Empire of Storms

Throne of Glass #5

by Sarah J. Maas

The long path to the throne has only just begun for Aelin Galathynius as war looms on the horizon. Loyalties have been broken and bought, friends have been lost and gained, and those who possess magic find themselves at odds with those who don't.

With her heart sworn to the warrior-prince by her side, and her fealty pledged to the people she is determined to save, Aelin will delve into the depths of her power to protect those she loves. But as monsters emerge from the horrors of the past, and dark forces become poised to claim her world, the only chance for salvation will lie in a desperate quest that may mark the end of everything Aelin holds dear.

In this breathtaking fifth installment of the New York Times bestselling Throne of Glass series, Aelin will have to choose what—and who—to sacrifice if she's to keep the world of Erilea from breaking apart.

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult, Romance, New Adult, Fae, Magic, Fiction

693 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 6, 2016

About the author

Sarah J. Maas is the #1 New York Times and internationally bestselling author of the Crescent City, A Court of Thorns and Roses, and the Throne of Glass series. Her books have sold more than twelve million copies and are published in thirty-seven languages. A New York native, Sarah lives in Philadelphia with her husband, son, and dog. To find out more, visit sarahjmaas.com or follow @therealsjmaas on Instagram.

Reviews

[Simona B · Rating 1 out of 5]

*Do I need to remind you to be civil? No, I don’t. Good kids.

This is the story of how Sarah J. Maas reviewed her own poetics in one of her books.

"You will hate any moment of peace or happiness."
(Because rest assured they'll use every single one of them to have sex or to seduce someone into having sex, and sometimes not even imminent danger will be enough of a deterrent. Sadly. A massacre or two would have spiced things up.)

"Dorian offered a lazy grin in return. “Believe it or not, this ship has an unnatural number of attractive men and women on board. You’ll fit right in. And fit in with the cranky immortals, I suppose.”"
(Self-explanatory.)

"Fenrys slid in behind them, his attention going right to the witch. No doubt stunned by the beauty, the grace, the blah-blah-blah perfectness of her."
(Even she acknowledges the thing got way out of her hand.)

"It can be our little secret."

The secret being, Maas plagiarized herself. Because, people, I basically re-read A Court of Mist and Fury. And I most certainly did not need that.
And this isn't just a subjective impression: I have proof, and here it is.

EoS: “I’m not taking you against a tree the first time.”
ACoMaF: “When you lick me,” (whatever that's supposed to mean) he said roughly, “I want to be alone -far away from everyone.”

EoS: “You are mine,” Rowan breathed, and she felt the claiming in her bones, her soul.
ACoMaF: “You’re mine,” he snarled, and hefted me up into his arms.

EoS: “Let me,” Rowan growled onto the sea-slick skin between her breasts. “Let me touch you.”
ACoMaF: “I want to touch you first,” he said, his voice so guttural I barely recognized it. “Just—let me touch you.” He palmed my breast for emphasis.

EoS: "He leaned in, claiming her mouth as he began to move, and they let go entirely." And, "She dug in her fingers, dragging her nails across his back, claiming him, marking him."
ACoMaF: "He swept in, claiming me, branding me."

But the best has yet to come.

Do you remember the mountain thing in AcoMaF?

"Rhys roared as he came, slamming in to the hilt. Outside, the mountains trembled, the remaining snow rushing from them in a cascade of glittering white, only to be swallowed up by the waiting night below."

Yes? Great. Well, after Rhys's earthquakes and Feyre's human light-bulb, now meet Rowan's lightning and Aelin fires.

"Rowan’s own release barreled through him at the sight of it, lightning joining wind and ice over the water.
Aelin held him through it, sending the fire-opal of her magic to twine with his power. On and on, as he spilled himself in her, lightning and flame danced on the sea.
The lightning continued to strike, silent and lovely, even after he stilled."

Lightning, you get it? Freaking lightning.
What's Fae's problem with sex? It seems they are unable to climax decently without getting dangerously close to unleashing some cataclysm on the population that do not share such sexual prowess. And someone care to explain how on earth can lightning be lovely? Majestic, yes, stunning, yes, but lovely? It's not a summer breeze you're talking about, sweetie. It's freaking lightning. The kind of thing that could kill you in less than a split second, you know.

(Oh, why do I even bother?)

As you might have guessed, I could go on and on, but I've already wasted enough of my time. So let's just try to put everything down in black and white, as neatly as we can manage.

•I used to be able to enjoy Maas's writing, but, whether I changed or her style changed, now I can't anymore. It is repetitive and monotonous, and I found many passages -not only the sex scenes- overdramatic and overwritten. Besides, the multiple PoVs on the same event bored me out of my mind -a fifth of the book could just go and nothing relevant would be lost. And I still have to figure out why, in the dialogues, half the questions are deprived of a question mark.

•The focus on romance, or I should say sex. Because it's not even mere romance anymore- every one of Maas's series is turning into downright erotica. It's not that I have something against erotica, it would be ridiculous, I simply don't see why the Throne of Glass series took this turn, and I think it rather disrespectful to the readers of Maas to change the label (I don't care if it didn't change officially- this is no thing for "young adults") from ya to na in the middle of the series. What if an eleven-year-old started reading book one now, and then, once at the end of book four, were forbidden to go on because the parents knew that this book would traumatize the kid for life?
There are very few things I value, in literature as in every other thing in life, as I value coherence. This series shows an increasing lack of it.
Moreover, all the fuss everyone makes about Aelin and Rowan being together is insufferable. It's like Maas tried and tried with all her forces to celebrate this thing as much as she could. She practically idolized this relationship and wanted her readers to get to idolize it too through all of her idolizing. If this is not twisted and convoluted, then I don't know what is. And I should be sick of saying it by now, but Hello, manipulative writing. I really did not miss you.

•And talking about coherence, the characters. They all turned in inhumanly handsome and daringly provoking womanizers/vamps. They are all bold, sexy, self-confident and cool. Guess what- after ten characters exactly like that and five books, I grew weary of this shit. Not only that; it was as if Empire of Storms were written by a totally different person from the one who wrote the books up to Heir of Fire but probably related to the one who wrote Queen of Shadows. The characters are completely changed in the way they see the world. And how come the first thought in their minds is one and always one? (If you're wondering, yes, that should be sex.)
Dorian Havilliard, in particular, is not himself anymore. If there was something I hadn't accused Maas of yet it was of using insta-love as a real thing (okay, more or less), and yet I cannot find a better word to describe what happens between him and Manon (who, lo and behold, is a queen too. What did I say about Maas plagiarizing herself? What's so bad about thinking out of the box for just a single moment?). They meet, she saves him; he's beautiful, she's beautiful; he heavily hits on her without knowing her in the slightest, she likes it against her better sense, and you know where it is going to end. And their flirting is so ridiculous and forced, I was snorting and gagging and rolling my eyes all at once.
As a matter of fact, the whole book made me roll my eyes so much it's unreal. My eyeballs tunneled their way up my skull and emerged on the top of my head.

•But what makes me mad, what really makes me mad, is that had the romance and the characterization been not so disgusting and sloppy and cookie-cutter, the book would have been worth something. The plot is good, and I do like the idea of the boatload of villains and kingdoms and the variety of the world-building, but, as things are, they are only general ideas. This universe is vast and offers a number of scenarios and creatures and artifacts, but it all lacks order, and I've been saying it since my review of Throne of Glass, and every book after that did nothing but confirm my first impression. The heroes lack a true, deep characterization (remember, all bold all brave all cheeky) and so do the villains. Camaraderie is one of the things that usually have me sold on the spot, but seeing how lame all these characters ultimately are, my enjoyment was always very short-lived. I normally empathize a lot with heroines who are as resourceful and enterprising as Aelin is, but she still acts like a bossy, haughty teenager too proud to keep her companions up to date about her schemes, because what if said schemes fail? Shame on you for even trying, Aelin!
Now, honestly, what person in her right mind would risk a world because of that?

•Regarding Maas's handling of diversity, I'm linking here Kat's review, because not only does she say everything I too had to say about this issue, but she does it brilliantly. Plus, I'm a disgustingly lazy person. So go read Kat's review.

•Almost needless to say, the ending is unbelievably similar to that of A Court of Mist and Fury. Seriously, unbelievably similar: the fact that they married in secret and are now apart and yearning for a reunion, the heroine's sacrifice, the hero's desperation. You did that once already, Maas, remember? No? Because I do.

•Chaol and Nesryn are completely absent. I just thought the world would want to know.

•Oh, and let me put your minds at ease: people still purr, hiss, growl and grunt. Heaven forbid someone should do something as trivial as talk. *shivers*

➽ I won't pretend I hoped Empire of Storms would magically resurrect the beautiful story I caught a glimpse of in Heir of Fire (still my favourite book in the series) but Maas exceeded all of my expectations, and not positively. As it always happens to me with her books, I read this one quickly enough and without particular effort, but as every one of us knows, your reading speed is not always a guarantee of the quality of what you are reading. I will finish the series because now there is only one book left, but Empire of Storms is more silly and absurd than it should have been--which, all things considered, is probably a good thing, given how much I laughed. (Even though I will never be able to admire lightning again without having some totally inappropriate and unintended thoughts.)


PRE-READING

EDIT 05/09/2015: So here's the million-dollar question: will Aelin heal from her bipolarity or will she keep being a shamefully embarrassing frenzied brat good only at bullying everything that's breathing?
Who guesses wins a trip to Morath on Abraxos' back.

[Teodora · Rating 5 out of 5]

I still want to give those 6⭐ so let's suppose I actually did it

Full review on my Blog: The Dacian She-Wolf 🐺

Kingdoms will collide yeah, yeah, whatever. This is almost the last thing that interests me about this book at this point.

GIVE ME THAT BOSS-ASS GIRL POWER I NEED!

GIVE ME THOSE SUPERB SISTERHOOD AND BROTHERHOOD AND POSITIVE EMOTIONAL-PACKED SCENES!

GIVE ME MORE MANON, ELIDE AND LYSANDRA ACTION BECAUSE THEY ARE FUCKING SUPREME!

GIVE ME...Oh, wait, what’s that? Uhm...hello?? Is that GRIEF? And PAIN? And an unnecessary amount of PHYSICAL ACTION? OMG no. Stop it right there. I’m so here for this but stop.

Mates, I really want to say this: I feel like I’ve been too emotionally invested in this book only to find out it was cheating on me.

This is the exact and immediate feeling I had after finishing it (of course, after I somehow dealt with the pain and agony I’ve been put through by that bloody ending that I didn’t appreciate but made me ugly-cry and also made me re-read the last 50 pages three times because it was so emotional and I am weak).

Of course, Aelin is growing and growing and growing, becoming until the end of the book the truest form of the queen she has to be. I loved her development in Queen of Shadows more than I loved it here, even though she had some spot-on plans and schemes that had me a bit dazzled. But at the end of the book I really can say that I loved Aelin. She became the better version of herself and that is a wonderful thing. It made me forget every tiny „escapade” she had throughout the 700 pages of the book.

„A queen of legends indeed.”

Rowan and Aelin truly love each other by now. Rowan proved his love and devotion to her in this book so fiercely that sometimes I felt a beautiful warmth in my heart. But other times...bruh, what’s too much is too much. I understand you love each other but keep it under control. Please. Too much touching and unnecessary details for my liking.

Moving on.

I love the independence Lysandra gets to have. And I love the faith she has in Aelin’s plan. She’s becoming better and better, trying to find out who she truly is and prove to everyone (including herself) that she is more than a pretty face. Even though Aedion is being a regular douche with everyone, including her, he actually manifests a soft spot for her and wants to grant her the world, even though he doesn’t know how to do it or when. And I think that’s sweet.

Whom I really come to love in this book (truly) is Elide. She is such a sweet and witty thing, I love her and the enormous heart of hers. She’s proving her skills in this book, outsmarting everyone and taming the feral and lonely beast that Lorcan is. She’s truly a goddess, able to bring him to his knees and making him understand that he’s not alone. He becomes the planet in her gravitational system. And, again, that is sweet.



Now, I want to talk about my absolute favourite character of the whole series. She’s my number one, she’s my spirit animal and she can go eat my heart out and I’d thank her for that.

MANON.

She’s come to realise that she���s more than she was raised to be. She faces an unbearable truth about her and she discovers she’s more important in this big game of war-chess than she’d initially thought. She's getting stripped from her Pawn duties and given the power the Queen has to offer. But she’s alone. She’s hurt. She’s suffering. She’s the persona non grata of the book. And an underdog.

Everywhere she goes, she doesn’t fit in. She’s not welcome. She is not getting recognised. She’s not getting listened to. Though she changed. She wants to change. But even so, she really is alone and struggling.

„And Manon understood in that moment that there were forces greater than obedience, and discipline and brutality. Understood that she had not been born soulless; she had not been born without a heart.”

What really makes my heart melt with joy is the fact that despite all of this, the other underdog of the book, Dorian, is there to ease her loneliness and pain as well as she does for his own.

They are my favourites to be completely honest. Even though somehow they seemed a bit stiff around each other at first, their relationship comes to a fluidity until the end. They began as a refuge from each other's storms and now they ended up being the rocks that keep their anchors steady.

I really love their energy around each other and I declare them mates now and until the end of time.

In conclusion: I want my favourite couple of underdogs to rule the world and give me goose bumps as they do it because I love them. Full stop.

