My Initial Reaction...
Wow - can I give Crown of Midnight six stars? Because I'm not sure 5 really expresses how great this book was. Up until about the 85% mark it was probably a solid 4.5 stars but then holy hell the twists and turns that I hadn't seen coming even though I REALLY SHOULD HAVE...
Note: Some series spoilers.
The Characters...
Celaena hasn't changed much in the time between Throne of Glass and Crown of Midnight. She's now the King's Champion and that's put her in a very dangerous position, especially the way Celaena does things! She's still arrogant and smug as hell, but Crown of Midnight is a book of serious change for Celaena (and for my view of her). A combination of higher stakes and learning from past mistakes has Celaena making decisions I'm not sure she would have made in the past. She's much more serious and darker, for one. It's kind of hard to talk much about the changes in Celaena over the course of Crown of Midnight because so many of the changes are wound up in HUGE spoilers. But let me just say that we learn things about Celaena that are EPIC! And things happen that made me SQUEE and SOB.
Crown of Midnight is also a book of change for Prince Dorian. When Throne of Glass ended, Celaena had hit the brakes on their relationship. So that's over and neither Dorian or Celaena exactly know how to be friends. His relationship with Chaol is strained as well, which sucks because that means Dorian is basically alone. And he's going through a hell of a lot alone!! His story line was so interesting and it has me really freaking nervous, because I just don't know what will happen to him dealing with everything so alone. Especially with his father being that tyrant, power-hungry, ass that he is.
I already expressed my extreme love of Chaol after Throne of Glass and never dreamed it would be possible to love him more, but I do. In Crown of Midnight we get to know Chaol so much better. He's super smart - booksmart & street smart (for the most part) - loyal, and lovable. He wants so badly to be good - and when his loyalties collide, he has to make some tough decisions. Poor Chaol's worldview is changing and sometimes his decisions can't keep up, to my colossal heart-break.
Across the board, so much is happening with these characters and yet it's so hard to talk about it in any real terms because the characters' changes are so bound up with spoilers. But complex and huge changes sums them up pretty well.
The Story...
Crown of Midnight picks up pretty much where Throne of Glass left off. Celaena is doing her work as the King's Champion and her next assignment is a man that she knew when she was Adarlan's Assassin - Archer Finn. The king informs her that he's one of a series of rebels that he wants taken down before they get in the way of his plans.
So on a very basic level, Crown of Midnight is about Celaena trying to find out what the rebels are up to and, more importantly, what the king's plans are. Of course, nothing is that simple. There's all kinds of surprises around every corner. And for those of you, like me, who were a bit shocked by the magic that appeared in Throne of Glass at the end (but loved it) - Crown of Midnight is a real treat. Magic is at the very center of this book - even if it's not happening, the how and why of that is more key than we realized before.
Concluding Sentiments...
This was such an impossible review to write, but the key message is: Crown of Midnight was amazing! There are so many twists and turns and jaw-dropping moments. The character development is out of this world and you'll be so ready to pick up the next book when you finish!