What I did this weekend: Fangirling Edition

Tags

crown of midnight, eli hinze, fangirling, heir of fire, sarah j maas, texas teen book festival, throne of glass, ttbf14

Last Monday, I was cruising Facebook (yes, yes, I was wasting time, don’t judge) and I found a post saying that Sarah J. Maas was coming to Austin on Saturday.

After a period of hyperventilation, squeeing, jumping in my chair, and jumping around the room, I went and told everyone I knew, cleared my calender, and grabbed my set of the Throne of Glass books…

My preciouses

…and I told my family in no uncertain terms where I was going to be. On Saturday, my brother was sick, so he couldn’t come. But I went and bought him a set so he could have his own.

The archduchess herself, placing her glorious signature upon the title pages of my brother’s copies.

And would you like to know who took the above image? The utterly epic Hannah, who you all know better as Eli Hinze and I met up with in line to purchase my brother’s copies! We talked and talked about mythology, Throne of Glass, the creepiness of Ancient World leaders, and basically had a blast.

Photographic evidence.

In short, I got to hang out with a great friend, meet one of my idols, and now have three more epic books to add to my Shelf of Signed.

I still can’t believe it.

Can’t freaking believe it.

When the fourth book releases in a year, I mean to get it plus a copy of The Assassin’s Blade and hunt her down at an event so she can sign those, too.

(On a minor note, I still ship Chaolaena, Hannah ships Chaolaena, my brother ships Chaolaena. CHAOLAENA FOREVER!!! ❤ )

Me and Shipping Characters…in GIF

Tags

fangirling, fictional matchmaking, gif, humor, shipping

First, a brief explanation of “shipping”:

Me picking out my ship:

Me waiting for my ship to get together:

Me when my ship finally gets together:

Me when my ship argues:

Me when my ship has a falling out:

Me when a love triangle threatens my ship:

Me when my ship reconciles:

Me when evil forces threaten to tear my ship apart:

Me if my ship sinks:

Me if my ship overcomes:

Me and Book Series…in GIF

Tags

book series, fangirling, gif, humor, reading

Me starting a new series:

Me when I decide I’m a fan of a new series:

Me when I finish the first book:

Me realizing the next book isn’t out yet:

Me when they announce the official release date:

Me when, after moving it back four times, they announce the “official” release date:

Me being forced to wait:

Me when the sequel finally arrives:

Me when I start reading the sequel:

Me when I finish the sequel:

Review: Crown of Midnight (Throne of Glass, #2) by Sarah J. Maas

Tags

crown of midnight, fangirling, fantasy, review, sarah j maas, team chaol, ya, young adult

An assassin’s loyalties are always in doubt.
But her heart never wavers.

After a year of hard labor in the Salt Mines of Endovier, eighteen-year-old assassin Celaena Sardothien has won the king’s contest to become the new royal assassin. Yet Celaena is far from loyal to the crown – a secret she hides from even her most intimate confidantes.

Keeping up the deadly charade—while pretending to do the king’s bidding—will test her in frightening new ways, especially when she’s given a task that could jeopardize everything she’s come to care for. And there are far more dangerous forces gathering on the horizon — forces that threaten to destroy her entire world, and will surely force Celaena to make a choice.

Where do the assassin’s loyalties lie, and who is she most willing to fight for?

Blurb and cover from Goodreads

4 out of 5 stars

I am sorry, I really am, but this will be more of a rant/sob session than a review. This book made me both furious and heartbroken. I kind of feel like I had just went through a breakup which is ridiculous, but I am SO very attached to this story and it hurt me and now I can’t seem to get over it.

The plot:

What can I say about the plot? Well, I started this book in the evening and finished at 3:00 a.m. and that should be all you need to know. I had a lot of trouble prying myself away from this, even though I kind of started hating what was happening in a “how could the author bloody do this to me” way somewhere around the 55% mark. I did think the perspective shifts were overdone, with as many as three perspectives in a single scene, still it was interesting to get multiple views, even if it could be distracting.

The characters:

Can I punch Celaena, please? Really hard and in the face? I wanted to beat some sense into her for her…her obtuseness. Really, girl, get your head on straight. Chaol omitted the truth because he thought he was protecting you whilst Nehemia outright lied (after she promised there’d be no falsehoods between you, might I add) and Chaol is the one you tear into? Then we find out it wouldn’t have mattered if he’d told you or not because Nehemia freaking planned the whole thing. GET OVER IT ALREADY.

I have never liked Nehemia. I know a lot of people do, but I’m at a loss as to why. Yes, she’s an advocate for her people and so on and so forth, but she’s always struck me as an “ends justifies the means” sort and I think she proved me right. :SPOILER: I was supposed to be sad when she turned up dead, but I wasn’t because I never found her relatable or even likeable and am clueless as to why Celanea would go into depression, lying around and doing nothing after she died. I mean, when Sam was killed, Celanea cried herself to sleep then set out to gank the guy who’d done it the next morning. And at the time Sam was the only person in the world she could even call a friend. But when Her Royal Highness gets her throat cut… Really? You’re Adarlan’s Assassin. PULL YOURSELF TOGETHER. :SPOILER OVER:

Dorian…he was okay in this book. I would have liked him, maybe even adored him if it hadn’t been for this one scene toward the end where he’s “glad she was seeking comfort from him instead of Chaol.” Them’s fightin’ words, boy. Alright, so maybe I’m taking the whole “Team Chaol” thing too far. Dorian grows a lot in this book and starts to questions his father’s actions more, becoming his own man and future ruler material. I did like him better in this book than the previous one.

And now we get to Chaol. Oh, Chaol. What can I say about Chaol? Well, you’ve probably already guessed that I love him to bits. He’s brave with a heart of gooey eiderdown under that dutiful exterior and wants to do the right thing, even if he’s a little misguided right now. Self-sacrificial and passionate and courageous and loving and sheer amazing—okay, I’m fangirling, time to stop.

I warned you this would be less of a review and more of a rant. Thinking back, this book stirred so many passionate feelings on my part, maybe it deserves another star for getting me this involved. But I’m mad at it, so I refuse. The ending broke me into itty bitty, jagged pieces and I am kind of angry at Sarah J. Maas. Will I buy the next book? I kind of have to if I want to find out what happens to my OTP and if the king gets his. Oh, and :SPOILER: Celaena and Chaol had better get back together in Heir of Fire, or There. Will. Be. BLOOD. :SPOILER OVER:

Find Crown of Midnight on Goodreads

Find Crown of Midnight on Amazon

Find Crown of Midnight on BN.com