Also, I want to take a bit of space here to praise my flower-smelling baby boy, Abraxos, who’s the goodest boy and the smartest and just a marvel in general and he reminds me of Toothless from How to Train Your Dragon . They both exude joy, come on now!



This is a book that wrecked me as few do. I don’t know how but it got to me and made me sensitive AF. I wanted to cry and I wanted to throw it away and I felt betrayed and sad and powerless at the end. My sadness went deep. I don’t know how...

„It was all borrowed time anyway.”

[Kai Spellmeier]

I have an entire bag full of EoS bullshit that I need to unpack so if there’s one thing that SJM did not disappoint at, it was giving me leverage to trash her books. Honestly, she should get an award for the sheer amount of crap that you can put in a 700-page book. If I had to sum up Empire of Storms in one word, I’d choose disturbing. Not positively. Not because of cliffhangers, suspense, drama. In this TED talk, I will point out the many failings and shocking shortcomings of an overhyped and hella problematic series.

Language
Let’s start with the most disturbing but most subtle thing of them all. The one thing that’s so obvious that most people don’t even think about it. Language. Cause language carries ideology and if I gathered one thing from reading this mess of a novel then it’s that MEN FUCKING RULE. Because it’s all about claiming. The things they claimed! It’s dazzling. People and bodies and tongues, mostly. It’s all about owning people, too. To be fair, if a random, ripped, tall dude with some serious velvet-wrapped-steel energy tore his shirt off and told me I was his I’d also be like LET'S TEAR THAT BED APART but that weird Rowan guy? He’s obsessed with that shit. Someone should teach him some basic feminism. Not SJM, though, I’m begging you.
As if that’s not enough testosterone overload, the heteronormative and binary narrative that SJM created for her books makes me puke rainbows so gay you can see them all the way from Berlin’s queerest bar to the Stonewall Inn in New Fucken York. That lady is obsessed with the word male, I kid you not. But her favourite word combo is purely male. I feel so much wiser now, cause who would have thought that such things as purely male smiles existed? Not me. But it got better! Promises, yes, promises do also have a gender and as it happens Dorian can give purely male promises. And let’s not forget pure male arrogance or the maleness in his tone.
While SJM’s male characters seem to have such maleness, guess what is most noticeable about her female ones? Their mouths. No shit. No matter if it’s a full, sensuous mouth or a ripe sinful mouth or a mouth like fresh fruit, a mouth made for the bedroom, don’t we all love objectifying women in our favourite fantasy books?
To make matters worse, all these characters seem to have primal instincts (another word SJM is obsessed with) and feral tendencies. I do not know why SJM decided to pair prehistoric with animalistic urges but as I already told you, the matter is quite distressing. Neanderthal kink? Maybe.
Males claiming and owning females, giving male smiles and promises, having primal and animalistic character traits…that’s not a world that I’d choose to live in but hey, you do you.
While we’re talking about language – and some of you have mentioned it before – SJM’s use (or overuse) of the words snarl, hiss, purr needs to be mentioned again and again and again just to balance it all out. It made me want to punch somebody. I wish someone would tell the author that you cannot hiss an utterance that contains no sibilants. Make her write that down. You want to hiss? Then add a fucken s. The same thing applies to purring. Don’t believe me? Try and purr “Stop objectifying and abusing Manon as a means to satisfy a misogynist’s lust.” Told ya.

Sex
Ugh. So much ugh. We all know this is fantasy but turning a beach into glass and making thunder and lightning because your orgasm is that great is a bit…over the top. The sex obsession is annoying. It’s all the characters seem to think about at any given minute. Also, there’s a 100% chance that as soon as any man touches any female character, she will arch herself into him. Definitely a primal instinct, if you ask me.
I have collected three very telling passages from the book that demonstrate how ugh the sex is:
p.25: actual friggin embers sparked and "the moss beneath them hissed as rain turned to steam" because their kiss is that hot. Romantic or ridiculous? Debate.
p.284: I have always wanted to have someone whisper “Even when you’re in another kingdom, your fire is still in my blood, my mouth” to me cause there’s nothing that ever sounded more romantic, right? Someone’s fire in my blood and my mouth. Yum.
p.354: here it comes, here it comes, the famous “velvet-wrapped steel”, our favourite synonym for male genitalia

Characters
They all suck. Mere sex puppets. I loved Manon, but as soon as she lays eyes on Dorian she loses every single character trait that made her unique. But it gets even worse. Not only does Dorian come into her room to ogle her when she is so wounded she is barely able to move, he also tells her that it doesn’t matter to him what she is. “As long as the parts that matter are there, what difference does it make?” Someone shoot that spineless, disrespectful joke of a king I CANNOT. You are all out there shipping THAT with any breathing person? How dare you, how dare he and How.Dare.SJM. At least we still have Aedion right? Cute guy, nice smile, likes to call Lysandra a bitch? A charmer. Don’t get me started on Lorcan, I just don’t have the time to explain how problematic he is.
Honestly, the internal misogyny that SJM carries within her must weigh her down, I don’t know how she manages to move her fingers to type such massive books. Overall, it’s scary to see how completely devoid of depth female characters tend to become as soon as men are around. All they see are abs and they suddenly lose everything they stand for.

You may call Aelin, Manon, Lysandra, Elide, etc., strong female characters. But wielding a sword and being snarky doesn’t suddenly make a character complex, doesn’t make them feminist, doesn’t make them a role models. Not when everything around them is designed to belittle and objectify them. No character has to be flawless. I mean, we love those that make mistakes the most. But reading Empire of Storms made me aware of how utterly harmful and horrible SJM’s writing is. There is no excuse for that.

Thanks for coming to my TED talk.

Find more of my books on Instagram

[Emily May · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Where do you think you’re going?” Darrow demanded.
She looked over her shoulder. “To call in old debts and promises. To raise an army of assassins and thieves and exiles and commoners. To finish what was started long, long ago.”

3 1/2 stars. Much better than Heir of Fire and Queen of Shadows, methinks. But maybe not if you're unable to skim over the gross love scenes between Aelin and Rowan, or you just can't deal with a book where Chaol is completely absent.

I have to say, though, I think Empire of Storms is far better plotted than the third and fourth book. It's a whopping 700 pages long and yet it moves much faster than the previous two. It drops us into the action and nastiness pretty much immediately and continues to deliver bloody drama and twists right up until that EVIL ending.

For me, Queen of Shadows was a 650-page book that contained only about 200 pages of plot development. The rest was filler in which Maas waxed on in melodramatic poetry about how amazing Aelin is and how sexy Rowan is. We get some of that here, of course, but if you can overlook some of the more nauseating moments between the two of them, then it's actually a really great, exciting book.

Yes, I had to push through all the scenes where Rowan's sexiness and utter maleness (WTF?) is described YET AGAIN. Yes, his erection is pressing against her perfect, magical ass when we first encounter them in chapter 2. Yes, he is constantly nibbling and nipping at her whenever he sees her. And, like, why is she okay with this?! Seriously, she's trying to save her kingdom with every douchebag in the continent on her tail and her bf won't control his penis for two bloody seconds! I'd be like "Dude, stop effin' nibbling me!"

I clearly just don't get this whole Rowan fangirl party everyone else seems to have going on.

That being said, there really are so many great things going on in this book. For a start, Manon just got a thousand times more interesting. I longed for any chapter with her in it and I was on the edge of my seat when she does that very bad awesome thing earlier on in the book. I also, kind of surprisingly, really came to enjoy the chapters with Lorcan and Elide. I must confess it: I ship them. I can't help it.

If I'm honest, I think I'm starting to feel a shift in the way I view this series, which may also have made me enjoy it more. There are those books where we feel a very personal and close connection to one or two characters and their relationships (often true of 1st-person narratives); and there are those that have large casts of characters, each with their own stories, and we care about them all to varying degrees (think epic fantasy series like, say, A Song of Ice and Fire).

For me, this series started out as the first. I cared about Celaena and Chaol, and Dorian, but to a lesser extent. I felt close to them; I angsted about them; I really wanted Celaena and Chaol to be together. Now the novels have a wider scope - there's Aelin, Chaol and Dorian, but also Rowan, Lysandra, Aedion, Manon, Evangeline, Lorcan, and Elide. Perhaps even Gavriel and Fenrys. From Heir of Fire onwards, this has become a very different kind of series and I'm only just starting to accept it. I'm starting to enjoy the overall plot, the bigger picture, and perhaps loosen my more personal ties to Chaol.

I'm a little sad about it, but I also think Maas and her stories have grown in many ways. More richer, more clever, with lots of interlinking subplots. Something lost, something gained.

If you've been clinging to the hope that Maas will go full circle and return this series to how it was in the early installments, it's probably time to part ways with these books. But if you're just looking for some great storytelling, gruesome action, and lots of interesting characters (and can put up with the insufferable smirking and nibbling that is his royal gorgeousness - Rowan), then Empire of Storms has it all.

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[Ikram · Rating 2 out of 5]

Here are my reviews of the previous books in this series:
Throne of Glass
Crown of Midnight
The Assassin's Blade
Heir of Fire
Queen of Shadows

These two girls said it all Simona’s review , Paige’s video

*sigh* I’m not sure where to start. I’ve pretty much loved all the previous books in this series but aghhh this one.

Welcome to Empire of Storms, the try not to cringe challenge book edition.

➨ The first thing that you notice while reading Empire of Storms is the similarities it has with ACOMAF. I think that in trying to release two HUGE books a year SJM doesn’t really have enough time to properly edit her books anymore. The two books ended up sounding exactly the same, except for the fact that ACOMAF was much, much better.

➨ The sex scenes situation: I have nothing against steamy scenes in YA books. I believe it makes the book more realistic and we all love seeing our OTP finally getting down to business. However, what I don’t like is seeing a YA book turn into straight up erotica.

There’s a scenes that combines my first two complaints about this book. Brace yourselves.

Remember the mountain situation is ACOMAF?

"Rhys roared as he came, slamming in to the hilt. Outside, the mountains trembled, the remaining snow rushing from them in a cascade of glittering white, only to be swallowed up by the waiting night below."

Well, if Rhys can make a mountain tremble imagine what good ol’ Rowan could do.

"Rowan’s own release barreled through him at the sight of it, lightning joining wind and ice over the water.
Aelin held him through it, sending the fire-opal of her magic to twine with his power. On and on, as he spilled himself in her, lightning and flame danced on the sea.
The lightning continued to strike, silent and lovely, even after he stilled."

Are you cringing yet ? Alright, moving on.

➨ I’m so done with Aelin trying to be sassy all the freaking time and bossing people around. Oh, and is it normal that she doesn’t share any of her plans with ANYONE?

➨ This book has no diversity whatsoever. Every single main character is straight and white af. SJM has like 50 pov characters between her two series, you’d think some of them would be a little different, right? Right? Wrong.

Also, every single character is blindingly beautiful.


Oh and let’s not forget that most characters are royalty for some reason.

You’re a queen and you a king ! Let’s throw a prince in there and another king and another queen.
Aww my gaawwd !


➨ Chaol who?
Remember that main character we were in love with for three books?

Nop? Okay.

➨ Characters acting out of character: Dorian felt really off in this book. He didn’t sound like Dorian just like Chaol didn’t sound like Chaol in the previous book but we already got rid of that problem, didn't we?

➨ Must every single character be in a relationship?

I’m seriously not feeling Manon and Dorian’s relationship. I had a feeling she was gay. I don’t know maybe it’s just me.

➨ For some reason the narrative is mostly third person limited but we randomly jump into other people’s minds here and there.


Ps: Thanks for everyone who pointed out that Aedion is actually bi-sexual I didn't omit this fact on purpose. It just slipped my mind when I was writing the review.

I hope I didn’t forget anything. Anyway, before you bite my head off, I just want to say that I do love SJM’s writing and I think the plot of this book and the series as a whole is great. This book could have been amazing if there wasn’t so many things annoying me about it.
This is just my honest opinion. Feel free to leave a comment so we can discuss.

