Throne of Glass Review

Throne of Glass by Sarah J Maas  

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

In the Throne of Glass, a young assassin sent to a vicious labor camp is chosen by the Crown Prince as his champion in a competition to be the King’s Assassin. This young woman has the chance to win her freedom and accepts, and her journey begins.

I’ve learned by now that Sarah J. Maas will never disappoint me. Throne of Glass was an absolute pleasure to read. From the first chapter, Maas sucked me into this new world filled with assassins, sarcasm, dreamy men, mysterious deaths, an evil King, and magic (Ironic since magic is banned in Adarlan). Throne of Glass is a book that makes someone stay up all night reading chapter after chapter, wanting to know what will happen next.

Celaena Sardothien must be one of my favorite book characters of all time. I loved her from the first moment she was introduced in the book. Her humor and sarcasm in the first pages of Throne of Glass pulled me in. As an assassin sent to a labor camp as a slave in Endovier to die, it’s expected that someone would lose their inner light, but Celaena never did. She survived when others perished within months and didn’t lose herself in the darkness. Celaena’s humor and witty remarks forced a smile on my face multiple times. I loved my sassy assassin. I also loved her inner strength and bold spirit. The ruthless duel between her and Cain (hate him) was tough to read, but Celaena’s will to keep fighting even when she was severely weakened made it all worth it. I can’t wait to learn more about her in the coming books! Her mysterious background before she became an assassin has me intrigued beyond belief.

Since Throne of Glass was written by Sarah J. Maas, it was not surprising to see some dreamy men in the book. The two love interests, Dorian and Chaol, could not have been more different. Dorian, Prince of Adarlan, was playful and flirty. Chaol, Captain of the Guard, was guarded (no pun intended) and distrustful…at first. Dorian fell for Celaena quickly, but Chaol took much longer to truly see Celaena for who she really was outside of being an assassin. Yes, Dorian was charming, and Chaol could be an asshole to Celaena sometimes, but I couldn’t help but love Chaol more. The connection between Chaol and Celaena seemed deeper than Dorian and Celaena. And Chaol doesn’t even kiss Celaena in Throne of Glass! I did have a love for Prince Dorian, and he will be an excellent king, but he wasn’t the right fit for Celaena. It was clear in the final duel between Celaena and Cain that Chaol understood her in a way that Dorian did not.

One of my favorite parts of Throne of Glass was the friendship between Celaena and Princess Nehemia. This is the dynamic duo I needed! Two badass women who rebel against authority and do it beautifully with attitude and grace. What could be better than that? Celaena needed a friend in the glass castle, and Nehemia was a perfect choice. I’m excited to see more of this duo in future books.

The competition itself was a little lackluster. The Tests could have been more exciting but the mysterious and brutal deaths of the champions made up for that. Beyond the fantastic characters, a dark creature was wreaking havoc in the castle. The deaths of the champions left me on edge. Maas is good at creeping me out using these scary and monstrous creatures. The fight between the monster and Celaena was a little bit of a letdown due to the buildup in previous chapters. However, it all came together in the final duel when Celaena must face an even bigger foe.

The underlining discussion about King Adarlan taking over all of Erilea and the banishment of magic is something I look forward to unpacking more in the following books. Obviously, magic is still present in their world, and I have a feeling it will be seen more as I go further into the series. I cannot wait!

I loved reading Throne of Glass. I would recommend it to anyone who has read the ACOTAR series or loves fantasy fiction. You will not want to miss out on this book!