Leta’s Book Review: Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas (SPOILERS)

SPOILER WARNING for THRONE OF GLASS and CROWN OF MIDNIGHT

I had completely forgotten the events of this book existed. Which I think is fair, considering that I read it a long time ago and very soon after Throne of Glass.

I like Crown of Midnight much more than the first book in the series. Celaena’s character grows into something closer to the later books and she begins running into hints about what’s going to happen later, which begins to change her perspective on herself and what she needs to do. At the end of the novel, she follows through on the decision to send her away to Wendlyn, the continent to the east.

Dorian and Chaol both grow as well. Dorian is developing his magic, both in awe and fear of his gifts as they grow. He spends a lot of time contemplating what this is going to mean for his kingdom and his father, neither of which are willing to accept magic as something good. Chaol is spending time with Celaena and falling for her as she falls for him. This doesn’t last, however, as Chaol is constantly struggling between her and his duty to his king. And because Celaena is toying with ideas that are being fed by radical movements within and outside Rifthold, she’s realizing that a future with Chaol, however lovely, wouldn’t be possible.

Crown of Midnight is a solid novel to bridge the gap between the beginning of the series and the final five books. It continues the plot of Celaena becoming the King’s Champion by having her sent on missions for him, but it also serves as a wealth of foreshadowing that I had no idea about on the first readthrough. Knowing everything that I do from the end of the series, it was amazing to see how many hints are dropped about what is going to happen.

Because there are spoiler warnings on these posts, they’re most likely going to serve a read-a-long purpose for most of you who read this. So, I’m not going to recommend this novel (though I think you should try the first three books of this series if you are here and haven’t read it. It’s amazing). Instead, I’ll tell you that I am so excited to read this next one and write out my thoughts on it. Heir of Fire was my favourite the first time around and I’m eager to see if that holds true this time.

Stay tuned for my Heir of Fire review!

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐/5