[Elle (ellexamines)]

I can't believe this is my all-time most liked review I hate y'all

I read the sex scene from this book out of context, and I was left with several questions. here is a sampling of these questions:

⭐are they fucking on the beach or in the water? it bothers me so much that I don’t know the answer to this? this should be incredibly clear?
⭐how does he keep touching her back scars when she’s lying down on her back, possibly submerged in the water?
⭐does Aelin have a hovercraft or really good abs or both?
⭐how does she gently place a necklace on a high up part of the beach, where the water can't touch it, from her position right next to the water?
⭐is Aelin Elastigirl?
⭐if she sucked his dick why did he not eat her out?
⭐does Fae culture not allow for reciprocation?
⭐is Rowan secretly DJ Khaled?
⭐why does he keep trying to bite her?
⭐why is she so accepting of his biting kink?
⭐does my confusion as to why he keeps trying to bite her qualify as "kinkshaming"?
⭐how can a kiss be described as "claiming"? why is possessiveness something both of these characters seem to be turned on by?
⭐has anyone ever written a Throne of Glass Fifty Shades of Grey au?
⭐why does he keep fucking her after she bursts into flames?
⭐how many “hot” puns did Sarah J. Maas think of while writing about a guy being turned on by his girlfriend bursting into flames?
⭐Rowan during sex: oh that's so hot baby
Aelin: is literally on fire
⭐why does she think about how she loves him so much she’d die without him while he’s literally just fucking her? what are Aelin's standards?
⭐has Aelin ever been played the song "No Scrubs" by TLC?
⭐do you think Aelin ever fakes it and just has to light herself on fire?
⭐why does he say he’s never done it with an equal before? is he aware that out of context, i.e. when I read it, that sounds incredibly creepy and rapey?
⭐was the word manhood used as a synonym for dick or did I hallucinate that?
⭐am I hallucinating right now?
⭐why is the phrase "velvet wrapped steel" sexier than the word "dick"?
⭐Aelin: is that a knife in your pocket or are you just happy to see me ;)
Rowan: *pulls out a sword wrapped in velvet* it's my velvet wrapped steel
⭐how many fish died while they fucked?
⭐what is the average sea turtle egg death count per fuck?
⭐in book seven are we going to meet any environmental activists who try to kill Aelin because she and her boyfriend have caused several species die-outs?
⭐why were two different sentences within this chapter simply the phrase “as he did x” and nothing else, making them literal incomplete sentences?
⭐does she have an editor?
⭐does this editor have an instagram on which she surreptitiously posts "help me"?
⭐how much kinkshaming can I do in one page?

more questions that have come to me in the last 24 hours include:
⭐did they get any more back scars [mentioned 4384838 times] from the glass they made all over that fucking beach?
⭐are women okay in what we expect from men, or do we live in an unequal world where men are the only ones allowed to have expectations?
⭐does Aelin have a WAP?
⭐are you all in the comments section okay? do you need some snacks? a glass of water? let me know
⭐what if his dick was - and hear me out - made of soap

[Andrea · Rating 5 out of 5]

“My name is Aelin Ashryver Galathynius …
And I will not be afraid.”

Someone willing to talk? This book destroyed me and I think I need therapy to endure the wait and pain until next year.
Edit:
So, I'll need to wait another year to know what happens next... Not fair Sarah J. Maas, not fair.
I know there's another book coming but really, I just don't care much for Chaol at the time.

-
Why did I read Queen Of Shadows so fast?
Dammit, this happens every damn year.
I read the damn book way too fast and I don't think about the consequences.
The consequences being I HAVE TO WAIT ANOTHER EFFING YEAR AGAIN TO READ ABOUT ROWAN!

[Andreea Pop · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliance. Sheer, pure brilliance. This is what this book is. Everything I wanted and everything I didn't know I wanted. It's a whirlwind of emotions. Quite probably, the best in the series.

Full review to come.

[Wendy Darling]

MORE WYVERNS AND BATHTUB SCENES, PLEASE.

[NickReads · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a modern masterpiece.

[Jesse (JesseTheReader) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'll have a full video review discussing my thoughts soon.

[Christine Riccio · Rating 5 out of 5]

I DEVOURED THIS AS I DEVOUR ALL OF SARAH J MAAS'S BOOK ENJOYING EVERY SECOND. I love the characters in this seris so much!!! Here's my booktalk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W9tnt...

[Nat · Rating 3 out of 5]

“The world will be saved and remade by the dreamers.”

It was unexpectedly relieving to slip back into this world. Initially, I was dreading this sequel because there was just so much that could go completely wrong, but Sarah J. Maas seriously knows her stuff. She handled the situations she put my favorite witches through with excellence.


This review contains *spoilers*.

Right from the start, we get to hear from Elena Galathynius, which, finally. She’s one of my favorites from this series and getting to read more about her after all this time was just a truly epic beginning.

“Because for Terrasen, for Erilea, Elena would walk into the eternal darkness lurking across the valley to buy them all a chance.”

And speaking of incredible females, I love this piece of fanart:


Source
Kaltain, Sorrel, Asterin, Manon, Elide, Aelin, Lysandra, Nehemia (!!!), Nesryn and Sorscha.

Part One: The Fire-Bringer starts out with Elide Lochan’s pov.

We follow her weeks after the events of the last book: Elide's on her way north to find her lost queen—and to also find Celaena Sardothien (she does not know yet that her two quests were one and the same) so that Elide might repay the life debt she owed to Kaltain Rompier. Speaking of, Kaltain Rompier at the end of QOS was more badass than anybody I've read about before.

On her way through the hills in the forest (where Manon Blackbeak and the Thirteen had left her), Elide’s completely ravenous since she doesn't know how to hunt or kill.

“She wouldn’t last long without food but couldn’t risk venturing into a village with the money Manon had given her, or toward any of the hunters’ fires she’d spotted these past few weeks.
No—she had seen enough of the kindness and mercy of men. She would never forget how those guards had leered at her naked body, why her uncle had sold her to Duke Perrington.”

The more I read about her, the more I realized how much I liked her character growth, which I truly don’t remember feeling previously but, as the saying goes, absence makes the heart grow fonder.

Meanwhile, Aelin Ashryver ‘cloak-and-dagger’ Galathynius and her crew crossed into Terrasen three days ago. And at least another week lay between them and the city—"the once-glorious heart of her kingdom."

For the time being, they're all patiently waiting for the meeting Aedion has arranged between the fiery queen and the few lords he trusts.

When they arrive at the tavern for the meeting, Aelin has to remind herself to feel grateful for Lord Darrow (her late uncle's, Orlon, lover). He had after all sacrificed for her kingdom; he had men and money to offer in the upcoming battle with Erawan.

And I was definitely not expecting this, but Lord Darrow was such an interesting addition to this sequel. He gave Rowan and Aelin the reality check they needed i.e. not everyone is crazy in love with you, which, finally.

I mean, it was truly hilarious seeing Aelin get off her high horse after he was done with the shading:

“As for why my court and I wished to meet with you today—”
“Court?” Lord Darrow raised his silver brows. Then he slowly raked his stare over Lysandra, then Aedion, and finally Rowan. Ren was gaping at them all, something like longing—and dismay—on his face. “This is what you consider a court?”
“Obviously, the court will be expanded once we’re in Orynth—”
“And for that matter, I do not see how there can even be a court, as you are not yet queen.”
She kept her chin high. “I’m not sure I catch your meaning.”
Darrow sipped from his tankard of ale. The plunk as he set it down echoed through the room. Beside him, Murtaugh had gone still as death. “Any ruler of Terrasen must be approved by the ruling families of each territory.”

This kind of stuff wakes me right up... where were you when I needed you in Queen of Shadows??

Oh, and I especially lived for the shade he threw at Rowan:

“Oh, yes, we’ve heard of you. What an interesting turn of events, that when our kingdom is weakest and its heir so young, one of Maeve’s most trusted warriors manages to gain a foothold, after so many years of gazing at our kingdom with such longing. Or perhaps the better question is, why serve at Maeve’s feet when you could rule beside Princess Aelin?”

I've waited 84 years for this moment to come.

But after Darrow's done with insulting her court, he informs Aelin that he doesn't recognize her right to rule as the rightful Queen of Terrasen. And neither do the Lords Sloane, Ironwood, and Gunnar, who make up the remaining surviving majority of what was once her uncle’s court.
This leaves Aelin shocked to her core because after all she went through she remains a princess by blood—but not queen.

And, of course, Rowan-rutting-Whitethorn has to intervene because "I AM THE MAN." Every time he inserted himself in conversations, I was just like:

I mean, did anybody ask for your opinion...ever? Honestly, truly. To quote Rowan himself, how no one has ever cut out your tongue just to shut you up has always been a mystery to me.

One of the main goals I was working towards was for him to get killed off or, at the very least, break up with Aelin. That would've been the only time Rowan left me satisfied...

And speaking of satisfied, the Ironteeth (including Manon Blackbeak and her Thirteen) were on their way to sack Rifthold before either sides could even blink. Dorian Havilliard would be their target. Dead or alive.

But unknown to the others, Manon has her eyes set on a different goal when she comes in at the exact right time to rescue Dorian's ass.

“He knew her face before he remembered her name.
Knew the white hair, like moonlight on water, that spilled over her dark, scalelike armor; knew the burnt-gold eyes.
Knew that impossibly beautiful face, full of cold bloodlust and wicked cunning.
“Get up,” Manon Blackbeak snarled.”

A century of training and instinct had barreled into Manon, so when she comes out her haze she realizes just who she killed to save the boy-king. Beheading one of Iskra’s sentinel was some hardcore shit.

“She didn’t have a heartbeat to spare to marvel that Abraxos had not balked at the fight, that he had not yielded. Her warrior-hearted wyvern. She’d give him an extra ration of meat.”

Amongst everything, Manon feeling like a proud mother was a definite highlight.

But on a more bleak note, Rifthold, the city that had forged and broken and sheltered Aelin, was officially torn down. The walls of the stone castle were bathed in blood.

And everything after that had gone to shit.
Everything.

• Asterin is to die at sunrise as punishment for Manon's blood-shedding of a witch.
• Rifthold had fallen, its king vanished and the city sacked by witches.
• Aelin, now traveling with Aedion and Lysandra for the coast, plans to raise hell and reclaim her rightful throne
• We get to see that the war had taken its toll on Dorian, he's tired of feeling as a failure to both his city and people.
And as a result, Dorian makes his way with Rowan to the Dead Islands to secure an advantageous ally with the Pirate Lord (Rolfe).
Also, since we're on the topic, when Dorian asked Rowan this next question, it made my blood boil.

“The first time you met Aelin, did you know … ?”
A snort. “No. Gods, no. We wanted to kill each other.” The amusement flickered. “She was … in a very dark place. We both were. But we led each other out of it. Found a way—together.”

What?! You were literally abusing her physically and emotionally!! “Dark place” my ass... this stone-cold bastard crawled out of the pits of hell and is here to drag everyone down with him.



But circling back to the main plot... one of the most EPIC scenes in this series happens then with the Thirteen. Manon Blackbeak became my absolute favorite after reading just how incredibly cunning and clever and fierce she is.

We had last left her with the knowledge that her Second is to be killed at dawn, so I was truly anticipating what would happen but never - NEVER - would I have guessed what actually went down.

At the start of this chapter, I was in literal tears for both Asterin and Manon, and some passages felt like they were purposely rubbing salt into my wounds:

“Never again would Asterin ride the winds; never again would Asterin soar on the back of her sky-blue mare. Manon’s eyes slid to the wyvern across the aerie—shifting on her two legs, awake when the others were not.
As if she could sense her mistress’s doom beckoning with each passing moment.”

Tears welted in my eyes after this.

“And in the east, slipping over the mountains like molten gold, the sun began to rise.
A hundred years she’d had with Asterin. She’d always thought they’d have a hundred more.”

By then, I was close to weeping. From both rage and bone-deep fear.

... But we were so close to knowing whether Asterin will get executed or not (I even put my hand on the page so as to not accidentally spoil myself). And damn, I'm still in utter awe.

“Hand trembling, Asterin pressed her fingers to her brow and extended them. “Bring our people home, Manon,” she breathed.
Manon angled Wind-Cleaver, readying for the strike.
The Blackbeak Matron snapped, “Be done with it, Manon.”
Manon met Sorrel’s eyes, then Asterin’s. And Manon gave the Thirteen her final order.
“Run.”
Then Manon Blackbeak whirled and brought Wind-Cleaver down upon her grandmother.”

I was too stunned, I literally had to bite down my tongue to hold off a scream. She's a force of nature, a warrior equal to none. And best of all, she fucking cares for her Thirteen.

The battle that followed truly left me speechless for a long, long while. The knowledge her grandma so viciously (though, with a smile of absolute triumph) imparted upon Manon's true heritage was just twist after twist.

“You are a Crochan. The last of their royal bloodline with the death of your sister at your own hand. You are a Crochan Queen.”

I needed a minute after that... which was impossible to get when Manon decides to jump off the stone ledge of the balcony to escape her grandmother's wrath. She rolls off it into the open air where Abraxos, her gentle, warrior-hearted mount, flew.

#And that's what you missed on Glee.

I seriously never thought I'd say this, but I want the next book to focus more heavily on the witches. All my favorite chapters were the ones where Manon or Elide were the lead. Hence why part two - Fireheart - was my favorite part.



I was especially interested to see where Elide and Lorcan would end up. I’m always weak for couples in stories that start out as fake-married/ dating, but I was hesitant with this one because of Lorcan's past and loyalty to his blood-sworn queen, Maeve.

But, at the start, Lorcan proved himself time and again—he perfectly teamed up with Elide to slay the world and everyone standing in their way. Their togetherness made me the happiest I’d been in awhile. But... they parted ways towards the end, which made my heart break a bit.
Though, I'm still holding on to the promise they made to one another: that no matter what, they'll always find each other...

Also, I feel like Lorcan's character was the perfect way for Maas to hold Rowan accountable for his destructive behavior towards Aelin in Heir of Fire:

“Lorcan had trained enough warriors to know when not to push. He’d tortured enough enemies to know when they were one slice or snap away from breaking in ways that would make them useless.
So Marion, when her scent had changed, when he’d felt even the strange, otherworldly power hidden in her blood shift to sorrow … worse, to hopelessness…”

Lorcan knew when to not push Marion (aka Elide) for more information, he knew when to stop. So according to that, Rowan should and could have known when to not push Aelin further down in Wendlyn, but did he? Nope... and was he held accountable for his abuse? Nope.

