Tag Archives: sarah j maas

A to Z Bookish Survey

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This is a popular survey/tag going around the BookTube and book blog community, so I finally made my own! It was originally created by Perpetual Page Turner on her blog post here.

Pretty much this a survey with questions/statements beginning with the letter in which it corresponds, pretty straight forward.

A – Author you’ve read the most books from. As it stands right now: Stephenie Meyer and Veronica Roth. I’ve read four books from each of these authors.

B – Best Sequel Ever I choose “Crown of Midnight” and “Heir of Fire” by Sarah J Maas, each of which is a sequel to itself, respectively. The series just continues to get better and I definitely love both.

C – Currently Reading “City of Ashes” by Cassandra Clare. It’s a reread, but I’m marathoning the series, so… yeah.

D – Drink of choice while reading Depends on my mood. It can be either milk, juice, water, tea… whatever I’m in the mood for.

E – E-Reader or physical book? Physical books, for sure. I love the smell, the turn of the pages, the physical weight. It’s wonderful.

F – Fictional character most likely to have dated in high school I chose Simon from The Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare. He’s nerdy and funny and he just seems like someone I would have dated.

G – Glad you gave this book a chance “The House of the Scorpion” by Nancy Farmer. It’s a fantastic book that I picked up randomly when I was in middle school/early high school and I loved it. Highly recommend it.

H – Hidden gem book “A Certain Slant of Light” by Laura Whitcomb. It’s a book I read for summer reading in high school, and usually those books are way boring, but this one was fun and exciting. Again, highly recommend it.

I – Important moment in reading life I don’t really think I have an important moment as I’ve always loved reading. I’m really not sure what to say about this one, haha!

J – Just finished “City of Bones” by Cassandra Clare. It took me almost the full month to read this book, and I don’t know why. It really wasn’t even that bad.

K – Kind of books you don’t read Mystery, most non-fiction, horror…

L – Longest book you’ve read “Breaking Dawn” by Stephenie Meyer. It’s about 750+ pages, and it’s my longest read book to date.

M – Major book hangover because of… “Allegiant” by Veronica Roth. ‘Nuff said.

N – Number of bookcases you own Three total in the apartment, but the largest is my personal one.

O – One book you’ve read multiple times “Twilight” by Stephenie Meyer. I’ve read it four times, and I was working on a fifth when I stopped.

P – Preferred place to read The couch is a nice place, or my desk.

Q – Quote that inspires/gives you the feels from a book It’s a quote from “The Fault in Our Stars” by John Green. I’ll link it here.

R – Reading regret “April Morning” by Howard Fast. Boring. So boring.

S – Series you started and need to finish (all the books are out) …Where do I even begin?

T – Three of all time favorite books “Twilight” by Stephenie Meyer, “Throne of Glass” by Sarah J Maas, and “Firelight” by Sophie Jordan. Each are series/trilogies/sagas, so I loved all of the books in each.

U – Unapologetic fangirl for “Throne of Glass” series by Sarah J Maas. I love each book, and they just keep getting better and better.

V – Very excited for this release more so than others The next book in the “Throne of Glass” series, which will be released next year around late August/early September.

W – Worst bookish habit I like sticking books in my purse. They often fold as a result.

X – X marks the spot: start at the top left and pick the 27th book on your shelf “Crewel” by Gennifer Albin. Haven’t read this yet, but I will eventually.

Y – Your latest book purchase “Falling Kingdoms” by Morgan Rhodes, “Exquisite Captive” by Heather Demetrios, and “Snow Like Ashes” by Sarah Raasch.

Z – Zzz-snatcher book (last book that kept you up WAY late) I’m really not sure about this because I try to go to bed at reasonable hours…

Accompanying video: A to Z Bookish Survey

So what about you? How would you answer these survey questions? Let me know in the comments below or link your own blog post in the comments with this survey!

