House of Earth and Blood (Crescent City, #1)

by Sarah J. Maas

Think Game of Thrones meets Buffy the Vampire Slayer with a drizzle of E.L. James - Telegraph

Perfect for fans of Jessica Jones and True Blood, this is a blockbuster modern fantasy set in a divided world where one woman must uncover the truth to seek her revenge.

Half-Fae, half-human Bryce Quinlan loves her life. Every night is a party and Bryce is going to savour all the pleasures Lunathion - also known as Crescent City - has to offer. But then a brutal murder shakes the very foundations of the city, and brings Bryce's world crashing down.
Two years later, Bryce still haunts the city's most notorious nightclubs - but seeking only oblivion now. Then the murderer attacks again. And when an infamous Fallen angel, Hunt Athalar, is assigned to watch her every footstep, Bryce knows she can't forget any longer.
As Bryce and Hunt fight to unravel the mystery, and their own dark pasts, the threads they tug ripple through the underbelly of the city, across warring continents, and down to the deepest levels of Hel, where things that have been sleeping for millennia are beginning to stir ...
With unforgettable characters and page-turning suspense, this richly inventive new fantasy series by #1 New York Times bestselling author Sarah J. Maas delves into the heartache of loss, the price of freedom - and the power of love.

• ISBN10: 1635574048
• ISBN13: 9781635574043
• Publish Date: 3 March 2020
• Publish Status: Active
• Imprint: Bloomsbury Publishing
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 816
• Language: English

Reviews

[cornerfolds]

DNF @ 290 pages. I cannot.

Well, this is awkward. I guess it's time for my first unpopular opinion review of 2020! I'm not Sarah J. Maas's biggest fan, but A Court of Thorns and Roses is (embarrassingly) one of my favorite books. I didn't enjoy the way that series ended, but the first book is one I've read over and over. I've also been reading the Throne of Glass series and have been mostly enjoying it, so I was hesitantly excited for Crescent City.

To start, why in the world is the series name the biggest thing on the cover? Why doesn't the title of the book look like the title of the book? I haven't heard a single person call this House of Earth and Blood. But I digress.

Let's dive into this 800+ page "adult" urban fantasy novel that is holding out at 4.47 stars on Goodreads as of this review being written. I didn't really know what I was getting into with this book, but I certainly wasn't expecting to be completely overwhelmed by swearing as soon as it began. It's as if Sarah J. Maas decided all she needed to make a book adult was an F-bomb every third sentence. And I'm not exaggerating. Fun fact(s) about me: I am an Air Force veteran who spent time in Afghanistan and I'm married to a sailor. I am no stranger to swearing and honestly have quite the vocabulary in the comfort of my home, but this book was extremely excessive for no good reason. There was no point in the amount of cussing shoehorned into Crescent City. It didn't add anything and came off as extremely unnatural and it took me a long while to get used to it. So that was strike one.

Have I mentioned that this book rings in at over 800 pages? For a first book in a series, that's quite a lot. In the past SJM series have begun relatively short and got longer as they went. This worked because the reader (me) had time to get invested in the characters before diving into such a massive book. There was plenty of time to get the backstory and the world building. For whatever reason, this time she dove right in with 800 pages and, let me tell you, not much happens at least for the first 300 of them, which is where I gave up. There's an awful lot of info dumping and characters being sad and talking about how gorgeous everyone is, but not much story to actually care about.

Speaking of the characters, Bryce Quinlan has red hair. I just need everyone to know that because all I got from the 300 pages I read was that she has red hair, nice legs, and likes pink underwear. Oh, and she hates "alphaholes" even though they're the only "males" she seems to be attracted to. Yes, despite all the criticism SJM has received for using the terms "male" and "female" in both her previous series, she still does it here and it's cringe.

Hunt Athalar, said alphahole, is Rhysand but worse, at least from what I've seen so far. Where Rhysand was at least "woke" and "feminist," Hunt is judgmental and overbearing. He has big wings and super strong powers. As much as I love Rhysand (and Rowan is growing on me, I guess), I felt nothing for Hunt at all. I'm not sure at what point there's supposed to be any chemistry whatsoever between Bryce and Hunt, but by page 300 there was nothing.

I know everyone and their brother loves this book, but I just could not get into it. The world building was so info dumped I couldn't tell you anything about it outside of the places Bryce visits and I literally couldn't care less about the characters. There's also kind of a murder mystery, but I didn't care enough about the characters to care about their motivations. I wanted to love this SO much, but it just was not for me. I was repeatedly told that it picks up 200 pages from the end, but no one should have to invest in reading 600 pages of an 800 page book for it to get good.