And since I'm on a roll about the negatives of this sequel, there's one last thing that I simply cannot leave out:

She said quietly to Ren, “Thank you—for helping Captain Westfall this spring.”
A muscle flickered in Ren’s jaw, but he said, “How does he fare? Aedion mentioned his injuries in his letter.”
“Last I heard, he was on his way to the healers in Antica. To the Torre Cesme.”
“Good.”

I could not believe it when they removed Chaol from this sequel... I'm still shocked. Does Sarah J. Maas truly hate his character that much???

I needed to see how Chaol was faring being away from everyone? How was he feeling? What's going on with him and Nesryn? What's going on with him and his father? So many question left unanswered... what happened!!! I mean, the ten times he was mentioned (mainly by Dorian) were such weak attempts at trying to make it sound like he's better off being away from his true friends, which, no.

“You know,” he said, “sometimes I wish Chaol were here—to help me. And then sometimes I’m glad he’s not, so he wouldn’t be at risk again. I’m glad he’s in Antica with Nesryn.”

“And the Queen of Terrasen is your friend?”
“There is no one else I’d want guarding my back.” Other than Chaol, but … it was no use even thinking about him, missing him.”

So in honor of all that, here's a list of the things I want in the last book:

• Chaol's presence.
• More Manon and Elide.
• More Lorcan with Elide (this is a necessity for my calm and peace).
• Ansel of Briarcliff friending it up with Manon Blackbeak.
• More flashbacks featuring my favorite princess, Nehemia. I seriously still have chills from that memory we saw of her, young and strong and wise, speaking and working together with Elena.
• Read about Manon's journey to find the Crochans.
• Have some fucking peace in the finale.

But despite its flaws, Empire of Storms had one of the most epic and enthralling endings that made my heart soar, strain and crash all at once.

As you might've guessed, for the majority of this sequel I didn't really care for Aelin—until I reached that gods-damned ending she got.

“Nameless is my price. To buy them a future, she’d pay it.
She’d done as much as she could to set things in motion to ensure that once she was gone, help would still come. It was the only thing she could give them, her last gift to Terrasen. To those she loved with her heart of wildfire.”

The Queen of Terrasen had sacrificed so much and here she was willing to do it all over again so as to not bring someone else in harm's way. I had so much love and respect in my heart in that moment.

And Sarah J. Maas truly knows how to end her books in such a way that, after reading close to 700 pages, I was left wanting more and more.

“Aelin Galathynius had raised an army not just to challenge Morath … but to rattle the stars.”

Also, this song was the greatest to listen to. Sia never fails to impress me.

*Note: I'm an Amazon Affiliate. If you're interested in buying Empire of Storms, just click on the image below to go through my link. I'll make a small commission!*


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This review and more can be found on my blog.

[Katerina · Rating 5 out of 5]

All Hail Queen Maas!



I may hate her right now, I may be cursing her name and shaking and screaming, but deep down I love her with an unprecedented reverence. She can't be human, no, she is a terrible, brilliant and cruel deity that messes with us mortals. For the past 48 hours I've been fighting and bleeding in Erilea. Now, I'm in a daze. Powerful gusts of wind scattered my mind. Bright fire reduced my sanity to cinders. And icicles have pierced my heart. Because this book, because Empire of Storms, was stunningly, absolutely, mindblowingly, breathtakingly, terrifyingly EPIC.

“Aelin Galathynius, Queen of Terrasen, knew the time would soon come to prove just how much she'd bleed for Erilea.”

In the fifth instalment of Throne of Glass series, the fire-breathing bitch queen is trying to gather an army in order to defeat the demon king, Erawan, before Erilea will perish to Darkness. But Erawan is not her only concern. The Fae Queen, Mauve, who is after the Wyrdkeys that will gift her with unlimited power, is as dangerous, ruthless and vindictive. Her enemies had decades, centuries, to plot and scheme. Aelin has barely months. With her loyal court by her side, and the heir of a shattered throne, she is calling old debts and promises, assassins and pirates and nobles, while Manon Blackbeak is fighting a different war, a war against her vicious nature and her own kind. And a storm is coming, a great storm that will either cleanse the world or annihilate it.

“Aelin Galathynius had raised an army not just to challenge Morath, but to rattle the stars.”

The words I'm trying to utter seem poor compared to the magnitude of this book. It is my favorite in the series so far, the perfect way to set the chessboard before the final stand that will determine the fate of my heroes and their world. Fight sequences to give you goosebumps, battleships to make your heart hammer, monsters and creatures that jumped out of legends to make your jaw drop, secrets and revelations to break you. Piece by piece. Villains you hate with a loathing passion and heroes that make you laugh and bleed and weep with them. The moments of serenity were rare and precious. The moments of anguish and despair were so many and masterfully crafted that paralyzed you. Fear coiled you liked a poisonous snake, hope helped you breathe until you could not. But you were never laid to rest. Because this was a song of blood and magic composed by a Muse.
I am in awe.

“He was hers and she was his and they had found each other across centuries of bloodshed and loss, across oceans and kingdoms and war.”

Aelin is still my least favorite in this parade of amazing, badass characters. I do feel admiration and sympathy towards her, but her swagger was always provocative, her pride, arrogance and self-righteousness, her tendency to not share her plans and gamble with many lifes irritated me very, very much. And I hated that everyone seemed to worship the ground she stood and let her get away with her tantrums and her hidden agendas like it was no big deal, but when Dorian solved the riddle towards the end he was met with a fist for being reckless.
The last chapters though, they were redeeming. Excruciating. They were my undoing.

“For Terrasen. For them. For a better world.”

What can I say about the rest of the characters? That each of them was flawed and tarnished and I loved them for their weaknesses and their strengths in a way I would have never predicted? That I wept with pride for Dorian, my most precious of them all, who grew up from the carefree prince to the powerful magic-wielder, the cunning ruler that inspired respect even to those who were wary of him? That I loved dark and brooding and savage Lorcan as much as I loved Rowan and Aedion? But besides all these edible male characters, the women were a product of dreams and nightmares. A combination of beauty, sensuality and brutality.
And my queen is none other than Manon.freaking.Blackbeak.



She was a slayer. A monster. She bathed in blood and she relished it. But then she started feeling something more. It was Abraxos, and Asterin, and Elide, that made her show a vulnerable side, that made her seperate right from wrong and fight against injustice, fight against the part of her that was forged in war and gore. And Dorian knew exactly who and what she was. I didn't expect to become such Dorian/Manon trash, but I am. And I also loved the Lorcan/Elide storyline, I looked forward to their chapters and swooned at the way they started falling in love. And let's not forget the slowly blooming romance between Aedion and Lysandra, which gave me all the feels. Same way as Aelin and Rowan.



We're talking about a freaking armada. All these couples, with their sweet and scorching scenes (because there was a decent amount of smut I thoroughly enjoyed), were definitely one of the reasons that made Empire of Storms so special.

“I'd walk into the burning heart of hell itself to find you.”

And I would sell my soul to Erawan himself to get the next book in my hands. I don't know what's more devastating, the ending or the waiting until the final instalment?
Probably both.



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[Regan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review to come!

[Paige (Enchantology) · Rating 1 out of 5]

1.5 stars

Here's a compilation of my live Snapchat updates.

Some jumbled thoughts:

I don't care about any of the characters that I'm supposed to care about anymore. The longer you spend with SJM's characters, the more it seems like she's completely incapable of keeping character's consistent or giving them realistic development. Not caring about these characters has a significant impact on one's ability to enjoy this book, as so much of it hinges on characters and their relationships with one another.

The plot in this was a staggering and derivative mess, on the whole. We spend a lot of time watching people with more knowledge than our protagonist trying to tell her what she needs to do, and her promptly telling them SORRY Y'ALL, I HAVE MORE IMPORTANT THINGS TO DO. The sense of what is and isn't a priority in this book is astounding. Of this ~700 page book, I would say the vast majority doesn't contribute to the plot. Most of it is romance and sexual tension because clearly all of the characters need to be in relationships or working on it, right?? Of the bits of plot we get, it feels like a mix of a Harry Potter rip off and a copy of her own book, A Court of Mist and Fury. The ending of this book is pretty much the same as ACOMAF.

The writing in this is lazy af. I honestly wish SJM wasn't contracted to release two books a year because it's obvious she could afford more time to polish these books. We have an unwieldy amount of POV characters in this, and even with "distinct" POVs, we bounce between different character's thoughts instead of focusing on who we're meant to be focused on in each scene. If you're going to have multiple POVs with a focus on their individual thoughts, you can't randomly go omniscient as you see fit. You can't have omniscient and limited POVs. Pick one.

(Also, even if we have an unwieldy amount of POVs... it's a little fucked up that one of the main characters isn't in this book. Astounding that you can just cut someone out like that.)

Once again, as with ACOMAF, I'm struck by how GODDAMN HETEROSEXUAL THIS BOOK IS. Every character is in a pairing of some sort, and so much of this book is characters thinking about how hot their love interest is... and a lot of times the attraction comes down to proximity. These two characters of the opposite sex are spending time together? Clearly they're eventually gonna wanna fuck each other if they spend enough time together. The majority of this book seems to be trying to build romantic and/or sexual tension between characters... some of which feels really off. We have characters that say things that make them sound like they may be asexual drooling over a bead of sweat rolling down a dude's ~oily and hairy chest~. We have characters who are straight up misandrists with a love of women hooking up with men. SJM hints that maybe there are characters in her ensemble cast that aren't straight, and then reminds us that ALL FEMALES GOTTA HAVE THE D - it's a rule of life, don't you know?

I will say that the LGBT+ rep in this is better than her previous books, but that doesn't mean it's good representation. I could do a whole video on queer characters in this book. I might. We'll see.

I don't know, man. This book was boring for the most part. I have 18 minutes of footage of me ranting to Snapchat because I had to stop every few pages to rant about this book. It's not good, and I'm now convinced that this series has no hopes of redemption. I was willing to give SJM a chance after the mess that was QOS, but this was no better.

[Katerina Kondrenko · Rating 1 out of 5]

2.5 out of 10

Ревью в моем блоге/This review on my blog
Living A Thousand Lives (please use Chrome/Yandex browser or Android/IOS to see the page; otherwise, spoiler-tags I use to make my post compact may not work)

Genre: high-fantasy, NA
Stuff: fae, witches, dragons, a million kings and queens
Fail: gross sex, repetitiveness, pathos
WOW: the Witches' politics
POV: 3rd-person, multi
Love-Geometry: none

Quote-Core:

"It was all borrowed time anyway."

This review won't be long (too little free time), but you can find more of my rant in the reading progress's updates and I'm ready to discuss the details in comments. Endlessly) Plus, you can read Simona's review, her rant is quite detailed and 'lovely as lightning' xDD

SPOILERS AHEAD

Here's the thing, I always disliked Chaol, shipped Aelin and Rowan and heartily liked QoS . So I had no reason, aside from Dorian and Manon's ship (not a big deal, I guess), to end up in the minority with EoS. But then I read ACOMAF , got suspicious, and...

Yes, Empire of Storm is ACOMAF #2. Which is freaking ridiculous. After 4 books and 5 novellas danced to one tune, we have an utterly different sequel. The characters speak, act, think and move in a new manner (and that's not OOC, that's something else). Local folks from before wondered about many things, they never consider each other only as sex partners and never gauged body parts of every person they met. Even womanizer-ish Dorian not once thought about Celaena's breasts or tried to find wetness in the 'apex of her thighs'. But now the first thing someone has on his mind after meeting a woman is:

"She was delicately built, small enough that he might have thought her barely past her first bleed were it not for the full breasts beneath her close-fitting leathers."

The guy is Lorcan and he has a mission. Is this a way to estimate the strength of an enemy?

And even the Bad Guy wants to know whether Aelin sleeps with her Mr. Hawk. 'Cause, that's fucking essential.

But let's start from the start. With the writing which is super repetitive. SJM always liked to put the same lines in her different works, but now she does it within one goddamn book. How lazy is it? Her characters flirt with similar words, think the same thoughts, do the same deeds. It's like Teletubbies. Remember how they liked to repeat the same actions? Or like reading about just one couple only with various faces and names. Or only names, 'cause bodies and faces of Maas 's heroes and heroines are very alike. Full mouth, sensual lips, big eyes, straight nose, broad shoulders for men, full breasts for women, long legs, tough muscles, silky hair, silky skin, silky tongues... SJM changes colors of their features, but even Barbie dolls have more distinctions than these folks. Repetitiveness, lack of variety, what else... ah, yeah, the pathos! Pathos all the way. I was skimming all the long speeches about one's fucking awesomeness and missed nothing. Only 100 (if not less) among ~700 pages were actually good and full of important things. What kind of editor does Maas have?

The characters. As I already said, it's hard to tell one from another after SJM split her cast into pairs. All the men are brooding and hot, all the women are sexy and bad-ass. I don't have any feelings toward these guys. Not angry with Lorcan, not scared for Aelin, not worked up because of Fenrys (unlike Dorian), not sad for Rowan, not anything for anyone.

I'm fed up with all their beauty and handsomeness. Really. This book has no person with thin lips or small eyes or acne. Even Perrington transformed into an Apollo. I don't say that I love my heroes being ugly and stuff. But the author may not focus readers' attention on her heroes' appearance THAT HARD. We're all the best of the best for people who love us and vice versa, but we can't be like that for everyone, since beauty is very subjective. And still, Maas's characters are.

Romance. I ship no one. Not anymore.

Aelin and Rowan. Boring. At first he doesn't want fuck her in unappropriated places, then...

