The Fantasy Review’s review of Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas, book 2 in the Throne of Glass series.
After finishing Throne of Glass in 2022, I never thought I’d come back to the series. I enjoyed the first book, but I was happy with where the story ended. We got a cool premise, not too much angst, and a compelling mystery that ended in a satisfying way.
However, I have been in a reading slump and desperately needed to switch off, so what better than reading the literary equivalent to reality TV? And I made the right decision.
Spoiler-Free Review of Crown of Midnight
I am so glad I decided to jump into Crown of Midnight. As the final book of my meagre 2025 pile of completed books, it gave me what I needed – a kick up the ass to keep reading!
I see how much crap these books (and books like them) get, and I tend to ignore it. Sure, I made my own “reality TV” joke before, which might not have helped, but I like some reality TV! Give me a good property programme, or The Traitors, or any random panel show with comedians on it, and I’ll make a cuppa and put my feet up.
The Characters & Plot
If you enjoy Brandon Sanderson’s writing style, you’ll enjoy these books. They are easy to read, with just enough setting description to give you a vague idea of details, but in the end the story is driven mostly by characters and the mysteries unfolding around them.
Regarding the characters, Celaena is still a great protagonist – in fact, she’s better in this entry than the first. We’re witnessing the next stage of her development post-mines, and without the structure of the competition in Throne of Glass we get to see her maneuvering and scheming.
There are some scenes we get where you finally get to see why she’s got a reputation as this terrifying assassin. Before this, there were some moments, but mostly we were just being told how scary she was – this time we were shown, and it actually meant something.
The plot itself was wonderful throughout – right up until the final climatic scene. The mysteries and clues were fantastic, and I didn’t guess anything that was about to happen. I was shocked, emotionally engaged, angry, and overjoyed during all the moments I needed to be.
This is down to the great characterisation of Celaena and the hint-dropping/foreshadowing/build-up before any events occurred. This is a well planned novel that knows exactly when to hit you in the feels.
Except for right at the end. The final “big” scene fell a bit flat for me, which was a disappointment considering how well every other reveal/climax unfolded. It doesn’t ruin the book, but it didn’t really feel like the end of the same story.
Books in a series can have these issues, sometimes. If you’ve got 3,4 or 7 books in a series, how do you keep hitting massive endings every time? Some writers manage it, but even then, some books in a series fall flat.
The final element of this book I can’t neglect to mention is the romance. In Throne of Glass I enjoyed the subtle drama of the love triangle, and again, in Crown of Midnight the plot is not overtaken by angst.
Sure, there’s more of it, but in a good way. The drama around the love triangle develops the related characters in additional ways that allows us to understand them better in various ways, including their backstory, motivations, etc.
It’s a trope, but whatever. It’s done well and is just one element of a much larger story that is endlessly addictive. I won’t be leaving it three years again before picking up book three.
