The design and UX isn't done, Rob and Abbie, okkurrrr! 😌
brittany_jean's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Scarier than I expected.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Blood, Drug use, Xenophobia, Violence, War, Murder, Racism, Slavery, Death, Gore, and Confinement
kmoyer07's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, War, Gore, and Death
Moderate: Genocide, Suicide attempt, Confinement, Torture, and Vomit
Minor: Cannibalism and Death of parent
tea_cup1236's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
I personally preferred Assassin's blade but this is still really good. I really wanted Celaena to get with Nehemia though.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Violence, Death, and Murder
Moderate: Slavery and Vomit
Minor: War
The descriptions of gore can get pretty detailed.tabeahaefliger's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
3.75 Stars! - but there's still room to get better...
I love that TOG was really fast paced, tense and exciting, I feel like there wasn't a single page, where I got bored. I just couldn't put it down and read the last 120ish pages in one sitting because I just NEEDED TO KNOW what was going to happen next.
It was amazing, that there weren't any unneccessairy overdramatical "deep" contexts or erlse, that tends to annoy me in books really often.
The friendship and it's development between Celaena and Nehemia was so cute, it really gave the book freshness. Also I really loved seeing Chaol and Celaena together and the way they kept teasing each other, the shipping is real!
I loved the writing style of this book as well and I'm really impressed, that SJM started writing this when she was only 16 years old, I could never, but because of the "neutral" form of telling for me there wasn't a huge emotional connection to the characters happening, maybe because that made it so fast-paced but at the same time I coulnd't get investigated in them and the storyline either. So I hope that that will change in the following books, because I'm really interested in the character development that's going to happen and to really get lost in the situations and moments, that went by so quickly in this one.
I found it to be a little bit weird that apparently Celaena and Dorian like each other, but they've barely spent time together. Now I'm just asking myself where this "connection" and attraction to each other are coming from because they barely know each other right? Also the frist kiss in between them just kind of happened out of nowhere, there wasn't a lot of tension building up between them before that "long awaited kiss" happened.
All in all though I really enjoyed reading it and I had a wonderful and exciting time. Because I've heard many times that the following books get better and better I'm really excited to pick them up and see for myself where this is going to go. I hope that I will be able to connect to the main characters more than I've been able to do up until now and love them as much as you guys do!
I love that TOG was really fast paced, tense and exciting, I feel like there wasn't a single page, where I got bored. I just couldn't put it down and read the last 120ish pages in one sitting because I just NEEDED TO KNOW what was going to happen next.
It was amazing, that there weren't any unneccessairy overdramatical "deep" contexts or erlse, that tends to annoy me in books really often.
The friendship and it's development between Celaena and Nehemia was so cute, it really gave the book freshness. Also I really loved seeing Chaol and Celaena together and the way they kept teasing each other, the shipping is real!
I loved the writing style of this book as well and I'm really impressed, that SJM started writing this when she was only 16 years old, I could never, but because of the "neutral" form of telling for me there wasn't a huge emotional connection to the characters happening, maybe because that made it so fast-paced but at the same time I coulnd't get investigated in them and the storyline either. So I hope that that will change in the following books, because I'm really interested in the character development that's going to happen and to really get lost in the situations and moments, that went by so quickly in this one.
I found it to be a little bit weird that apparently Celaena and Dorian like each other, but they've barely spent time together. Now I'm just asking myself where this "connection" and attraction to each other are coming from because they barely know each other right? Also the frist kiss in between them just kind of happened out of nowhere, there wasn't a lot of tension building up between them before that "long awaited kiss" happened.
All in all though I really enjoyed reading it and I had a wonderful and exciting time. Because I've heard many times that the following books get better and better I'm really excited to pick them up and see for myself where this is going to go. I hope that I will be able to connect to the main characters more than I've been able to do up until now and love them as much as you guys do!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Murder, and Blood
Minor: Suicide attempt
yarisbooksandbevs's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
inspiring
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
I devoured this book. It was easy to follow and even the slower parts were interesting. I was kept engaged and intrigued. I love Dorian and Celaena’s witty banter. The way Chaol cares for Celaena in his own way is amazing. Celaena and Nehemiah’s friendship is precious and I love how Elena defends Celaena.