"He’d taken her three times on that beach—twice in the sand, then a third out in the warm waters."

Okay, King of Logic. That's actually it. He banged her a few times more (against the wall, by the way, Rhys and Feyre's fantasy is stolen) and married in the end.

Aedion and Lysandra. He promised to marry her and then called her a lying bitch. What Aldrik and Vhalla forgot in this book?

Manon and Dorian.

“It’d be a shame to lose the most beautiful woman in the world so soon into her immortal, wicked life.”
“I am not a woman.”
“Witch, woman … as long as the parts that matter are there, what difference does it make?” 

So they fuck. She lets him atop ('cause he's speshul). The end.

Elide and Lorcan. These two had a chemistry-spark but eventually became THE COUPLE. The one SJM writes about, pretending to have many ships.

Elena and Gavin. They wanted to have sex before the battle, but couldn't. Poor things.

Maeve and Hot Fae. She rapes them. I don't know why she, like Amarantha, has a problem with consensual sex and needs to force somebody into her bed, but... Maybe this is a tradition of all ancient she-Fae? And if Aelin would grow old she'd start having males against their will too?

Chaol and Nesryn. Aren't there. But I'm sure that every night he whispers something like "I want to taste every inch of you" into her ear and she begs him to fill with his proud and honorable seed. (Upd. I was right. Read it).

Sex. Yeah, I got that Maas is eager to make her characters fuck after A Court of Vomit and Fuck. So I can only imagine how excited she was to write EoS. So many POVs! So many pairings! So many opportunities to took someone's pants off!!! But the sad news is that SJM still doesn't know how to write a hot scene. And when she tries to be original we have something like that:

She slid her hand between them, and when she closed her fingers around him, marveling at the velvet-wrapped steel, Rowan groaned again, pushing into her hand.

The velvet-wrapped steel! She also calls it the impressive demand or every hard inch of him. Where are we? In Bertrice Small's books?

Oh, and where Feyre's vagina glowed and Rhys's climax shattered mountains — Aelin set everything afire (and turned sand into glass) and Rowan's orgasm caused lightnings (and broke palm-trees).

"On and on, as he spilled himself in her, lightning and flame danced on the sea"

"The lightning continued to strike, silent and lovely, even after he stilled".

Ridiculous, huh?

Manon and Dorian's sex lacked elemental special effects, but softness, hardness, and kisses to one and another corner of one's mouth (this line was used as many times as 'busybody' in ACOMAF ) plus firework-ish releases hadn't gone anywhere.

I don't understand why someone would want to write so detailed sex-scenes if his or her fantasy is very limited and every a-la hot episode is a twin of its predecessor?

The plot... exists and that's already more than ACOMAF gave me. But it's too Sailor Moon-ish to catch my attention, sorry. The only things I loved were the witches' politics and the scene with Asterin's execution. Everything else... just meh. I also tired of almighty Aelin and her secrets. She has no reason to keep them now, and still, she does for the sake of twits. Maas played this card in QoS , so now all the schemes behind allies' backs grew old and became irritating instead of shocking.

The ending. Hello, ACOMAF ! Tamlin-Lorcan betrays everyone for a girl by calling for Maeva-Gibern/Amaranta so she could save his chick (FROM FUCKING WHAT?? I mean, his reason to do what he did was a desire to save Elide. But you know what? She wasn't in danger. She found her queen, Manon, and old buddies. She was happy! Did Maas think that everyone would miss that fact after subsequent events?). Maeva comes and punishes two Feyre's sisters warriors by releasing them from their oaths aka slavery chains. WHAT A PUNISHMENT GUYS. I think she could make them immortal too (to aggravate her actions, of course), but, alas, they already were. Aelin-Feyre willingly goes with Maeva-Tamling (yeah, Maeve is multinational) to save Elide, 'cause Maeve gave her a choice: she or Elide. Now mind that Aelin has to collect all the keys and die so the world could be cleansed from Erawen and his kin while Elide is a mere girl (but everyone wants to be her friend or mate or comrade and so on). One life or the world's fate? One life, decided Aelin, got whipped and went into sunset with a cray-crew. Then Rowan shows up and starts to scream, "Where's my wife?". The case is, our guys married in secret (Aelin knew that Maeve would come and did nothing aside from that because of reasons), and they are mates. AGAIN. I hate mating bond, it diminishes everything the characters had before with other heroes and each other too, 'cause mating means to love by default. I don't get why Maas crosses her own development. Rowan and Aelin were enemies than friends then allies then more and more. And suddenly we find out that their fates were sealed even before they were born. And everyone they loved during their lives was nothing and no one. SJM screws even the friendship her heroes had with "I wanted you from the start!". Though she does it with every paring of hers. I shouldn't be that surprised.

Diversity. I know that many people accused Maas in ignoring LGBT and POC topics. And yeah, in her previous books we've seen only one woman of color and no gay or lesbian person. Whether the publisher insisted or she herself decided to show 'em all, but EoS is full of queers. And all of them are dead or unimportant and show up only in one or two sentences. Plus the only bi character romances a woman. So what was that? "I have gays and lesbians! Fuck off!" scream? Diversity for the sake of diversity is a mock. If you don't feel like developing queer-relationships then stay away from this theme.

I wish my rant were longer, but besides the aforementioned things, the book has nothing to dwell on. It's all about the desire to have sex, having sex, or frustration because of not having it. Samey flirtations. A million kings, queens, princes, princesses, and high lords. Even Manon's a queen now. There's war. Somewhere. The fuck I know where. And villains (with lame motivations). But we see them only on 50 pages from ~700, so...

All in all, Maas' s writing is definitely not for me. Will I finish the series? Who knows. If I'd be in need of a good laugh then yeah, of course.

PS: For those who consider Aelin a great mastermind I have a question. How could she know in Rifthold where she'll end up at the end of book #5? She can't see the future, can she? She couldn't send the right coordinates. So her awesome plan with armies is just a freaking deus ex machina. Also, why did she need Manon to step into the mirror if everything was only about her? And why did she nothing despite her knowledge of Meave's arrival to prevent the blackmailing? Why didn't she say a word to anyone so her pips could ready themselves and come up with a plan? Yeah, I know, for reasons.

Throne of Glass (Стеклянный трон):

— Assassin's Blade (Право на месть) #0.5/6
— Throne of Glass (Стеклянный трон) #1/6
— Crown of Midnight (Корона полуночи) #2/6
— Heir of Fire (Наследница огня) #3/6
— Queen of Shadows (Королева теней) #4/6
— Empire of Storms (Империя бурь) #5/6
— Untitled (Без названия) #6/6

[Ben Alderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

best book ever.
i need to breathe.
can you please message me if you have read this
i need to talk about it

[jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

rereading this series has been the best decision. i completely forgot how much i loved this book.

feelings that stayed the same:

- shock and awe that this surpasses ‘queen of shadows’ in terms of creativity, foresight, and complexity.

- i only like manon if she is with other main characters, so everyone finally meeting is a big win for her character.

- i miss choal. i know why and im excited to see him again in the next book, but man. only two mentions in 600+ pages is rough.

feelings that changed:

- i know how the whole series ends now, so i wasnt really bothered that so many things kept going wrong for the characters (especially the ending).

- ELIDE AND LORCAN. like, wow. how could i have slept on them my first time reading this?? honestly, they are amazing characters and i cant believe it took a reread to fully appreciate them.

- is it just me or is everyone underestimating dorian, myself included?

__________________________________

i really thought this series was going to peak with ‘queen of shadows’ because it was so bloody brilliant, but ive never been happier to be proven wrong. the level of planning and cunning in this story and the way it was told is on another level. usually, i prefer it when the reader is fully informed and given more knowledge than the characters, but man. every time a secret plan was revealed, i could not help but admire SJM and her sly writing.

also, can we appreciate that all of the different story points have FINALLY converged and everyone was reunited?! i cant tell you how long i have been waiting for that to happen.

and if i could air one tiny little grievance, it would be that the whole ‘nothing goes to plan’ occurrence happened wayyyy too often. it kinda got old fast and sometimes made the story very frustrating, in my opinion. but i understand that without opposition, the book would be boring. because holy crap. THAT. ENDING. i just wish something would go in their favour for once - maybe they will catch a break in the next book, but i doubt it. lol.

OH! and how on earth could chaol not get an appearance?! yeah, he was a total jerk in the last book, but that doesnt mean he needs to be completely forgotten. :(

↠ 5 stars

[Angela · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Aelin Galathynius, Queen of Terrasen, knew the time would soon come to prove just how much she'd bleed for Erilea.”   

Had to give myself some time after reading this epic book, to gather my thoughts, and pull myself off the floor. I think I've had some time to get it together and am finally ready to right a review for this book.

We're pretty deep into the Throne of Glass Series so writing reviews for it are getting harder and harder. It's getting harder to talk about events going on and where are characters stand without spoiling anything. I'm go to try my damnedest not to spoil anything! This will also be a shorter probably super listy reviw (is listy a word??). Also, if you're reading this review pre-picking up EOS and haven't read The Assassin's Blade I would suggest doing so. There are a lot of things and characters brought up in this book that are only in TAB.

This series holds such a special place for so many, and I am one of those people. I love everything about this series and where it's headed. Can't believe this series is almost over.

Everything I liked:
-Manon. I know everyone and their mom has been a fan of Manon since she first appeared, but I wasn't. I didn't not like her, but I wasn't in love with her. I am now! I was waiting for her POVS and events involving her. And there is a lot of Manon in this book.
-Dorian-Rowan Bromance going on. I like all their precious broments. Loved that these two finally got to do some bonding. Dorian is one of the sweetest characters in this series, and Rowan is Bae is I love getting to see these two hang.
-Celaena (Aelin) calling Rolfe “his Pirateness” and wanting Rowan to call her “milady”.
-Celaena's sarcasm hasn't gotten old. If anything it's gotten even better.
-How Rowan is opening up so much! I love Rowan! I love mysterious, powerful men, and with this book I feel like were actually starting to know the real him... and I can't get enough of it.
-The Smut!!!! This book is so hot I think it left grill marks on my hands from holding it. The sexy scenes are..... God they are hot!
-Seeing Dorian and Aelin referred to as the King of Adarlan and Queen of Terrasen.
-The insane amount of world building. It's stunning and phenomenal.
-Chaol not being in the book. I don't think this is a spoiler. However, I think it was a very boold, and smart choice for Maas to do.
-The importance of Rowan treating and presenting Celaena as his equal. This makes me want to cry. Like eyes watering typing this because it makes me so happy. "Rowan Whitethorn saw everything. From the moment he met her, he saw all of Aelin. And he was not afraid. I don’t blame either of them for falling in love. I don’t blame her… I was what Celaena needed after Endovier. But Rowan is who Aelin needs – forever.”
-New love interest.
-SJM love for girl power.
-Epic fight scenes. Including but not limited to sea battles.
I want to talk about 992830980293 more things, but I'll only talk about one more.
-The ending. HOLY SWEET MOTHER OF GOD! WHAT AM I SUPPOSE TO DO WITH THAT ENDING!!! HOW DOES SHE SUSPECT US TO LAST ANOTHER YEAR!!! The ending of this book... it BROKE me! I was gasping for air, I wanted to throw up, and I was sobbing all at the same time. I loved how it brought us back to the first book, while at the same time showing us how far this series has come. Just when I think Celaena can't get any stronger, more badass, or make me fall in love with her more she proves me wrong. Everything about this ending was perfect. It's everything I wanted. Seriously a sobbing mess! I ended up re-reading the last like 20 chapters a few days later, and still knowing what was going to happen didn't stop me from having another complete breakdown.

Everything I hated:
-

yeah you read that right. I have no cons for this book. Feel so many people are hating on it because of the hype. People love to hate on things. This series though, is outstanding. Sarah J. Maas never lets down.

(Old)Is it bad I'm hoping one of the main dude dies??? Also I have this gut feeling Sam isn't dead and that's the ending??? Is it bad that I'm team C be solo??? Proven queen rule better alone. Just saying *insert sassy girl emoji.*


*re read updated review*. Ok I still think someone important will die. Know sam is dead, but will never agree to it. Still kind of want her to be solo, but love Rowan so much. I also forgot how much this ending hurt. But how wonderful that pain is.*

[Khurram · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just an amazing book. My expectations were sky high for this book. The Throne of Glass has been one faverite series in a long time. Every book seemed to get better and better. With these kinds of high hope I was just though this book would let me down somewhere. The only let down is the book is finished and I can't wait for the next one. It not only lived up to my expectations but sapassed them. One thing I will put a note on is there is a lot more explicit passages both in language and scenes. An example unlike the other book where SJM would write "a string of curses sprang from her lips", in this one it is the flat out curses. I have no problem with this but be warned for younger readers.

So much of this book talks about how powerful Aelin is and can become, but it also a reminder of how brilliant she is. There are revelations galor. There are twist and turns and return. This story kept me gripped from beginning to end. Just when I though I had everything figured out it changed again. Also every character/member of "the court" had a chance to shine.

This book just has it all, great characters, great character development, great writing that made me want to just devour chapter after chapter to the point I did not want to put it down during the finale. All this and bucket loads of action. Great continuity in the series, tying together many of the plots lines that were left in not the the other books but the novellas as well. What can I say when a book that is almost 700 pages leaves me wishing for another 700 pages it must be good.

