Tag: Fiction

Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas

Fiction

I finished this book in three days, but I would have finished it in two, or less, if I didn’t have a full day of activities planned over the past weekend. I was reading this book up until I fell asleep at night, even though I wanted to slow down just so I could enjoy it longer. 

I’m really glad that the brief insights into magic in Throne of Glass were explored more in Crown of Midnight, because I needed more information. The things I learned make the final duel between Cain and Celaena more satisfying and coherent now that I know the gravity behind the wrong person having the power to open a portal to another world and the serious consequences that could occur because of it. I found great satisfaction in how slowly Celaena finds new information and has to work through the clues she needs to piece together, but I am glad that by the end of the book she figures things out and a great deal of long awaited information is revealed. However, the book does end on a cliffhanger as a huge plot point is revealed as Celaena embarks on a new adventure to someplace quite far away. I am finding myself antsy as I try to distract myself while I wait for the next book to arrive.

Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

Fiction

I’ve been seeing this book everywhere and I finally decided that I needed to see what all the fuss was about. I read it, and I get it. Throne of Glass is the first book in a seven part fantasy series following world famous assassin Celaena Sardothien, but the tale begins with her in confinement rather than discovering her on an exciting and secretive assignment to kill someone. We don’t find out the details of exactly how she got there but I imagine that the details will slowly come out in the next six books. I have already ordered the second book in the series, as I couldn’t find it in stores, and I have also already committed to purchasing them in very nice hardcovers because I have a feeling that this is a series I will thoroughly enjoy and want to reread in the future. 

The only negative thing I have to say about the story is that I think the magical aspects were glossed over too quickly at the end of the book, the going between worlds part during the duel at the end specifically. I feel like a lot was thrown at us very suddenly without there having been a sufficient amount of supplemental information provided in earlier chapters. However, if that was the intent, to get us to wonder what the heck was going on and to anticipate more insight into the magic of this world in the following novels, then it worked. 

Since the next book isn’t due to arrive at my house until Friday, although I am sure I will be able to read it and write a review before Tuesday, my next review will not be the sequel. If I’m feeling motivated I think you can look forward to a bonus review on Friday next week.

Opposition by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Fiction

There is a vastly different feel between Opposition and its preceding book Origin, its desperation and urgency unlike before. The first hundred or so pages can have you feeling pretty hopeless and almost as heartbroken as some of the characters. And once the first set of conflicts work themselves out, it’s almost non stop action, lust, or strategizing. At times I felt like things were going a bit too fast, but maybe that is just because I was reading so fast because I was so very into the story. The conclusion is pleasant, perfect for people who love a happy ending, but it does leave you wishing that the author had given you a little bit more. 

So if you do love the Lux series, and you are craving more, there is good news. There is an additional book written from the perspective of Daemon which takes place between Obsidian and Opal and I will definitely be reading this. I really enjoyed the joint perspective of Katy and Daemon in Origin and Opposition, which was both necessary and worked really well, in contrast to the first three books coming from only Katy’s point of view, so I would like to hear the story from the beginning from Daemon’s perspective. In addition to this, there is another novel about the Arum, and another series about the Origins. You can look forward to seeing several posts about these books from me sometime in the future.

Origin by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Fiction

The fourth book in the Lux series is pretty grim. Katy’s life becomes really miserable, Daemon becomes even more reckless because of what’s going on with Katy, and a lot of people die. One death made me really happy, because in my opinion, it was well deserved. Then there was another death that was unexpected, but the person kind of had it coming, so I didn’t get torn up about it. Finally, there were several deaths that had me saying a sad “aw” out loud. 

Besides all the upcoming misery that I feel I need to warn you about, there is much more going on that is on the enjoyable side to read. It feels like you are learning a fascinating piece of information or getting an answer to one of the many questions you may have had on almost every page. On top of all that, there are also exceptional romance scenes that are well written without being too graphic, perfect for younger readers but at the same time able to satisfy mature bookworms

 At the conclusion of this book in the series I am left with no idea what to expect as a critical event occurs. I still had a lot of questions before this incident occurred, and because of what happened I now have even more. I am really tempted to pick up the next book right now, but I need to supplement my reading material with something educational.

Opal by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Fiction

Things finally progress to a place where you want the main characters to be in Opal, the third book in the Lux series. The good stuff finally does take place, in case you wanted to know, because it almost seems like it is never going to happen. Three books is a long time to wait for a romantic climax, and at the end you are still left frustrated because a well thought out and well practiced plan goes wrong due to a huge betrayal. If you’ve read the previous two books, you will know exactly who conned everyone. Everyone else knew the whole time that they were likely to be lured into a trap by the sneak, but they went along with the plan anyway because they really had no other choice. One need has been filled, but I am left wanting to know how things are going to go from here. The books really leave you wanting to go back for more. I am going to resist picking up the next book until I read something a little bit better for my brain, but it is going to be extremely difficult.

Unrelated, I haven’t done this in a while, but I did find one tiny error in the book. I got really excited because I feel like it has been a really long time since I found a mistake. It’s just a missing quotation mark on page 231, but I’m pleased that I saw it.