Friday, August 10, 2012

Throne of Glass by Sarah Maas



Throne of Glass by Sarah Maas
Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Children's
Publication Date: August 7, 2012
Source: ARC from ALA
Rating: I really liked it
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.

 
The Skinny: A fantastic addition to YA literature

Throne of Glass is the type of book that reminds me why I love to read. The sheer pleasure and joy of escaping into another land and acting out in ways that are impossible in my daily life are the reasons why I love to read. This book made me want to get up and punch something and learn how to do a roundhouse kick. I was so full of raw energy after finishing the story that I felt the need to do something incredibly cool and amazing. I settled for writing this review and watching the Olympics Taekwondo match.

Celaena is an incredibly strong-willed and confident character, and I enjoyed meeting her. She is smart, loyal, and mature, and I immediately connected with her and understood her choices. She is such a well-written character that I felt myself rushing to finish the story so that I could discover what happens. What a horrible problem! Conflicting feelings about wanting to savor every word while battling the need to learn more. I can’t remember the last time I was this excited about a story and a character.

Sarah is a fantastic writer and the world she created is rich and complex. The characters are multilayered and attractive. The love triangle is handled so well that I did not feel the usual pangs of frustration. In fact, I actually enjoyed this love triangle and looked forward to its development. I am so desperate to read more about this world. I recently discovered that Sarah wrote several novellas that take place prior to the events in Throne of Glass. If you are trying to decide what to read next, then you have definitely discovered it. Throne of Glass is everything that I have ever wanted in a book: great writing, great characters, and a great story.

She is attending the OC Children’s Book Festival next month! I am so excited to get my book signed.
 http://kidsbookfestival.com/authors
YAY

12 comments:

  1. Lovely review! I've been hearing so many fabulous things about this book that I desperately need to get my own copy to see whether I'd like it as much, too. :D Thanks for sharing!

    Carina
    Fictional Distraction

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  2. Great review! Love the bolds! I love books that like to ;) That make you want to live in them! And do dangerous things.

    Haley@www.passingthepages.blogspot.com

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  3. Interesting review. This actually doesn't sound like my type of read, but I'm glad you enjoyed it.

    Thanks for stopping by,
    @Livin' Life Through Books

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  4. Oh, another fantastic review of Throne of Glass! Seriously, I think I might be the last person in the earth who haven't read this book LOL! x) Everyone keeps fussing how good this book is, I NEED to read this now!! Anyway, LOVE your passage that this book made you full of energy! Haha, watching martial arts is my idea of doing sport too! :P

    Fantastic review! <3

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  5. Sounds like a really interesting book! I love that this one seems to be full of strong heroines. Not sure how I feel about another love triangle though. Guess I'll have to try it!

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  6. That's very true about the love triangle! There is a way to handle them without causing the usual frustration. Sarah J. Mass definitely got that aspect correct. Great review! I'm glad you enjoyed this book as much as I did. :)

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  7. I have seen this one around a lot lately and from your review- it is a great read! So nice to know that it is well written and had everything you wanted in a book. Super review!

    ~Jess

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  8. Great review! I'm really happy I picked this one up at the store the other day because it sounds like a book I will love too. I love strong characters and especially a protagonist who is mature.

    Traci @ The Reading Geek

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  9. I have heard such wonderful things about this book, and now, after reading this lovely review from you, I know I have GOT to get it! Thank you so much for visiting my blog and for this wonderful review! Happy Reading! <3

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  10. I've heard so many awesome things about this book! I'm glad you loved it. :D Celaena sounds like such a marvelous character and like my type of protagonist. I hope I can read this book soon and love it as much as everyone else did!

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  11. Awesome Review! I am torn on this one only because some people have loved it so much and some people have said there isn't enough action. I just should read it for myself! lol

    Kristin @ Young Adult Book Haven

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  12. Ahh!! I want to read this one so bad! I even have it, but there's other books I need to read first. Sad face.
    "I settled for writing this review and watching the Olympics Taekwondo match." Haha this is awesome. Great review! :)

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