[Virginia Ronan ♥ Herondale ♥ · Rating 4 out of 5]

”The world,” Aelin said, “will be saved and remade by the dreamers, Rolfe.”

So, it took me ages to start writing this review and truth be told I’m still not sure if I’m ready to do it. This book was the equivalent of a wild roller coaster, just with the minor and rather distinctive difference that there actually was no brake in the end. It felt like an amazing ride up until the moment the brakes failed and the entire waggon tumbled into nothingness!
And if you already think that my description is messed up: YOU HAVE NO IDEA!!! *lol* Because to read this book and especially the ending is even worse than any allegory I could come up with!! XD

I mean it! I’m still SO DAMN SHOOK and it will take me ages to recover from that book! Still, I really loved “Empire of Storms” and even though the ending killed me and left my mind reeling and my heart bleeding I probably enjoyed this way too much. Sarah can write and she proved it once again with an amazing book that left me gasping and wanting for more.

This time around not everything was sunny and nice though. There were some things I didn’t like because they were idk… just weird. *lol* I mean I get why love played a huge role in EoS and believe me when I say that I loved all the ships that developed throughout the series, in this fifth book some of the relationships seemed to be kind of dissonant though. Or should I rather say the timing for those relationships to develop was sort of improper?!

Or to put it even more bluntly: It’s abnormal how much time they spent with making love when the entire world around them is in chaos and war! *lol* Especially Aelin and Rowan. XD Just saying! Haha! You’d think they’d have more important matters on their mind but nope. Apparently horny fae males can do it everywhere. *lol* Ooops, did I just say that?! Young kids under 13 you forget that you ever read this, okay?! *smiles innocently*

So where were we? Oh yes, inappropriate timing and love. You all know me and know that I’m a sucker for things like that but this time around it all felt kind of forced. Like Sarah realized that this is the last book she can use to form proper ships and decided to do them all in one go! Don’t get me wrong, I loved those ships and I drooled over rooted for them with every fibre of my heart. Sometimes I just thought that it was happening way too fast and didn’t fit into the overall plot. That’s just my opinion though so don’t let this keep you from enjoying the book. =) It’s definitely worth reading!!! <333

The plot:

”Morath is unleashing its horrors,” Lysandra said. “Maeve stirs across the sea. Two goddesses walk hand in hand with Aelin. More than that, Mala and Deanna have watched over her the entirety of her life. But perhaps it wasn’t watching. Perhaps it was … shaping. So they might one day unleash her, too. And I wonder if the gods have weighed the costs of that storm. And deemed the casualties worth it.”

The characters:

I didn’t do one of my spoilery spoiler sections for quite a while so to all of you who just started to read my reviews: This is the part where I spoil the hell out of the book, everything I write about the characters is uncensored and pretty direct. So if you didn’t read the book and plan to do it: Don’t continue to read my review! This is a fair warning, you better don’t ignore it. I assume no liability. ;-P

Aelin:

”She looked over her shoulder. “To call in old debts and promises. To raise an army of assassins and thieves and exiles and commoners. To finish what was started long, long ago.”

OH GOSH!!! AELIN!!! That wonderful, stupid, brilliant and fire breathing bitch!!! I can’t even!! I don’t know where to start! I mean ARGH!!! I hated her so much for some of her actions!! I was angry because she didn’t tell anyone about her plans, because she was so egoistic and ordered them all around! I hated the way she treated Aedion and what she asked Lysandra to do and throughout the entire book I didn’t know whether I wanted to strangle or kiss her! Talk about A LOT of mixed feelings! *lol* But that ending?!! Oh gods! That ending was so heart-breaking! It all made perfect sense, all her scheming, plotting, lying and hiding things. Boy, did it hurt to read those last 50 pages… I don’t even want to know what is going to happen in the last book, it definitely won’t be pleasant for Aeling though. Poor girl, poor, poor, poor girl! *sobs* T_T

”I’m sorry,” Aelin said, shoulders curving inward, head dropping low as the tears slid down her flushed cheeks. “I’m so sorry.” How many years had those words been locked up?

Rowan:

”Even if Maeve had kept me enslaved, I would have fought her. Every day, every hour, every breath.”

I definitely liked Rowan in this one! After my slight disappointment of his portrayal in “Queen of Shadows” it seems like he found his way back to being an individual. I guess it might have helped that him and Aelin weren’t always together in Eos and this kind of gave him the opportunity to shine as the fierce fae warrior that he is. XD I’d have hated him to become just an accessory for Aelin because he’s actually a pretty cool character and I know that he can stand his ground. Yes, they love each other but that doesn’t mean he has to lose himself and everything that makes him him. So, yes, I admit it, I’m glad Sarah managed to get her act together. *lol*

”Sometimes I wish I knew every thought in that head, each scheme and plot. Then I remember how much it delights me when you reveal it – usually when it’s most likely to make my heart stop dead in my chest.”

Aedion:

”The fear of loss … it can destroy you as much as the loss itself.”

Mhmm… Aedion my precious bisexual Cupcake! *lol* I still love him so much and I still think he deserves the world and this even though he did a lot of stupid things I didn’t agree with! For instance treating Dorian like shit! I mean WTH?! Then again with a person like Aelin whose actions were always like some sort of punch it’s actually no wonder that he was always so grumpy! (Not to mention the thing with his father!!!) He would have deserved her trust and he didn’t get it, so I can’t blame him for being pissed. XD Especially after finding out about Aelin’s plans with Lysandra. Urgh! Still, given some time and a verbal slap from Lysandra he always realized his faults and tried to correct them as good as possible! He has the ability to listen to people and I think this is worth a lot! XD (Especially if you know Aelin… *lol*)

”He couldn’t explain why, but he wanted her there. She got under his skin so damn easily, but … Lysandra steadied him. Perhaps because she was something new. Something he had not encountered, had not filled with hope and pain and wishes. Not too many of them, at least.”

Lysandra:

”He was enslaved; he was tortured for months. Not just by his father, but by that thing inside of him. He was violated, and even if you cannot draw up forgiveness for stabbing Aelin against his own will, then try to have some compassion for that.”

Lysandra, the voice of reason! <333 I swear sometimes it felt like she was the only level-headed person in Aelin’s entire court! I loved that she talked back to the guys and didn’t even bother to be nice about it. I just love her! She’s one hell of a woman and I swear if she doesn’t accept Aedion at her side I’ll try my luck with her! *lol* (and with Manon but that’s another matter. XD) Lysandra was just amazing in this book and the way she fought? Boy, that woman is brave and fierce! Some of the best fighting scenes were with Lysandra and that’s just awesome! Finally a woman that truly knows how to kick people’s asses! Physically and verbally of course! *lol* <333 Gosh, what a woman! *shakes head and sighs deeply*

”I never had friends – not as I do now. And today on that beach, when I saw that fleet and thought it belonged to our enemy … For a moment, I wished I’d never met any of you. Because the thought of any of you …” She sucked in a breath. “How do you do it? How have you learned to enter a battlefield with your Bane and not fall apart with the terror that not all of you might walk off it?” Lysandra

Manon:

”Her grandmother’s creature – that’s what Manon was. It had never seemed like a hateful thing.”

I am so proud of Manon!!! I can’t even! She finally decided to follow her heart and even though it cost her dearly I’m still so damn happy that she chose HER path! I always suspected that there was more to her and when I found out that she is the last Crochan Queen my jaw kind of dropped to the floor! OMG! What a mean twist of fate. Poor girl, she was so confused, wounded and alone but she still didn’t give into her despair and I loved her for it! This woman is MADE (figuratively and literally speaking) of iron and I just can’t get enough of her. I LOVE. HER. SO. MUCH!!! <333 #WatchManonAndMeAsWeRideIntoTheSunset, #P.SWe’reTakingDorianWithUsToo ;-P

”And Manon understood in that moment that there were forces greater than obedience, and discipline, and brutality. Understood that she had not been born soulless; she had not been born without a heart. For there were both, begging her not to swing that blade.”

Dorian:

”The man fighting inside his father had kept the blow from being fatal. Dorian had possessed no such control, no such strength, when he watched the demon use his own body – when the demon had tortured and killed and taken what it wanted. Maybe his father had been the stronger man in the end. The better man.”

DORIAN!!! I’ll never get tired of loving this man!! Of all the guys that are part of this series he’s still my favourite and number one! Dorian is my precious cinnamon roll and nothing will change that! With every book I just love him more and more and I can’t wait to read “Kingdom of Ashes” because I know he’ll be great! There’s a dangerous and sexy edge to him now and boy, I’m living for it!!! <333 The only thing that worries me is that according to Elena it’s either Aelin or Dorian who has the strength to kill the Valg, because if that means one of them has to die in the end I’m going to be so pissed. Especially if it’s Dorian which is pretty likely since he has the keys now and is trying to finish what Aelin couldn’t. I mean damn! I swear if Dorian dies I’m going to cry for days. T_T He doesn’t deserve to die but Sarah always has her whipping boys (I’m still waiting for a happy end for Lucien!!! Dammit!!!) and I’m so afraid that Dorian will have to die in the end. =((( Please Sarah, don’t do it!!! Please!!! *sobs* #TeamDorian forever and for always

”I have seen death, and worse,” he said, those sapphire eyes frozen as he surveyed her from head to armored boot-tip and back again. “The death you’d offer is kind compared to that.”

Elide:

”Why?” And with all of Lorcan’s considerable focus honed in on her, with the way he’d glanced at her red-painted mouth, Elide wanted to tell him. About the tower, and Vernon, and her parents. About why, if she were to ever feel desire, it’d be a result of trusting someone so much that those horrors faded away, a result of knowing they would fight tooth and claw to keep her free and never lock her up or hurt her or leave her.

I finally got more of Elide and I have to say that I enjoyed every second of her POV. She’s such a clever, calculating and cunning woman! (The three C’s I love the most! *lol*) And I loved the moment she acted like Manon and actually managed to get rid of the Ilken! I mean how cool was that? This girl knows how to survive and I couldn’t help but love her for her strength. Still, I’m sorry for everything she had to go through and I really hope that she’ll find peace once the war is over. Deep down inside her she’s really broken and even though she and Lorcan are on bad terms right now I’m still pretty sure that he can give her what she craves the most. *sigh* Poor girl. =(

”Storms mean looking for shelter,” she murmured. “Shelter means being stuck inside with nothing to do but gossip. Gossip means news from merchants and sailors about the rest of the land.” Those eyes cut to him, dry humor dancing there. “That is what thunder means.”

Erawan & Maeve:

Those golden eyes simmered like hot coals. “Because destroying a symbol can break the spirits of men as much as bloodshed.”

I HATE THAT EVIL WITCH!!! If I’d have my way, I’d let her rot in hell! Next to Erawan of course! Gosh, I hate those two so much! They are horrible people and despicable and urgh I just want them to vanish! Someone has to stop them and they need to do it fast!! >_<

The relationships and ships:

Manon & Dorian:

She’d forgotten how much taller he was. Face-to-face, Dorian panted as he stared down at her and breathed, “Hello, witchling.”
Some ancient, predatory part of her awoke at the half smile. It sat up, cocking its ears toward him. Not a whiff of fear. Interesting. Manon purred back, “Hello, princeling.”

THIS SHIP IS MY OTP!!! Forget Aelin and Rowan! Dorian and Manon are the real deal! I love them soo much and I couldn’t get enough of them. Their conversations were so awesome and I loved the fact that they were equal. They treated each other like equals and there were no discussions or arguments! They know what they are capable of and they are so honest it hurts! *lol* Also can we appreciate the tension between those two! GOSH! It almost killed me! They are such a power couple and even though their relationship seems to be more rough than those of the other couples they are still gentle with each other. <333 There is respect, there is love, there is a mutual understanding about who they are! WHAT MORE CAN YOU ASK FOR!? I LOVE THIS SHIP AND I’LL GO DOWN WITH IT! Period! <3

”Not spared him. Rescued him.
He wasn’t a fool. He knew she’d done it for whatever reasons were useful to her. She was so alien to him as the warrior sitting at the other end of the boat – more so. And yet, that darkness, that violence and stark, honest way of looking at the world… There would be no secrets with her. No lies.”

”You could have made her suffer – you went for a clean blow instead. Why?”
“Because even with our enemies, there’s a line.”
“Then you have your answer.”
“I didn’t ask a question.”
Manon snorted. “You’ve had that look in your eyes all night – if you’re becoming a monster like the rest of us. The next time you kill, remind yourself of that line.”

Rowan & Dorian:

Rowan considered for a moment, and then said,” I have known many kings in my life, Dorian Havilliard. And it was a rare man indeed who asked for help when he needed it, who would put aside pride.”

This is legit the best bromance of this entire series! I adore their friendship so much! They understand each other and Rowan knows exactly how Dorian feels! Plus I love that he doesn’t underestimate him and that he trusts him to make the right decisions! And they seem to have similar powers, which is great because Rowan was able to help my precious boy to learn how to control his abilities! <3 I really hope that friendship will last! =)

”Rowan knew most underestimated the sharp intelligence under that disarming smile. Knew that Dorian’s value wasn’t his godlike magic, but his mind.”

Lysandra & Aedion:

Aedion grinned. “Good to know I’m finally getting under your skin. Or is it skins?”
That staggeringly beautiful face turned positively wicked. “Careful, Aedion. I bite.”

