. And Noah, well, I can’t say much about him because I don’t want to reveal too much, but he’s just as multi=dimensional as the rest.

And Blue. Blue is trapped in their world by a prophecy that she desperately hopes to stop. Never expecting to find love and family in a group of boys she thought she’d never relate to on any level.

This character development is woven into a tale about their search for a dead Welsh king in a magical wood in the mountains and the story starts off a little strange, but is so beautifully written and so lyrical that you can picture it perfectly. It comes around full circle at the end. You can tell, unlike so many interesting stories that end poorly because the author really didn’t know where they were going or what they were saying, that Steifvater knew exactly what she wanted to say, beginning, middle and end, and it’s clear how seamless her story is.

I listened to it on audio tape at work. I do a lot of data entry and it fills the empty space while I type. I found myself laughing out loud, smiling and even crying. Each character felt like they were my friends. Like I was part of Richard Gansey III’s court and these Raven boys were just as important to me as they were to Blue. It’s an awesome series!

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magicinthelibrary-blog · 7 years

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The Vanishing Throne Review

Seelie’s Review

The seal that holds the Seelie and Unseelie faeries at bay has been broken. 19th century Scotland (and the world) has been decimated by the Fae and the world’s only hope, Aileanna Kameron, has been taken prisoner. As the last remaining Falconer in existence, she failed to stop the onslaught of terrible Faeries upon her world and now their leader wants to steal her power to save the Faerie realm and claim the throne of their collapsing empire.

The Vanishing Throne by Elizabeth May was everything I wanted in a sequel. When I picked up the Falconer at the bookstore a couple of months ago, I was in love with the cover and hooked by the two paragraph blurb on the back. I don’t think I made it a full day before I cracked the book open and started reading. It was fifty pages in before it got good, but it had all the elements I love, a strong main character, a brooding beautiful male fae, a good supporting cast and high stakes. I’ve been waiting for the sequel ever since I turned the last page.

The Vanishing Throne was even better than the first. The Falconer set us up, moved us through meeting all the characters and brought us to the catalyst of the seal being broken and the Faeries getting loose. The Vanishing Throne, however, is the meat of the story being told. We meet Aithinne, Kiaran’s sister, who is lovely. We learn who Kiaran was when he was Kadamach and the reason he is feared and hated among his kind. We discover that the stakes are even worse than Kam thought they could be when she started her quest for revenge and that failing to seal the Faeries in was only the beginning of her terrors. This book goes so far beyond Kam’s need for vengeance and reveals the complicated layers of the characters we love.

If you’re looking to be satisfied in the romance department, you won’t be disappointed. There’s plenty of love with just the right amount of angst and the cliffhanger ending has me already jonesing for the next book. I guess I can add it to the list of books I have to wait at least a year to read!

Flora’s Review

Wow, I really enjoyed this book. It had me questioning; is this really the sequel to The Falconer. Is this even the same author? Elizabeth May’s writing has grown exponentially in this book. The world building, storyline and plot history are much more in depth. Don’t get me wrong, I liked The Falconer. It was a fast paced, fun read, but never fully explained much about the characters or plot. The Vanishing Throne takes place in a totally different world and setting than the first. If you weren’t a fan of the Victorian Era Scotland setting or steam punk inventions, you’re in luck, as they are noticeably absent in this book. No more debutant balls or afternoon teas either. The majority of this story takes place in the Faery realm and the ruins left of Scotland.

Much of Scotland, including Kam’s home town, was destroyed in the battle with the Fae that took place in the previous book. Kam has been taken captive into the Faery realm by Lonnrach, one of the Fae leaders. She’s eventually rescued and brought back to her world, only to find it in ruins. Throughout the book, she struggles to deal with the emotional and physical torture that she endured while in the Fae realm. Once back in Scotland, she meets up with her old friends who are struggling to make a life in this new world while still being hunted by the Fae. She soon finds out that the problems with the Fae are much deeper and more complicated than she ever could have imagined.

We learn so much more about the history of the Fae in this book, in particular about Kiaran and his sister Aithinne. Aithinne is a huge part of the story and is definitely my new favorite character. Learning about who Kiaran was, back when he was known as Kadamach, really helped me understand him and why he acts and behaves the way he does. I never felt like he was fully fleshed out in the first book and that kept me from becoming too invested in the entire story.

I only have two complaints about this book. Firstly, we still don’t get any Falcons! Once again, they are briefly mentioned but have absolutely no purpose in the current plot and seemingly none in the past as well. I’m left wondering if the author originally planned on incorporating them into the story, but later changed her mind. Little else makes sense.

