Living Literarily

While I did not like this book as much as "A Court of Thorns and Roses", also by Sarah J. Mass, I still recommend it. I am learning that one of this author's strongest points is knowing when to begin a a novel. She starts in the middle of the beginning and gets to the point. Also, her books flow so well that they are easy to read in a day. They are never confusing or over your head.  This book in particular is unique and I cannot decide if I think Celaena is neurotic or the most relatable heroine ever. She certainly displays a few of the ticks one would expect in a traumatized child assassin. This is not a negative, in fact it makes it all so much more real.  My major complaint about this book is simply that I did not believe the romance between Dorian and Celaena (and I am wholly devoted to team Chaol). There is variation in the characters and they all had so much depth, except for Dorian. I have been informed he does improve in later books. In fact, I h...

To begin, this is by no means a "YA" novel. I am surprised that the publishers would market it as such. While I am not offended by the content as I am an adult, I am frustrated because I almost had my 13 year old little sister read it before me and she is definitely not old enough for what occurs here.  I'm OK with novels like Graceling or The Blue Sword or even Fault in Our Stars that do contain sexual scenes and believe they are appropriate and healthy for a young audience. I say this to illustrate that my opinion is not based on an exaggerated sense of prudery.  BE WARNED: This book contains fairly explicit sexual scenes. Not extensive, but enough that this novel is actually New Adult. That aside, I adore this book! I have a long held love affair with fractured fairytales and am forever looking to discover a new twist on one of my favorites. Everything from the name Feyre to the complications that arise with Rhys fit into the world that Sarah J Maas creates.  ...