hazelyn's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
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? No
4.0
taliadev721's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
3.25
So, the funny thing for the last three books, I was getting so annoyed with Celaena for claiming to be the world’s greatest assassin who doesn’t actually kill anyone. She kept letting everyone escape and basically being the exact opposite of what she claimed to be. Well, in QoS, Celaena is dead, and now Aelin Galathynius has come to take her place. She’s finally accepted her role and has completely flipped her ENTIRE personality. She went from not killing anyone to killing literally everyone or at least threatening to kill them. And the thing that disappoints me the most is that we don’t get to see much of those scenes where Aelin is supposed to be formidable and badass and killing people. SJM has reverted to the ‘she sliced and stabbed and spun and twirled’ way of writing fight scenes, and I am underwhelmed. I can’t picture a fight scene when the characters are described as just a blur of motion. I like to imagine how it’s actually happening. What technique of fighting does Aelin use? We got all these short stories talking about the various training she’s had; I’d like actually to see it used! Maybe I’m being ridiculous wanting something like that in this book, but if you write about a character who’s a renowned fighter, I expect to read some well-thought-out action scenes.
There were so many names thrown at me in this book, and I completely forgot who everyone was. I had no idea that Chaol had a previous lover before Celaena, like completely forgot about it. I forgot who Elide and Marion were. I forgot who Ress and Brullo were. I forgot who Gavriel and Ren were. These characters were so inconsequential in the other books that they just did not register in my mind as characters of any importance.
It was cool seeing some of the callbacks from The Assassin’s Blade when Aelin interacted with Arobynn. I liked that Aelin and Lysandra put aside their differences and became friends. I thought Celaena was being a big dumb bitch in Assassin’s Blade for judging Lysandra so much. Like you’re essentially in the exact same situation, but one of you murders for money, and the other has to sell her body. Celaena had no cause to be such an asshole to her except that Lysandra was a threat to her standing with the men in her life. She later claims that Arobynn warped her perspective of Lysandra, but that’s not how it came across in Assassin’s Blade. It simply came off that she was jealous. Jealous and petty, and now she doesn’t care? Idk, whatever. Celaena’s judgment of sex workers was not cute; I didn’t like it. I also was very disappointed with how Arobynn was killed off. It felt just as underwhelming as all the fight scenes in this book. While I agree that Lysandra should be the one to do it, I wanted Aelin to have more of a hand in it, considering everything he did to her. Like I wanted him to suffer more. I also thought they were idiots for not expecting Arobynn to know that Lysandra was going behind his back. He knew literally everything else that was going on; why would he miss this one thing? They should’ve protected Lysandra after killing him, not made her go off back to the brothel owner. Aelin should’ve immediately paid off her debts, not waited until Lysandra got kidnapped and beaten before doing it. She had the money, and they were even having a whole convo about Lysandra still being in debt. Why didn’t Aelin say, ‘hey, I’ll cover it’ as she did for Sam???
Chaol and Aelin annoy the living hell out of me. I’m tired of their stupid petty fights. Chaol being all ridiculous and prejudiced against Aelin for being a murderer and having magic is tiresome. He knew from day one who she was. He knew the minute they got her out of Endovier that she was an assassin who had murdered people. As much as it seemed like The Greatest Assassin was just a title she gave herself but with no real actual standing, Chaol shouldn’t be surprised when it turns out that she actually has no qualms about killing people. Personally, I think he’s a little ridiculous for judging her considering he was the Captain of the Guard who literally was willingly serving a man who enslaved and massacred people. He gets so mad at Aelin for wanting to kill Dorian because he believes that the prince is still in there but doesn’t reserve that same care for any of the other men possessed by Valg demons. He has absolutely no qualms about killing them. At the same time, Aelin’s judgment of Chaol is also ridiculous and undeserved. She was not there when Dorian lost Sorscha and exploded. She was not there when Aedion was imprisoned, and Chaol had no other options. So she had literally no room to speak. Chaol doesn’t have a magic firepower that can blast everyone in the room. He’s just an average Joe. All he could do was run.
