Early Review – Crown of Midnight (Throne of Glass, Book 2) by Sarah J. Maas (5/5 stars)
Reading Level: Young Adult
Genre: Fantasy
Size: 432 pages
Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Childrens
Release Date: August 27, 2013
ISBN: 978-1619630628
Stand Alone or Series: 2nd book in the Throne of Glass series
Source: eGalley from NetGalley.com
Rating: 5/5 stars
This is the second book in the Throne of Glass series. I loved the first book and all the novellas written for this series and was very excited to receive this book for review through NetGalley(dot)com. This book was even better than the first book; it was an excellent epic fantasy. I absolutely loved it.
Celaena is now the King’s Champion, a fancy name for being his royal assassin. She is trying to carry out her duties as requested but when she finds that the people she are sent to destroy are actually decent people, she starts playing a dangerous game by smuggling them out of the country. It’s a game she has to be careful to hide both from Chaol and Dorian. Then Celaena is sent to kill someone from her past and she finds that a rebellion really does exist. With magic stirring again Celaena finds herself in the middle of some tough decisions.
I love this book so much that I dread writing this review, because I am just don’t think I can adequately put into words how much I love this book.
Celaena is a wonderfully complex heroine. She is tough and vicious, yet caring and loyal too. In this book we find out more about her secrets and past. She is one of my favorite fantasy heroines ever. She is just so interesting to read about and I am completely engaged in her story. Her snarky sense of humor adds a lot of fun to the story as well.
Chaol is also a wonderful character in this book. He is just so good and tries so hard to not act on his love for Celaena. He is loyal and steadfast. He is forced to choose between his loyalty to the King and his love of Celaena. We learn a lot more about background in this novel. Again he is a wonderful character that is completely engaging to read about.
Dorian also becomes a much more likable character. He is in a tough spot as the son of such a vicious King. I was surprised at how much I grew to like Dorian in this book. He makes some very mature decisions and you start to see inklings of the ruler he could become if only given the chance. There are some wonderful developments to his character that really add to his complexity.
There is a lot of action and intrigue in this book. Lots of political maneuvering and twists and turns. It makes for a complex story, but the story never gets confusing or hard to follow. There are a number of moments that make you gasp in surprise.
Magic makes an increased appearance in the story. We learn more about how the King got to be as powerful as he is and we learn the trials Celaena will have to go through to stop him.
There are a number of mentions of things in Celaena’s past in this book. Most of these events are gone through in great detail in the four novellas that were published as prequels to the first book. If you were a big fan of the first book I strongly recommend going back to read those four novellas before reading this book. It will add to your understanding when the events are mentioned in passing in this book. Especially when Celaena talks about Sam.
Overall this book was incredibly engaging and easy to read. I absolutely could not put it down, it was just a spectacular read. I absolutely loved the first book and this book was even better. The world is complex and intriguing, as are the characters. The plot is full of surprising twists and turns but is never confusing or contrived feeling. I highly recommend this series to fantasy lovers of all ages.
This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
– 100 Books in a Year Reading Challenge
– YA/MG Fantasy Reading Challenge
– 150+ Reading Challenge
– Young Adult Reading Challenge
