Re-Read on Audio! Okay, so I found another hardback copy with the poster on the inside of the dust jacket so... dad took it over and got it laminated for me and it's on my shelf now. Yes, I'm crazy =) Did anyone else get the Barnes & Noble edition with he beautiful cover art on the inside front pages and the inside back pages? They are beautiful!THIS BOOK IS FREAKING EPIC AND I LOVED IT AND I LOVE ALL OF EVERYONE IN THE BOOK AND I LOVE ROWAN AND ETC AND SO FORTH. THERE WILL BE "NO SPOILERS!"The revelations that came out in the book just blew me away. I was not ready for it, the characters were not ready for it. But, that is Mrs. Maas for you :-) Everyone in this book had a part to play in the epic ending. They all came together whether they wanted to or not and holy sht balls! This book just burned right through me. I loved everyone accept the few arseholes. There were just so many people coming together and it's not over people. I'm afraid Sarah is going to kill everyone I love! I thought all of the characters were played most excellently. I loved Lysandra and Aedion. Manon and Abraxos, Elide and Lochan, Dorian. There are so many more that came together and I want you to enjoy this without me telling certain things. I can't talk much on this review or I will end up giving out spoilers AND I REALLY WANT TO GIVE OUT SPOILERS! The ending . . . . The ending . . . All I can say isI really hope this series ends well, because that ending was messed up and painful. Aelin is a true hero and I really hope the final book doesn't kill me! MY BLOG: Melissa Martin's Reading List

Review to come!

I read the sex scene from this book out of context, and I was left with several questions. here is a sampling of these questions:are they fucking on the beach or in the water?how does he keep touching her back scars when shes lying down on her back, possibly submerged in the water?does Aelin have a hovercraft or really good abs or both?how does she gently place a necklace on a high up part of the beach, where the water can't touch it, from her position right next to the water?is Aelin Elastigirl?if she sucked his dick why did he not eat her out?does Fae culture not allow for reciprocation?is Rowan secretly DJ Khaled?why does he keep trying to bite her?why is she so accepting of his biting kink?does my confusion as to why he keeps trying to bite her qualify as "kinkshaming"?how can a kiss be described as "claiming"? why is possessiveness something both of these characters seem to be turned on by?has anyone ever written a Throne of Glass Fifty Shades of Grey au?why does he keep fucking her after she bursts into flames?how many hot puns did Sarah J. Maas think of while writing about a guy being turned on by his girlfriend bursting into flames?Rowan during sex: oh that's so hot babyAelin: is literally on firewhy does she think about how she loves him so much shed die without him while hes literally just fucking her? what are Aelin's standards?has Aelin ever been played the song "No Scrubs" by TLC?do you think Aelin ever fakes it and just has to light herself on fire?why does he say hes never done it with an equal before? is he aware that out of context, i.e. when I read it, that sounds incredibly creepy and rapey?was the word manhood used as a synonym for dick or did I hallucinate that?am I hallucinating right now?why is the phrase "velvet wrapped steel" sexier than the word "dick"?Aelin: is that a knife in your pocket or are you just happy to see me ;)Rowan: *pulls out a sword wrapped in velvet* it's my velvet wrapped steelhow many fish died while they fucked?what is the average sea turtle egg death count per fuck?in book seven are we going to meet any environmental activists who try to kill Aelin because she and her boyfriend have caused several species die-outs?why were two different sentences within this chapter simply the phrase as he did x and nothing else, making them incomplete sentences?does she have an editor?does this editor have an instagram on which she surreptitiously posts "help me"?how much kinkshaming can I do in one page?more questions that have come to me in the last 24 hours include:did they get any more back scars [mentioned 4384838 times] from the glass they made all over that fucking beach?are you all in the comments section okay? do you need some snacks? a glass of water? let me knowthese are just a few of the questions I had about this passage, it's been fun

