Book Review: Heir of Fire (Throne of Glass #3)

Heir of Fire (Throne of Glass #3) by Sarah J. Maas
Publication Date: September 2, 2014

She was the heir of ash and fire, and she would bow to no one.

Celaena Sardothien has survived deadly contests and shattering heartbreak—but at an unspeakable cost. Now she must travel to a new land to confront her darkest truth...a truth about her heritage that could change her life—and her future—forever.

Meanwhile, brutal and monstrous forces are gathering on the horizon, intent on enslaving her world. To defeat them, Celaena must find the strength to not only fight her inner demons but to battle the evil that is about to be unleashed. 
You know those books where after you're done reading, you just need to take a few moments, or days to process what happened because the book is just so amazing that you can't fathom that it's over? Well, Heir of Fire is that book. The story picks up several weeks after Celaena left Adarlan. Ms. Maas's writing flows effortlessly, and you will never want to stop reading. The pacing is fantastic, and there is never a dull moment. This novel is one non-stop thrill ride that will instantly sweep the reader off his/her feet, and they will never want to stop the ride.

This story is much different than the previous two novels in this series. This tells the story of a broken girl, who while strong on the outside, is utterly broken apart on the inside. This novel tells the story of a girl who is braving through her life, but has absolutely no direction of where she wants to go, what she wants to do, or who she can trust. Living with the biggest secret that she has been pushing down for 10 years is no easy feat, and that secret is finally rearing its ugly head. There are consequences to every action, and Celaena must deal with her actions. One of my favorite parts of this entire book was watching the development of Celaena's character over the course of the book. She begins the story as a broken person, someone who isn't the brave, tough assassin we have come to know in the previous books. Don't worry, she is still that way around others, but her internal thoughts are anything but. She is living with the guilt of actions, but also carrying with her the death of several relationships, those of her best friend and lover. Celaena is forced to confront her powers and hone them if she wants any answers, and for her this is one of the most difficult challenges she has ever faced. After all, how do you give into powers that you are afraid of? As we watch Celaena develop and come into her powers, the results are that of awe and wonder. She truly comes into her own, and it all ends in a fiery conclusion that leaves a new Celaena standing tall and proud. However, she also learns to let others in, and perhaps this is the most important lesson she learns in the entire book. This is only the beginning for her character, and I suspect she will be even stronger, braver, and more badass in the next book.

Because Caelena is away from Adarlan for the entire book, we see the story from Dorian, Chaol, and several other new characters' POV. While balancing so many perspectives might overwhelm many authors, Ms. Maas handles it with such a grace and excellence, it truly shows her extreme talent as an author. Chaol has separated himself from Dorian, and he too undergoes a great growth during the story. I loved seeing his side of things, and how he handled everything that was thrown at him. He truly becomes a different person by the end of the story, and I am still rooting that he and Caeleana will come out alright in the end. Dorian finds love in an unexpected place, and I loved watching the romance bloom. It was so sweet and gave a nice light feeling to those scenes in the midst of the heavier nature of the book. It was also nice to see him "moving on" from Caelena. Dorian finds someone he can trust in Chaol's absence, and Dorian changes immensely as well because of this. He truly shows signs of a king in this novel.

As I said, there are several new characters in this story, one being Rowan. And I absolutely ADORE his character. I loved every single sarcastic, brooding moment, and boy do I want more of him. In the beginning, he is infuriatingly stubborn and relentless with Caelena, but there's a point where he opens up, and dear Lord, it made me love him even more. He is such a badass character, and the perfect fit for Caelena. While at first I thought he was a potential love interest, I will spoil this for you and tell you flat out that there is nothing but strong friendship between the two. Personally, I thought everything about their relationship was handled perfectly, and Ms. Maas wrote about true friendship; one where the two people would do anything for each other, and see each other through till the very end.

Even though this book is written in third person, you honestly can't tell. A lot of times, people say that in third person, you aren't able to connect to the characters as easily as a first person novel would read. However, this is not the case in anyway here. You feel every single emotion, every single heartbreak, and every single struggle these characters are going through, and all you want to do is take all the characters and place them in a nice situation so that they would be away from all of the tragedy that they are facing. You want to make everything better for them, even though you know it's impossible. Nevertheless, by the end of this book, you will feel so much more connected to the story and the characters that you will want to see them through to the end (not like you didn't want to before though).

Now let's talk about this ending. The ending is so explosive, so full of twists, and so utterly devastating that your mouth will be left hanging open and you will have tears in your eyes. Every single character has their own separate ending in a way, and it proves that Ms. Maas is just getting started with torturing us and the characters. Trust me, you will NEED and WANT the next book right away after you finish this story, because even though this novel is a whopping 565 pages, it's not enough. It will never be enough.

I highly recommend this book to all fans of the Throne of Glass series. This is yet another exciting installment, and is not to be missed. You will be taken on a ride full of twists and turns; one filled with suspense, intrigue, action, adventure, and love. You will be left with a longing for the fourth book, and will want to go back and reread this book as soon as you're finished. And you'll want to after the huge cliffhanger that ends this book. This is fantasy at its finest, and doesn't disappoint!

Happy reading :)

~Cassie