Heir Of Fire by Sarah J. Maas
Alright, it's official. I'm totally and completely addicted to the Throne Of Glass series. I have no idea why but, I wasn't expecting this series to be as good as it is and I've never been so happy to be wrong.
In the third book of the series, Heir Of Fire, there are three different subplots that are interwoven to create one fascinating book. The subplot that I liked the most was Celaena's journey but, the introduction of Manon was done really well too. The story in Adarlan was a bit slower than the other two but, gradually got better as the book went on.
When Heir Of Fire first starts Celaena is now in Wendlyn and is supposed to be preparing to kill the King and prince of Wendlyn but, is instead drinking, gambling, and fighting. However, not too long after she arrives, she is sought out by a Fae warrior named Rowan who then takes her to Maeve, her great-great aunt. Celaena does not object to this as she is hoping her aunt will tell her more about the wyrdkeys. However, not all goes as planned and Maeve tells Celaena she can't enter Doranelle until Rowan deems her power relearned and under control again. And so, Celaena starts training with Rowan at Mistward Fortress.
I really loved Celaena's character development in this book. Seeing her grapple with her grief over Nehemiah while trying to come to terms with the burden of being the rightful queen was great to see. Seeing her relearn how to shift into her Fae form and relearn her powers was awesome. When she went to see Maeve at the end, and forced her to free Rowan it was so badass, and you could tell that she was the most powerful person in the room. I can't wait to see her kick major Adarlan ass in the next book.
At first I really didn't like Rowan at all... Scratch that. I LOATHED him. He was such an ass to Celaena and it didn't sit well with me how physical aggressive he was with her. I get that he was trying to prepare her as best as possible but, it seemed a bit extreme. However, as the story went on, there was more learned about Rowan and he gradually redeemed himself for being such a jerk.
Towards the end of this storyline, I started picking up on vibes between Celaena/Aelin and and Rowan. At first, I was kind of unsure about it but, as the book went on I realized I was actually hoping for more romantic interaction between these two and then I was completely sucked in. I know that Rowan already supposedly had a mate but, I'm really wondering if he and Celaena are mates, as there seems to be some deeper connection between them. I don't completely understand the concept of carranam but, between that and Celaena freeing Rowan from Maeve's blood oath and then him doing a blood oath with Celaena, I just feel like their is something more to that relationship.
In Adarlan, Dorian and Chaol aren't speaking much. Their friendship is nowhere near what it once was and it's easy to pick up on the tension between them. The intrigue and spying in this storyline was pretty cool. It was interesting seeing Dorian trying to master his magic and keep it hidden. I also liked seeing Dorian happy with someone, however heartbreakingly brief it was.
The introduction of Aedion was great because he was such an off-putting character at the beginning but, got really interesting and awesome as the story went one. I'm looking forward to his reunion with Celaena and seeing how that goes. If these two team up, Adarlan won't know what hit them.
The third storyline in this book is about a witch named Manon. Initially, I was sort of put off by Manon but, over time she really grew on me and I really like her character. She was absolutely terrifying. I loved that when it came time for Manon to pick a wyvern, she actually picked the one that was the smallest and used to bait the others to show off their skills and power. The connection that Manon seemed to have with Abraxos seems really special and I feel like there is more to it than just rider and mount, like a possible mind connection. And ok, can we talk about how amazing it is that there are dragon-like creatures in this book!! I may have screamed with excitement just a little.
The war games that the different covens competed in were so cool and reminded me a lot of the first task in Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire. Witches supposedly don't have hearts but, I'm wondering if this isn't a hoax, as there were several times when it seemed like Manon cared about things more than a heartless person should, like when she saved Petrah from falling to her death during the games. Manon sacrificed what would have been a certain victory in order to chase after Petrah's falling wyvern and save her. Despite this, her clan still won but, some people were not happy about it. Manon's grandmother was pure evil, and I really hope she gets rid of her and takes over at some point. I'm really looking forward to seeing what comes next in Manon's story.
This was such a fantastic book, and I seriously could not put it down. I don't think I've read a book that's kept me up late reading in a while but, Heir Of Fire certainly did. The characters and the plot just such you in and immerse you in the story. Sarah J. Maas is a genius and is so creative. I'm am so excited to get into Queen Of Shadows and see what happens next.
Rating: 5/5 stars