Also, her just being willing to kill Dorian instantly without discussing anything with Chaol really irks me. Like one of the biggest issues these people have is a lack of communication. If ya’ll would just sit down and have a conversation with one another without getting all stuck in your stupid explosive asshole, then maybe you could come to a calm decision on what to do about things. When Aelin almost chops Dorian's head off and then willingly goes into the castle pretending to bring Chaol as her partner, I was like…there’s no way she’s this dumb. How did she not expect to get recognized? She’s been there for so long at this point she literally looked Dorian in his face and spoke to him. How could she be so stupid as to think the king wouldn’t know who she was?
Is it just me, or does Aedion behave like he wants to fuck his cousin? Like, bro, why are you smelling her so much? He calls her a golden-haired blessing. Says his heart has been shredded yearning for her. He and Rowan keep getting into weird territorial staring contests over Aelin. Like listen, I get it, they were very close, she’s the last family he has left or something and like she’s his queen. But, like bro, you are THIRSTING after your cousin extremely hard. It’s UNCOMFY.
Some of the world-building is cool, and some of it just makes me mad lol. Like the witches gaining the ability to fly after their first bleeding??? What does bleeding have to do with the ability to fly? I really have never been a fan of power being tied in with menstruation or virginity. It’s like, please, just let them be powerful without having to connect it to their ‘women-hood’…like what purpose does it serve? I really didn’t vibe with the witches being forced to breed with the Valg demons; I know the Yellowlegs volunteered initially, but uh…that whole thing was disturbing. There seems to be a strange trend with forced breeding in SJM’s series, and I am not here for it.
Also, is it weird that I kind of shipped Elide and Manon? Like…that had the potential to be a really good romance. Manon like adopting her into her clan and then rescuing her. Like please, give me this. I just know it’s never going to happen. Just like my ship of Yrene and Aelin will never happen, but…a girl can dream.
It got really old listening to Rowan and Aelin jerk off over one another. It just goes on and on about how hot and muscular Rowan is and how he’s the most powerful fae male alive and then goes on and on about how beautiful and deadly Aelin is and how she’s the deadliest assassin alive, but I have yet to really see any of that. Like I’m sorry, to quote GOT, ‘Any man who must say I am the king is no true king.’ Anyone who has to keep announcing that they’re the strongest person in the room will never convince me that they’re the strongest person in the room. It reads like a whole lot of posturing, and I’m embarrassed by Aelin 99% of the time. She went from reasonably struggling in a fight to barely having any issues at all when fighting Valg demons in her human form. She’s lost all her fae abilities, yet she is easily slaughtering Valg demons left and right when Cain nearly annihilated her a few books ago. Sure she wasn’t in as good of shape back then, but she still does not have anywhere near the strength those Valg demons more than likely do while in her human form.
In regards to Rowan and Aelin’s relationship…I DON’T BUY IT. They went from being frenemies to warrior pals to suddenly romantic partners? The lead up to the romance did not progress naturally at all. It felt shoved in my face and like it came out of nowhere. In the last book, I actually thought SJM did a decent job of making their progression from enemies to friends pretty believable, but now it feels ruined by this sudden romance. It’s not convincing at all. SJM would have a better time convincing me that Lysandra and Aelin were interested in one another. Honestly, if it came out that Aedion wanted to fuck his cousin, I would not be surprised. Aedion also seemed like he wanted to bone Rowan too.