Heir of Fire Book Review

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heiroffire

Title: Heir of Fire
Author: Sarah J Maas
Series: Book #3 in the Throne of Glass series
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Publication Date: September 2, 2014
Genres: Young/New Adult – Fantasy, Romance
Pages: 562
Format: Purchased Hardcover

“Heir of Fire” is the third book in the “Throne of Glass” series by Sarah J. Maas, and it is by far, in my opinion, the best book in the series thus far. This book has so much going on in it that not only develops the characters that were already known further, but it introduces and develops new characters, builds on the world, and sets the course for other plot lines that will take place in the series.

It’s hard to not give away spoilers considering this is the third book, but I do want to do my best without doing so (if you want spoilers and for me to talk a little bit about what happens, you can view my video here).

Celaena doesn’t start out as the typical badass that we have seen her be in the past two books, but rather a broken-hearted person after a loss. This actually got to be pretty annoying as it dragged on through the book, but I could see where she was coming from and why she was so upset for so long.

The undercurrents here, though, helped her to fuel her magic and to help her really take control of not just others around her in battle or danger, but also of herself. It was very enthralling to read about, that’s for sure.

Other characters in the book, such as Dorian, Chaol, and new characters, developed throughout the book as well.

Dorian has a secret he must keep from his father in order to survive, as well as try to not hurt or alarm anyone around him.

Chaol is having difficulty picking sides between loyalty from one person to the other. It’s actually quite disheartening how much of a struggle he has.

New characters introduced, such as Rowan, Manon, and Aedion, are all crucial parts to the story and I believe they will each play intricate, and possibly heartbreaking, rolls in the story later on.

Rowan is a Fey warrior who has been given the task of training Celaena in her magic and making her stronger before bringing her to a capitol magic city. He’s stoic and hard to crack, but does open up as time progresses.

Manon is a witch with no heart or soul – or so she’s been told since childhood. She is disciplined and ruthless, but when her eyes set upon something massive, something in her seems to shift, though she doesn’t realize it.

Aedion is, at first, portrayed as an antagonist, but as we learn more about him, he’s definitely fiercely loyal – to the right person. He also has a back story with Celaena that will make you want to go “aww.”

Though that’s really all I can give without spoiling much else, I do recommend this book and if you’re reading the series, definitely continue with it.

I rate this book 5/5 stars.

Accompanying video: Heir of Fire Book Review

September 2014 Wrap-Up & October TBR

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Hello fellow readers. Today I’m going to talk about the books I read in September and the books I hope to read in October.

First off, I only read two books this past month (technically 2.75), as I am still in the process of finishing the third book. As a slower reader, plus my busy schedule, it takes time for me to read larger books, so I have not been able to finish the third book in the “Throne of Glass” series yet.

The first book I finished in September was “Throne of Glass” by Sarah J Maas. I thought this book was a fantastic read and it definitely was outside of what has been being published lately (a lot of dystopians) and so I thought that it was a great concept, fun, engaging characters and plot, and it was definitely 5/5 stars. Here is my blog review and my video review with spoilers.

The second book I finished in September was “Crown of Midnight,” the second book in the series. This book was better than the last, and the characters continued to develop, the plot became darker, and the action was turned up. This is a great sequel considering many sequels tend to lose their zeal as the series goes on, and it definitely deserved the 5/5 stars, in my opinion. Here is my blog review and my video review with spoilers.

The third book I am still trying to finish, though September has come and gone, is “Heir of Fire,” and it is the third book in the series. This book has gotten even better than the last and includes new characters, which means more perspectives, and the storyline flows nicely. Though I don’t have a review on it yet, I do expect to finish it by the end of this week, if not the next, so expect the review to be up! (I’ll link my blog and video reviews here when they’re up.)

NEXT! My October TBR. These are the books I hope to get to reading this month:

  1. “The Merciless” by Danielle Vega
  2. “The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer” by Michelle Hodkin
  3. “Asylum” by Madeline Roux
  4. “The Graveyard Book” by Neil Gaiman
  5. “Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children” by Ransom Riggs

What I hope to do is read all of the Mara Dyer series because the third book will be coming out in the next couple of weeks and I’d rather read an entire series before moving onto the next book, so that also means I’m going to try to read the second books in the Asylum and Miss Peregrine series, but we’ll see how much I can get read this month.

If you have any suggestions as to what I should read first after I finish my current book, let me know in the comments below.