My second complaint is that I still don’t find the relationship between Kiaran and Kam believable. I wasn’t feeling it at all in the first book and thought that once I learned more about Kiaran in this book, I would feel differently. Nope. The most interesting times with Kiaran are actually when the author is telling the story of his past. When he gets actual page time, he still falls flat to me. He’s either brooding or making out with Kam. That’s the extent of their relationship. I felt more of a bond between his sister, Aithinne and Kam, than I did with Kiaran and Kam. I partially blame this on the author. I love the two of them as individual characters but felt like they lacked actual page time together to make their relationship believable. I guess I need a bit more verbal foreplay in my book relationships.

Other than that, I loved it! I definitely think this book was better than the first one and highly recommend it. Like The Falconer, it ends on a cliff hanger and a very interesting one at that. I can’t wait to see where this story goes and how it all will end.

Flora’s Soundtrack

More than words by Extreme

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magicinthelibrary-blog · 7 years

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Flora’s Review

Scottish steampunk plus faeries, yes please! This book was a lot of fun. It had ball gowns, cool mechanical inventions, bloody fights, and a hot fae warrior. My only complaint is the title. Why is it called The Falconer when there are NO falcons! They don’t even mention why the main character is called a Falconer until over 200 pages in and its one brief sentence and then it’s never mentioned again. It doesn’t make any sense to me at all. I really hope in future books we get a falcon thrown in.

Enough of that for now. Our main character, Aileana, also known as Kam, is a marquess who loves to invent machines and weapons. She also happens to be the last Falconer, people who are born with special abilities and a driving hunger to kill the fae. She used to only dream of getting married and having a family until she witnessed a faery murder her mother. Now she has a whole new mission in life and crazy blood lust to find and kill the faery responsible. After her mother’s death she meets a faery named Kiaran who offers to help train her in fighting and helps her hunt faeries. Soon, more and more faeries are invading and killing people in her home town. Kiaran admits that its the reason why he’s been training her and that the seal to the prison trapping all the bad faeries is about to break and release them into the world.

Through all this Aileana struggles with the grief of her mother’s death and a father and society whom expect her to be the perfect debutant, attending balls and having tea with potential husbands. She does get some help along the way from her best friend’s brother Gavin and a spunky pixie named Derrick, who lives in her closet. Gavin turns out to be a seer and also previous love interest. It doesn’t seem like too much of a love triangle though, as it quickly becomes apparent that the two are just good friends. Gavin can always see the fae and has visions of the future involving the fae, specifically their killings. Derrick is great comic relief in the otherwise somewhat serious tone of the book.

I don’t know if I found the relationship between Aileana and Kiaran very believable. I think there just wasn’t enough back story or interactions between the two. Aileana loved to swoon over his good looks but that’s about it. Kiaran is very closed off and keeps lots of secrets. He pretty much lies or fails to mention everything important to Aileana when it comes to her history of being a Falconer and what he knows about the Fae apocalypse about to happen.

This book does end on a huge cliff hanger so be warned. I have a feeling we’re going to see a lot of the fae world in the next book and hopefully more about Kiaran’s past. Plus, I’m dying to learn the fate of Edinburgh after that ending! Impatiently waiting on the next book…….

Seelie’s Comments

I absolutely agree about it being called The Falconer when there aren’t any falcons, and I was perplexed almost the entire book as to why it was called that, too!

The book got good for me about fifty pages in, when we meet Kiaran and they start fighting faeries. I liked Kiaran. I just assumed he and Aileana had a building friendship and partnership before the book started (albeit strained because Kiaran is kind of jerk and also a fae that Aileana shouldn’t trust) so I was able to buy the romance a bit more than Flora, though I can see why she had a hard time believing it.

This book was everything I wanted it to be when I picked it up and read the jacket. If you read it and enjoyed it, stay tuned for the next review, because the sequel, The Vanishing Throne, was just released last week!

Seelie’s Soundtrack

Morrissey’s Jack the Ripper, or if you like hipster music like me, try Colin Meloy’s version of the song on “Colin Meloy Sings Morrissey”.

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magicinthelibrary-blog · 7 years

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Clementine has been trapped in a cellar for ten years. When Fisher, a local boy, finds her trapped amongst the roots with her eyes sewn shut, he brings her home to her aunt who doesn’t have any memory of her. The town she remembers is in shambles and the residents there persecute her family for using a mysterious magic called ‘craft’. With the other ‘fiendish’ craft families, Clementine must discover who trapped her in the cellar and stop the town from being destroyed by the magic in the swamp.

