* * * * *
After a year of hard labor in the Salt Mines of Endovier,
eighteen-year-old assassin Celaena Sardothien has won the king's contest to
become the new royal assassin. Yet Celaena is far from loyal to the crown – a
secret she hides from even her most intimate confidantes.
Keeping up the deadly charade—while pretending to do the
king's bidding—will test her in frightening new ways, especially when she's
given a task that could jeopardize everything she's come to care for. And there
are far more dangerous forces gathering on the horizon -- forces that threaten
to destroy her entire world, and will surely force Celaena to make a choice.
Where do the assassin’s loyalties lie, and who is she most
willing to fight for?
What can I say? Celaena is simply a badass and I love her
for it. She’s not perfect. Her personal history is littered with tragedy,
betrayal and she is far from innocent when it comes to her life as an assassin.
It’s amazing that despite all the horrors that she has endured and even carried
out, she still has a sense of justice and compassion. Yes, it’s weird to say that about an assassin.
Now that she’s the king’s champion, the lucky girl gets to
carry out all his dirty work. She receives an assignment to rid the kingdom of
potential rivals and insurgents, and the king rewards her for this. She doesn’t
do this out of any loyalty to the king. She does it so that she can maintain
her hard-fought freedom and also to protect the one she cares for. The king
learned her weakness at the end of the last book and has used that to his
advantage. But after the events of Throne of Glass we know not to underestimate
this very clever and resourceful young woman.
He will just have to learn that on his own.
In Crown of Midnight, the king charges her with the task of
bringing down a certain rebel. Problem is that she knows this rebel personally
– someone who knows her past and she had considered a comrade. Instead of
carrying out the order immediately, she gives him a certain amount of time to
supply her with information on who may be leading a revolution so that she can
try to save him while at the same time delivering to the king what he has asked
for.
Tricky work it is entering into a web of lies and deceit
because she hasn’t told a soul what she’s been up to and what she plans to do.
Keeping Chaol and Dorian in the dark is a means to protect them. But it starts
becoming a chore to maintain two faces especially to Chaol with whom she has
become very close.
It’s nice to see Dorian and Chaol develop as characters.
Chaol isn’t just the scowling hard-ass from Throne of Glass. He’s someone who takes responsibility and
loyalty to heart. Dorian who has never
been comfortable with the way his father governs begins to question his role
and develops his own agenda. These two
fast friends who have Celaena’s safety as mutual concern become distanced
slowly as their own secrets begin to draw them apart.
Crown of Midnight is just as fantastic as its predecessor
and the ending had me just as stunned as some of the major characters. Oh it’s
on!
~ Bel
