Mini Review: The Assassin's Blade by Sarah J. Maas

Friday 8 January 2016

The Assassin's Blade by Sarah J. Maas
Published: March 2014
Rating:
Goodreads | Book Depository
Celaena Sardothien owes her reputation to Arobynn Hamel. He gave her a home at the Assassins' Guild and taught her the skills she needed to survive.

Arobynn's enemies stretch far and wide - from Adarlan's rooftops and its filthy dens, to remote islands and hostile deserts. Celaena is duty-bound to hunt them down. But behind her assignments lies a dark truth that will seal her fate - and cut her heart in two forever...

Explore the dark underworld of this kick-ass heroine and find out how the legend begins in the five page-turning prequel novellas to the New York Times bestselling Throne of Glass series.


I knew that meeting Sam Cortland was going to be heartbreaking and I was not wrong.

I held on to The Assassin's Blade to read after I had finished the main books in the series and it was a really nice introduction to Celaena's background. After reading the other books, it's alluded to that terrible things happened in her past, and we do get a lot of insight into those events, but these novellas take us through it chronologically. It almost felt like reading another full book in the series because the novellas interconnect so well.

The main reason I was really looking forward to reading this was to finally meet Sam Cortland. We know that he was Celaena's first love and that it doesn't have a happy ending but that was not enough to prepare me for how sad it would be. I loved their relationship. I like that we have a beginning where their relationship is explosive and not romantic and that we get to see that progress and change over time. Their relationship felt so genuine and that just makes it all the worse when it's ripped apart. Arobynn has always been evil and so completely messed up and this book further fuels my hatred of him.

I highly recommend this if you've read the other books in the series, or are thinking of starting up the series, as it provides an essential background to Celaena to help you understand her actions and motives. The writing is as good as ever which can always be expected from Sarah J. Maas.

“She would tuck Sam into her heart, a bright light for her to take out whenever things were darkest.” 

Have you read the Throne of Glass series? What about these novellas? Did meeting Sam break your heart just as much?!


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6 comments:

  1. I read The Assassin's Blade novellas before I picked up Throne of Glass and I sometimes wish I hadn't read them until after because I'm still so destroyed over Sam. This series, man, it kills me.

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    1. I'm glad I waited but probably would have appreciated some mentions in the main books a bit more if I'd read this first. It totally kills me too, there's always something!

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  2. I felt like I understood Celaena so much more after reading this! It broke my heart but it was so worth it! Great review!

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    1. Me too! It was so nice to get that background information to know why she is the way she is. Utterly heartbreaking but so worth it to meet the lovely Sam if even only for a little while! Thanks! :)

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  3. The Assassin's Blade was so painful. I loved Celaena and Sam more than anything. I always was a huge Chaolaena shipper, but Sam surpasses everyone. I loved them together. It really is heartbreaking.
    But I really loved seeing background on Celaena and how she was back in her assassin days. It was something I was always curious about, as in the series we don't get to see much of assassin Celaena or how she became Adarlan's assassin.
    They did fit together so nicely that it really felt like a cohesive story and not really choppy at all.
    Great review!
    Olivia @ Fluttering Pages

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    1. Oh god me too. I've always been team Chaol but Sam was just so lovely and even though I knew what was coming, a part of me kept hoping it wouldn't! It was definitely nice to see more of her past and I think it really helps to understand her mind a bit better.
      Thanks! :)

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