I didn’t expect to be so captivated by this book. It is probably the first unexpectedly good book I’ve read in a long time. When I read the synopsis on the library website, it basically said that Clementine had been trapped in a cellar for ten years and she has to figure out who trapped her there now that she’s out. I thought ‘this has the potential to be a supernatural kind of story, but it’s probably going to be a real life story without any magic’. Sounds like a silly reason to be turned off of a book, right? Well, if I wanted a real life story about a girl being trapped in a cellar for ten years, I could just read the news, as sad as that sounds. I didn’t read the book right away and when I did, I used it as a filler book with no real expectations. Boy, was it so much more than that.

Fiendish is a ridiculously well-written book. Brenna Yovanoff captures the prejudice and discrimination of the deep south using an odd, demonic magic called ‘craft’ as the source of animosity instead of race. The colloquialisms and the descriptions of the people and town transport you there effortlessly. There was a love interest, but it didn’t consume the story and wasn’t angsty or overbearing. The ‘craft’ was different, the story unique, and everything was resolved in ONE book. I didn’t have to read three books to find out what happens at the end.

I felt certain this book was going to be just like every other teen YA book, heavy handed with the love interest and full of unnecessary drama. Instead, it was mysterious, unfolding the story so perfectly that you wanted to keep reading, and the characters were each unique and well fleshed out. I find myself expecting a lot of YA novels to follow a certain formula when it comes to the story and the character’s personalities, but Yovanoff doesn’t follow any of those formulas and it makes the book an excellent read.

I was especially interested in the fiends that lived in the swamp. Yovanoff’s writing description of these creatures is so creepy, I can get a glimpse of an author who can probably write a pretty good ghost story! I found myself looking at her new releases with renewed interest. She’s definitely a master of her craft. If you’re looking for a book to devour on your day off or a rainy, summer day, I definitely recommend checking this book out. It’s refreshingly unique and chillingly mysterious.

Soundtrack:

Donovan’s Season of the Witch

Fleetwood Mac’s Rhiannon

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magicinthelibrary-blog · 7 years

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Uprooted Review

LADYHAWKE’S REVIEW

Uprooted is a YA fantasy fairy tale with its gorgeous roots steeped in author Naomi Novik’s Polish ancestry.

A funny thing happened to me on my way to finding this book. I previously read An Ember in the Ashes by Saaba Tahir. That novel, which I highly recommend, has been the most “commercial” marvel I’ve picked up since The Hunger Games. It was un-put-down-able (as was Uprooted) and has been one of the more successful novels I’ve read which switches back and forth between male and female point-of-view-character. Fans of Tahir’s work will be delighted to know that the sequel to Ember is due out this Fall and the movie rights have been sold! I mention it because it was a welcome departure from more widely used fantasy tropes. It delves gently into Middle Eastern lore, utilizing the ifrit and the jinn.

In contrast, Uprooted offers majestic wizards, a dark, lush, mysterious evil and a Baba Yaga-inspired character. It was a delight to be offered such a varied buffet by both novels. But that’s enough about that.

Fairy tales are timeless, classic, nostalgic and cherished. Uprooted is all of these things. It is a wonder because creating an original fairy tale is close to impossible.

To read this book is too fall in love.

The story begins with a very clever twist on the familiar. Novik takes the idea of maidens being sacrificed to a dragon and the time-worn Beauty and the Beast trope, but what she does with it is magical and unexpected. Very few fantasy novels make the use of magic feel (smell and taste) REAL. Uprooted drips with magic until you feel as though you’ve cast the spells yourself.

In addition to being a coming of age tale about a girl who challenges evil, it is about truth, friendship, and growing into one’s self against all odds. I love this book!

Uprooted is successful on all fronts. Plot? Unexpected! The twists and turns are addictive. Character? I feel I know most of the cast personally. Writing? A+ Novick has a mild style that is easy to read, yet lavishly relate-able. I can smell, taste and touch her world.

Now, we’ve all read female characters who begin as powerless pawns. The worst of them is always noted as Twilight‘s Bella. But even Katniss Everdeen finds herself used as a sheltered propaganda tool when all she wants to do is fight. Our heroine in Uprooted is Agnieszka. She’s even more accident prone than Bella Swan, but for a very, very, very good reason. The author reveals the reason at just the right time. Agnieszka transforms dramatically in away I must applaud. She refuses to go with the flow and despite her circumstances, she acts for herself and takes great risks along the way. We want to see our characters change. She certainly does. Her shift changes those around her as well.

