Cynfulbooks

Queen of Shadows was good but soo long. It took me a while to get through it because my attention wasn't cemented in this book like it was for others in the series. I feel like there was a lot of building then the climax was too fast and underwhelming. 

I absolutely hated Chaol in this book. He was so rude and deliberately hurtful toward Celaena. He blamed her for everything and didn't take the time to explain what had happened in Rifthold nor listen to what she had been through while away. Then to throw the Eye of Elena at her... “There hasn't been a we for a while, Celaena—” oof! And then proceed to call her a monster.

Celaena/Aelin has a new love in every book! I wonder how long Rowan will last.

I really loved Aelin standing tall and embracing her power/ royalty. She gave an impressive speech to the people of Rifthold.

Crown of Midnight was gripping all the way to the end!
I was so happy for Chaol and Celaena's new romance and sneaking into broom closets. It was a beautiful brief moment of happiness for Celaena.

But this, right here...
” ‘I think I'm happy for me, too.' And she was. For the first time in years, she was truly happy.”
I knew it was going to be short-lived. I was heartbroken in anticipation reading that.

There was action and intrigue throughout the entire book. I enjoyed experiencing more of Celaena's shear talent and abilities.

contains spoilers

This book had a lot more potential but was a disappointment.

The most cringey issues were that she was underage and vulnerable in the beginning and the blatant rape.

The relationships were bipolar. One minute, they “love her”, the next second, they are degrading her and being physically and/or emotionally abusive. It was not done in a sexy, consensual way either.

The individual relationships were also underdeveloped. They eluded to a connection, and then she was forced into the next bed as if the first connection hadn't existed.

I won't deny that some scenes were very hot. The ending was very cute and actually softened the book for me.

I'm really glad I didn't read Assassin's Blade first to start the TOG series. It was a good book, but knowing everything at the start would have taken away from the impact of Caelena's history and grief unfolding.

Assassin's Blade was a compilation of 5 novellas diving into events of Celaena's life as an assassin. It detailed her relationship evolution with Sam from competitors to lovers. Sam was very lovable, and their relationship had a tragic end. I did expect Sam's ending to be more dramatic and detailed, though. Celaena's fight for vengeance just before capture really depicted her shear strength. I really enjoyed a peek into Celaena's history.

P.S. My list of hated characters continues to grow: King of Adarlan, Manon's Grandmother (Blackbeak Matron), and Arobynn Hamel.

It was initially very hard for me to get into TOG. It started slow but eventually sucked me in. TOG left me intrigued and wanting to read the rest of the series to get answers to my questions.

I really like the 3 main characters: Celaena, Chaol, and Dorian and can't wait to read their backstories.

I spent most of the book trying to decide which of the MMCs should end up with Celaena. There were cute moments with each MMC, but I wouldn't classify TOG as a Romantasy. I have high hopes for the next book though! ❤️