August 22, 2013

REVIEW: Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas

Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas (Throne of Glass #2)
Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Children's Books
Publication Date: August 27, 2013
Source: Netgalley via publisher
Rating: 5/5 stars
Get it: Amazon | B&N
An assassin’s loyalties are always in doubt.
But her heart never wavers.

After a year of hard labor in the Salt Mines of Endovier, eighteen-year-old assassin Celaena Sardothien has won the king's contest to become the new royal assassin. Yet Celaena is far from loyal to the crown – a secret she hides from even her most intimate confidantes.

Keeping up the deadly charade—while pretending to do the king's bidding—will test her in frightening new ways, especially when she's given a task that could jeopardize everything she's come to care for. And there are far more dangerous forces gathering on the horizon -- forces that threaten to destroy her entire world, and will surely force Celaena to make a choice.

Where do the assassin’s loyalties lie, and who is she most willing to fight for?

My Review
There are very few books that I know will be epic before I even start and Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas wasn’t just that, it was phenomenally epic. I can barely begin to explain how I thought and felt about this book. It just simply took my breath away. 



Can Celaena get any more badass? Well, apparently in this sequel she can! This time around, I really got to see Celaena in action. She really lives up and possibly surpasses her title as Adarlan’s Assassin. She was never just a simple girl with fighting skills, but a girl who was beautifully dangerous and deadly in every way. She was a girl who was relentless, sometimes ruthless, and daring to boot. I really got to see Celaena at her highest and at her very lowest in this book. Her ability to hone in and focus on her craft was absolutely chilling. We definitely see the old snarky, fierce Celaena, but also the good hearted and compassionate Celaena as well. Either way, I adored her. 

Between Chaol and Dorian, there was definitely more page time for Chaol. At least on the romance side of it all. It was too cute to see Chaol worry so much about Celaena. And I just loved their playfulness with each other. It was so different from their hostility in Throne of Glass and to see them now with tension and passion definitely had me swooning. While I wasn’t entirely convinced on Chaol and Celaena in the first book, Maas totally makes me understand the connection and understanding between them in this book. I am a firm Team Dorian fan for life, but Maas made me love Chaol more than I ever thought I could that I realized I wouldn’t mind if Celaena really did end up with either man. Dorian fans shouldn’t be disappointed because there was enough of him to go around in this book. His charm and sweetness that I originally fell for was still there. 

To say that I was impressed by Maas in the creation of this sequel is an understatement. I was mind blown by the creativeness, the action, and the heartbreak that Maas put into this stunning novel. I liked that each character had their own issues to deal with: Celaena and her missions, Chaol’s struggle with loyalty to the king vs. his feelings for Celaena and Dorian with his discovery about himself. Even better, they all showed growth and even more potential in the future books to come. There was definitely a lot more insight to everything that was happening with more magic I hoped for in the first novel. There was Fae, witches and creepy inhumane things lurking in the library stacks that was just fantastically awesome if you asked me. The Wyrdmarks, the king's true plans, rising rebel movements, secret passages, riddles, betrayal, death and more death were also heavily intertwined into the story to truly make this book more than entertaining. What I really loved about Crown of Midnight was the unpredictability. I never knew exactly what was going to happen next so everything seemed to put me on edge. This made the twists and turns even more shockingly surprising. And don’t even get me started on the explosive mind blowing what-the-effery-just-happened-right-now kind of ending. That revelation along with everything else Maas intricately spun into this book brought this series way up high on my favorite lists for sure! 


In a world full of treacherous people with ulterior motives, Celaena plays a dangerous game in Crown of Midnight and each calculated or spontaneous move is a risk that is both thrilling and heart stopping. Maas gives a sequel better the first novel that is so spine-tinglingly good, I’m running in circles for the book three!

*Thanks to Bloomsbury USA Children's Books for sending a copy for review purposes
I was not compensated for my opinion

8 comments:

  1. Great review! I got my copy the other week :-)

    Safari Poet

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    1. Thank you! I hope you enjoy! I definitely need to get a finished copy!

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  2. I don't think I've read anything other than glowing reviews for this series. So glad you loved it, Jessirae. Great review!

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  3. I seriously need to start this series because I have heard nothing but amazing things about it. I love the sound of the characters and the world building. Plus, I love a story with a great plot that moves forwards with the right balance of action, creativeness and emotions! I'm so glad you enjoyed this, Jessirae! Great review! :D

    ~ Maida
    Literary Love Affair 

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    1. AHH! You do! It's so fricking good! Thanks for reading my review Maida! I really appreciate it :)

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  4. SO EPIC. AND hell yeah to Celaena becoming even more BA, but also so vulnerable and easy to relate to. I wasn't her hugest fan in ToG, but seeing her at her lowest and in a bunch of different ways throughout this novel I think really helped make her complex and a terribly sympathetic character. At the rate this is going, she's probably going to be one of my favorite characters, especially with a six book series.

    LE GASP. You were/are Team Dorian? I was not his greatest fan in ToG, but I did like his development in CoM. I heaaard from someone who'd read the series when it was pubbed on Fictionpress that you may still have hope yet o.O. But this is why I shall remain with Chaol --> "It was too cute to see Chaol worry so much about Celaena. And I just loved their playfulness with each other." Why didn't you believe in him in the first book :O?

    It was nice that each character has his/her own arc, and that we got to learn more about the magic. And the plot twists, the ending... WHYYYY WORLD. Such a good book. So looking forward to the next!!

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    1. YESSSSS! I loved how we totally saw her breakdown in CoM. I was like daaaaamn, shit be cray. I just thought she owned up to her arrogance but also showed her vulnerable side. I loved Celaena sooooo much.

      Yeaaaah, I was (still am) Team Dorian! I just thought he was so cute in ToG. I have hope for him and Celaena, but then from the way things ended, I'm no so sure. I don't mind though because Chaol is a great character. I wasn't convinced probably because Dorian overshadowed him. I felt like I knew Dorian more than I knew Chaol. I liked him, but I wasn't feeling the C/C connection everyone felt. But after CoM, I do. I felt it and I loved it!!!

      OMG yes! MORE MAGIC. That was the best. And all those twists... I was like WTFFFFF. It was so awesome. I wanted more magic and I gooooot it ;)

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