Now, I’ve read some criticism regarding the leading man, the Dragon. Does he feel like a harsher update to a prejudiced Mr. Darcy? Sure! Is his nastiness a bit over the top? Definitely! I still fell in love. He’s as real to me as my favorite childhood wizard, Schmendrick, from The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle. Those who do not understand the Dragon’s way probably didn’t read all the way to the end. Is there a reason why he is the way he is? Absolutely! Would you rather read an impossibly perfect leading man, dripping sweet, over-ripe like the terrible fruits in Uprooted? Not me! We can’t control the people in our lives. Some are prickly, some are loyal, some are jealous. I believed all the characters in this story.

Not convinced that Uprooted is worth your time? It has been nominated for a Hugo Award! Other books with that honor have been Dune, The Left Hand of Darkness, Ender’s Game, The Graveyard Book and A Dance with Dragons.

Also note that Warner Brothers has won the film rights and Ellen DeGeneres wants to produce! I assume it will be a live action flick, but I couldn’t help but imagine Princess Mononoke-style animation as I was reading.

SOUNDTRACK

“Mykonos” – Fleet Foxes

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magicinthelibrary-blog · 7 years

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A Court of Mist and Fury Review

Welcome to our review of A Court of Mist and Fury. We should warn you ahead of time. We loved this book so much that if you haven’t read it yet, you might want to hold off on reading our review. That is to say, there will be some spoilers. Nothing major. We aren’t going to ruin the end of the book for you, by any means. But, if you want to go into this second book blind and totally surprised, come back and chat with us about the book AFTER you’ve read it. (You can click on the image above to visit Goodreads if you want to know what the book is about before you read, but honestly, you should know already, or at least start with the first in the series.)

Normally, I’d do a recap of the previous book. You know, to remind you of everything that happened in the last book so that you don’t have to re-read the first book. I’ve decided, and I hope you all will agree once you’ve read this second book, that I’m not going to do that this time because you really will want to be fresh on what happened in the last book. Even though I WAS fresh on what happened, I still went back into the first book and read the second half AGAIN after reading Mist and Fury because of all the revelations we had in the second book.

Remember, there are SLIGHT SPOILERS AHEAD! Read at your own PERIL!

Seelie’s Review

Wow…I’m so sad this book is over, I feel like I might die waiting for the next book. There isn’t a thing about A Court of Mist and Fury that I don’t love, starting with Rhysand and ending with, well, let’s just say the end of this book is both amazing and wholly unexpected. A Court of Mist and Fury is action packed, fast paced, heart wrenching, slow burning, and never, EVER boring.

“I’m thinking that I was a lonely, hopeless person, and I might have fallen in love with the first thing that showed me a hint of kindness and safety. And I’m thinking, maybe he knew that – Maybe not actively, but maybe he wanted to be that person for someone. And maybe that worked for who I was before. Maybe it doesn’t work for who – what I am now.”

Let me start by saying that since the beginning of A Court of Thorn and Roses, it’s been hard for me not to compare Feyre to Katniss Everdeen of Hunger Games. Feyre starts the story out as a starving young girl bent on keeping her family alive by any means necessary. She’s cold and bitter, there is not an ounce of happiness in her. She’s afraid. Afraid to fail, afraid to lose her family to hunger, afraid of the many obstacles in her path and angry with her lot in life. Sure, there’s the middle part of the book where Feyre gets something Katniss never got, someone who kept her family not just from going hungry, but also a sliver of happiness. Because she was able to let go of that worry, Feyre got her own taste of happiness for a short time with Tamlin, but that’s a short lived comfort in this story. When she’s Under the Mountain, Feyre basically has to fight in the games like Katniss and it’s terrible for her.

If Feyre in the first book is like Katniss in the Hunger Games, Feyre in Mist and Fury is like Katniss in Mockingjay. She’s broken, haunted by the things she had to do and that were done to her Under the Mountain. She’s going through the motions, trying to move on, but being trapped in the Spring Court with an over protective Tamlin hinders her fragile state of mind.

I love the beginning of this book. Maas does a wonderful job of showing us Feyre’s despair, the unrelenting shadow that looms over her and the obligation to Tamlin that suffocates her need to heal in a way that is organic to her sense of self; mainly freedom to hunt, fight, explore and be out in the open after months of being trapped in a cell. I can feel that entrapment as if it’s my own.