The last fifteen percent of this book was the most exciting part, but I also really didn’t like it and wished things panned out much differently. I think the usage of the replica jewelry was overdone, and every time you think someone is betraying someone else by giving them the special jewel, I already knew that it was just a replica. I did think it was clever of Aelin to put that ring on Dorian to save him. I liked that whole bit. I thought it was a little ridiculous that no one ever came to the conclusion that the king was also probably possessed by demons and were all shocked and disbelieving when he told them the truth. I think Dorian destroying the castle when there were still people inside was…ridiculous. Chaol's survival was also ridiculous. He should’ve died back in Crown of Midnight. What purpose does he even serve in this book? Aelin plotting and planning for 600 pages to free magic and free the slaves only to threaten to murder anyone felt very contrived. Like, I know you’re trying to be like Khaleesi super hard, but her dialogue was at least very empowering. Aelin says nothing cool here. She just is like listen if you fuck up, I will kill you. Here are some very unoriginal threats that have been used about twenty times throughout this book already. I will burn you to ash, I will rip your throat out, I will gut you, etc. Unfortunately, SJM does not excel in writing stand-out dialogue.
SJM also has a habit of repeating certain phrases over and over again to the point where when I see these phrases, I have a violent reaction. Like please, I beg of you, stop using the phrase ‘gobbling up’ to describe someone looking at something or reading a book. It makes me want to die. Also, if I have to hear music being referred to as ‘bawdy’ again, I am going to throw myself off a cliff. ‘He said softly, but not weakly.’ ???? The way she uses the word ‘rutting’ as a swear sends me over the edge.
What are midnight thoughts? How does one become a midnight storm? What does midnight softness sound like? A midnight caress???
Anyway, to sum up. Chaol should have died. I wish Manon fell in love with Dorian while the demon was possessing him and it was a super twisted fucked up dark romance. At the same time I also wish that Manon and Elide hooked up. Aedion needs therapy. Aelin needs to chill. Rowan also needs to chill. Lysandra is the only one I like at this point.
There were so many names thrown at me in this book, and I completely forgot who everyone was. I had no idea that Chaol had a previous lover before Celaena, like completely forgot about it. I forgot who Elide and Marion were. I forgot who Ress and Brullo were. I forgot who Gavriel and Ren were. These characters were so inconsequential in the other books that they just did not register in my mind as characters of any importance.
It was cool seeing some of the callbacks from The Assassin’s Blade when Aelin interacted with Arobynn. I liked that Aelin and Lysandra put aside their differences and became friends. I thought Celaena was being a big dumb bitch in Assassin’s Blade for judging Lysandra so much. Like you’re essentially in the exact same situation, but one of you murders for money, and the other has to sell her body. Celaena had no cause to be such an asshole to her except that Lysandra was a threat to her standing with the men in her life. She later claims that Arobynn warped her perspective of Lysandra, but that’s not how it came across in Assassin’s Blade. It simply came off that she was jealous. Jealous and petty, and now she doesn’t care? Idk, whatever. Celaena’s judgment of sex workers was not cute; I didn’t like it. I also was very disappointed with how Arobynn was killed off. It felt just as underwhelming as all the fight scenes in this book. While I agree that Lysandra should be the one to do it, I wanted Aelin to have more of a hand in it, considering everything he did to her. Like I wanted him to suffer more. I also thought they were idiots for not expecting Arobynn to know that Lysandra was going behind his back. He knew literally everything else that was going on; why would he miss this one thing? They should’ve protected Lysandra after killing him, not made her go off back to the brothel owner. Aelin should’ve immediately paid off her debts, not waited until Lysandra got kidnapped and beaten before doing it. She had the money, and they were even having a whole convo about Lysandra still being in debt. Why didn’t Aelin say, ‘hey, I’ll cover it’ as she did for Sam???
