Review: Heir of Fire by Sarah J Maas

Goodreads summary:

Consumed by guilt and rage, Celaena can't bring herself to spill blood for the King of Adarlan. She must fight back...

The Immortal Queen will help her destroy the king - for a price. But as Celaena battles with her darkest memories and her heart breaks for a love that could never last, can she fulfil the bargain and head the almighty court of Terrasen? And who will stand with her?

***SPOILER WARNING***

If you have not read Throne of Glass or Crown of Midnight, this post may contain spoilers.

Heir of Fire is quite a long book, and its pace is definitely slower than Throne of Glass and Crown of Midnight. There wasn’t so much mystery in this book as the previous two, but it really didn’t need it. There was more action to compensate.

Several new characters are introduced in this book, my favourite being Rowan. Rowan is a fae prince and warrior who teaches Celaena how to use her abilities properly. He starts out as quite a hard person, only speaking when needed, and giving Celaena one hell of an ass kicking whenever she tries to land a blow on him (she believed she could, and tried to prove it). Slowly, as she opens up to him, he does the same and the two realise that they are actually quite compatible together, and a friendship grows into something rather unbreakable. He is not a romantic interest for Celaena, but rather a friend to fill the gap that Nehemia has left. And it’s beautiful.

Another new character we meet is Manon and the other members of the witch clans. I really didn’t like them.  I guess this is to be expected, because they are to be the King’s pawns, but they really slowed down my progress through the book.  I found them to be quite dull and every time I came to a chapter involving these characters, I’d set the book down. Eventually, I just decided to plough my way through those chapters and just go for the remaining portion of the book.

We also meet Sorcha, who is a healer at Rifthold. She has technically been in the previous books, but was just a nobody healer until Dorian finally notices her. He befriends her, as she can mix up a tonic to keep his magic at bay. She turns into a romantic interest for him too, which I think is necessary for him to realise that he is over Celaena.

There is also a formidable new foe to worry about too. These creatures are very much like the creature Celaena and Dorian meet in the chambers below the library in Crown of Midnight, only much stronger and are killing demi-fae. Celaena’s first meeting with one forced her worst memories to surface, and to say it didn’t go well is an understatement.

Aedion is another new character. He is a soldier for the King, but is working from the inside to overthrow him. He strikes up an alliance with Chaol and they plan ways to get Dorian and Sorcha safely out of the castle, since Chaol is leaving for Anielle anyway. Aedion is the cousin of the missing heir of Terrasen (who we learn is actually Celaena in Crown of Midnight) and is striving for the day when she is finally Queen. Although quite a no-nonsense character, I found him to be likeable.

The book is divided into three plot lines, one following Celaena and Rowan, one following Chaol, Dorian and Aedion and the other following Manon and the witch clans. Celaena and Rowan are thrown into battle before setting off for the Queen’s palace, Chaol, Dorian and Aedion come face to face with the King, and the witch clans are competing for the highest rank amongst themselves to prepare for when they fight for the King.

Some of these events go well.

One does not.

Overall, this book was excellent and despite the slow going, I still give it a 5/5 rating and can’t wait for Queen of Shadows later this year!