Tamlin is out of his mind. He’s promising nothing will ever happen to Feyre again, but he can’t do that because then nothing will ever happen to her and she’ll never move on from her grief. She’ll be stuck in a constant stasis, wasting away into a ghost of a girl who will one day throw herself from the balcony to escape her guilt. I’m terribly disappointed by Tamlin in this book, but Lucien breaks my heart even more. Tamlin and Feyre’s relationship was always a bit like a girl crushing on her teacher. She idolized Tamlin because he made her feel safe and loved. But, Lucien was Feyre’s friend, a bond that was created rather reluctantly. That bond suggested they shared more than just the High Lord in common, but their own sense of adventure and humor. That they had each other’s backs and would protect each other. But Lucien is too afraid of the repercussions to stand up to Tamlin and he shoulders just as much blame for the things that happen in this book, especially the spectacular, but terrible end. I certainly hope that Lucien can at least redeem himself in the next book.

The further into this book I got, the more I couldn’t wait for Rhysand collect on his part of the bargain. I welcomed his appearance. After fifty years, Tamlin is a scared, selfish shell of the High Lord he might have once been. I couldn’t wait for Feyre to break out of the Spring Court and find her self again in the freedom of the Night Court.

I wasn’t disappointed when Feyre finally visited the Night Court. I loved delving into Feyre’s new powers and I enjoyed seeing her make friends with Rhysand’s inner circle and learn how to fight. The stakes have changed, more than just Prythian is at risk with the King of Hybern looming in the distance and Feyre throws herself into the task of stopping the evil king and keeping her mortal sisters safe. I couldn’t stop turning the pages to see what happened next. Whether it was scenes of character development or pages that turned the plot, I devoured every bit of this book in a whirlwind of feeling and excitement.

THE LAST SECTION WAS VAGUE, BELOW MAY CONTAIN MORE SPOILERS THAN YOU’D LIKE. READ AT YOUR OWN RISK

The minute we meet Rhys in the last book, I knew who he was. None of his relationship with Feyre was a surprise to me in this book, BUT I was enthralled by Maas’ execution of it all. She drew out the story, made it a slow burn instead of an immediate blaze. Feyre’s relationship with Tamlin was a wildfire, the blinding, heartwrenching first love of a young girl swept away by romance. Rhysand is the slow and steady heat of a mature, more substantial love. Instead of a young girl in love, forgiving every flaw and staying in hopes it will get better, we see a woman who has been burned take her time and fall in love for all the right reasons.

Rhys is kind, considerate, selfless, and loving, all under the guise of being an egotistical prick (to use Feyre’s favorite word). He pretends so well. When he puts his hands in his pockets or when he pulls the lint from his shirt like he doesn’t care, you know it’s about to be on like Donkey Kong and I love how wicked and cunning he can be with the stroke of goodness underneath.

Rhys is wonderful because he shines a light on a lot of things Feyre doesn’t realize, especially that Tamlin did nothing to help her Under the Mountain and then he treated her like she was HIS reward for breaking the curse and not the other way around. It was kind of a revelation for me as well, because until he said it, I hadn’t noticed that while Rhysand risked everything, Tamlin risked nothing. I mean, I made excuses for it, like a doe eyed girl in love. Blech. What’s wrong with me?!

I don’t know what my favorite part of the book was, I had so many. The wedding was a good start to making my heart race and the ending…Oh my goodness, the ending. I never saw it coming and I wish I could go back and be surprised all over again. It was AWESOME. While I enjoyed Throne of Glass,Maas has definitely matured in her writing and that series doesn’t hold a candle to this one.

I’m not going to be as clever as Flora with the soundtrack. She cracks me up. But I will add my two cents in when there’s a particular song or album (or in this case band) that really seems to fit.

My Soundtrack for this book: The Oh Hellos. Their sound is folky enough to almost sound like a faerie reel, but I’m thinking in particular of their track “In Memoriam”. Go check it out!

FLORA’S REVIEW

This review contains mild spoilers

Wow! I absolutely LOVED this book! Let me just say that the plot took a completely different turn from where I thought it was going. It was better than I’d even hoped and completely surprised me. It was full of twists and turns that I never saw coming. I thought Tamlin and Feyre were end game. I figured Rhysand would try to weasel his way in between them. That he’d take Feyre to the night court to try and sway her with his sexy self, but I was so, so wrong.

