Reviews tagging 'Emotional abuse'

The Assassin's Blade by Sarah J. Maas

88 reviews

jmdressel's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

surprisingly, this is probably my least favorite book of this series so far. it seemed very repetitive and i’ve enjoyed having small parts of the main character’s past experience revealed little by little. for me, i think reading extensively about a character’s past can feel like it boggs down the present writing portions. looking forward to getting back into the meat of the story! 
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nlvelez's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

Look, I appreciate getting to know more about Celaena's past and what led to her downfall. I understand she was only a teenager, and in love, and it made her stupid and acted rashly. But like...come on! You could tell it was
a trap from miles away!
She's supposed to be the *best*. I struggled with this one. 
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fr0styme11o's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? N/A
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This book is just, insanely good. I can't even describe it. It has left me speechless.

The action in this is very exciting and I can tell you that there is quite a lot of it. It's incredibly enjoyable to read and I'm always anticipating for the next action packed scene.

The characters individual personalities are something I find very intriguing in this, too. Everyone is different. Of course they are, but you get a very clear idea of who they're like as a person.

Not to mention that Sam literally chattered my heart into a thousand pieces. I don't understand how SJM can simply get rid of a character in a blink of an eye. Or even get rid of a character that literally just appeared, like WHAT?! I LOVED HIM! I'm devastated. :(


Anyway, it was really entertaining to read and a great adventure I wish I could experience again!
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jls6283's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I read the prequel third, and honestly I think it would’ve had more emotional impact if I had read it first. I probably would’ve rated it higher, but I knew what was coming. I assumed people said to read it 3rd because it gave away the surprise ending to book 2, but it absolutely does not at all.

Reading it 3rd also just breaks up all the momentum that was built with the characters in 1 and 2.
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pennyfountain's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I really wish I read this one first. Based on other reviews, I thought it'd be a slog but it wasn't that way at all for me. It's definitely the darkest SJM book out of the ten I've read so far based on the themes it addresses.

It gives such an important background to what Celeana has been through, some things in the first Throne of Glass books make more sense, and going back to the main series was jarring to say the least (I read "Heir of Fire" after). It has a different tone than the others, so I'd recommend reading it first or fourth, not third like all the suggestions I've seen (which is what I did). If you read it fourth then at least the events of "Assassin's Blade" are tied to "Queen of Shadows."
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eemi42's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I know there are a few options of when to read this book in the lineup. I read this after Heir of Fire.

I'm glad I chose to read it now, after seeing some of Celaena's character development. It took a little perseverance to go back to the old Celaena, with the unchecked anger, rash decisions, and naivety. It would have been much harder to get through if I hadn't had a glimpse of who she'd become.

I get that there's some important backstory here, though. I'm guessing
the information about Arobynn's betrayal will be important in Queen of Shadows, and maybe Ansel will even make an appearance?
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cxsmiccxtie's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75

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michaela_nelly's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

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faithsbookreads's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad 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

4.25

SAM😭💔
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asimpson7's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

I’m not really sure what to say about this book. It isn’t the type of book that ive read before, but I really enjoyed it. It kept me hooked the whole way through. I couldn’t stop thinking about what would happen next. Even though Celina is an assassin, she still feels like the good guy.  liked how her and Sam ended up together, and I almost cried when he died. Which makes me hate Arobyn even more. I don’t understand how someone could treat a person like that. But now I get the hype over Sarah J Mass books and I can’t wait to read the next one !
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