The Assassin's Blade - Book Review
Spoilers ahead!
This book was a particularly painful read for two main reasons:
One. I knew that Sam was going to die, and that it was going to be a painful, heartbreaking death. Honestly, I got through the entire book reciting 'She has Rowan now. Rowan is her mate." and basically chanting 'Rowan, Rowan, Rowan' like a mantra in my head.
But when I thought about it, I felt that they wouldn't have lasted anyway. Because even if she opened up about being Aelin to him someday (which I personally feel, she would never do. At least not in a way where she herself accepts the fact), it wouldn't really strengthen their bond the way it did with Rowan. Rowan not only accepted her for who she is (which I know Sam would have done as well. Eventually.), but also carried the burden with her.
And in the end, it was Celaena who loved Sam. 16-year-old, immature, Celaena who was only a fragment of a person.
They would have drifted apart someday (after all, Rowan is her mate), so perhaps it is better that he died while she still loved him, and hence will forever remain a beautiful memory.
Two. Celaena Sardothien. I almost became one of those people who hated the series around Heir of Fire, or even Crown of Midnight, because let's face it, Celaena Sardothien was starting to became rather annoying. But I was forced to read it till the end owing to the fact that I had already bought all the books. And then well, SJM dropped the amazing character development bomb, Empire of Storms ending happened, and I fell in love with Aelin. To whatever end.
But a return to Celaena Sardothien was a rather jarring change, which I was not wholly prepared for. But I'm glad I got through this highly stressful book because it has helped me understand Aelin a lot, lot better, and realize exactly the kind of losses that turned her into the almost-sadistic person that she was, in Throne of Glass.
Fangirl Rating: 4/5