Tamlin, what in the world is wrong with you! I wasn’t a huge fan of him in the first book but in this one he takes being a douchebag to a whole other level. He is incredibly selfish. Everything he’s done and everything he does in this book is only for himself. Feyre is falling to pieces over what happened Under the Mountain and he chooses to simply ignore it. Worse than that, he takes away all of her freedom, her sense of self, and tries to keep her from leaving the manor. What?!!! I don’t think in his heart he’s a horrible person, just very selfish and cowardly. I do believe that he loves Feyre, but just not in the right way. Lucien is absolutely no help at all either. He still remains a coward and follower, not doing anything to help Feyre as she wastes away. I’m hoping he redeems himself in future books because in spite of all that, I really do like him. He knows he should be doing something to help her and that keeping her locked up is killing her, which is more than I can say for Tamlin.

Feyre is an amazing heroine. She is so strong and loving that even when she thinks she’s broken beyond repair, I could still feel her inner strength trying to push through. At the beginning, she is broken and traumatized by what happened Under the Mountain. She has horrible nightmares, can’t keep any food down and has simply lost the will to try anymore. She feels no joy or hope and it’s absolutely gut wrenching. Luckily, Rhysand soon sweeps in and whisks her away.

Rhysand, my baby, my moon and my stars. I love him so much. I just want to hug him and squeeze him and never let him go. He has been through so much and sacrificed himself for his people and those he loves. He is the exact opposite of Tamlin and exactly what Feyre needs. He slowly brings her back to life. He is extremely patient, kind and understanding. He makes sure everything Feyre does is her choice. He builds her up, giving her confidence and hope. He makes sure she knows that she is NOT a prize, or a trophy, or a broodmare. He helps her rediscover the amazingly strong, gifted, and independent women that she always was. He is her strength where Tamlin was her demise. I was a little worried that she was about to bed hop from one High Lord to another right away, but luckily that didn’t happen. The relationship between Rhysand and Feyre is slow burning. Rhysand is respectful and never pushes himself on her. In fact, Feyre doesn’t even think he’s really interested at first. It got to the point where I wanted to scream, just kiss already! Don’t worry though, they do eventually get together and trust me, it’s everything you could possibly dream of. *sigh*

I also loved delving into the world of the night court and meeting all of Rhysand’s inner circle. They’re eclectic and funny and accept Feyre with no questions asked. They all work together to try and stop the impending war against The King of Hybern. The king seeks to take control of all of Prythian and break down the wall separating the Fae lands and the mortal lands, which has kept the humans safe from the Fae for over 500 years. I cannot wait to see how this all plays out in the next book. I’m also really excited to see more of Feyre’s sisters. From the appearance they made in this book, I know they’re going to be epic in the next one. Nesta is a force to be reckoned with and is quickly becoming one of my favorite characters. I really don’t know how I’m going to wait a whole year for the next book! I’ll just have to let Maas’s Empire of Storms (which comes out in September), hold me over.

SOUNDTRACK

What have you done for me lately by Janet Jackson

Starlight by Muse

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magicinthelibrary-blog · 7 years

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The Rose and the Dagger Review

In this review, Flora and I, (Seelie) are reviewing The Rose and the Dagger tonight. We both agreed on a three star rating, which we explain below. We should give fair warning, these aren’t synopsis reviews, where we say a brief description of what happened and then say whether or not we liked it. We review in depth enough that there are some spoilers. We try to give fair warning before they are mentioned. Of course, MAJOR, PLOT twisting spoilers we try to avoid at all costs, but if you are someone who hasn’t read the book and worries about it being spoiled, you might want to come back when you have read it.

LAST WARNING, THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS!

FLORA’S REVIEW

I really enjoyed this book. I actually liked this book better than The Wrath and The Dawn. It is fast paced and has a lots of action that had me buzzing right through it. As with the first book, it is beautifully written. Renee Ahdieh paints a beautiful world that has you feeling the silks on your skin, the sand between you’re sandaled toes and smelling the incense in the air.

I just couldn’t make myself like Khalid in the previous book. I couldn’t justify his actions at all. In this one he definitely redeems himself. He realizes that maybe he shouldn’t have let a dead vengeful man’s curse control him and that murdering those women was NEVER the answer. Finally! It only took falling in love after having his previous seventy something brides strangled to death. Sheesh! Khalid also shows some amazing forethought and emotional strength in this book. Over and over again he’s put in highly stressful situations that have others around him (*cough, cough* Tariq) flying off the handle, while he remains calm and thinks about the possible consequences of his actions. It saves him and the people he loves numerous times.

Shahrzad is a great female lead. I love how no matter what anyone else thinks or how hard it becomes, she stays true to her heart and what she believes is right. She takes charge of every situation like a true boss, or Calipha as it is, and doesn’t let anything or anyone stand in her way.

