Review: Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas

Crown of Midnight

Author: Sarah J. Maas
Series: Throne of Glass #2
Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Childrens
Genre: YA Fantasy
Format: Hardcover, 420 pages
Release Date: August 27, 2013
Source: Mid-Columbia Libraries
Rating: 5 Stars
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Synopsis from Goodreads:

An assassin’s loyalties are always in doubt.
But her heart never wavers.

After a year of hard labor in the Salt Mines of Endovier, eighteen-year-old assassin Celaena Sardothien has won the king's contest to become the new royal assassin. Yet Celaena is far from loyal to the crown – a secret she hides from even her most intimate confidantes.

Keeping up the deadly charade—while pretending to do the king's bidding—will test her in frightening new ways, especially when she's given a task that could jeopardize everything she's come to care for. And there are far more dangerous forces gathering on the horizon -- forces that threaten to destroy her entire world, and will surely force Celaena to make a choice.

Where do the assassin’s loyalties lie, and who is she most willing to fight for?

My Review:

Everyone told me that this book was better than the first one. I didn’t believe them. There was no way. I loved Throne of Glass so much that there was absolutely no way the sequel could live up to it. They were right. It was so much better. Oh my god it was better.

This book picks up right after Celaena was crowned the King’s Champion. She is being sent on missions to kill whoever’s name is listed on the piece of paper the King hands her. Pretty normal stuff for an assassin. Then things get crazy. I mean, really crazy. Shockingly crazy.

Everyone has secrets in this book. Chaol has secrets. Celaena has secrets. Dorian has secrets. Nehemia has secrets. And obviously the King of Adarlan has secrets. Big secrets. And then all the secrets unravel and collide at once and sh*t hits the fan. Something terrible happens and Celaena loses herself. She goes crazy. I mean certifiably insane. My heart broke for her, for what she was going through. But she also scared me during this time. I feared her and feared that she wouldn’t be able to pull through.

“In that moment, after ten long years, Celaena looked at Chaol and realized she was home.”

The other thing everybody told me was that Chaol was going to get even swoonier in this book. Holy swoon! Chaol and Celaena are so damn perfect for each other. Chaol is good to the core and loyal. He has a hard exterior shell that he keeps on nearly all the time. I mean he is the Captain of the Guard. He has to be pretty tough. But the thing that attracts me the most to Chaol is all of his internal feelings. He’s so real to me. Outside tough. Inside just absolutely perfect. He isn’t afraid to share his feelings with Celaena. This is a real man. I teared up during many moments in this book because of Chaol. He is officially my #1 book boyfriend. Move over, Warner; you’ve been demoted.

“Believe me, Celaena, I know you can look after yourself. But I worry because I care. Gods help me, I know I shouldn’t, but I do. So I will always tell you to be careful, because I will always care what happens.” –Chaol Westfall

 

This book read so fast. I couldn’t put it down, couldn’t stop turning the pages. I also read this book really close to my face. (I know that sounds weird.) But I couldn’t get close enough to the book. I couldn’t get close enough to the characters, the action, the mystery. I wanted to climb inside. There was so much going on in this book, but don’t worry. You won’t be confused. You get to see just how lethal Celaena is in this book and just how badass. She is one tough cookie. She goes through a lot, but all the experiences in this book help her finally see what she needs to do.

Oh yeah, and holy twist! I need the next book right this second!!! You can’t just drop a bomb like that and then make us wait until next year, Sarah J. Maas!!! I’m freaking out. Like seriously freaking out. Like I literally yelled when I finished reading this book. I think I thoroughly freaked my husband out.

Okay, I know this review is cryptic and really makes absolutely no sense, but I don’t want to spoil anything. And I also just don’t have words for how good this was. My new favorite series. Sarah J. Maas is incredible. If I ever meet her I am going to flail and fangirl like crazy. I’ll probably cry. Literally. That’s how much I love this series. Go read it right now. You won’t regret it. I like this series better than The Girl of Fire and Thorns series and you all know how much I love those books. Happy reading all!

Let's talk! Have you read this series? Do you swoon over Chaol as much as me? Did you see the twist coming? I didn't.