I had been wanting to read the Throne of Glass series for a while, but I was waiting for all the books to be out because I like to binge my series without having to wait for the next installment. Seeing as the final book came out a few months ago, I decided now was a good time to start.
I was a bit hesitant going into this series, however, because of the mass amount of hype surrounding the books. Everyone seems to love Throne of Glass, so I was worried I’d be in the minority that doesn’t care too much for it.
I also didn’t want to read these novellas at all because I generally do not enjoy novellas or short stories in general, but I read some reviews that said it was necessary to read these ones and to read them before Throne of Glass, seeing as they are prequels. Wanting to get the most out of the story, I decided to do just that.
I’m happy to report that I actually did enjoy each of these novellas. They provided a good introduction to and background for Celaena and the other characters in the Assassin’s Guild, as well as getting me familiar with the world. I’m glad I decided to read The Assassin’s Blade before starting Throne of Glass because I think that book will mean more if I go in already knowing Celaena’s backstory and how she got to where she is at that point.
This collection was a bit different from novellas I’ve read in the past because each story built upon the previous story and followed chronologically, so it actually felt like I was reading one long story in five parts instead of five separate short stories. Plus the information here felt necessary to understanding Celaena’a history and character, whereas most short stories I’ve read before don’t feel necessary at all to the overarching storyline.
I enjoyed Celaena as a character, especially because she’s so fierce but still loves reading and fashion. Like she’s still a girl and isn’t completely heartless. I also really liked Sam but we won’t talk about that.
A note on the map in the book: I love when books have maps. But I don’t love when the maps aren’t useful. Any city or region that is mentioned at all should be on the map, otherwise what is the purpose? I found this to be a problem with multiple locations mentioned in the first couple of stories, but for the most part, the map seemed useful.
Lastly, I swear if Sarah J. Maas uses the word “dispatch” one more time . . . Seriously, it’s like that was the only word meaning to kill that she had in her vocabulary while writing this book, and it was definitely overused in every single story.
Here are my reviews of each of the stories as I finished them:
“The Assassin and the Pirate Lord”—4/5 stars
I actually enjoyed this story more than I thought I would. This was my very first introduction to the Throne of Glass world, and I wasn’t disappointed. I liked Celaena as a character and I’m excited to see her grow throughout the series.
“The Assassin and the Healer”—4.5/5 stars
I liked this story quite a bit. It was slower but we were introduced to Yrene, who I feel will show up again in future books, and I loved reading about Celaena teaching her some defensive skills.
“The Assassin and the Desert”—4.5/5 stars
This one was longer than the first two but I also think it was better than the first two. Celaena goes through some more hardships and growth, and I think meeting Ansel really impacted her. I do foresee Ansel showing up in future books with the way this story ended though.
“The Assassin and the Underworld”—4/5 stars
This was my least favorite of the stories, but it was still a good story. It was a lot more political than the others, and that made it drag a bit in the middle. I felt that a lot of the action and descriptions of who was doing what was unnecessary and repetitive. Although, I did enjoy the way it wrapped up. I like that the story showed some of Celaena’s weaknesses and that even she gets into compromising situations.
“The Assassin and the Empire”—4.5/5 stars
Even though I didn’t like anything that happened in this novella, I think it was my favorite one in this collection. It had such a sad ending. I didn’t know I could care so much about a character I felt as if I’d just met and had known for less than 400 pages. Why did it have to be like this?
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