Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas Review

Title: Throne of Glass
Author: Sarah J. Maas
Publisher: Bloomsbury USA
Publish Date: August 7, 2012
Genre: YA, Dystopian
Pages: 416
Source: Publisher

After serving out a year of hard labor in the salt mines of Endovier for her crimes, 18-year-old assassin Celaena Sardothien is dragged before the Crown Prince. Prince Dorian offers her her freedom on one condition: she must act as his champion in a competition to find a new royal assassin. Her opponents are men-thieves and assassins and warriors from across the empire, each sponsored by a member of the king's council. If she beats her opponents in a series of eliminations, she'll serve the kingdom for three years and then be granted her freedom.

Celaena finds her training sessions with the captain of the guard, Westfall, challenging and exhilirating. But she's bored stiff by court life. Things get a little more interesting when the prince starts to show interest in her... but it's the gruff Captain Westfall who seems to understand her best. Then one of the other contestants turns up dead... quickly followed by another. Can Celaena figure out who the killer is before she becomes a victim? As the young assassin investigates, her search leads her to discover a greater destiny than she could possibly have imagined.

Celaena hasn’t had is easy. Nor has she made her life any easier by committing the crimes she has, either. Having spent a year serving her sentence in the hard labor of the salt mines, Celaena is given an option. She can be free, but she must first serve as the Prince’s champion to become the royal assassin. She must beat some of the deadliest opponents around, all vying for the one coveted killing position that could actually grant her freedom after three years of service. Things aren’t black and white though. The Prince starts to have feelings for her, Celaena must constantly be on her toes and the contestants are being killed. Is this position really worth killing for, and can Celaena adopt the new kill or be killed mentality in time?

There has been SO much hype about this one, and you guys know how I feel about hype. I remember at BEA the line for this signing was wrapped around the exhibit hall, and trust me, I was one of those vying for a copy. Throne of Glass promises the YA crowd the trifecta – an empowering heroine, action and endless adventure and a love interest to die for. Author Sarah J. Maas had her hands full crafting a story that encompassed all of the above and still delivered the emotion we, as readers, seek. Witty, dramatic, tense and action-packed, Throne of Glass delivers heart-pounding suspense and theatrics page after page, wheeling and dealing as it spins you into its suspenseful web.

Gosh, I have so many feelings about Throne of Glass that I hardly know where to begin. Celaena was an intriguing character who drew readers in with her outward bravado and inner strength. She was a bit rough around the edges and defied expectations, demanding that people pay her the same respect that they did others. Then you have the love interests – yes, two of them Chaol has this gruff demeanor that makes me love him for his utter lack of flouncy nuances. Dorian, the Prince, however, had the prestige and honour that makes him covetable. I’ll admit, their characters were a bit riddled with clichés for my taste, but I definitely found myself able to choose a side. Honestly though, a secondary character stole the spotlight for me. Nehemia represents what is often lacking in YA fiction. She’s subtly powerful, incredibly intelligent and has cunning for days. I found myself in her corner much of the novel. The plot moved at a steady, even pace throughout then ramped it up at the end, and I found myself far more invested in the story later on. I’ll admit that Throne of Glass was a bit heavy on the “tell don’t show” factor, and that lost me a bit in the beginning. I honestly was unsure how I felt about the novel until the very end because of it. Most importantly though, I think that the actions of Celaena deterred me a bit from the start because, at times, she seemed a bit disingenuous and put on, if that makes sense.

I want to absolutely love Throne of Glass because of the parallels it draws with one of my favourite series for adults (Game of Thrones). However, I find myself a bit on the fence. It’s well-written, but it’s a bit too much at times. I give it a strong 3.5 out of 5, and I know that I’m one of the few that didn’t absolutely adore this story. I highly recommend it to all YA fans, especially those who enjoy fantasy and dystopian novels.

I received this book free of charge from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This, in no way, affected my opinion or review of this book.