![Book cover for House of Earth and Blood (2 of 2) [Dramatized Adaptation]](https://images.bookhype.com/covers/4b/40/91574ff0-b0ce-4b8e-8163-6e91f4c404b4/9798874812331-63487faa3cf544f01ad1c4.jpg)
Cocktails and Books
Written on Mar 12, 2020
- ISBN13 9798874812331
- Publish Date 29 April 2024 (first published 3 March 2020)
- Publish Status Active
- Imprint Graphic Audio
- Edition Adapted ed.
- Format Audiobook (MP3)
- Duration 12 hours
- Language English
Reviews
alindstadtcorbeax
Written on Mar 8, 2020
... I... am left speechless.
___________________________
Holy freakin s**t! 816 pages?! Lordy lordy haha excited none the less !
Brittany
Written on Mar 6, 2020
Leigha
Written on Mar 5, 2020
And so begins another series by Sarah J. Maas. Listen, if you’ve read and mostly enjoyed her books up to this one, you’re probably going to like it. It’s got the bad ass heroine with a tarnished heart of gold; a broody-mcbrood pants that loves said bad ass heroine; the ride-or-die homeboy related to bad ass heroine; and a cast of side-characters making you pine for them to be one big happy family. (If you’re a newbie Maas reader, I actually recommend you start with A Court of Thorns & Roses. It’s a complete series featuring all of her trademark themes, characters, and one-liners.)
My biggest issue is the world-building. Maas loves creating these complex fantastical worlds. Her other series did a good job starting with a small portion of world building before expanding outward. Not this series. As soon as you start reading, you’re thrust into the middle of a gigantic world with a million different species, a complex social structure, and a ton of settings. I had to read the initial excerpt from NetGalley twice just to feel like I understood some of the world building. It’s too big, too expansive, a little too much early on.
My second issue is, of course, length. If you cut out all the times Maas says the full character’s name (or a character’s title) you’d cut this book by 10%. Cut out some of the unnecessary world building or scene setting, and you’d cut another 10% more. I barely have time to make it through a first read let alone a re-read. A good editor could shore up some of her weak points while maintaining her signature style.
And finally, folks, what you’ve all been waiting to hear – should you invest in the romance? Her other series have started with a Plot A romance, only to be thrown over by Plot B. Is Hunt the next Chaol, Dorian, or Tamlin? I hesitantly say their romance is a mixture of Plot A and Plot B. I think him and Bryce will be end game despite their dispute toward the end of the novel. His story arc reminds me a lot of Chaol in Tower of Dawn, but with the characterization of Rowan. But who knows, I could be wrong.
tl;dr With her signature themes, characters, and romance, long time fans of Maas will enjoy this expansive new series.
Kate (Blogging with Dragons)
Written on Feb 7, 2020
House of Earth and Blood was a total surprise for me. I don’t know what I was expecting from this new work of Sarah J. Maas, but it wasn’t this adult urban fantasy novel that put me to mind of Ilona Andrews’s Kate Daniels series or Laurell K. Hamilton’s Anita Blake series. I was surprised by the swearing and the casual references to sex and drugs, something I have not encountered with the author’s other works. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, just something that caught me off guard. In fact, I am positively excited to see what other differences will come of House of Earth and Blood being categorized as an adult novel rather than a young adult novel!
Despite all this excitement in realizing I was reading an adult, rather than young adult novel, I honestly can’t say that I was hooked on House of Earth and Blood from the get-go. At the beginning of the excerpt, I felt like I was being absolutely inundated--and overwhelmed, for that matter--with information about the characters and their backgrounds, houses, a way of life, crime, and a city I knew nothing about. I felt like I should be taking rigorous notes! The excerpt is filled to the brim with werewolves, chimeras, fae, fauns, archangels, and every other fantastical creature of which you could dream--each complete with their own hierarchy existing within the greater organization of Crescent City. I am sure I still don’t fully understand how everything works and that I probably won’t until I finish the entire novel--which I definitely will be reading.
It’s clear from this excerpt, however, that Crescent City is certainly a character of its very own, one that stands out even among the rest of the larger-than-life characters. It is hinted within House of Earth and Blood that there is even more to this dazzling city than meets the eye. I can’t wait to discover more of what that is!
The author does an amazing job of developing not only Crescent City, but also her characters in just the first few chapters. Perhaps that is why I was SO stunned when I realized I was essentially reading a tragic origin story in the making for the somewhat frivolous main character, half-fae-half-human Bryce Quinlan. I thought the story was going one way and it went in a completely different direction. I was absolutely astounded by the ending to the excerpt, which was a total cliffhanger. I have a sneaking suspicion that as a result of these shocking events, Bryce will become just as badass or even more so than her counterparts Feyre and Aelin. And I cannot wait to see if being in the adult genre will lead Bryce down even darker paths than Maas’s other beloved heroines.
I also have really high hopes for the romance of this series. Even this early in House of Blood and Earth, Sarah J. Maas has made it very clear that Bryce will not be accepting any toxic masculinity aka “alphahole” behavior directed at her, despite being rather low on the Crescent City pecking order as a half-human. A lot of this is due to Bryce’s parents, and my curiosity is PIQUED. I want to know more about her background and literally everything else!
By the end of this excerpt, I was completely invested in Bryce and her magical city. I cannot wait to see where Bryce’s inevitable quest for revenge will take her. Time to preorder!
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