A review by abetterpaige
Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

adventurous mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

⭐️⭐️⭐️ 
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I finally took the plunge into the first series in the SJM universe and I wasn’t disappointed. Throne of Glass (TOG) introduces us to Celaena Sardothien - a slave at a death camp in Erilea run and operated by the men of the King of Adarlan. The Crown Prince of Adarlan, along with the Captain of the Guard, come to propose a trade for Celaena - compete in the King’s competition to become his champion, and one day earn your freedom, or die at the death camp. Celaena, a newly 18 year old who is known for being Adarlan’s Assassin, can taste nothing but potential freedom when she agrees to the competition. 
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Taken to the glass castle, where, obviously, the book gets its name, Celaena trains with the Captain of the Guard, Chaol, and falls into an easy flirtation with the Crown Prince. She also quickly develops a friendship with a visiting princess, Nehemia. As their training and the competition continue, more and more sponsored Champions start showing up dead - their bodies in ribbons, insides eaten. Celaena knows, somehow, that she can help solve these horrific murders, but can she do it without risking herself becoming Champion and her inevitable freedom? 
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I really enjoyed this book! I thought it was obvious that SJM was very young when she wrote this as it kind of felt like a 15 year old dreaming of being a badass 18 year old with men falling at your feet. Celaena is…difficult to like. She has the intelligence and maturity of a preteen, and the emotional capacity of one too. Her character was not developed or hashed out much beyond “she’s a badass with trauma” which felt very similar to the character development in Crescent City for me. I felt like we were TOLD more than we were shown about all of the characters, and I didn’t quite understand why any of them had chemistry or tension with one another. All that to say, the world building was easy to understand and enjoyable, and man is it fun reading this after ACOTAR and CC because IYKYK! Onto Crown of Midnight! 
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