4.5 StarsI want to cry my eyes out, throw this book across the room, and hug Maas. This was nuts.------ MILD SPOILERS BELOW (nothing big)------I am completely wrecked but in the best possible way. This book was astounding- so many amazing moments. I do have complaints that I'll explain out below *cough, mush scenes*- but overall, this series is one hell of an emotional rollercoaster and that most definitely continues here. By the way... I've decided this book is basically what were to happen if the Avenger and LOTR had a love child. This picks up immediately after Queen of Shadows- Aelin has left King Dorian and Adarlan behind so that she can reclaim Terassen. Only, the lords that still exist there have decided she is not fit for the throne - regardless of the fact that the world is going to hell and someone needs to fight. She is forced back out of her home and decides that regardless, she will gather an army and protect her home. She vows to make an army of thieves and commoners - and call in old favors. (Definitely read the novellas before diving into this book!) First off, the first 45% of this book is so much fun. Why? Yes, Aelin's journey is special, but mostly because of the new characters!We have Elide on the run to Terassan to find Aelin.. but Lorcan is stalking her. Dorian was left in Adarlan but of course, we find out he's about to be attacked. By who? Witches. Guess what witch shows up? Oh hell to the yes. Guess who else shows up? You'll have to see. Guess who is bugging the ever living crap out of our dearest Aedion? Lysandra. And no matter what he says, he likes it. So yes.. new relationships.. oh what a wonderful web of personalities. And the fight scenes? Bloody hell are they epic. Not only that, but we have several returning characters AND locations from the novellas that bring back some serious nostalgia. THE CHARACTERSAelin herselfGood lord. She surprised me so many times in this book. First of all, when the lords rejected her as queen - I thought she was going to lose it. But she didn't. She was a queen in heart - and her words back to them gave me chills. After that though, she began to drive me a little crazy. She's just as snarky and secretive as she's always been, and I found myself getting a little frustrated with her. Now, I'm sorry I ever judged her. She's absolutely the most selfless person in this entire series - Dorian close behind her. You won't know why until you finish this book... but good heavens, this girl. I actually cried over the insane, heart-wrenching ending of this book. Don't even try to guess what happens. Don't even try.Additionally, I've never been more thankful that she knows how to tell someone off and get on people's nerves. Trust me.. it is well deserved for some of the villains. No one can rattle them like she can. Lastly, her story just really gets me. This girl knows pain like the back of her hand.. and Maas knows how to write that. Aelin's development throughout this series is riveting. It hits me on a personal level. I get so emotional thinking about who she is now. I would just warn you to be careful before judging her too harshly because you never know what she really has up her sleeve.Rowan + Aelin relationshipI love them both individually and together - but I found myself not caring about their mushy scenes together, AT ALL. Yes, yes they were cute at times but I think the other characters overshadowed them so I was more excited for other POVs. I just didn't care about their togetherness. They lost the spark for me.LysandraA new favorite character, hands down. Not even just because of her snarky little relationship with Aedion - she bas become all sorts of badass. I LOVE HER.ManonOH. MY. HEAVENS. THIS. GIRL. You thought she was cool before? I was floored by her. Floored. I have never loved her more. And boy did she scare the hell out of me more than once.DorianI think a lot of people are upset that he's a King now but doesn't seem to have a lot of say around Aelin. I think it is more because he's having to heal and regain himself after what happened in book 4. He's still totally awesome and a little cinnamon roll - though he's a bit more devious than I initially thought. Dang. AedionStill my brother from another mother. Precious. Loves to rattle Aelin. Someone's got to. Lorcan / ElideHOOOOboy. Not what I expected. Totally unpredictable and complex... BOTH of them. I loved their dynamic and their POVs so much. I did not expect them to take a front seat in this novel but it was awesome. ChaolYes, yes- due to spoilers - most people know that he's not in this book. Yes he's a favorite of mine and always will be. But you know what? It makes sense that he isn't in this book. It is very obvious that he is coming back. He has to go HEAL and he's gathering an army. I see why Maas made this decision