[kate87]

If youve read Sarah's other work and enjoyed it, you will love this book it blows the others way out the water. Did not want this to end.
Absolutely heartbreaking and magnificent

[blackbibliophile]

3.5 ⭐️
I thought this was going to be a book about a great romance. But I was wrong.

Although I struggled through the first 5 chapters as Maas did a little world building (I’m STILL not sure of the hierarchy of the worlds or what world they’re in), I forged on and finished. It got better. Much better. What I thought was going to be a romance, ended up being a story about an epic friendship and the unbreakable bond that results when you love someone so much it transcends worldly boundaries. It also told the story about the journey of a girl who was desperately seeking to find her place in the world. I’m glad this book wasn’t ruined with cheap sex scenes.

I really liked it.

With an 800+ page book, there was ample time to use the first 5 chapters to form setting in a simplistic way so it didn’t interfere with the story AND give the reader some kind of idea wth was going on. I think that’s the only place this fell short. I’m still perplexed by all of the new terms and classifications of creatures. I’ll tuck that useless information away for now and hope it’s better explained in book #2.

[mitabird]

3.5 stars

[llamareads]

Content warnings: drug use, suicide attempt, depression, grief, disordered eating, torture, slut-shaming and general bullying

“Despite his suspicions, Hunt had the creeping feeling that this assignment was either going to be a fuck-ton of fun or a nightmare.”

That quote? My mood when I started this book. Given that I had mixed feelings over SJM’s last two books, I went into this behemoth (1109?!? pages on my ereader) with quite a bit of trepidation. But once you get past the first eight chapters, this is some pretty solid old school SJM, complete with lots of freckled golden skin and too many instances of the word “male.”

Bryce reminds me most of an Urban Fantasy AU Aelin, which is not a bad thing. Bryce, to put it bluntly, is a party girl, mostly content with just putting in her hours at work and then partying with her friends. And if her friends are all wildly more successful than her (her roommate’s famous and poised to take over the shifter pack, and her other two best friends are a ballerina and probably-an-assassin), well, that’s because she’s half-human and they’re not. All of that changes rather abruptly one night, and Bryce is left to pick up the pieces. And that’s just the first eight chapters…. the rest of the book is a murder mystery complete with political shenanigans and lots of breaks to take selfies.

The world building is both too much and not enough. Crash course? There are four Houses comprised of various beings known as Vanir, which include (deep breath) sprites, angels, shifters, merpeople, witches, and Fae. All of it is ruled over by star-beings known as the Asteri, and at the bottom of the heap is, as usual, the humans. There’s some vaguely Judeo-Christian mythology (Fallen angels who attempt to overturn the Asteri, demons from “Hel”) and the angel legions are vaguely Roman, even down to using crucifixion as a punishment. There’s a lot of time (and pages, so many pages) spent setting all this up, and it still somehow ends up being confusing and never quite gels. It’s all packaged up in a sort of magical urban fantasy complete with cellphones, night clubs and pizza.

“Isn’t it exhausting to be an alphahole all the time? Do you guys have a handbook for it? Maybe secret support groups?”

I was particularly amused by a conversation between Bryce and Hunt about “alphaholes” – a pretty well-known trope in romance circles – and watching Hunt subvert that stereotype. Am I completely sold on the relationship between them? I’m not sure. Like any romance, there’s a dark moment – where something happens that makes the two characters question their relationship – and in this case, it’s a doozy. I certainly didn’t feel like the character in the wrong groveled enough. Plus, this is SJM, and her MO seems to be setting up one ship and then torpedoing the *@#$ out of it later on. I was much more invested in Bryce and Danika’s friendship, honestly, and her messed up relationship with Ruhn.

Speaking of Aedion – I mean Ruhn…. There’s a lot that feels very reminiscent of her two previous series in terms of characters and plot developments… even the one sex scene. I can’t really complain too much about that, though, as it does read as a sort of “best of” of those series, though I really wish the disordered-eating-as-grief thing hadn’t made another appearance. It did make some of the twists not as surprising. I mean, if you’ve read SJM before, by halfway through you know exactly what’s coming. Also, this book is long. It’s really, really, really long, and the pacing in the middle suffers as a result. Even at the beginning, getting through those first 8-10 chapters is… not for the faint of heart, and I bounced hard off both the pre-release excerpt (those first seven chapters) and the actual finished book several times before I managed to actually make some headway. Once it finally clicked, though, I was firmly hooked and couldn’t put the book down.

