Heir of Fire (Throne of Glass #3) by Sarah J Maas

* * 3/4

Lost and broken, Celaena Sardothien’s only thought is to avenge the savage death of her dearest friend: as the King of Adarlan’s Assassin, she is bound to serve this tyrant, but he will pay for what he did. Any hope Celaena has of destroying the king lies in answers to be found in Wendlyn. Sacrificing his future, Chaol, the Captain of the King’s Guard, has sent Celaena there to protect her, but her darkest demons lay in that same place. If she can overcome them, she will be Adarlan’s biggest threat – and his own toughest enemy.

While Celaena learns of her true destiny, and the eyes of Erilea are on Wendlyn, a brutal and beastly force is preparing to take to the skies. Will Celaena find the strength not only to win her own battles, but to fight a war that could pit her loyalties to her own people against those she has grown to love?

The way Crown of Midnight ended in such a frenzy, I thought Heir of Fire would be bursting with energy from page one. It didn’t.  I can’t believe I’m saying this, especially because of how much I love this series and have been looking forward to this but compared to the previous two books, Heir of Fire is slow moving until much, much later and by then the book is over.  Let me explain …

The biggest factor in the lack of action is Calaena. She’s mopey. She’s a mere shell of herself and I can’t blame her. She suffered so much loss in Crown of Midnight and was so manipulated by the king where she eventually had to leave Chaol behind to serve the ruthless monarch. She’s just defeated and when someone is defeated they dwell in self-pity and withdraw into themselves. Then Rowan, another Fae finds Calaena to bring her to her aunt, Queen Maeve. This is a good thing as it’s Calaena’s chance to ask questions and get answers. Of course, it’s not that easy. She is instructed to undergo training under Rowan’s strict tutelage in order to draw out her magical gifts. Only then will Maeve give her the answers she seeks.  Calaena essentially roughs it throughout her training as she and Rowan just antagonize each other. But no matter how grueling it is, the training doesn’t really do much good. It’s so bizarre and aggravating to see Calaena give up so easily. 

In the meantime, Chaol is back in Adarlan desperately trying to protect is best friend Prince Dorian and his potentially deadly secret that he has magic. Keeping the king’s suspicions at bay becomes his other full-time job, as is putting off his promise for as long as he can to his father to return to his homeland. Unfortunately, the events in the last book have left things a bit messy and it has strained his relationship with Prince Dorian. Both start to keep to themselves under the noble but misguided idea that the less the other knows, the safer they’ll all be.  Without each other, they seek alliances elsewhere. Learning who to trust is literally a life or death undertaking.

I mentioned above that the action does pick up towards the very end only because Calaena finally gets her head out of you know where. But that’s only because she’s had the crap beaten out of her several times by then. It does get more interesting because Calaena learns something vital about herself and what she needs to defeat the king and restore balance to the world. All of that comes after her long struggle to get over her depression and find her purpose again.

So while Heir of Fire may be a harder read because it isn't as fast-paced and the overall mood is downcast, it is a very crucial next step in Calaena’s story.  She's constantly met with the question of whether she will embrace her fey nature and fight for the good of all or if she will only seek personal vengeance and walk away when done. This is about her evolution. And then of course there’s my burning question: will she and Chaol reunite? Oh please let that be so. A sad Calaena and a sad Chaol make me very sad too.

~ Bel

Crown of Midnight (Throne of Glass #2) by Sarah J Maas

* * * * *

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