Throne of Glass

First read: September 2014Not a great start to the series. Celaena is a vain spoiled brat and the book is just soaked in overused tropes. After being brutally exploited in a mine as a slave, she only needs a good bath and a dress to look amazing, apparently. And she's very focused on this aspect and quite proud about it, despite the fact that she's not there to look good, ya know? Priorities. She reminds me of Mac from Darkfever. I could bet SJM was inspired by that series. I still can't fathom how she can be so chatty and flirty when she was just one step away from death at Endovier. Anyone going through that experience could've barely gathered their thoughts and summoned enough energy to open their mouths for a good while. I know it's fantasy, but does she have to be so blatantly unrelatable? Celaena wasn't the only thing that bugged me about this book. The love triangle is ridiculous. Dorian is so stale, I don't see what's so great about him. I also can't see why he fell for her so quickly. Why he trusted her immediately despite the fact that she was, supposedly, the kingdom's deadliest assassin. Then everybody is so bloody gorgeous and masters deadly skills at such a young age. But Chaol's and Nehemia's characters were better. I wasn't too invested in the plot because I was too put off by Celaena's irritating demeanor. I heard the next book's better, so I'm going to give it a try.Re-read: August 2021I finally read The Assassin's Blade novellas for the first time and the collection wasn't that bad so I thought a re-read of the first Throne of Glassmight be worth it. But my experience with it was no better than the first time, I can't bring myself to care about Celaena and her world. I have to accept these books are just overhyped and not for me.