In this book Khalid and Shahrzad work together to try and break the curse plaguing Khalid and his kingdom. Having parted ways at the end of the last book, I was worried about when we’d see them together again. Luckily they come together pretty early on, so have no fear. They go to the Fire Temple to seek the help of Khalid’s former tutor and powerful magus Musa Zaragoza. There we’re introduced to a new character who, incidentally, quickly became my favorite: a young magus named Artan. He’s a sarcastic, rude, badass whom I wish had more page time. How Khalid manages to keep his cool during Artan’s taunting and not punch him in the face is beyond me.

Meanwhile all of Shazi’s (I’m going to refer to Shahrzad as Shazi now because, let’s be honest, it’s easier to type) friends and family are still seeking refuge in the Badawi camp. War is on the horizon between the kingdoms of Khorasan and Parthia. We see a lot more of Shazi’s sister Irsa. She is about as opposite from Shazi as she could be. Irsa is shy and usually the one to run away from danger, not into it. Throughout the book, Irsa really begins growing up and coming into her own, no longer willing to be pushed aside. I loved watching the love blossom between her and Rahim. I have been rooting for them since the first book. Their love is so sweet and slow burning that it gave me a sense of foreboding.

Tariq, my baby, I feel so bad for the guy. He loves Shazi so much and has done so much for her but his heart is breaking into a million little pieces. Even though he’s not exactly nice and friendly to Shazi, he still goes out of his way to watch over her and make sure she’s protected. Unfortunately he also lets his anger and bitterness start controlling his actions. He begins leading raiding parties to conquer lands in preparation for going to war with Shazi’s love, Khalid. He’s constantly struggling to come to terms with Shazi being in love with Khalid and not him. Tariq yoyos back and forth between love, understanding and hate so much that he almost makes an unforgivable and tragic mistake.

Shazi’s father Jahandar and her Uncle Reza bin-Latief are just getting shadier and shadier. Everyone in the Badawi camp starts to wonder what their true motives are and where their loyalties lie. I honestly hated the scenes in which we had to deal with these two characters. Shazi’s dad is not seeing anything clearly because he’s all hopped up on the blood magic mojo coursing through him and Reza is a lying, manipulating traitor. Luckily, their scenes are usually small and not very often throughout the book.

I really missed Despina in this book. I’ve never fully trusted her after all the lying she did in the beginning to Shazi but I’ve always thought she had a big heart and loved her spunk. She makes a brief appearance in the beginning and then we don’t see her again until near the very end. However, what an appearance it is! Let’s just say once a spy, always a spy.

Slight spoilers ahead

I felt as though the inevitable breaking of the curse happened a little too easily but was bound to happen. I loved the way the war played out between Khalid and his uncle the sultan of Parthia, Salim Ali el-Sharif. Only a little actual fighting but a lot of cunning and girl power.

In the end there was some heart ache and death but ultimately good triumphed over evil! I was pretty upset about a certain character death but I admit I saw it coming a mile away. I don’t know if it was really necessary or more of an obligatory I have to kill off a main character kind of thing. I always love a happy ending and aside from that, we truly get one in this book. The Rose and the Dagger is a great read that keeps you engaged the entire time. If you enjoyed The Wrath and the Dawn, you’ll love this book.

Side note. Often when I read books they’ll spark a certain song to start playing in my head. At the end of my reviews I’ll be listing the song or songs that became my soundtrack while reading the book. I hope you enjoy.

SOUNDTRACK:

Magic Carpet Ride by Steppewolf

Desert Rose by Sting

SEELIE’S REVIEW

I think it’s fair to say for my review, if you haven’t read the book preceding The Rose and the Dagger, the ending to that first book might be spoiled, so please don’t read unless you’re prepared for that.

So, I think I’m the opposite of Flora with this inaugural book choice, which is funny, because I’m the one who wanted to read it so desperately! I absolutely adored the first book. I couldn’t put it down. The writing was beautiful and the story was intriguing. Why was Khalid killing his brides? It was obvious he wasn’t a villain, it was obvious he would be a hero of the story, so what terrible reason did he have for murdering those girls? I also wanted to keep reading to know when Shazi would act on her revenge. Would it be before or after she realized that Khalid was in love with her and would she realize she loved him as well? Would his reason for being such a monster be a forgivable one?

The first book played out so seamlessly, each scene pulling you further into it’s rich details and engrossing story. Each important scene was drawn out and written in beautiful detail, leaving nothing desired. I felt certain I was going to love this book just as much. Flora didn’t care for the first book (because she found Khalid unredeemable, which is understandable) and enjoyed the second one more. I, on the other hand, was disappointed by The Rose and the Dagger.

