Heir of Fire

"She was the heir of ash and fire, and she would bow to no one."

5 STARS

This book is without a single doubt one of the best books I have ever read. Reading this series took me through a roller coaster of emotion, and it was pretty quick considering it took me all of a week to read the entire series (or what is published of it at least), but I loved every minute of it. I felt that this book stood out from the previous two, not only because of the multiple storylines woven into a single book compared to multiple POVs in a single setting, but also because there was SO. MUCH. GROWTH. Each of the characters grew and grew throughout this book, having their own obstacles and issues of confidence, betrayal, action, love, and so on, but I thought that this installment was also quite a bit darker than the others, and perhaps that's just my own personal opinion, but it seemed to be far more bloody and heart wrenching and deeper than Throne of Glass and Crown of Midnight. CHARACTERS In this book as I said, each character held onto major character growth, and we also got introduced to several new characters in this book, including Rowan, Manon, and Sorscha as new major players. With this book we saw a totally different side of Celaena than before; where we're used to her constant swagger and confidence, she is completely and utterly broken for a good portion of this book, though she does put on quite a show for anyone watching her until she finally cracks. She was self-loathing, depressed, and extremely vulnerable in this book, and I think that it gave the reader a better look into who she really is under her well maintained guard, and I think that she became inherently more relatable...well for a fantastical assassin that is. On to Chaol. I hate to say it, but the guy got under my skin a majority of the book with his torn loyalties. Now, yes, I understand that his loyalties are torn, but I also think that he should have been able to choose relatively quickly after he found out all the horrors his king is committing, but I guess someone in his position would want all the facts before acting on something that will forever change your life. BUT, I still think that he showed a lot of growth and promise in this book, opening himself up more after the utter loss of his love for Celaena, and even if the two don't wind up back together, they'll be able to get along...maybe. DORIAN. MY GOODNESS MY DORIAN. A good portion of this book centered on Dorian and his mission to control his magic. I think that this guy gets the title for the most character development I have ever seen in years. He went from being, well, an arrogant bastard to put it lightly, to someone people could rally their faith in as a king, and it was AMAZING. I think it was very interesting that we got to see a lot more of his progress through not only trying to suppress his magic, but understanding that there might be a reason NOT to suppress it, but rather to accept it as a part of him. We also got to see a new romance in this novel with Dorian and Sorscha, which I fully supported until (view spoiler), though I wonder if he still will try to connect Adarlan and Terrasen with a marriage between him and Aelin/Celaena. Manon has quickly and totally become my favorite character of this series. She's badass, a witch, and smart. I thought that she was extremely well developed and I loved her relationship with Abraxos, who made me laugh more times than I can count with his sarcastic and bitchy responses to her training him. I also loved the relationship between the witches and the covens themselves, the War Games, and really I loved every time her POV came up simply because it left me awestruck every time. Maybe it's not good that my favorite character is a blood thirsty witch who eats raw mountain goat meat, but no changing it now. Rowan is also a new character, a Fae Prince and warrior who helps Celaena unlock the Fae part of herself. I enjoyed this character, but I couldn't really connect with him as much as I could the others, mostly because he was such an ass for about two thirds of the book, but it all turned around for the last bit. I look forward to seeing him with Celaena in her new court once they reunite in Terrasen. PLOT I thought that the plot of this book was well thought out and well balanced, though I think some parts were a bit dragging and could have been left out (I mean this book is BIG, but I'm not complaining, really). I loved that we learned more about Erilea and its history in this, and that pieces of Celaena's past were slowly brought to light rather than a long explanation with lots of information at once. Overall I thought that it was well done and well executed, though a bit slower than the first, but better than the second for me. OVERALL As a whole, I absolutely LOVED this book and I can't wait for book four, which will be FOREVER from now, but I'll wait up till midnight to get it on my nook for sure!