They are definitely my second OTP! *lol* I still love their easy banter and I was so glad that this ship started to sail somehow! XD And let’s face it: Aedion telling Lysandra that he’s going to marry her was really one hell of an awesome scene! <333 I loved it! Those two can be so peaceful together, it warms my heart. They are both so fierce and loyal but they can be really tender and sweet as well. They are just perfect for each other… *sighs* And they are a slow burning ship which was a really nice change! Still, I want a kiss in “Kingdom of Ash” or even a hot sex scene. *lol* Yes, you read right, I have no doubt that with those two it will be as much fun as with Dorian and Manon! Haha! ;-P

”He hated Aelin for asking this of Lysandra, both to defend them and to secure the Mycenians to fight for Terrasen. Hated the people who had left such scars on the shifter that Lysandra was so willing to throw her life away.”

”The ghost leopard sat beside him, tail twitching, and met his eyes for a moment before she laid her enormous head on his thigh. In silence they watched the stars flicker over the calm waves, Lysandra nuzzling her head against his hip.”

Aelin & Rowan:

”This was what drove her out of her mind – this fire between them. They could burn the entire world to ashes with it. He was hers and she was his, and they had found each other across centuries of bloodshed and loss, across oceans and kingdoms and war.”

Is it just me or were they actually too much in this book? Their relationship became so corny and perfect that it was more than just a little unrealistic. I noticed this in ACOTAR and I’m seeing it here too, it’s just too perfect. They are so perfect together, that they lose their ability to shine as individuals and call me crazy but I really dislike that in books. The love of Aelin and Rowan is just so all-consuming it leaves no room for other things. And it’s come to a point where it’s so kitschy that I almost puked because of the constant sweetness overload. I know many people love them and they are their OTP but seriously, for me they lacked zest. Rowan loves Aelin no matter what she does and that just feels wrong. In a real relationship you argue, you scream and this even though or especially BECAUSE you love each other. ;-) Those two? Nothing. It’s just my opinion though so if you feel differently that’s okay as well. =))

”I love you. There is no limit to what I can give you, no time I need. Even when this world is a forgotten whisper of dust between the stars, I will love you.”

Elide & Lorcan:

”I made a promise to protect you. I will not break it, Elide.”
She made to pull away, but he gripped her a little harder, keeping her eyes on him.
“I will always find you,” he swore to her. Her throat bobbed. Lorcan whispered, “I promise.”

What can I say? I always knew they’d become a couple. *lol* But I really don’t like how things came to an end between them. I mean he almost died for her but she is ignoring him now? Come on, give that boy a break! I know Elide feels bound to Aelin’s court but if she truly loves Lorcan they should find a way, right? Poor Lorcan, I only feel sorry for him right now and I think he deserves to be loved as much as Elide does. So please can you just get together again and give each other the love you deserve? *looks hopeful*

”Lorcan’s onyx eyes were unreadable as he scanned her face. And then he said quietly, “ I wanted to go to Perranth with you.”

Considering it all I really enjoyed “Empire of Storms” and thanks to my precious Gem this was another wonderful buddy read! =) The only reason I’m giving this four stars is the simple fact that some things felt kind of forced and therefore left me wondering. *lol* It’s just my personal opinion though. Either way, EoS was still an amazing ride and I can’t wait to dive into “Tower of Dawn”. =)) Gem, are you ready for book 6?

[Hannah Azerang · Rating 2 out of 5]

Wow. Just wow.

I'll be filming a full video review for this so I'll keep my thoughts here brief.

I didn't have high expectations going into this because, as this series has gone on, I've increasingly lost interest in most of the characters and the plot.

But this took everything I didn't like in the series and multiplied it by 10000 and took everything I loved and shattered it to pieces.

For a while, I actually really enjoyed the direction of the plot. It seemed like the world would actually start expanding and some things would start to make sense. However, by the end, things just started to get ridiculous, plot lines were wrapped up in the most convoluted ways possible, and of course there had to be a little "fate" added into the mix to render everything else irrelevant.

The romance was insufferable and made up at least 70% of the book. It was just a bunch of brooding, "hot," Fae men, standing around being jealous of the other men when they spoke to their girlfriends. Speaking of which, EVERYONE in this book had to be in a relationship (a heterosexual one, of course), because you can't have a group of attractive royals in the same room unless they're all making out with each other.

Like the book did, let's just ignore the fact that one of the main characters of the series wasn't even in this, and talk about the characters that were. The characters, which had always been my favorite part of the books, were all intolerable. All the male characters are pretty much just carbon copies of one another with different color hair/eyes. They're all "walls of muscle" who have temperament issues and are way too territorial over the women they've "claimed." As for the female characters, they're mostly brushed aside to make more room for Aelin and her ego. By the end, Manon is the only one I still truly like, and I bet you I'll end up hating her too by the end of the next book.

The thing is, this isn't the same series as the first two Throne of Glass books. I'm all for a series progressing, changing, and growing. But when your characters are unrecognizable, when your new plot lines negate almost the entirety of some of your previous books, then there's a problem.

[Melissa ♥ Dog/Wolf Lover ♥ Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Re-Read on Audio! Okay, so I found another hardback copy with the poster on the inside of the dust jacket so... dad took it over and got it laminated for me and it's on my shelf now. Yes, I'm crazy =)




Did anyone else get the Barnes & Noble edition with he beautiful cover art on the inside front pages and the inside back pages? They are beautiful!





THIS BOOK IS FREAKING EPIC AND I LOVED IT AND I LOVE ALL OF EVERYONE IN THE BOOK AND I LOVE ROWAN AND ETC AND SO FORTH. THERE WILL BE "NO SPOILERS!"



The revelations that came out in the book just blew me away. I was not ready for it, the characters were not ready for it. But, that is Mrs. Maas for you :-)



Everyone in this book had a part to play in the epic ending. They all came together whether they wanted to or not and holy sh•t balls!



This book just burned right through me. I loved everyone accept the few arseholes. There were just so many people coming together and it's not over people. I'm afraid Sarah is going to kill everyone I love!



I thought all of the characters were played most excellently. I loved Lysandra and Aedion. Manon and Abraxos, Elide and Lochan, Dorian. There are so many more that came together and I want you to enjoy this without me telling certain things. I can't talk much on this review or I will end up giving out spoilers AND I REALLY WANT TO GIVE OUT SPOILERS!



The ending . . . .

The ending . . .



All I can say is

I really hope this series ends well, because that ending was messed up and painful. Aelin is a true hero and I really hope the final book doesn't kill me!

MY BLOG: Melissa Martin's Reading List

[Nenia ✨ I yeet my books back and forth ✨ Campbell · Rating 1 out of 5]

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Q: Why are you reading these books if you don't like them?



A: So I can MST3K the hell out of them.



Q: Well, I like these books and I think you're an idiot for hating on books you don't like because I don't understand the concept of satire and therefore make it my business to police what and how other people read.



A: LOL, well just for that, I'm going to read and review all of the books in this series, so what do you think of that, Stan?



Q: ...I think you're a meanie loser with too much free time.



A: Your point being?



Q: ...



A: ...



Q: ...



A: ...



Q: I hate you.



A: Cram a book in it, Stan.



Well, the journey has been long and arduous but I'm finally caught up in the Chronicles of Mary Sue-ia, AKA Throne of Veggies, AKA The Little Special That Could. People were losing their collective shits over this book last year. Like, seriously. Friendships were tested and ended over this book, and people were accused of stanning too hard or not stanning hard enough. Meanwhile, I was just sitting there atop my hoard of bodice-rippers, squinting my eyes and thinking, "What the hell is wrong with you people?"



The books begin with THRONE OF GLASS, in which a candy-eating teenage assassin Hunger Games her way into being the "king's champion," and then has so much fun fucking and eating her way through victory that her criminal neglect ends up in the death of her best friend in CROWN OF MIDNIGHT. In HEIR OF FIRE, she takes her special levels from Charmander to Charmeleon with the help of Mr. Faeniverse, only to fall in love with him in QUEEN OF SHADOWS. Meanwhile, Sarah J. Maas takes shipping to next-level fangirl BS, creating entire armadas of forced-canon love interests, to the point of completely discounting previous characterization/relationship hierarchies. But in EMPIRE OF STORMS, Maas outdoes herself yet again as Celery Saltine-thin discovers her inner-holographic Charizard, and when Maas runs out of special powers to give her heroine, she starts creating new ones like "moonfire," which sounds like something cribbed from Sailor Moon. Oh, and the sex - let's not forget the sex. Violent, bitey sex where mountains shake and lightning flashes to the point that you'll probably need homeowner's insurance just to do it in your own bed.



🌟 Seriously, how many elements need to be present in the bedroom before Sarah J. Maas considers it "good" sex? Why is everything exploding and catching on fire? And if that's what sex looks like, what do sexual diseases look like? Active volcanoes? Cthulu? Condoms don't seem to exist in this world, so that's a valid concern.



🌟 While whining about affairs of state he's had to deal with, Durian casually mentions slavery. Does that mean he owns/has owned slaves? And we're still supposed to like him?



🌟 200-300 pages of this book could have been cut without loss. The writing takes a nose-dive from the previous books and gets seriously lazy. Where was the editor? Asleep at the desk?



🌟 Not that I blame them. This was 500+ pages of self-fanfic.



🌟 Seriously, the only character who is more special than this gal is Anita Blake. Sarah J. Maas frantically comes up with new powers to outdo her old ones, from moonfire to fire-breath, and of course she has weird freaky sex magic to go along with it. Then when that gets boring, Maas finds another couple to have weird freaky sex magic. I can only imagine how the sequel is going to go. Last I checked, it's 1000+ pages. Imagine all the sex magic she can pack in there with her armada of ships.



🌟 It's called KINGDOM OF ASHES, but we might as well just call it FIFTY SHADES OF FAE.



🌟 Everyone is obsessed with the heroine and won't shut up about her, whether they hate her or want to be her or just want her. I got really tired of hearing how Queen Special specialed her specials in order to proceed on her special quest to special to the land of Special to special the lost special.



🌟 Special.



🌟 Oh, and if I ever see another character in one of her books "purr," it will be too soon. Talk about a verbal tic! We all know the real reason why Sarah J. Maas was tasked with writing that Catwoman book; some scout saw the "purr" count of this book and thought, "YAS! Someone who can make a crazy cat lady look hawt!" The characters in these books are basically a pack of orgasming cats already, so why not officiate it and slap the DC label on it? Ergo, Catwoman.



🌟 "Kidnap the Celery, throw her in a box, bury her for 90 years, then see if she talks..."



Oh, I can't wait to see what happens with KINGDOM OF ASH. I've already written out a hypothetical ending in my pre-review of the series, and it made people REAL MAD. Don't @ me, though. Maas was baiting the hell out of Celery's demise in this book, but I just know that she's going to pull a Harry Potter and find some excuse for her to live with a fae-ex-machina. As much as I want her to stay locked up in that box forever, we all know that Celery is going to be best-woman at Dorian and Chaol's wedding, and they'll have fifty kids each and become gods on the moon, where they can leer down at us mortals here on earth while purring to their hearts' content.



1 star

[Hailey (Hailey in Bookland) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Full spoiler free review: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qr-mo...

I FINALLY GODS-DAMNED DID IT
It was long and it was difficult but it was worth it. I have the hardest time getting through Sarah J. Maas books because they're so long and there's so much going on, so I complain A TON as I'm reading it, but I always end up loving it in the end.

[Liz · Rating 3 out of 5]

After re-reading a few parts I cannot help but rate it lower. Well, maybe it'll be one of those books that I rate lower and lower with every time I re-read some parts and revise them in my head. Oh, SJM, you could have done it so much better. Why? Pity.

I will start with the flaws.
Well, the "mature" content that reminded me a bit of fanfictions from AO3, not because it was horrible, but because it was given too many pages and written in an over-the-top manner. That said, I am generally not fond of sex scenes in books and after ASoIaF no sex scene can impress me anymore. So the sex scenes were cringe-worthy. Seriously, worse than ACOMAF because in that one there weren't as many.
The writing itself, funnily enough, was at times not at its best either. I gushed about the writing in my QoS review, but due to the 'territorial nonsense' of the Fae in this one and the never-ending repetitions of certain verbs I did not enjoy the writing in this one quite as much but only at these particular moments. Action-scenes were splendidly written. I had honestly not expected that for the simply reason that action/combat scenes are exceptionally difficult to write in a manner that contributes to a build-up of tension and many authors tend to mess them up. But yeah, the emotional parts were very much purple prose, which I am not very fond of.
Oh, and another minor aspect that was more annoying than enjoyable - Aelin and Rowan. I loved them together in HoF and QoS, but in this installment their relationship was at times too much even for me. Too sweet, too perfect, too purple. Ugh.
And not everyone needs to be paired up. This is such a childish move. Such a stupid, obvious and immature move that I do not appreciate it at all. No, not everyone needs a relationship. This endless pairing up every character that appears both in ACOMAF in here is just endlessly annoying.

