Book Review: Crown of Midnight

Crown of Midnight (TOG#2) written by Sarah J. Maas

Release Date: August 27th, 2013

Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Childrens

Format of Novel: Hardcover

Summary (from good reads): From the Throne of glass rules a king with a fist of iron & a sol as black as pitch. Assassin Celaena Sardothien won a brutal contest to become his champion. Yet Celaena is far from loyal to the crown. She hides her secret vigilantly; she knows that the man she serves is bent on evil.

Keeping up the deadly charade becomes increasingly difficult when Celaena realizes she is not the only one seeking justice. As she tries to untangle the mysteries buried deep within the glass castle, her closet relationships suffer. It seems no one is above questioning her allegiances--not the Crown Prince Dorian; not Chaol, the Captain of the Guard; not even her best friend, Nehemia, a foreign princess with a rebel heart.

Then on terrible night, the secrets they have all been keeping lead to an unspeakable tragedy. As Celaena's world shatters, she will be forced to give up the very thing most precious to her & decide once and for all where her true loyalties lie.. and whom she is ultimately willingly to fight for.

(Minor spoilers in this review)

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Crown of Midnight started a little after the events of Throne of Glass with Celaena becoming the champion and carrying on her majesty's role to kill upon command. Let me tell you, I was in love with this book just like the first book and the prequel bind up "Assassin Blade" with all of the action packed fights, the growing characters, and the mystery of the far lore. The story was in my opinion the actual start of this epic six book series. The first book felt more like an intro novel by revealing the important players and the concept of the world Sarah J. Maas created for her debut.

 With this book, it was more plot driven with new mysteries and growing development. I was happily cheering when Celaena and Chaol got together. I thought their romance was sweet while it lasted and when the big climax moment happened, I was heartbroken. I was hoping that they would have a long relationship, but maybe they will reunite as mates in the next few books. The fact that we see Celaena becoming more vulnerable with her new friends, it was clear to see that she was human too instead of some powerful assassin that Maas portrays her to be throughout the book.


The other parts with Dorian and the witches were also a nice touch. I really wish I can say more about it, but I don't want to spoiler so much of this wonderful book. Especially the ending, it was a 'holy shit' moment, but it was a little noticeable if you do some close reading. Above all, this book was great just like the first one. Sarah J. Maas did a fantastic job in blending everything together and getting the ball rolling for the plot to thicken for Heir of Fire.