Overall, despite its flaws, I still enjoyed the book, the developing relationship between Bryce and Hunt and the multitude of side characters.



My take-aways: I will forever be thinking about Jelly Jubilee and Bryce vacuuming.
Also, SJM? Stop trying to make “rootling” happen.

[Inkslinger]

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"The power shall always belong to those who give their lives to the city."


03-23: 'House of Earth and Blood,' the first book in the new 'Crescent City' series by Sarah J. Maas is a contemporary fantasy title about a half-fae/half-human woman--Bryce Quinlan, who loses her closest friends in a brutal killing. After the authorities put the alleged assailant in prison, the killings start again.. leaving Bryce in the midst of the mystery and one hell of a quest for vengeance.

When Bryce ends up with an enslaved Fallen angel on her heels everywhere she goes for protection, the two clash from the start. Hunt Athalar is a well-known and widely feared assassin for the Governor and he'll do anything to regain his freedom. He's pushy and she's stubborn.. and the result is often hilarious.

As this was my very first Maas read, I didn't really know what to expect. I've seen conflicting reactions to her previous work all over, but I try not to pay much attention to things like that. I realize most opinions are not based so much on the work, but rather personal preferences and prejudices one way or the other. This book was a lot though and I'm struggling to settle on a place to begin the discussion. There's a lot to process and that's mostly a good thing. Mostly.


"If it's not a date, then how is it different?"
"It'd be a trial run. For a date," Connor said through his teeth.
"She lifted a brow. "A date to decide if I want to date you?"
"You're impossible."


Since I like to approach titles with as fresh an outlook as possible, I let some time sit between my initial read of the synopsis and actually getting into the story. So, literally within the first five chapters, the author made me love those friends who weren't long for the world.. and then crushed me when they were gone.

If I'd re-read the summary, I would have been prepared.. but I didn't. Instead, I bawled my eyes out and I was barely getting started. Yet, I'm so glad for that experience. It really set the tone for the entire book which is full of ups and downs, tragedy and levity, joy and sorrow. This story wounded my soul. It hurt me on a level that is like the swift, brutal end of a cherished relationship. You know the kind.. where the other person walks away and you're still all in.. just standing there and watching them go? Yeah. That kind.

I want to get one thing out of the way first. There are people who pan the hell out of this writer.. and it was abundantly clear, very quickly--that what they mistake for a lack of skill or quality, is the way they personally feel about the characters or stories they've read. I've seen all sorts of reasons--they can't relate to the characters, they think the stories are cheesy, she replaces characters too often, and so on.

They cite her for poor character building (which I assure you is at least not the case in this book), couples with no chemistry (again, definitely not the case here--in fact the chemistry is great between friends, foes, lovers and most things in-between), and cheesy scenes. Okay, the latter could be misconstrued--the only cheesiness I saw was between friends being goofy, as friends are prone to do, or some really sweet moments which also happen in actual situations.

​Now, as I said, this was my first and so far--only Maas read. Maybe it was the exception to all those above generalities imposed on her as an author by readers who are opposed to her. Maybe. But I'm seeing similar things about this book and it really just comes across as a people who don't know the difference between good vs. bad and like vs. dislike.


"There was only silence here. Silence and mist.
Was this death? Silence and fog?"


There are a lot of things Maas did really well in 'House of Earth and Blood.' The world-building is absolutely massive and intricately detailed. From the seven regions of the city, to their inhabitants and the political breakdown of each, and the symbolism representing it all.. you can tell she spent a ton of time fleshing it all out and there's a rhythm to how and why each group is placed where they are. Every faction and race referenced with any amount of focus has a full history and structure of its own. Some of the things that identify them are long-standing reliable mythology and others are creative off-shoots from the norm.

Nearly every character the story gives any serious attention to, has a substantial backstory of their own. The only exceptions being more secretive individuals for reasons of their own and perhaps we'll find out more about them in future releases. From the ruling body of the planet, to the bowels of Hel, to the people in between, there's a distinctive hierarchy keeping everyone in their place. A careful balance.. precarious and volatile.

"There are thirty-six photos on your four-year-old phone, and all of them are dismembered bodies," she said.

