The first book in New York Times bestselling author Sarah J. Maas's sweeping fantasy saga - now available in hardcover with a new look to match the series!
When magic has gone from the world, and a vicious king rules from his throne of glass, an assassin comes to the castle. She does not come to kill, but to win her freedom. If she can defeat twenty-three killers, thieves, and warriors in a competition to find the greatest assassin in the land, she will become the king’s champion and be released from prison.
Her name is Celaena Sardothien.
The Crown Prince will provoke her. The Captain of the Guard will protect her. And a princess from a foreign land will become the one thing she never thought she’d have again: a friend. But something evil dwells in the castle—and it’s there to kill. When her competitors start dying, horribly, one by one, Celaena’s fight for freedom becomes a fight for survival, and a desperate quest to root out the source of the evil before it destroys her world.
Reading Throne of Glass immediately on the back of The Assassin's Blade made it a 4-star book. I think I would have rated it lower had I read it as the first book in the series. Caleana's character felt a lot more fleshed out having read the prequel novella's first than she would have if I'd not done so. Let's be honest, she's not exactly the deepest character to grace the page - in execution or personality.
Throne of Glass was a trashy, fun-filled, fast-paced, action-packed romp. It read like a guilty pleasure, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. It doesn't have any pretences, and revels in all its silly, fantasy-filled glory. Caleana's a bit of a Mary Sue in this novel, which is why I'm glad that I read The Assassin's Blade first. There is very little back story or development of her character, and I definitely felt like her time in Endovier needed more exploration, but none of that detracted from the fact that Throne of Glass was just a fun book to read.
Does Throne of Glass include almost every YA trope under the sun? Absolutely. But it's well written, so I didn't care. It's not trying to re-invent the wheel. Want some sexy people doing badass things, and then making out occasionally? Then this book is for you!