and it was never to brush him off. I'm willing to bet he's going to play a big role in the next book. Either way? He's her character - and I think its kinda sad people are saying Maas got tired of him b/c of Rowan. Really guys? The series isn't done yet -and he's getting his own novella for the time missing. Have you even heard her talk about him? She adores him. ***UPDATE... Oh wait, yes he is in the book. He's got a special little short story- check out Cait's review for the link! (bottom)The VillainsThis is what I was most excited about because if a book doesn't have good/convincing/chilling villains, I always seem to fall disinterested. First of all, we have Erawan who we finally see for his true self. Total Lord of the Rings vibe. I had chills. He's going to be so legit as a villain- but he's still being developed. Then Maeve... I did NOT see what she had up her sleeve coming and holy hell. Both of them are more complex than you can imagine. THE OVERALL PLOTI had a ton of fun going through it. After the first half of the book - it seemed to drag a little bit and I found myself getting a little disappointed - but I think it was because of the jet lag after the first big of craziness. That being said- it wasn't long before things started to pick up again and OH MY STARS the last 20% of the book.... I have no words other than it completely destroyed me. But SO good... so epic. Okay yes- some people are saying this book has a few ACOMAF vibes to it. It is true, but at the same time- the storyline is so different that I don't care one bit. Either way, this series is so fun that the flaws don't bother me. This book shook me up so much by the end that I still haven't picked up another book yet and it's been a few days. Also, I honestly hope you all stop judging this by mere spoilers because it won't do it justice at all. Writing a few notes on what happened won't even scratch the surface. I've said it before but Maas just isn't the author for everyone- but I would just be careful to pass judgments with just the spoilers. Other things to look forward to?Rowan/Dorian friendshipELENA POV (HELL YES)Deeper understanding of the pastHuge plot twistOMGISJ:LSJKDF ABRAXOS IS AMAZING AND I LOVE HIM AND NEED HIM IN MY LIFE.The return of characters/locations from the novellaA TV SHOW!!!THE STEAMY SCENESYes, there is a warning for mature content on this book (thank you publishers for not throwing people in blindly.) Honestly this is my biggest complaint for the book. They only detracted from the story. They were completely unnecessary to the plot. I almost removed a star for this, BUT thankfully, they can be easily skipped. If you'd like to know the page numbers for them - just message me and I'll give you a heads up if you prefer not to read them (or Cait's review has the page numbers and is linked below). Also, I don't love how Maas describes everyone being so "attractive" BUT she makes fun of herself on that note. A particularly favorite moment of mine is when Manon is on Aelin's ship for a time and Aedion welcomes her by saying something like "Oh, you'll fit in fine here. There's an ungodly amount of attractive people on this ship." I'm also aware of the diversity issues of this series and I think its terribly sad the way some of it was executed. I'm hoping most of it was unintentional and that Sarah will be much more intentional in future books. Last notesOnce this book has been out for a while- I'll probably write a bit more on my thoughts towards the ending and more - as well as pulling in some quotes. Overall, this series epic and... insane. *See Cait's Review for lots of additional information on this book including the short stories/bonuses! *And for a blog post containing some of the awesome fan art- check my blog below *AAAND I'm still not OK after this book sooo lets chat if you feel the same.SOUNDTRACK!I made a TOG playlistSome of my favorites are: -Bleed for me by Digital Daggers (This is 100% Aelin)-The Leftovers by Johan Agebjorn (I get chills - total Erawan vibes)-The songs by Gareth Coker - guys his album "Ori and the Blind Forest" could legit be the soundtrack/theme for this entire series. Not gonna lie- I'm lame enough that I totally had it on repeat while I read this entire series and now it makes me emotional.Check out the TOG playlist HERE I also made fireheart bookmarks (see my etsy link below!)My Blog ~ Instagram ~ Twitter ~ Etsy

Brilliance. Sheer, pure brilliance. This is what this book is. Everything I wanted and everything I didn't know I wanted. It's a whirlwind of emotions. Quite probably, the best in the series. Full review to come.