BOOK REVIEW: CROWN OF MIDNIGHT by Sarah J. Maas

TITLE: Crown of Midnight (Throne of Glass # 2)

AUTHOR: Sarah J. Maas

GENRES: Fantasy, Romance

FORMAT: Paperback

PUBLISHER: Bloomsbury

DATE READ: March 19, 2016

GOODREADS SYNOPSIS:

Crowned by Evil.
Bound by Duty.
Divided by Love.

Celaena Sardothien, royal assassin, is the King of Adarlan’s deadliest weapon. She must win her freedom through his enemies’ blood – but she cannot bear to kill for the crown. And every death Celaena fakes, every lie she tells, put those she loves at risk.

Torn between her two protectors – a captain and a prince – and battling a dark force far greater than the king, Celaena must decide what she will fight for: her liberty, her heart or the fate of a kingdom.

MY REVIEW:

*Warning. By the Wyrd! This review is full of feels.*

IT’S BEEN A LONG TIME SINCE THE LAST TIME I GAVE A BOOK A 5 STARS! AND I THINK THIS SEQUEL REALLY DESERVED IT!

(apologies if this review isn’t that organized. My mind is flying off elsewhere)

“But death was her curse and her gift, and death had been her good friend these long, long years.”

NON-SPOILERY SECTION

I cried upon finishing this because I think Sarah J. Maas is genius and phenomenal. I had a great deal of feels.

The book was indeed intelligent and I love how each of the foreshadowing puzzle pieces fit together and smashed me with a superb plot twist that I didn’t expect.

First things first! It’s really interesting to see how much vast the plot is. It doesn’t focus on a simple one but the plot is slowly becoming intricate and complex. Even this is just the second book, you will know that there is A LOT TO COME. I mean Sarah didn’t just write a sequel for the purpose of continuing the series but also wrote in a very ornate way. And the story is very dynamic and unexpected. Crown of Midnight really opened doors for another possible plot twists in the future.

This book has all the elements and turn of events I’ve been waiting and wanting to see. This is by far the best sequel of a book I’ve ever read. My emotions were at its height and I can’t put this book down. Before I knew it, I was in the last pages, left wanting for more. The characters grew so much here and I like the direction Maas is taking us (which will most likely make me feel insane later on). There are more secrets to unravel about the Wyrdkeys, about Celaena’s past, about the King’s plans. I am excited on how Celaena would change not just her fate but also the fate of her whole kingdom. She is an assassin but indeed a very special one. Every heroine is destined for a greater purpose but it all has a price.

The world building is superb and there were lots of other worlds to explore here. Other cultures, race, kind, magic. More plot twists! revelations! and more.

In here I felt connected to the characters especially to Dorian. I felt like I understood him and I sympathize with him. I felt sad that he’s like an outcast in the palace who just wanted to get away from all of it and also his love isn’t reciprocated. He’s an official member of the friendzone club that’s why I want to hug him and tell him it’s gonna be okay. But that didn’t made me change my ship. Despite what happened, I still root for Chaol and Celaena. I think these two could work together and make differences. I can see how true their love is for each other. Envisioning future together is one thing, but sacrificing yourself just to save the person you love and to keep them safe is another thing. I am #TeamChaol all the way!

But as the book goes on and the plot deepens, more questions arise. I will discuss it more in the spoilery section down below.

The last part of the book hit me right in the feels. As Chaol sank on his knees, I did too. and I KENNOT. It was so amazing. I am deeply excited for Heir of Fire. And I think you should too!

(If you have read the book, you can proceed to the spoilery section. If not then shooo!!! Don’t let yourself suffer in regret :p)

SPOILERY SECTION

Here are some stuff I would like to discuss.

Nehemia’s Death. Soooo. Nehemia’s death was unexpected. I mean, I really liked her character since ToG. And I had a mixed emotions after reading this because she effin’ orchestrated her own death just to push Celaena in the direction she should be in. Which is yay saving the world! I don’t know but her death wrecked Celaena and my SHIP! Celaena almost killed Chaol and blamed him to everything that had happened when he just wanted to help her because he knew Celaena would kill again if she knew the truth about the threat to Nehemia. Chaol doesn’t want Celaena’s hands to be stained again but it turned out bad. Why is it that someone has to die before a person realizes the worth of something?

But is her death necessary? I think yes. If she hadn’t died, Celaena wouldn’t take an action. She wouldn’t go down searching for the wyrdmarks and how to open a portal using them. She wouldn’t be able to discover the clocktower and that there was a creature living in it. TBH, I got goosebumps while reading that part. Because we all knew that she had walked there before thinking that no one was watching her but certainly there is. If Nehemia hadn’t died, she wouldn’t discovered the secret organization Nehemia is in and the cause they’ve been trying to uphold and the secret that lies around the king and the kingdom. And above all, we wouldn’t know that Celaena was indeed a Fae.

Dorian’s Magic. This one raised a question. If magic was vanished in the whole parts of Erilea especially in Adarlan, why can Dorian perform magic? And why has it evolved and showed just now and not before? Is it true that the King himself vanished the magic using one of the wyrdkeys but didn’t necessarily erased his and his lineage ability to use magic? Does the King of Adarlan have magic in the first place? Or it’s just the Wyrdkeys that gave him magic? If so, it goes back to the first question, why does Dorian have magic and why can he use it? It’s pretty interesting as to which this will go on the next book. I’m excited to see what effects this have in the plot development.

The Riddle and The Wyrdkeys. Another thing that made this book amazing is the mind games. The riddles paved the way into making the reader think of answers too just as much as the characters did. The wydkeys would really play a vital role in the story and I’m excited to see where are the others hidden. If the King of Adaralan has the one, where were the others?

Celaena’s Ability. Inside the portal, Celaena suddenly shifted into a Fae. When she is in her Fae form, it’s obvious that she wield an immortal power. But, my question is, if she’s in her human form, can she still use some of her original Fae abilities without shifting? (of cours given that if she’s not in Adarlan) That’s why her journey in Wendlyn is beyond exciting because we don’t know what lies ahead.

I’m excited to see how each of our characters will grow and how the plot will expand.

This was an impressive sequel and I’m truly amazed by Sarah’s skill in crafting a complex and engaging story that will really make us want to continue reading the series ’til the end.

MY STAR RATING:

QOTD: What’s your favorite moments from this book? Let me know in the comments below and I’ll see you soon on my next book review.

Thank you bookish peeps!

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3 thoughts on “BOOK REVIEW: CROWN OF MIDNIGHT by Sarah J. Maas”

photographsmakememories says:

April 6, 2016 at 11:02 am

The Throne of Glass series is absolutely amazing, keep going with the next books, it only gets better and better!

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1. Serene August says:
  
  April 6, 2016 at 12:44 pm
  
  Yes! I’m excited ❤
  
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Zezee says:

April 28, 2016 at 2:00 pm

I didn’t like this one much, unfortunately, but I agree that there were some interesting moments like Dorian’s magic and the portal scene. The portal scene answered all the questions I had. I was so curious about Celaena’s background.

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