Title: Empire of Storms (Throne of Glass #5) by Sarah J. Maas
Published: September 6th, 2016
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Average Goodreads rating: 4.58
My rating: 3.5
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.
In this breathtaking fifth installment of the New York Timesbestselling Throne of Glass series, Aelin will have to choose what—and who—to sacrifice if she’s to keep the world of Erilea from breaking apart. (from Goodreads)
Aelin Galathynius had raised an army not just to challenge Morath, but to rattle the stars.
Here I am, once again, feeling conflicted about a Maas book. Why does this happen with every Throne of Glass novel? Without fail, every single Throne of Glass book I’ve read has gone the same way.
Step 1: Find an excuse for whatever happened at the end of the previous book to be inconsequential
Step 2: Introduce new problem, make sure the readers know that Aelin is hiding something but decline to inform them what
Step 3: Aelin fucks something up pretty badly but once again love and hormones save the day
Step 4: Bore everyone for 10-20 chapters
Step 5: One or more sex scenes which always happen directly before a huge problem/battle takes place
Step 6: OH MY GOD MAJOR ENDING AND SO MANY THINGS HAPPENED AND HOLY MOLY I NEED TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENS NEXT GIVE ME MORE!!
Every. Single. Time. Why do I keep coming back to these books? For 80% of them I am annoyed and bored to death. If I am being honest, and I typically am, I really hate Aelin and her relationship with Rowan. It seems so incredibly toxic. Why is it romanticized? It, and they, disgust me.
However, I guess I don’t have much room to talk because, guess what, I’ll be picking up the last installment of this series for the singular purpose of seeing what happens with Manon and Dorian. Who is shipping them like a love sick teenager? That would be me. Don’t worry, I disgust myself, too.
In conclusion, I hate these books. I can’t stop reading them. Give me more. I swear if she makes Dorian a love sick little bitch boy like she made Rowan after he fell for Aelin I am going to riot.
I am also still debating weather or not to read Tower of Dawn. I was never fond of Chaol from book one. If I skip this book will I be missing any major plot points for the last book? Give me your feedback!
I gave up on these books after the second one. I did not like Celaena/Aelin or her relationships.
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I really, really dislike Aelin. She is such a terrible character. Untrustworthy, cocky, secretive, and only cares about herself and never about how her choices affect others. She drives me nuts. I keep getting sucked in at the end by the support characters. If it wasn’t for Manon I wouldn’t keep reading these things.
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I have heard that before, about Manon. But I am not interested enough in anyone else to put up with them long enough get to Manon.
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I do not blame you one bit. I wish I hadn’t let myself get sucked into them. I swear at the end of each of book I won’t keep reading but I always do. It is like a sickness Maas Disease.
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*lol* Maas Disease. I like it!
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❤ Great review
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Awesome review!
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You definitely need to read Tower of Dawn. There’s some new info with major implications for the series.
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Darn. I was hoping to skip it. Dislike Chaol a great deal. I guess since I’ve read the rest of them I might as well suck it up and read this one. Sigh. I just want to know how Manon and Dorian’s story turns out. Everyone else can bugger off.
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I was always mostly indifferent to Chaol, but I thought his story was good in ToD. I also really liked a lot of the new characters we get to meet.
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New characters? Sold. Just requested it from the library. I did not take much convincing. Hah!
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Haha, I love this review, you have reflected my thoughts on EOS and the series almost completely.
I really don’t like that Aelin keeps secrets from the reader and I have never been a fan of Rowen. Maas puts everything interesting in the last few chapters, just so everyone will go out and buy the next book.
That being said, there are a few awesome characters and subplots that I enjoy. When we were first introduced to Manon I wasn’t a fan, but in this book her, Dorian and Elide were the only characters I cared about.
I’m not sure how I feel about Tower of Dawn – I don’t like what Maas did to his character from the end of the second book onwards. I will always ship Chaol and Aelin.
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