Accompanying video: September 2014 Wrap-Up & October TBR

Crown of Midnight Book Review

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crownofmidnight

Title: Crown of Midnight
Author: Sarah J Maas
Series: Book #2 in the Throne of Glass series
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Publication Date: August 27, 2013
Genres: Young/New Adult – Fantasy, Romance
Pages: 418
Format: Purchased Paperback

“Crown of Midnight” is the second book in the “Throne of Glass” series by Sarah J Maas, and it was freaking fantastic. I thought that this book was much better than the first and I was completely engrossed in it from the first chapter. There are more plot twists and turns, more romance, more action, more suspense… it just had a lot more of everything!

This book held a lot of intrigue with politics, magic, romance, death, and what Celaena is truly like as an assassin. You definitely get to see more of just how Adarlan’s Assassin works, and, quite frankly, if I came across her in an alley, I would want to vanish into thin air rather than be cut by her daggers. Celaena, in the first book, was definitely strong-willed, quick tempered, sassy, and all that, but in this book you really get to see those traits more predominantly. You also learn how strong her love for her friends runs and how deep the wounds cut when some tragic things unfold.

Chaol is also fleshed out more in this book than he was in the first, and you see a man who is caring, passionate, and willing to sacrifice himself for the woman he loves. He also comes with a minor tragic backstory, which is always nice to read about, right?

Dorian comes with a secret that even he didn’t know about, and it makes him an interesting character to read about in this book. Though he makes less appearances in this one than the first, he still is a major character that will most definitely have more to tell in later books.

Overall, this book has so much to offer, so much character and world development, plot twists, intrigue, action sequences that’ll make your gut twist, and more that it’s a better sequel than most, and it only left me thirsting for more. I highly recommend this book for anyone reading the “Throne of Glass” series.

I give this book 5/5 stars.

Accompanying video: Crown of Midnight Book Review

Throne of Glass Book Review

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throneofglass

Title: Throne of Glass
Author: Sarah J Maas
Series: Book #1 in the Throne of Glass series
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Publication Date: August 2, 2012
Genres: Young/New Adult – Fantasy, Romance
Pages: 404
Format: Purchased Paperback

Today I’m going to talk about “Throne of Glass” by Sarah J Maas. This book is a young adult fantasy novel with action, romance, and lots of sassy talk.

Basically it’s about an eighteen year old girl named Celaena Sardothian (see pronunciation guide) who is an assassin being kept in a salt mine, which may as well be a death camp, as prisoner of Adarlan. She is given a chance at “freedom,” though, when the captain of the guard, Chaol, and the Crown Prince, Dorian, offer her to be the King’s Champion for a set period of time before she truly gains her freedom.

Well, it was either that or suffer longer at the mines, so she decided to go ahead with it.

She thinks of escaping multiple times, and though she doesn’t because she eventually realizes what it would cost her, she does learn many things, as well as rebuild her strength, possibly fall in love, and develop friendships with several of the people around her.

In the novel, Celaena has to go up against 22 other champions that are trying to win the title, but due to circumstances unknowing to them, many of the champions are killed along the way – though some do die in the tests given to them to prove their worth. Celaena realizes a pattern of the deaths as time goes on and she tries to figure out the mystery, all while training and making herself stronger than when she had left the mines.

This creates many problems throughout the competition, but she does make several allies, and one main enemy, who she has to deal with toward the very end.

I really enjoyed this novel and the world building, as well as the characterization, throughout the book. Maas did a good job at developing Celaena and Dorian, and the Princess Nehemia, even Kaltain, but I felt that she fell slightly short of developing Chaol more. Perhaps in the second novel he won’t seem as stiff, but who knows? (No spoilers!)

This book was full of intrigue, action packed sequences, mystery, love (the sort of, most likely, forbidden kind), and all sorts of magic. Did I mention that magic isn’t supposed to exist in the world anymore, but somehow it might? Yeah, it’s kind of crazy.

I rate this book 5/5 stars and definitely recommend it.

Accompanying video: Throne of Glass Book Review

Have you read the first book? What did you think of it? Let me know in the comments!