Any innocent, non-suspecting person who has set foot in the Media Center this year asking for book recommendations has received an ear-full from me about this series. And I am not lying when I make the following statement: The Throne of Glass series is one of the BEST fantasy series that I have read. Ever. Let me preface this review by saying I'm a huge fan of Young Adult (YA) Literature (obviously, because I am a high school media specialist), but I am also a devoted and diehard fan of high fantasy series like The Lord of the Rings (of Tolkien, I am not worthy) and The Song of Fire and Ice (most commonly referred to as Game of Thrones--and please don't talk to me about the HBO series. I refuse to watch it--don't ruin my nice things). I love and appreciate both of these fantasy works because of the complexity of the stories, the intricacies of the characters, and the plot twists that come out of no where and leave you in the fetal position crying for your mother because "HOW COULD THE AUTHOR DO THIS!?!?!?". Or in my case, physically throwing my book across the room (this is why I don't read a book that is "new to me" on my Kindle). With all that being said, Throne of Glass is definitely going down as legendary in my mind and every student and adult that has followed my somewhat forceful recommendations of this series (sorry guys, I'm passionate) has not been disappointed. They love it ALMOST as much as I do--to the point where I ordered another set of the series at the end of the year because I could never keep it on the shelves long enough without having a hold list five people deep.
Okay, so what's the series about? I'll give you the run down of the first book because if I give you more, there will be spoilers. Throne of Glass follows the story of 18 year old Celaena Sardothien, an assassin, who is released from this terrible hard labor camp for her crimes. She is released by the Prince who says that she can earn her freedom if she acts as his champion during a brutal competition to name the next royal assassin. During this competition, she will have to take on professional assassins, murderers, thieves, and brutes who will surely make her quest for freedom one that could end her life. Celaena is more comfortable with knives and weapons meant to maim than the niceties of court life, but she's forced to deal with both if she wants to avoid going back to the labor camp again. There's a little bit of romance (don't roll your eyes, I promise it stays interesting), adventure, suspense, magic, mystery, violent escapades, and plenty of unexpected twists and turns. A heads up for our younger readers: the content can be mature at times (i.e. don't come up in here expecting a "clean" read). Read the entire series--Maas only gets better as a writer as the series develops in the later books. There is also a bound set of the prequels (The Assassins Blade--but don't read it until you've read what's out in the series so far) and those fill in the gaps for the back story, because in the fashion of a good epic, Throne of Glass begins in media res. The series is not yet completed; Book 5: Empire of Storms has an expected release date of September 6, 2016 (PRAISE HANDS. My calendar is marked.) and Book 6 should be the final installment in the series. Take a chance on chance on this one, regardless if you are a fan of fantasy or not, because you will thank me profusely. I take payment in the form of Almond Joys or coconut cupcakes from Truelove's Bakery. Happy Reading! Jenn Gibson, Media Specialist
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August 2018
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