Sarah J. Maas’ “Throne of Glass” Rekindled My Love of YA

After seeing and hearing it recommended a thousand times, I picked up Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas. I’ve seen these books prominently highlighted in book stores each time there was a new release, but I was a stubborn soul. I tend to like sci-fi better than fantasy and I tend to lean toward adult fiction over YA.

Subsequently, I was very reluctant to dip my toe into this lengthy fantasy series.

However, I spent the last two months doing in-depth research on fiction reading habits. I interviewed 126 people with my research team and at least 20 must’ve mentioned Sarah J. Maas. If that’s not a warming volume of recommendations, I don’t know what is.

I admittedly spent years avoiding YA books.

I moved away from YA books in my last year of high school, found myself choked in classics and literary fiction through undergrad, and it’s only been in the years since I graduated that I really rediscovered reading as a hobby. It was a wonderful rediscovery, but I have been reading mostly adult fiction.

I decided to give a fantasy YA a chance. Though sci-fi is more of my go-to genre, I loved this book.

The character development progresses hand-in-hand with the characters’ relationships flourishing.

I was very worried that our protagonist, Celaena Sardothien, was going to be a Mary Sue. However, as the story progressed, I really enjoyed seeing how she navigated the trials she faced. She’s driven, but she’s also realistically afraid of real threats. Seeing her lose sleep and struggle to regain her former strength throughout the book makes her feel relatable, even if she is a very adept assassin. There is a slight disconnect between the warmer side of Celaena’s disposition and what she’s really supposed to be, a cold-blooded assassin, but the story does its best to remedy these paradoxical traits.

We also have Dorian, the dreamy prince character. This is an odd critique, but I kind of like that Dorian is a verified and bonafide womanizer. Because he needed some kind of fault, he’s otherwise too perfect. Last, we have Chaol, the Captain of the Guard. Though I enjoyed seeing him and Celaena get closer throughout the story, I found myself needing to exercise my suspension of disbelief a little harder in his case since he’s only 20 but already a captain.

Nevertheless, the character interactions are a delight to read. They each have unique voices and the pacing of the story really helps the reader see how all the friendships and sparks of romance develop.

It was interesting, quick-moving, and had just the right balance between plot and romance.

I always worry with YA that the romantic trials are going to outshine the rest of the story, but that wasn’t the case here at all — it was a very well balanced story in that respect. I loved how Maas handled the romance. It’s developing so nicely without it feeling forced or being in too much focus.

I think I’m getting a better sense of how to write a subplot romance, too. It’s partially about really highlighting and making your character see and appreciate the little things that make the other character unique. I almost feel like a good romance is rooted in mutual character exposition—watching the gradual way two characters get to know each other.

I loved how the setting was there from the beginning, but the lore didn’t start really coming into focus until later in the book.

I am very allergic to exposition dumps, so I was impressed with how naturally and organically the world building and lore expanded as the story went on. I was already engaged with the characters and plot when the lore came into greater focus, so I was able to enjoy it without feeling like it was slowing the story down.

My only small criticism is that the ending was somewhat predictable.

While the ending was slightly disappointing to me, I think that can be hard to avoid in any story where the protagonist is in a tournament-like competition. Beyond that, though some interesting things happened to spice up the anticipated ending, it still felt like it fell a bit flat to me. Regardless, I feel like this is a common thing in long series, and it’s not a dealbreaker for me.

There are certainly moments where you have to wonder how plausible for teenagers and very young-20-somethings to have the prowess or rank they possess. Toward the end of the story, a few more issues of plausibility emerge. Regardless, it was nothing so glaring that I’d stop reading the series. The book is still quite enjoyable as a whole, despite these small drawbacks.

My closing thought is that I need to get my hands on the next book.

I loved this book and I’m currently debating between getting a box set or buying the rest of the books individually. I am undeniably hooked, that much is clear. It was a well-written book that I really enjoyed the pacing. Beyond that, I’m really eager to keep reading and find out what happens next for these characters.

But most of all, this book made for a delightful reawakening to YA. I dipped my toe back into YA to read Skyward by Brandon Sanderson. I was looking to get a young teenager into reading it felt like it was my duty to read the book before recommending it, just in case it wasn’t as good as the hype. I sped through it in a few days, it was well-written and exciting.

Then I started reading the Arc of a Scythe series by Neal Shusterman. That really made me realize that I spent the last several years judging YA too harshly by sweeping cliches. This entertaining and interesting start to the Throne of Glass series has really reminded me how deep, complicated, and intriguing YA novels can be.