Book Babble: Throne of Glass

So I finished Throne of Glass and figured to comment on it while it’s still fresh in my memory. I think my opinion of the story is going to be different from someone who hadn’t read the previous original piece. I’ve been spoilt by what I already know and so couldn’t really be introduced to the world as others would. From the reviews I’ve read, I’ve heard nothing but praise from both new readers and previous fans.  Plus, I can be (and mostly am) rather critical to even my beyond my learned friends’ observations.

So, before my criticism says otherwise, the book is worth a read. It is better than a lot of stuff I’ve read, but obviously not the best out there. I’ll say if you want something that you don’t have to really think through, but which might surprise you with its depth later in the series (and you’re into YA), go have a look at this.

Stop here if you don’t want the more critical view of this book. I can’t say I will be spoiling it. I’ll be vague for the most part and what I do mention will mostly  be from the back cover. The biggest spoil will probably be something like knowing there is a character in the book who has an x-type of personality.

<’}}}>< <’}}}>< <’}}}>< <’}}}><

So, without further ado…

I know my previous post included a picture of the full cover and thus also the back cover plot synopsis, but for those who didn’t bother reading it:

MEET CELAENA SARDOTHIEN.

BEAUTIFUL. DEADLY.

DESTINED FOR GREATNESS.

In the dark, filthy salt mines of Endovier, an eighteen-year-old girl is serving a life sentence. She is a trained assassin, the best of her kind, but she made a fatal mistake. She got caught.

Young Captain Westfall offers her a deal: her freedom in return for one huge sacrifice. Celaena must represent the prince in a to-the-death tournament – fighting the most gifted thieves and assassins in the land. Live of die, Celaena will be free. Win or lose, she is about to discover her true destiny. But will her assassin’s heart be melted?

The book is younger than I would’ve liked, but not enough to be disappointed about. The biggest fault I can give it is that the main drive of the story – the tournament – really kind of isn’t. This book is about interaction. It’s about what is said and shown and what people are confronted by. The tournament is side-lined for the most part and that is rather quizzical. The second greatest fault I can give the book is that it feels like it’s setting up a series (which it is) and while it has a main thread that concludes by the end of the book, it kind of felt like the middle-child in a trilogy. You read it knowing that things were being saved for a next book and that bugged me.

There are also a lot of unexpected leaps in terms of relationships – both friendships and otherwise. Celaena is supposedly the greatest, most talented, most feared assassin (notice something here?) and yet it doesn’t take long before people seem to forget that. I also would think an assassin as great and feared as she is would also be hardened by her profession especially given that she is only eighteen and I can’t that is the case. I found her personality far too changeable and overly dramatic (maybe because of her youth?). With that being said, I’ve met people a lot more fluid than Celaena so I can’t say that she’s unformed, but it is still not what I would have expected. Maybe that’s what makes her such a master assassin?

Some things didn’t make sense though, but might fit the YA scene. A highly-respected soldier, admired for his skill, who has never killed anyone. Actions leading to events which then stop abruptly before fulfilment without any interruption of any kind and having this befuddlement be considered normal. Young adults in leadership or positions of power who would probably, based on age alone, not have sufficient experience to be as good as they’re presented.

Many herald the protagonist as a great heroine as she holds her own amongst the male-dominated cast of characters she is surrounded by. She never diminishes and rarely seems overwhelmed by anyone. When she’s surrounded by men, you don’t feel that instant separation of sex pressing down on her and that is something that is still desperately needed in current culture. We desperately need more female characters who can stand their ground. Celaena definitely does that.

I can’t fault Sarah J. Maas’ writing. With the exception of a single scene in the book, I never had any trouble following what was going on blow-by-blow. There were some choices or… elements to the story that I didn’t quite get, but I’m going to write it off as something that’ll clear up in future sequels. It is hard not to compare this work to Queen of Glass as it was on www.fictionpress.com and I can’t say I succeeded in not doing so. So let me comment on that for those who like me did read QoG. Again no spoilers per se.

The main flaw in the competition as it occurred in QoG has been rectified, but I still had issues with Celaena being the only female in the competition. I would’ve preferred seeing at least one hardened female face in the group as opposed to all the uglies on the one end and the breathtakingly beautiful assassin on the other. Because the flaw in the story was fixed, events differ dramatically all the way through – as it should. I can’t say I don’t miss some of the moments that had to be cut as a result though, but that’s the fangirl talking. I have to say I was happy that Nehemia was already present. I love her. If anything, she is the type of strong, female character that I would love to see more of in fiction.

Celaena’s past comes through a lot more in this version – which I have no problem with and in fact support – but I can’t say I necessarily liked the way it was presented. If you want to bring in an element like past events or character issues or concerns, make sure it fits with the moment that your character is in presently. If it haunts her, make it a reoccurring dream or thought, not a one-hit wonder. Your reader is going to forget, but also is going to think ‘where did that thought come from’? That was a little jarring, but mostly because I recognized the things it was pointing towards, even if I thought it was a tad too revealing at times. I actually really like that Maas brought those things in already. I think it is appropriate that we don’t discover something later on that seems totally out of sync with what we have encountered before. And I truly appreciate the fact that Maas went that route.

I really liked her referencing something that I believe occurred in one of the novellas published before ToG’s release. It was simple and effective. As someone who hadn’t read the novellas (but looked through the titles), I really appreciated the way was brought in, because I didn’t have to know what happened. Simply by the way it was written, I could feel the depth of Celaena’s feelings for the events that transpired even when I didn’t know those events myself. I loved that. It would’ve been great to see that kind of ingenuity throughout.

<’}}}>< <’}}}>< <’}}}>< <’}}}><

So where would I rank this book?

It’s a lot better than Twishite and its awful offspring, but it’s not Hunger Games. I would recommend it to readers of either camp. I think if you’re used to YA, this would be a good read. Having something of an inside scoop regarding future developments, I’m still rather excited and will be following the series with much interest. I do have two of the four novellas already released and will most likely get the other two as well (they’re R13 on Kalahari.net which I don’t think is all that bad) – I just hope they end up putting them in printed form so that I can stick it in my bookshelf. I hate the idea of only owning an e-book version of something. I’m still old school, I guess. I’d love to see Maas continue with the novellas. I hope she doesn’t stop now that the ‘main’ books are coming out.

So… I’d give it a 7 out of 10.