Now on to the parts that I liked.
As I have already stated - the combat scenes. There are many in this book. Seriously, a good deal of this book is fighting be it with magic or not. But the combat scenes contribute to the overall progression of the plot and character development, so it's not just pointless bloodshed. In addition to the combat scenes, there is the overall suspense. Fuck sexual tension, I didn't care for it, but the tension between the characters who are minutes from gutting each other, that one I loved.
The overall atmosphere of this book is darker, more cruel...more insane than in the previous books.
Then, there is the "girl power". But let's call it - flawed and interesting female characters, shall we?! I am tired of 95% of male characters ruling the realm of fantasy and I love the fact that women are so intelligent and vicious in this series.
I loved Aelin's quiet scheming. All the wrong and right choices that she made. Her sacrifice, her silence, broke my heart at the end. Her development was fantastic and it was believable, particularly the reaction to "Nameless is my price", I think I'll never get over it.
It irked me a bit that due to all the action, due to so many things happening simultaneously, there was not much space for SJM to include some in-depth insight into some characters' heads and their emotional turmoils, but I liked their development nonetheless. Apart from Aelin, there is Lysandra. For me, she is hands down the most mind-blowing character in this entire series by now. All-time-favourite female characters? Lysandra and Manon. But seriously this is a minor, but very vague spoiler - so many things would have never worked out without Lysandra. She is the gem of this series.
Perhaps with Manon, who has changed rather a lot since book three. Many changes, particularly those that occur in this book, have been forced upon her by the circumstances and her own past and the possible absence of a future, so yes, she changes visibly, but I did not feel like she changes in a manner that is OOC. Same goes for Dorian. It's a pity that there wasn't much insight into what was going on inside his head, but I still adored him, as much as I did in the previous books. Elide and Aedion were other pleasant surprises. Aedion's development was very interesting, as was his relationship with Gavriel and the other Fae and Elide was just overall one big surprise!
Moreover, many "old friends" make an appearance in this book. Ansel!!! ANSEL OF FREAKING BRIARCLIFF!!! I cannot wait to see them in the final installment and how they will work together. Aelin and her "court" are already used to each other, but with so many "new" faces it might be a bit of a struggle to coordinate and get along because so many of them are used to rule, not to obey.
Lastly, the history and myths of the world of ToG. I am a sucker for good world-building and Maas never disappoints in this regard. Many of the old myths come to live again, some are merely remembered, but even that is enough to dive deeper into this fantastic, ancient world. And the time-line of when certain things occured becomes clearer as well, although with all these revelations more questions arise as well. Not that I minded that, I just hope that SJM won't mess it up and won't leave the crucial questions unanswered.

Let's be honest - it could have been so much better. Makes me a bit anxious about the final book, to be honest.
_________________________
Before reading:
A year of waiting...

[Warda · Rating 5 out of 5]

This ending was near enough poetic. The way everything just came together? 🤯

Reread number 5.


———————————————


That bitch Maeve! 😤
I forgot how painful and intense that ending was. The revelations, the armies, plots coming together and falling apart at the same time... all traumatising.


ORIGINAL REVIEW!
“Nameless is my price.” 😩

Rereading this has affirmed that this instalment is definitely up there with Heir of Fire as my favourite in the series.

I still feel slightly sick. My heart is still heavy. Numb. I'm devoid of any emotion, since those last few chapters, or reading this book in general, has drained everything out of me. That ending was painful! And yet, I want to go revisit and reread it! The whole series, back to back!

I adore this woman! This series! They've completely consumed my heart! I think I stated this in one of my other ToG reviews, but I haven't fangirled this hard about a series since Potter and it feels SO good.

Every plot point came together seamlessly! There were so many moments that had me gasping, actually gasping out loud, moments that made me have an epiphany and I was astounded by how clever the whole plot was, moments that had me genuinely tear up, because it was so painful.

Sarah J Maas KNOWS what she's doing with this series. Listening to an interview she did she stated that she knew how she wanted this series to go, how this series was going to end before she got signed by Bloomsbury. So much admiration and love for her!

It also helped me majorly that I reread the series before starting Empire of Storms or else I doubt I would've picked up certain plot points or remembered characters and moments that appear in the other books.

Seriously, my heart is in agony at the moment. Resurrect myself when the final book is released.

*enters grave*

[Kiki · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another review gone! But my Feelings have Changed! I can't believe how different I felt about this book the second time reading it.

I'm going to properly review all of these books separately once I've finished Kingdom of Ash. So RTC, but the reviews will actually happen this time because I have A LOT of feelings.

[Fiona · Rating 1 out of 5]

I did it. I got my hands on an early release of Empire of Storms and binge-read it (however painful that was).

And oh my gracious god what did I just read.

Look, if I wanted fanfic I'd go to archiveofourown, not go and buy one in a bookstore. Honestly I'd also get better quality on ao3 than I got in this book.

Queen of Shadows was a bit of a disappointment but this

This was painful to read, this is an insult to the genre.

This is blasphemy.



Look fanfic is the best way to describe this.

Rowan and Aelin are mates and I say "what?"

Oh please, that whole story of Maeve's? It was convenient author manipulation to suddenly make us realise that WAIT THEY ARE ACTUALLY MATES! ROWAN AND AELIN'S PAST LOVES HAVE ALL BEEN A LIE! THEY CAN ONLY LOVE EACH OTHER!

This is some fanfic writer level "technically it could happen so I'm gonna make it happen for my ship" of canon manipulation.

Look, I consider Heir of Fire to be the last book in the Throne of Glass series because that was the last book that actually felt like canon.

Rowan and Aelin should've remained platonic. I will scream this until the whole universe shakes with the sound of it and as it caves in on itself I shall shout it until the last of the air leaves my lips. In Heir of Fire they were platonic besties beating bitch-Queens and sharing cool powers while bantering.

Now it's just embarrassing.

"Sometimes you'd be sleeping beside me at Mistward, and it'd take all my concentration not to lean over and bite them. Bite you all over." - Empire of Storms

"There was noting romantic about sharing a bed with Rowan, and they kept to their own sides. Celaena reflected on how starved of affection she'd been when she'd come to Wendlyn, not just from a lover, but from a friend." - Heir of Fire

They're friends. THEY'RE FRIENDS.

How many times do I need to say that this series would've been 100% better if Sarah J. Maas had stuck to her original plan and just decided on either Dorian or Chaol being endgame instead of turning an obviously platonic relationship into a romantic one.

Now let's discuss Dorian and his role in this book.

Dorian Havilliard was not born for his character be mangled by Sarah J. Maas's fanfictions.

Manon Blackbeak wasn't born for her character to be forced into a straight relationship where she is the submissive partner.

And where the fuck is Chaol Westfall.

The Manon/Dorian smut scenes were so out of character I was screaming in pain and rage. Manon, what the fuck. "Never mind she was contemplating the opposite (of making Dorian beg for her)" The Manon Blackbeak I know would never kneel to anyone, not even in pleasure. (Oh, except she's not a Blackbeak, she's a Crochan, of fucking course. Sarah J. Maas's protagonists can't be problematic. They have to be born into greatness, not have to develop and make the choice to leave their darker pasts behind.)

Manon is not straight. I thought she was asexual, others thought she was lesbian. I could've rolled with her being bisexual, but she sure as hell is not straight. I was so convinced that Manon/Elide or Manon/Asterin was going to be a thing. I thought Manon and Dorian were going to be platonic, not-straight best buds. Bantering and kicking demon asses and defeating bitch-Queens (see: Rowan and Aelin platonic friendship ideals).

Now onto Dorian. Sure, Dorian's seen some shit and is going to be a darker character than he was in the first three books. BUT THIS SORT OF SHIT?
First of all, his appearance. He's described multiple times as having broad shoulders, and while we all know Sarah J. Maas's obsession with broad-shouldered shirtless male men. Dorian is slender read your own novels Sarah J. Maas.

Another thing is his attitude. Dorian is not aggressive, even after his possession. He only ever gets aggressive if a. his people or b. Chaol are in danger.

Then why the hell is he all dark towards Manon and the people around him. And what's with the whole BDSM thing? I know his namesake has the last name Gray but that's two degrees of separation plus American spelling vs. British spelling.

I've been saying since Heir of Fire and my belief was reinforced in Queen of Shadows (when Rowaelin happened) that endgame will be Chaol/Dorian because they are the definition of "no homo bro but I love you". They are willing to kill and betray as many people as it takes, even people who used to be their friends and family, to keep the other person alive.

"He looked at his friend, perhaps for the last time, and said what he had always known, from the moment they’d met, when he’d understood that the prince was his brother in soul. “I love you.”

Dorian merely nodded, eyes still blazing, and lifted his hands again toward his father. Brother. Friend. King."

Okay I'm all for platonic I love yous but

"He might have yielded to the exhaustion that threatened to drag him back into unconsciousness, but someone—a man—let out a rasping breath, and Chaol turned his head.

There were no sounds, no words in him as he found Dorian seated in a chair beside the bed. Bruised shadows were smudged beneath his eyes; his hair was unkempt, as if he’d been running his hands through it, but—but beyond his unbuttoned jacket, there was no collar. Only a pale line marring his golden skin.

And his eyes … Haunted, but clear. Alive.

Chaol’s vision burned and blurred.

"Dorian surged from the chair and dropped to his knees beside the bed. He grabbed Chaol’s hand, squeezing it as he pressed his brow against his. “You were dead,” the prince said, his voice breaking. “I thought you were dead.”"

Some denied romance is definitely happening here. Chaol is speechless seeing Dorian. Dorian is relieved beyond belief to see Chaol. I mean there's forehead touching (but no homo bro.)

“I’m not leaving you. Not again.”

Dorian’s mouth tightened. “You never left me, Chaol.” He shook his head once, sending tears slipping down his face. “You never left me.”

Chaol squeezed his friend’s hand.

Dorian glanced toward the door a moment before a hesitant knock sounded, and smiled faintly. Chaol wondered just what Dorian’s magic allowed him to detect, but then the king wiped away his tears and said, “Someone’s here to see you.”"

Sarah J. Maas constantly has to emphasise the word friend and then Nesryn interrupting is Sarah. J Maas's version of "no homo bro"

But I can recognise stubborn, pining idiots from a mile away, even through layers of "THEY'RE TOTALLY STRAIGHT I PROMISE YOU"

Hmmm, sure Ms. Maas, whatever helps you sleep at night.

While we're on the subject of LGBT representation let's talk about the lack of it in this book.

The forced straight relationships in this book kills me. Let's count down the characters that were definitely not straight that were forced into straight relationships.

Manon - look me in the eye and tell me she's straight. I dare you to.
Elide - she had a very obvious crush on Manon in QoS and while I would expect her to not end up with Manon. It still pains me that she was paired off so neatly. And with Lorcan at that.
Dorian - See: forehead touching
Aedion - while admitting he was bisexual (we all knew it) and while being in a straight relationship doesn't detract from the fact that he is bisexual and doesn't make him not a LGBT character, in the real world one out of seven (of the main POV crew) is too little a number. It would be three out of seven, at the very least.
Chaol - oh wait, he's not in this book.

Let's discuss Chaol's absence.

Chaol is the character who has been the most abused by Sarah J. Maas and her hot dominant male fantasies. Chaol simply didn't fit with that. Or he refused to. So Sarah J. Maas paralysed him and gave him a reason to be shipped off to a faraway continent with Convenient Replacement Straight Love Interest™ Nesryn Faliq (who, I will always say, deserved so much more).

Chaol is a main character. He is of equal importance to both Dorian and Celaena/Aelin. Ever since the beginning the story has revolved around these three characters. I still believe that these three are an integral part to this series. They're what the Golden Trio is to Harry Potter, what Jon, Daenerys and Tyrion are to A Song of Ice and Fire. They are the characters that people are the most attached to in the series. You can survive without one for a short period of time but begin to sideline any one of them and your entire series begins to unravel.

Look, I don't like Chaol. I have not liked Chaol since the beginning of Throne of Glass. I despised Chaolaena but you know what? I learnt to live with it. Because even good series can have their endgames predicted a little ahead of time and Chaolaena made the most sense endgame-wise. Chaol had to live as well. I understood this. Without him the series would fall apart. The same way it would without Dorian.

Chaol's sidelining and absence is the visible effect of this series slowly starting to lose its footing. Sarah J. Maas has said she writes organically instead of planning out everything ahead of time. There's nothing wrong with that. George RR Martin does it, JK Rowling does it, I do it when I can be bothered to write. But even writing organically you always have to have some sense of where a series is going, otherwise everything is long, drawn out and doesn't make sense.

Finally, don't you dare say that this is a feminist novel. All the females in this novel are happy to let themselves be dominated by their male love interests whenever it suits the male. We're told multiple times how the "sheer masculinity" makes all the females "purr" and want more. We're told that the "harshness" and "maleness" in the tones of the love interests make the females sit up and listen.

Don't you dare say this is a feminist novel. Don't you dare list it with the likes of The Lies of Locke Lamora series, with The Invisible Library series. Two lesser-known series that are wonders in feminist literature and magical originals in fantasy as a whole.

I better not hear you describe this series as a "literary wonder" and compare it with His Dark Materials, A Song of Ice and Fire, Stardust and other great achievements in literature.

It makes me burn with shame that this series has such a massive following while the wonderful likes of The Long Way To A Small Angry Planet, The Invisible Library and other, deserving, new books barely get a single nod their way.


In conclusion, I am done with this series. I should've stopped at Queen of Shadows. That was my lesson, this is just the rubbing of salt in the wound. I let my memories of Crown of Midnight keep my hopes up for an epic comeback in Empire of Storms. But my hopes were in vain. The series I have let dominate my teenage years no longer sits on the throne.

And this is how a love dies. Not with a bang, but with a whimper.