Before anyone gets all upset or starts spamming me with hate mail, I have to say going into this that this wasn’t a bad book, just disappointing in comparison to the first. Renee Ahdieh is a lovely author. Flora states it well enough that I don’t need to repeat it, the girl can describe something to the point of transporting you there. **Fat girl alert** I especially love her description of food. Every time she describes the food Shazi is eating, my mouth waters a little bit! Besides food, she also writes some very touching scenes. The beginning of the book has Khalid helping rebuild his city, though no one knows it’s the Caliph helping them, and it’s a wonderful, beautiful beginning.

The Rose and the Dagger would have satisfied my need for a happy ending if a few things would have happened.

First, I wish the stakes would have been higher. We left the last book with a sense of urgency, the city burning around them and Jalal sending Shazi with Khalid’s only true rival, Tariq. He sends her out of the city to keep her safe. He sends her out of the city, at least in my interpretation of the ending, because Shazi is beginning to fear that what has happened is their fault and that the only way to stop it is to kill her like they did Khalid’s other wives. When Jalal sent her out of the city, I took it to mean he was worried that someone in the city (Khalid, a palace guard, one of the mercenaries who claimed to know Khalid’s secret) might try to kill her to put an end to the devastation on the city.

What a way to end the first book! My heart stopped. It can’t end there. Of course, Khalid isn’t going to kill her or let anything happen to her. But she left (to stop her crazy father) and to make matters worse, left with her childhood love! Surely, Khalid is going to be FURIOUS with Jalal and all of them for letting her go?

When we start this book, there isn’t any of that urgency in the pages that we felt at the end of the last book. It’s slow, slightly introspective, a bit flowery, but the stakes just aren’t high enough. There’s no real question on the horizon that made me turn the pages in the first 70% of the book. We know they will break the curse, so the stakes have to be high enough that we care how it’s broken. I turned the pages merely because I was waiting for the stakes to change and for me to care a tiny bit more, but it took too long to get there and then ended too quickly.

Secondly, and this is going to sound odd, but I wish Ahdieh had taken more time on this story and not rushed through it. There was potential in this book if for no other reason then the first book was so carefully and wonderfully written. For example, it might have even been more exciting if we had seen more of the sorcerers. Shazi goes to see Musa, the Fire Mage, to help her break the curse and find a way to help her father, who has been ill since using that terrible book to burn the city. It’s an interesting turn in the tale and just when you think the book is going to get good, she rushes through the most interesting characters! We hardly see them and we never really get a good explanation on Artan and his family and why he avoids them.

The love scenes are equally rushed. Characters we waited the entire book to be together have a moment on the page and then its over. Arguments between characters go unresolved through almost the entire book. Ahdieh could have slowed the story down and made us care more about the characters and each of their side stories instead of rushing us through them. (did it bother anyone else that sometimes you would turn a page and almost be disoriented by the jump, like a scene was left out or you skipped too many pages?)

The ending was easily resolved (Too easily), but that’s not even a problem for me. The ending was when it got more exciting. I don’t mind a too-easily resolved ending, but I do wish it had taken its time getting there, so that I wouldn’t have felt cheated out of the character development and side stories that flitted by in an effort to end the story.

Finally, I think this book might have been better if one of two things had been done: either make the entire story one book instead of two or slow it down and make it three. I think having lost that sense of urgency in the year between books made me lose momentum and I couldn’t seem to gain it no matter how I tried. If it had been all one book, I would have kept going because I still would have felt that wonder with the first half and would have wanted to see how they resolved everything.

Likewise, if Ahdieh had spent more time giving us more of the side characters, more of the stories in the background that make you want to keep reading, more of Jalal and Despina, Irsa and Rahim, Musa and Artan, and more of the villains, Reza and Jahandar and Salim. If the cursed book played a larger part as the villain and not so much a side note so easily destroyed, she could have easily written three books instead of two and I would have cared more to get to the ending.

I think Ahdieh is a beautiful author and if you liked The Wrath and the Dawn, you should read The Rose and the Dagger to settle your curiosity. I will definitely read more of Ahdieh’s books, if they are in a genre that appeals to me. I think Ahdieh had a wonderful premise to a story and my only real complaint at the end of the day is that the second half was too rushed for my liking.

So what do you think? Agree or disagree? If you want to drop us a line, shoot us an email from the contact page.

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