The Assassin’s Blade by Sarah J. Maas

Summary:
Celaena Sardothien is her kingdom’s most feared assassin. Though she works for the powerful and ruthless Assassins’ Guild, she yields to no one and trusts only her fellow killer-for-hire, Sam.
When Celaena’s scheming master, Arobynn Hamel, dispatches her on missions that take her from remote islands to hostile deserts, she finds herself acting independently of his wishes-and questioning her own allegiance. Along the way, she makes friends and enemies alike and discovers that she feels far more for Sam than just friendship. But by defying Arobynn’s orders, Celaena risks unimaginable punishment, and with Sam by her side, he is in danger too. They will have to risk it all if they hope to escape Arobynn’s clutches-and if they fail, they’ll lose not just a chance at freedom but their lives…
A prequel to Throne of Glass, this collection of five novellas offers readers a deeper look into the history of this cunning assassin and her enthralling-and deadly-world.
Review:
I am actually deceased after reading this collection of novellas. In case you don’t already know I am a die hard fan of Sarah J. Maas. So it should be a surprise that I haven’t managed to find time to read The Assassin’s Blade yet. (READ: I have indeed read the rest of the Throne of Glass series, I just hadn’t gotten around to reading this book of novellas.) Mostly I was just waiting for the right opportunity. That right time being four days before the final book in the series, Kingdom of Ash, is released. I am planning to spend the next four days doing nothing but reading (rereading) the Throne of Glass series. Usually, this would be no problem to accomplish, but I’ve become a mother and caring for my two-month-old baby takes priority. Good thing she’s a great baby and sleeps A LOT still.

“That girl wasn’t like wildfire-she was wildfire. Deadly and uncontrollable. And slightly out of her wits.”

So, The Assassin’s Blade actually just ripped my heart out, stomped on it a bunch and then said, here have it back so we can do it again in a few more books. I loved everything about these novellas. I think The Assassin and The Desert was my favorite. I really enjoyed everything about the Silent Assassins. I thought it was a super cool place and I enjoyed watching Celaena learn about herself. It was honestly just really nice to get to see her be happy for once. Even if it didn’t last that long.

“And for that one heartbeat, when there was nothing more to it than that, she tasted bliss so complete that she tipped her head back to the sky and laughed.”

I loved how the novellas were all leading up to something. I liked that they all kind of tied into one another and also tied into the later books in the series. I enjoyed reading about characters that I know we’re going to meet (again) in the later books. It made me just that much more excited to continue rereading these books. I really just loved being back in this book universe. I liked getting to know more about Celaena before she went into the salt mines. Also, getting to see how her relationship with Sam developed was GREAT. I love him, he’s adorable. He definitely didn’t deserve the fate that he got, but yaknow everything happens for a reason.

“He brushed his lips against hers. “I love you,” he breathed against her mouth. “And from today onward, I want to never be separated from you. Wherever you go, I go. Even if that means going to Hell itself, wherever you are, that’s where I want to be. Forever.”

I’m interested to see if we’re going to meet other characters from these novellas in the final book, Kingdom of Ash. Specifically, the friend she made in the desert. I really liked seeing all of the things that happened to create who Celaena was in the first book. I also totally enjoyed all of the little hints that were left for us about who she really is. Nothing that’s obvious unless you already know who she is. I love how fierce and kickass she was in this book, even after she’s been completely broken and given what’s essentially a death sentence.

“She was fire, she was darkness, she was dust and blood and shadow.”

Once again, I love ALL of these characters, even the ones that I actually hate. They’re just written so well. The villain (yes, you know who I mean) is one that’s hard to hate. You want to love him for Celaena’s sake because he’s been there for her for so long, but he’s actually a giant shitbag. This book gave me ALL THE FEELS and I’m totally not over it yet. But I really just want to dive into Throne of Glass, so I’m going to end this here. Also, my baby just woke up, so I have to feed her and I’m not skilled at feeing baby and typing at the same time. So, if you haven’t read anything by Maas go buy them ALL now and read them so you can love her characters as much as I do. Until next time bookdragons.

Keep on reading lovelies, Amanda.

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