The conflict, both internal and external is rough.. and I mean emotionally. I laughed, I raged, I cried.. I adored, I detested. This book is an absolute roller coaster of emotions in spots. Honestly, the last 100-150 pages I spent mostly in tears. Sometimes melting from happiness, sometimes suffering soul deep blows. Did I like every character? No. Did I like every character I was meant to like? Probably still.. no. But that's okay.

Maas succeeded in immersing me. She gave me characters I could relate to.. either because I saw something or myself in them.. or something of someone I knew. She made me invested, sometimes rewarded me for that investment, and other times destroyed me with it. She moved me to react. And that's the mark of a really good storyteller.

It wasn't perfect. Nothing ever is. There are little plot devices here and there that seem far-fetched in the moment, but after you learn more later.. their purpose clears up. To be honest, in hindsight I realize at least they're typically addressed by someone within the character's social circle as questionable, but blown off by a whole lot of 'it doesn't matter--there's no other choice.' That's actually quite a brilliant use of subtlety to turn the reader's gaze elsewhere.


"That's what they call you, but that's not who you are."
"And who am I?"
"A pain in my ass."


I've told you many of the things I think she did right, but there is one big thing I think she did wrong. I think she made a decision for the sake of the drama it would create. I think there was a particular direction she wanted the story to take and she forced it to go there. And I think at that point, she either forgot who her character really was.. or she willfully dismissed that knowledge. It's a really common problem with current writers, some of my favorites in fact. So, make no mistake. I'm not putting her down. But I was incredibly angry for the character because it felt disloyal.

The motive for the act was strong and steady throughout the novel. I don't dispute the act entirely itself. I dispute how it was handled. Lying about it? In the particular case.. 100% inconsistent with the character's psychological baseline. It's not a clever twist, if it doesn't make sense for the character. It's a sharp turn off the road across a field full of holes.

When it makes sense, but you're so subtle the audience still doesn't see it coming.. that's when you hook them with it. You want to shoot for 'holy shit I should have seen that'.. not.. 'what the hell just happened?' Otherwise, you can literally toss them from the moment. That's exactly what happened to me. I put the novel down for two days because I was furious about the plot point decision, not the act itself.

The other things I saw were minor and also pretty common. An easy solution information download to clean-up plot points, for one. Though at least it was done in an acceptable, somewhat less overt manner. You could see it for what it was if you were looking, but I'm betting most readers these days are so accustomed to that, they barely notice if it's a decent setup.

Another minor issue (and other recurring complaint of mine in current titles), was the 'yoyo effect.' You'll see what I mean if you read the book. It happened in a big movie late last year too. There's a dramatic incident.. but wait, it's reversed.. only to be followed by another dramatic incident going the opposite direction, but wait.. that's reversed too, and then there's at least one more of those incidents.. that may or may not be reversed.

It's just, taking a climax and overdoing it to the point it's no longer interesting. Like 'The Departed.' Remember that older Leonardo DiCaprio film? The entire film was great drama.. very intense, very story driven. Twenty minutes from the end.. BAM.. sudden, dramatic incident. Would have been a beautiful ending. Maybe even one more after that. But instead, we got an entire series of them over that twenty minutes.. until the shock and surprise was just replaced with droll resentment.


"What brings loyalty from beyond death, undimming despite the years. What remains unwavering in the face of hopelessness."


Anyway, I've gone on far too long.. but give me a break. It was an 800 page novel. I wasn't a fan of the reveal regarding how the friends died. Personally, in my mind.. it sounded kind of dumb.. but 'suspension of disbelief' and everything else more than made up for that one choice that I just didn't care for. See what I did there? It was something I didn't like, it wasn't a case of 'bad writing.'

For the record, even with those three complaints I made.. I absolutely loved the book. From a technical aspect, it's a very solid piece of storytelling. But in addition to that, I really loved the story and Maas' great characters (good and bad) that I got to know. I can't believe I have to wait probably a good year or more for the next one. I can foresee a re-read in my future and that's an incredibly rare feat for a book with me.

Pick up this novel. Unless you have personal issues with the author or just dislike the style, you will not be sorry.


PURCHASE LINKS: AMAZON | BARNES & NOBLE | GOOGLEPLAY BOOKS | KOBO | WATERSTONES

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03-20: Finally bit the bullet and finished this. I stayed up until 7:30am.. and spent most of the last 100-150 pages sobbing for one reason or another. I need recovery time before reviewing it though, so Monday.. I'll post thoughts.

