Cuckoo Review: The Assassin's Blade by Sarah J. Maas

   Hello there, my beautiful bookworms, and welcome to my first review! This is crazy overdue, I know, I know, but the past few weeks I've been dead on my feet from traveling back and forth cities for school, then I got sick, then I had my birthday (okay, bad excuse, but still!), then last week I got sick AGAIN and landed in the ER. Today is the first day of my three-week school holiday, so rest assured I'ma start blogging for reals.

   The Assassin's Blade was one of those novels where, two pages in, I was completely hooked and slapping myself for not picking the series up earlier. I had not read the first two books of the series before reading this prequel, and I must say, it did a brilliant job of introducing the world to me. It's not one of those fifty-page novellas that some YA series have that have all these inside jokes or references that only those who have already read the books will understand. This is an honest-to-goodness, solid prequel. 

   Speaking of the Assassin's Blade world, WOW. Hello, world-building! It's definitely a given that once a book has got a map in the first few pages, world-building in the book is some legit shiz. But Sarah J. Maas takes it to Tamora Pierce-level and develops each part of that world beautifully. Towns aren't just points to fill up the map, they're integral to the plot and the culture of the world she's built. Ten thumbs way, waaaay up.

   I'll be honest and say that I came across a review prior to picking up the books that said Celaena wasn't a likable protagonist, and that turned me off. I can see now how some people might view Celaena as unlikable: she's unsympathetic and bratty with a temper that is off-the-charts. But I loved the fact that her moral compass was a bit askew. I loved that she knew she was hot and used it to her advantage. So many protagonists in YA nowadays are just so...straight-and-narrow, that Celaena Sardothien was a breath of fresh air. She's not going to spend chapters of the book pondering the nature of her soul and whether she was born with a streak of evil--Hi, Jace Wayland--she knows who she is, and she's accepted that. 

   The five stories within The Assassin's Blade were all excellent, and if not exactly able to stand on its own, each still was a full-fledged tale. It almost reminded me of those old Disney TV shows that were spin-offs of the movies, how each episode Ariel or Aladdin would go on a new adventure or make a new friend. I absolutely adored The Assassin and the Desert, and I hope that Celly will return to that part of Erilea soon.

   I could gush on forever about this novel, but I'll save some for my Throne of Glass review! I'll try to post a review once every three days--HA. Okay, let's be realistic and look forward to a review every week instead. In the meantime, check out my Instagram @cuckooforbooks for short posts about the lovely world of reading!

xoxo,
Salve

My Rating: 10/10. I am cuckoo for this book!