Queen of Shadows by Sarah J. Maas

Summary (from Goodreads):

The queen has returned.

Everyone Celaena Sardothien loves has been taken from her. But she's at last returned to the empire—for vengeance, to rescue her once-glorious kingdom, and to confront the shadows of her past . . .

She has embraced her identity as Aelin Galathynius, Queen of Terrasen. But before she can reclaim her throne, she must fight.

She will fight for her cousin, a warrior prepared to die for her. She will fight for her friend, a young man trapped in an unspeakable prison. And she will fight for her people, enslaved to a brutal king and awaiting their lost queen's triumphant return.

The fourth volume in the New York Times bestselling series contrinues Celaena's epic journey and builds to a passionate, agonizing crescendo that might just shatter her world.

Review:

Ahhh. This book. It’s one of those books that leaves you with a sad feeling when it’s over because, well, it’s over. This was my favorite of the series so far. What a great addition to the series that seems to be taking the YA world by storm.

I’m not sure I rated the other books in this series as highly as everyone else seemed to. I loved them, but I wasn’t loving them as much. Looking back at past reviews, I found some repeat occurrences that equate to personal red flags. I hate characters that boast of being able to do things that you never see them actually doing. Celaena was a lot of talk in the first couple of books. I get that she was enslaved in a labor camp and not her normal, chipper self. But, just being told she was once an assassin wasn’t enough for me. Talking about escaping and killing a room full of people is not the same as actually escaping and killing a room full of people.

Queen of Shadows shows her as the assassin. And oh my goodness, she is a remarkably tough, powerful young woman who can definitely escape and kill a room full of people (and then some). And now I feel as though she’s owned her boasting rights. She was always a strong character for me. She clearly wasn’t ever a damsel, but it was nice to finally be able to see this side and not just hear rumors about it.

The thing I love most about this series as a whole, is the characterization. I learn more about Aelin with each installment. I remember being genuinely surprised to learn who the main character actually was. And then I was more surprised. And I continued to be surprised learning about her assassin history in this book. She’s a complicated character, and my love for her grows the more I learn about her.

I also love the other characters. I love that romance is something that changes and grows; first love isn’t the only love. I wish more books handled romance in this fashion. I love the revenge story. I love the plotting, the action, the build-up, the simmering and slow-building type of romance, the world building, the politics, the evil, the witches, the demon princes, the friendships, the minor side characters, and the magic.  

Maas has proven herself to me to be a master fantasy writer. She’s probably one of my all time favorite YA fantasy writers today. I cannot wait to see where the story goes, who survives, etc. If you like YA fantasy at all, you need to read these books. I give this one a 10/10.