Crown of Midnight

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Crown of Midnight

Crown of Midnight

by: Sarah J. Maas
My Rating: Loved it!



Published by: Bloomsbury USA Childrens on August 27th 2013
Genres: Mature Young Adult, Young Adult, Light Romance, Fantasy & Fairy Tales, Paranormal

ISBN: 1619630621

ASIN: B00CU7YHQY
Pages: 418
Series: Throne of Glass #2
Also in this series: Throne of Glass, Heir of Fire, Queen of Shadows
Also by this author: Throne of Glass, Heir of Fire, Queen of Shadows



Synopsis

"A line that should never be crossed is about to be breached.
It puts this entire castle in jeopardy—and the life of your friend."

From the throne of glass rules a king with a fist of iron and a soul as black as pitch. Assassin Celaena Sardothien won a brutal contest to become his Champion. Yet Celaena is far from loyal to the crown. She hides her secret vigilantly; she knows that the man she serves is bent on evil.

Keeping up the deadly charade becomes increasingly difficult when Celaena realizes she is not the only one seeking justice. As she tries to untangle the mysteries buried deep within the glass castle, her closest relationships suffer. It seems no one is above questioning her allegiances—not the Crown Prince Dorian; not Chaol, the Captain of the Guard; not even her best friend, Nehemia, a foreign princess with a rebel heart.

Then one terrible night, the secrets they have all been keeping lead to an unspeakable tragedy. As Celaena's world shatters, she will be forced to give up the very thing most precious to her and decide once and for all where her true loyalties lie... and whom she is ultimately willing to fight for.






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Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas is the sequel to her breakout debut, Throne of Glass, her twisted take on the Cinderella fairy tale… glass slipper… glass castle. Unique and interesting, this series has quickly become one of my favorites.

 

Crown of Midnight picks up a few months after our heroine has won the King’s Champion position. The novel bursts into technicolor beginning with chapter one—when Celaena is performing her duties as King’s Champion and decapitating Lord Nirall—and continues with a breakneck pace of intrigue and creepy mystery until the very last page, when a secret was revealed so shocking that gasped out loud. No kidding.

 

I loved Throne of Glass. I don’t know why it took me so long to read it. But—and I didn’t think this would be possible—I liked Crown of Midnight more. A lot more. From the dark and creepy forgotten passageways under the library, to the political intrigue (and Celaena’s reluctance to perform her duties, even knowing it might cost her life… and the lives of those she’s come to love), to the sweet romance between her and Captain of the Guard Chaol… I read the 400-plus page book in a little over twenty-four hours. And it only took me that long because I had to sleep. Sleep… such a time suck.

 

As with the first book, mechanics were spot on and pacing was awesome. Character development was fleshed out even more in this installment. The reader is given a deeper glance into the lives of some of the key players… and that huge shocker at the end of the book will make readers rush to grab their copy of the next book in the series: Heir of Fire.

 

Celaena’s personality is put under a spotlight in this book more so than in the first book in the series. Yes, she’s still the sarcastic and arrogant girl we all grew to love in Throne of Glass, but now… now the reader really sees the assassin side of her.  Oh, you think you saw it before? Yeah… not likely. She’s more than a strong heroine. Celaena Sardothien is the ultimate badass. Unforgiving and ruthless. And don’t mess with those she loves or you’re likely to find yourself skewered on the end of her sword. But despite her deadly personality, she still somehow remains tender and vulnerable. To write a character that is so completely brutal and still remains likable is truly a feat of a great writing.

 

She was a whirlwind of steel and blood. As he watched her cut through the men like they were stalks of wheat in a field, he understood how she had gotten so close to touching Endovier’s wall that day. And at last—after all these months—he saw the lethal predator he’d expected to find in the mines. There was nothing human in her eyes, nothing remotely merciful. It froze his heart.

 

Oh, the quote above? It’s in Chaol’s POV. And that brings me to him. In Throne of Glass, I was a little relieved that the entire story didn’t focus on romance. Don’t get me wrong. I love a swoony romance… I’m a romance writer, after all. But, it was a story that didn’t need a strong romantic spin to it. In fact, I think it would have weakened the story. Not so with Crown of Midnight. While the romance isn’t the main plot line, it is important. Not only does it give us a different side of both Celaena and Chaol, but it highlights the viciousness of the assassin side of Celaena. And, Chaol. We see a new side of him, too. And, holy mother of book boyfriends, Batman, he’s almost perfect.

 

“I worry because I care. Gods help me, I know I shouldn’t, but I do. So I will always tell you to be careful, because I will always care what happens.”

 

But we can’t forget Dorian. Dark-haired and blue-eyed (my type), he’s been locked down after his and Celaena’s lukewarm romance in book one. She’s over him for the most part.  Him… not so much.

 

“If you are captured, if you are hurt, you are beyond our reach. You will be entirely on your own.”
“I’ll be fine.” [Celaena, answers.]
“But I won’t be. Every day that you’re there, I will wonder what has become of you. I won’t…. I won’t forget you. Not for one hour.”

 

And Celaena cares for them both in her own, confusing, and irritating (in a good way) sort of way.  But it’s Chaol that won her heart. But in a cruel twist of fate, and wayward good intentions, and misplaced loyalties, he… well, you’ll have to read the book.

 

“When you do, I want you to remember that it wouldn’t have made any difference to me. It’s never made any difference to me when it came to you. I’d still pick you. I’ll always pick you.” [Celaena to Chaol]

 

While Throne of Glass was interesting and original, Crown of Midnight had it all: relationships are tested, hearts are broken, murder, intrigue, monsters, magic and much, much more. It gets my highest recommendation. That ending… whoa! I can’t get my hands on Heir of Fire fast enough!

 

***While not violent enough for me to feel it needs my “18 and over” warning, there is some violence…she’s an assassin, after all…that makes this a mature young adult title. 

 

About Sarah J. Maas

Sarah J. Maas is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Throne of Glass series and the A Court of Thorns and Roses series.

Sarah lives in Bucks County, PA, and over the years, she has developed an unhealthy appreciation for Disney movies and bad pop music. She adores fairy tales and ballet, drinks too much tea, and watches an ungodly amount of TV. When she’s not busy writing, she can be found exploring the historic and beautiful Pennsylvania countryside with her husband and canine companion.

Michelle
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