Queen of Shadows (Throne of Glass, #4)

by Sarah J. Maas

[Kelly]

http://www.divabooknerd.com/2015/09/fiercely-epic-queen-of-shadows-by-sarah.html
EPIC. Absolutely epic.
★★★★☆
Celaena was fierce in Throne of Glass, she enamored readers in Crown of Midnight, she took us on a journey of self discovery in Heir of Fire now in Queen of Shadows, left me feeling incredibly liberated. She's powerful, she's intelligent and the supreme symbol of a strong heroine that allows nothing to stand in her way. I adore her. Passionately. She's now Aelin, the Queen of Shadows and Rifthold will set the scene for her revenge for those who have crossed her, used and abused her. But now Aelin returns not only for vengeance, but to seek freedom from the King of Adarlan's oppression. For her Kingdom, for Rifthold and for those now enslaved by Valg demons.

She was fire, and light, and ash, and embers. She was Aelin Fireheart, and she bowed for no one and nothing, save the crown that was hers by blood and survival and triumph.

Slipping back into her role as Assassin, for Aelin to gain a foothold within the Kingdom she has no choice but to retrieve her stolen Wyrdkey and attempt to break the stronghold on magic. But Rifthold is so deeply entrenched in corruption and heinous crime, that she'll risk her life to obtain freedom for others.

Queen of Shadows picks up shortly after Heir of Fire and unfortunately provided few reminders of the previous storyline. I did struggle in the beginning, but as the story progresses, we see snippets of where our characters were left. Dorian at the palace with his vengeful father and dealing with the consequences of a forbidden love, Chaol fleeing the Kingdom and joining a new alliance, the centuries old Rowan left behind reluctantly, while Aedion is facing a battle against a kingdom, powerless. It was absolutely glorious. I loved seeing Manon and her Thirteen of Ironwitches struggling with a new found emotion, against the injustice of being expected to serve without question. Her character development was incredible and only demonstrates how the series is brimming with strong females who use their cunning and intelligence to defeat and defend.

I absolutely loved the multiple viewpoint scenarios, seeing the story unfold from each character's perspective only added to an intense and often smouldering storyline. As the battle evolves, so do the character relationships, those previously at odds will come together to form a tentative and dubious alliance.

Told in two parts, with part one setting the scene for a battle of epic proportions. New alliances are formed and former ties have been severed. The romance on several fronts was delicious and so well crafted that it left me more often than not on tenterhooks. There are a few hints at a surprising new romance that I could definitely find myself on board with and with passionate fans aplenty, may cause a rift between readers. But I absolutely adored it. I applaud Sarah J. Maas and her ability to make the hard decisions, and not pander to satiate fans.

It took a few chapters for me to immerse myself back into the storyline and may have benefited from skimming Heir of Fire again beforehand, but it didn't take long for Sarah J. Mass to enchant and entice me back into her world. Beautifully written, even more so than previous books in the series. I was enamored by the incredible crescendo of battle, the gentle moments between characters, the new alliances and character development were all immaculately crafted and precise. I adored it. Sarah J. Maas is no doubt the leading author in young adult fantasy and Queen of Shadows is by one her best releases to date.