03-19: Took a couple days off from the book, for two reasons. First and foremost being.. I was mad about a choice that was made.. I didn't feel rang wholly true. The action, yes.. but not the way it was handled. Second.. with only 150 pages to go.. I'm not ready for this installment of the story to end. *sigh*

03-15: I realized I hadn't updated in a few days. I got rather busy for a day or so and didn't get back to it.. but I'm just over 500 pages in now.. and wholly absorbed. I'm still very fond of Ruhn, but I'm deeply invested in Hunt at this point. Not only are those layers peeling away.. but he's also just the type I'm normally drawn to.. as a person. I've begun drawing some conclusions about where the last 300 pages might lead.. so we'll see.

03-11: Still reading this one in chunks so that other deadlines don't fall by the wayside. I'm just over 300 pages in and Hunt has finally grown on me. He's a bit of an ass and those who know me.. know I love that in a male. lol

03-09: I've only been reading a little each day, since it's 800 pages. I thought it'd be a dense read, but it's flying by.. even with my forays into other projects and other books in between. But oh the feels! Also.. I already love Ruhn..

03-07: Finally going to start the read of the finished copy today! So excited! It was super late arriving.. grr.. but I'm happy it's here. (For anyone wondering, now that the excerpt has been added to the Goodreads library, I've moved the review for that version there.

[Ashley]

My thoughts on this book are so polarizing. I both loved it and was "meh" about it at the same time. But I guess when a book is 800 pages long you have plenty of time for both feelings. *shrug*

Things I liked:

The last 10% of the book. That was fucking on point. You can't not love it.

I'm a fan of Sarah Maas's writing style. It just clicks with me. It's easy and "comfortable" to read. Even if I don't adore what I'm reading, it just syncs with me perfectly.

I loved Bryce for the last 50% of the book. I did not love her in the first half.

The friendships in the book were beautiful.

Things I was meh about:

I never fucking ever want to hear the word "alphahole" again. My god. It's like Maas heard that tons of people ragged on her for all the alpha male stuff in A Court of Thorns and Roses and needed to not only do a total 180, but also have a MC who despised alpha males and made sure to remind everyone of that every 3 pages with her repetitive use of "FUCKING ALPHAHOLES!" I hate that word more than I hate the whole concept of an asshole alpha male.

Bryce was annoying in the first half. I hated how she got partnered with Hunt on the whole murder thing and just toyed with him. "Haha I'm going to be one step ahead of you and not tell you what I'm doing and lead you to think I'm doing fuck all because it'll be so fun when you find out otherwise!" I felt for Hunt because that kind of attitude is just fucking annoying. Imagine doing a group project with someone like that. Never mind trying to solve a murder where a whole lot of shit is on the line.

This book so did not need to be 800 pages. Good lord. There was a huuuuge chunk in the middle there that did not need to exist. I will forget about it all and not be any worse off.

Urban fantasy is not my thing. I don't know how I missed the fact that this book is urban fantasy, but I did. Completely did not realize. I assumed high fantasy. I think that was one of my biggest struggles with this book. I was trying to really enjoy a genre that ultimately is not one I'd ever (or super rarely) choose to read. And in the end I guess it did turn out okay, but I can't help but mourn a little because I wonder how much I would have 5 billion star-ed this book if it had been high fantasy. *sigh*

I was really pissed with what Hunt did... I never forgave him for it. Kind of ruined all my feelings about the romance. Also in general I wasn't head over heels with the romance anyway, I expected more from it.

---

When I was at like the 80% or 85% mark I was thinking I wouldn't continue this series. But then the last 10% happened and, shit, I might have to keep going now. That was just too damn great.

[liz089]

Woow.. this was absolutely amazing !!
Truth be told, I was kind of sceptic at the beginning, some other authors have disappointed me lately with their new adventures into the unknown and I was afraid this would be another one of those..
Fortunately for me, Sarah J. Maas did not disappoint.
It took me a bit to get into, a lot is happening and we have a whole new world with all kind of magical/celestial creatures with rangorders and suborders.. But after getting through that it is totally worth it.
She build a complicated and diverse world, filled with interesting characters and a magnificent plot. Every time I thought I figured it out something else happened. This whole novels kept me guessing and focused till the end.
At the beginning 800 pages seemed like a lot, but near the ending it was too little. I want more. Loved it. It really shows how much she has grown as a writer, and I can\t wait to see what else she has in store of us.

[bookswithjelena]

3.5

[Cocktails and Books]

So much happened in this book that you couldn't just breeze through it (which is why it took a week to finish). Bryce and Hunt were snarky badasses and I can't wait to see what happens next.