I do wish there was a clearer distinction and more organized approach when switching POVs but it’s a fun switch.I also thought the reveal that Cain was summoning creatures was a little predictable. I was surprised to see that Perrington was controlling him and not just influencing him.
I’m excited to see where this series goes. This was a great opener.
I do wish there was a clearer distinction and more organized approach when switching POVs but it’s a fun switch.
I’m excited to see where this series goes. This was a great opener.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Violence, Gore, Vomit, Death, Death of parent, Murder, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Grief and Drug use
Minor: Child death, Infidelity, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, War, Torture, Alcohol, and Animal cruelty
embee09's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Death, Slavery, and Violence
Moderate: Death of parent
caitlyn_kittle_kinnick's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Genocide, Death of parent, Medical trauma, Eating disorder, Murder, Slavery, Torture, Blood, Medical content, Drug use, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Classism, Violence, War, and Death
hayleystagg's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and Violence
amanda_reads13's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Celaena is a renound assassin who was sent to a labour camp for her crimes. When the King decides he needs a champion to do his dirty work, she is pulled from certain death by the Prince to compete for the role. As the competition progresses, participants start turning up dead. Celaena starts to investigate how the deaths and the magical ruins found on the bodies are connected.
This plot had SO much potential. I was expecting a fast paced story, but, alas, it was not. It was way too focused on the "romance" side (which was kinda cringe) and not enough on developing strong characters and world building. Much of the plot was quite predictable, and I have a good idea of where the next book is heading. That said, I am still interested to see where Maas takes the story.
Celaena is supposed to be this badass assassin. I found her to be pretty lackluster and annoying. She is tiny, beautiful? Ugh. Original. Honestly, she seems more vain and self-absorbed than anything else. Why are we being told about her obsession with dresses, dreams of kissing the prince , and her temper tantrums about not being invited to a ball? Shouldn't she be disciplined and ruthless after years of being the best assassin ever? How can she be such a cunning and masterfully trained assassin when people can sneak up on her so easily?As it is implied that she has magic in her and is Elena's blood, I suspect that she is actually fae and probably royalty. I really hope that her character is better developed in the next book.
I'm not a huge fan of love triangles and I have a feeling that there is going to be a lot of back and forth between Dorian and Chaol. So we will see how that goes...
I really liked Princess Nehemia. I thought she was a really interesting character and I hope that she continues to be developed in the upcoming books.
Tropes: fantasy, slow burn, love triangle, secret identity
This plot had SO much potential. I was expecting a fast paced story, but, alas, it was not. It was way too focused on the "romance" side (which was kinda cringe) and not enough on developing strong characters and world building. Much of the plot was quite predictable, and I have a good idea of where the next book is heading. That said, I am still interested to see where Maas takes the story.
Celaena is supposed to be this badass assassin. I found her to be pretty lackluster and annoying. She is tiny, beautiful? Ugh. Original. Honestly, she seems more vain and self-absorbed than anything else. Why are we being told about her obsession with dresses, dreams of kissing the prince , and her temper tantrums about not being invited to a ball? Shouldn't she be disciplined and ruthless after years of being the best assassin ever? How can she be such a cunning and masterfully trained assassin when people can sneak up on her so easily?
I'm not a huge fan of love triangles and I have a feeling that there is going to be a lot of back and forth between Dorian and Chaol. So we will see how that goes...
I really liked Princess Nehemia. I thought she was a really interesting character and I hope that she continues to be developed in the upcoming books.
Tropes: fantasy, slow burn, love triangle, secret identity
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Misogyny, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, and Death
pairswellwithbooks's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
I can’t believe I waited so long to start this series. It will put me in a book coma for sure
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Violence, Blood, Death, Injury/Injury detail, War, and Slavery
Moderate: Cursing and Confinement
Minor: Death of parent, Drug use, Classism, Grief, Abandonment, Alcohol, Hate crime, Kidnapping, and Physical abuse