Throne of Glass #5
SYNOPSIS: Kingdoms will collide.
The long path to the throne has only just begun for Aelin Galathynius as war looms on the horizon. Loyalties have been broken and bought, friends have been lost and gained, and those who possess magic find themselves at odds with those who don’t.
With her heart sworn to the warrior-prince by her side, and her fealty pledged to the people she is determined to save, Aelin will delve into the depths of her power to protect those she loves. But as monsters emerge from the horrors of the past, and dark forces become poised to claim her world, the only chance for salvation will lie in a desperate quest that may mark the end of everything Aelin holds dear. – via Goodreads
Oh my gosh! My love for this books knows no bounds! Hands down my favourite one so far. Wow! Okay… mouth words. Let me find them and function properly.
We finally start the march… Aelin has Aedion back, they have liberated Dorian (thank the heavens), and Rowan is around, all seems to be going to plan. Aelin has the beginnings of her court, and I was furious with that bastard Darrow for essentially shooting her down and denying her the throne of Terassen. This, of course, is a good plotsie to build loads of other things.
Elide is making her way to Terassen, to her queen, and is naturally paired up alongside Lorcan, for better or worse. The longer they are on the road together, the closer they get. He is a hard guy, and she doesn’t care, matching him step for step. She is quick and clever and keeps him on his toes, something I am sure has not happened for centuries. They complement each other. I also liked reading more about Elide, as she is becoming more of a character I enjoy, and not just some odd little sneaky prisoner in Morath.
Manon Blackbeak – goodness, this witch is so powerful and I absolutely adore her. She has made some seriously crazy but brave choices in this, and then there is her and Dorian. I swear to god, every time I read “Hello, princeling”, and his response of “Hello, witchling”, something inside me soars. Like, Dorian has always thrilled me, no doubt (you all remember my gushing about him so far), and I must admit that since he has broken from the Valg prince that had him imprisoned in his body, he is a whole different character and GOSH it’s so hot. I need so much more. He has come out with a sharper edge and far more kingly than he ever was, and just reading about how he teases and frustrates Manon drives me crazy. She is certainly on his level where Sorscha never, ever was. The challenging between them!
Aelin is scheming from the very off in this, of course. No changes in that, and yet her scheming is growing in grander scales, which is most amazing. Her and Rowan, too, get so much time together here and their relationship finally takes the turns we needed it to and it has been immensely satisfying. The two of them just click together, drawing strength from each other and well as lending it. They have a nice, deep, fair relationship. He totally handles her perfectly, and she keeps him going.
Fenrys and Gavriel are two characters that turn up in this and I really like them. Fenrys made me laugh, and Gavriel’s struggle with Aedion broke my heart to pieces. I love how they might be blood sworn to Maeve, but they do not like the Fae queen whatsoever – Fenrys in particular. I want them to break free, to do their own things with their lives. Lysandra, of course, is still a fantastic character, and fits in with this court wonderfully. Also, her and Aedion man… so good.
Empire of Storms has so much awesome going on. There is action, scheming, wheeling and dealing, and the book spends a load of time developing characters and relationships between them, and as such has made them really deep and interesting – I have no objections whatsoever. I really need to stop gushing about this one. So much went on at the end, and this book has me ridiculously hooked from the opening pages to when I finally shut it, and I was desperate to keep reading. Seriously, this is what my life has become – debating whether my husband and I really need dinner at night, and whether I really need to go to work when this world demands my attention xD
The Sporadic Chronicles 