Book Review: Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas
A young adult fantasy, Throne of Glass is the first in a series of books by S. J. Maas, also known for her bestselling ‘A Court of Thorns and Roses’. Maas is clearly a master of fantasy worlds, as I read Throne of Glass I wondered how long it must have taken to write an entirely new world, different from ours in nearly every way. I’ve always said it is much easier to write about our world because it is simply a matter of describing what we see, but to imagine a whole new place with completely different settings and norms, it takes quite the imagination.
The story revolves around young, beautiful Celaena Sardothien, the best assassin in the whole of Erilea, trained by Adarlan himself. Captured and enslaved, she was sent to a horrific death camp to die. An unusual saviour comes along in the form of Chaol, the Kings Guard, and the Kings son, Dorian Havilliard. Dorian offers Celaena her freedom in return for four years’ service to the King as his personal Assassin/Champion, but to do so she must win a competition of survival against the worlds deadliest competitors, to prove her strength to the King. As Celaena fights for her freedom, she discovers more going on in the royal court than could ever be imagined, not only is magic resurfacing after the King banned it many years ago; evil is surfacing and Celaena may be the only one able to defend Erilea from it. With the added bonus of two beautiful men fighting for her affections, Celaena starts to uncover who she really is and what part she must play with whom.
This book consumes you, it drags you into its world unwillingly. Celaena is every bit the warrior and survivor many women aspire to be. Not only is she passionate, she is strong and dangerous, a character I admire and defend. With a wicked sense of humour, she is a woman not to be trifled with and because of that, I could not put the book down, she captured me as much as she does her male companions within the novel. The story is genius, with many twists and turns for you to think about. There is something reminiscent of the classic tale of Cinderella in this fantastical story, as our protagonist goes from slave to Champion. If you love all things fantasy like me, then this is a series for you.
By Lauren Victoria Noding
A Writers Desires 