Chaol and Aelin annoy the living hell out of me. I’m tired of their stupid petty fights. Chaol being all ridiculous and prejudiced against Aelin for being a murderer and having magic is tiresome. He knew from day one who she was. He knew the minute they got her out of Endovier that she was an assassin who had murdered people. As much as it seemed like The Greatest Assassin was just a title she gave herself but with no real actual standing, Chaol shouldn’t be surprised when it turns out that she actually has no qualms about killing people. Personally, I think he’s a little ridiculous for judging her considering he was the Captain of the Guard who literally was willingly serving a man who enslaved and massacred people. He gets so mad at Aelin for wanting to kill Dorian because he believes that the prince is still in there but doesn’t reserve that same care for any of the other men possessed by Valg demons. He has absolutely no qualms about killing them. At the same time, Aelin’s judgment of Chaol is also ridiculous and undeserved. She was not there when Dorian lost Sorscha and exploded. She was not there when Aedion was imprisoned, and Chaol had no other options. So she had literally no room to speak. Chaol doesn’t have a magic firepower that can blast everyone in the room. He’s just an average Joe. All he could do was run.
Also, her just being willing to kill Dorian instantly without discussing anything with Chaol really irks me. Like one of the biggest issues these people have is a lack of communication. If ya’ll would just sit down and have a conversation with one another without getting all stuck in your stupid explosive asshole, then maybe you could come to a calm decision on what to do about things. When Aelin almost chops Dorian's head off and then willingly goes into the castle pretending to bring Chaol as her partner, I was like…there’s no way she’s this dumb. How did she not expect to get recognized? She’s been there for so long at this point she literally looked Dorian in his face and spoke to him. How could she be so stupid as to think the king wouldn’t know who she was?
Is it just me, or does Aedion behave like he wants to fuck his cousin? Like, bro, why are you smelling her so much? He calls her a golden-haired blessing. Says his heart has been shredded yearning for her. He and Rowan keep getting into weird territorial staring contests over Aelin. Like listen, I get it, they were very close, she’s the last family he has left or something and like she’s his queen. But, like bro, you are THIRSTING after your cousin extremely hard. It’s UNCOMFY.
Some of the world-building is cool, and some of it just makes me mad lol. Like the witches gaining the ability to fly after their first bleeding??? What does bleeding have to do with the ability to fly? I really have never been a fan of power being tied in with menstruation or virginity. It’s like, please, just let them be powerful without having to connect it to their ‘women-hood’…like what purpose does it serve? I really didn’t vibe with the witches being forced to breed with the Valg demons; I know the Yellowlegs volunteered initially, but uh…that whole thing was disturbing. There seems to be a strange trend with forced breeding in SJM’s series, and I am not here for it.
Also, is it weird that I kind of shipped Elide and Manon? Like…that had the potential to be a really good romance. Manon like adopting her into her clan and then rescuing her. Like please, give me this. I just know it’s never going to happen. Just like my ship of Yrene and Aelin will never happen, but…a girl can dream.
It got really old listening to Rowan and Aelin jerk off over one another. It just goes on and on about how hot and muscular Rowan is and how he’s the most powerful fae male alive and then goes on and on about how beautiful and deadly Aelin is and how she’s the deadliest assassin alive, but I have yet to really see any of that. Like I’m sorry, to quote GOT, ‘Any man who must say I am the king is no true king.’ Anyone who has to keep announcing that they’re the strongest person in the room will never convince me that they’re the strongest person in the room. It reads like a whole lot of posturing, and I’m embarrassed by Aelin 99% of the time. She went from reasonably struggling in a fight to barely having any issues at all when fighting Valg demons in her human form. She’s lost all her fae abilities, yet she is easily slaughtering Valg demons left and right when Cain nearly annihilated her a few books ago. Sure she wasn’t in as good of shape back then, but she still does not have anywhere near the strength those Valg demons more than likely do while in her human form.
In regards to Rowan and Aelin’s relationship…I DON’T BUY IT. They went from being frenemies to warrior pals to suddenly romantic partners? The lead up to the romance did not progress naturally at all. It felt shoved in my face and like it came out of nowhere. In the last book, I actually thought SJM did a decent job of making their progression from enemies to friends pretty believable, but now it feels ruined by this sudden romance. It’s not convincing at all. SJM would have a better time convincing me that Lysandra and Aelin were interested in one another. Honestly, if it came out that Aedion wanted to fuck his cousin, I would not be surprised. Aedion also seemed like he wanted to bone Rowan too.
