Throne of Glass Series review... so far

************************** SPOILERS *****************************

 

Please be aware that this review contains spoilers for both the first and second book of the Throne of Glass Series... if you have not already read the book please refrain from reading the review as I do not believe knowing the full details of the book to be beneficial to your experience. I will attempt to write a spoiler free review of the first book soon, however I have many other books that also need reviews so please have patience.

 

 

I believe that although this series has received good reviews on both 'Goodreads' and 'Booktube' I haven't seen as much of it as I thought I would. I purchased Throne of Glass not long ago only knowing that it was a fantasy novel based on the story of a female assassin in some sort of intense competition to win freedom... and I am glad that that is all I knew.

 

Before reading Throne of Glass the fantasy genre somewhat baffled me; the amount of world development compared to other genres is particularly outstanding and daunting, if I am brutally honest. You walk into a bookstore and as you browse the fantasy section you see large books which start a large series; where you know the first book is going to be purely world building and character building... and well frankly the first book of a fantasy series usually boring. I am so grateful to Sarah J Maas for putting an end to this horrific trend and starting a series with an action packed and fascinating first book; which both lends itself to an epic start as well as praise for the book alone; while keeping the world development to an exceptional level.

 

When I started looking at the book in a critical view; my first thought was the title, writers tend to go with the obvious title that is found in the book... for instance the name 'Champion' would be a likely choice; but I believe that the choice for title was outstanding. Of course it hold a literal stance of the castle made of glass but also a philosophical sense of a fragile Kingdom ready to break at any moment... and this book was one hell of a way of starting its demise.

 

So if you have read to here you must have already read the novels and understand the plot; a lead assassin caught and imprisoned and then entered into a deadly competition where their every skill is tested and the potential for death is around every corner. When the other competitors start dropping like flies around poison eyes turn on each other as well as the Crown and rebels as to the cause. Of course the lead lady in this glorious novel must get to the bottom of this, while also dealing with the competition and a hell of a love triangle.

 

So Calaena is a strong but believable character; the start shows her weak but her strength grows until she blossoms as any woman would in her situation, but she always carries her weaknesses with her. There are elements in the book which make you doubt who she is for a while; parts that make you question whether she should be in this competition... but as things draw to a close and the outlawed magic starts to creep in you start to really understand her. In the second novel Calaena is developed to new heights; the truth behind her parents murders is bought to light, as well as her utter fear of the King. It all becomes clear when she turns into a Fae as she passes through a portal from their world to another to save Chaol from a terrible fate.

 

Chaol Westfall also plays a huge part in this story; he trains Calaena and falls madly in love with her... through the first book my heart was broken at how the love triangle developed and one quote in particular bought tears to my eyes and made me stop reading for an hour because my heart couldn't bear it... 'watching as she waltzed alone, lost in her dreams. But he knew her thoughts weren't of him'... that simple line as he watched from the ground into her balcony was extremely well written and I have found a hidden meaning when he says 'she never bothered to look below'. Chaol didn't just mean physically look down but to him he was below the Crown Prince and was questioning why she would look down from the Prince to him.

 

However something I am uneasy about is the sudden change in direction of the love triangle between the end of Throne of Glass and the start of Crown of Midnight. Calaena didn't seem interested in Chaol or Dorian by the end of Throne of Glass but by the first pages of Crown of Midnight she was swooning in Chaol's arms and that was all that matters. Of course to keep the triangle alive she began to hate Chaol by the end of Crown of Midnight and fell back into the arms of the Crown Prince.

Dorian (A.K.A The Crown Prince of Adarlan) is the third element of the love triangle; however I found him more realistic and more of a character in Crown of Midnight compared to Throne of Glass. In throne of Glass he just seemed like a love sick rebellious child however he developed into a man in Crown of Midnight, discovering more about himself and his family. In regards to the love triangle, I don't understand how Calaena went from loving him at the end of the book and then Chaol at the beginning of the next... I understand that Calaena regards her love of him over once she got announced as champion... but there feels like an element is missing. I also don't believe Dorian plays a particularly huge role in the love triangle in the Crown of Midnight however with the development between Chaol and Calaena at the end of Crown of Midnight I'm intrigued as to future developments.

Since finishing this series I have attempted to read several other books... both standalones and series and I just cant tear myself away from this series. I have had Heir of Fire on my thoughts constantly and I cannot wait to have it in my grasps. I cannot fully explain my love for this series... it is the only true fantasy series that I have fell for like this; the only way I can explain my love is to find the love of Harry Potter in an young adult book.

Helen x