The last fifteen percent of this book was the most exciting part, but I also really didn’t like it and wished things panned out much differently. I think the usage of the replica jewelry was overdone, and every time you think someone is betraying someone else by giving them the special jewel, I already knew that it was just a replica. I did think it was clever of Aelin to put that ring on Dorian to save him. I liked that whole bit. I thought it was a little ridiculous that no one ever came to the conclusion that the king was also probably possessed by demons and were all shocked and disbelieving when he told them the truth. I think Dorian destroying the castle when there were still people inside was…ridiculous. Chaol's survival was also ridiculous. He should’ve died back in Crown of Midnight. What purpose does he even serve in this book? Aelin plotting and planning for 600 pages to free magic and free the slaves only to threaten to murder anyone felt very contrived. Like, I know you’re trying to be like Khaleesi super hard, but her dialogue was at least very empowering. Aelin says nothing cool here. She just is like listen if you fuck up, I will kill you. Here are some very unoriginal threats that have been used about twenty times throughout this book already. I will burn you to ash, I will rip your throat out, I will gut you, etc. Unfortunately, SJM does not excel in writing stand-out dialogue.
SJM also has a habit of repeating certain phrases over and over again to the point where when I see these phrases, I have a violent reaction. Like please, I beg of you, stop using the phrase ‘gobbling up’ to describe someone looking at something or reading a book. It makes me want to die. Also, if I have to hear music being referred to as ‘bawdy’ again, I am going to throw myself off a cliff. ‘He said softly, but not weakly.’ ???? The way she uses the word ‘rutting’ as a swear sends me over the edge.
What are midnight thoughts? How does one become a midnight storm? What does midnight softness sound like? A midnight caress???
Anyway, to sum up. Chaol should have died. I wish Manon fell in love with Dorian while the demon was possessing him and it was a super twisted fucked up dark romance. At the same time I also wish that Manon and Elide hooked up. Aedion needs therapy. Aelin needs to chill. Rowan also needs to chill. Lysandra is the only one I like at this point.
atwade's review against another edition
5.0
New favorite book of 2021 so far. Sorry ACOSF... but this was so fucking good. Nonstop action, amazing character development, and of course that ending
mhairi_reads's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
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? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Physical abuse, Violence, Slavery, Gore, Grief, Injury/injury detail, Murder, Blood, Cursing, Emotional abuse, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Alcohol, Death of parent, Death, Stalking, Confinement, Kidnapping, and Genocide
Minor: Bullying, Cannibalism, Miscarriage, Sexual content, Torture, and Vomit
siriusbooklover's review against another edition
5.0
I just listens to Queen of Shadows via audible for a reread. First of all, the narrator for this series is amazing.
On my first read I didn’t appreciate Manon’s POV as much but I grew to love her story even more this time around.
Elide and Lysandra are both incredible.
The progression of Aelin and Rowan’s story is also so freaking good in QoS.
I will never be able to say enough good things or articulate just how much this series means to me. ❤️
On my first read I didn’t appreciate Manon’s POV as much but I grew to love her story even more this time around.
Elide and Lysandra are both incredible.
The progression of Aelin and Rowan’s story is also so freaking good in QoS.
I will never be able to say enough good things or articulate just how much this series means to me. ❤️
amywilke's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
5.0
haileybneal's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
bellacorsi16's review against another edition
5.0
Started this book in September as a cleanser after reading It ends with us but then got distracted and re-picked it back up in January and finished in a few days, simply could not put it down. Seeing Aelin step into being a queen and seeing her interactions with Rowan and Aedion is gold. Chaol is annoying and needs major character development. Saving Dorian and the interaction with Manon was amazing. This series is majorly addicting.