#All 8 Throne of Glass books, ranked

Whereas YA books these days cowl each premise conceivable — what we’ve come to discuss with locally as “guidelines fiction” — the style has entertained a number of nice works again when it was simply on the verge of turning into mainstream and commericalized.

Considered one of these was Sarah J. Maas’ Throne of Glass collection. One of the widespread and best-selling books within the scene and an excellent gateway into the style, it is usually an ideal primer for many who wish to dip their toes into speculative fantasy.

The story of Throne of Glass follows a younger murderer free of a brutal labor camp by the crown prince of Adarlan to compete in a lethal match. The winner of the match will get to change into the king’s champion, a private murderer to do his bidding. Our fearless heroine, going by the title of Celaena Sardothien at first of the story, has to navigate this lethal trial, cope with the intrigue of the king’s courtroom, and uncover her half within the grand scheme.

Because the Throne of Glass collection picks up steam, the narrative will get extra advanced and the characters extra layered—which, mixed with the writer’s intricate worldbuilding, turns this into top-of-the-line fantasy books you might come throughout.

After all, very like every other fantasy collection with a number of installments, Throne of Glass additionally had its ups and downs. So whether or not you’re a long-time fan of Sarah J. Moss or simply beginning to get into her work, here’s a definitive rating of each e book in her first main collection from worst to greatest, to present you a basic concept of what every novel is about and the way effectively it was obtained locally.

8. Crown of Midnight (e book 2)

One of many nice issues about Sarah J. Maas as an writer is that she will all the time be relied upon to jot down higher sequels. So whereas the primary e book, the titular Throne of Glass, was a tremendous begin to the collection, many followers contemplate Crown of Midnight even higher; it’s completely paced, a lot darker, and with increased stakes, though the match is over.

Our protagonist finds herself deeply entangled with the undercurrent of the king’s courts, combating on one facet to carry out her job as his private murderer and struggling to undermine his tyrannical rule on the opposite. There’s intrigue, betrayal, and a ton of surprising twists, with Sarah J. Maas actually taking her time to additional set up this fictional world, element its magic system, and arrange the bigger risk that’s about to be unleashed throughout the land.

On high of all of this, Crown of Midnight takes the collection from its journey roots and thrusts it into the world of epic fantasy. However all of that stated, I can’t assist however discover that regardless of its strengths, Crown of Midnight is likely one of the weaker entries within the collection, if for nothing in addition to the truth that all of the sequels succeeding it push the envelope in noticeable methods.

7. Tower of Daybreak (e book 6)

The sixth novel within the Throne of Glass collection takes a detour by specializing in our favourite Captain of the Guard, Chaol Westfall. J. Maas initially supposed to jot down his story as a novella, however she liked the challenge a lot that she finally expanded it right into a full-length novel and had it happen concurrently with the fifth e book, Empire of Storms.

I might say the explanation individuals hate Tower of Daybreak a lot is that they by no means cared for Westfall to start with — and that’s true in its personal proper — however the largest gripe was that you just had been coping with the second-longest entry within the collection, and it was solely a derivative. 

What’s worse, regardless of Aelin and the principle story having little to do with this penultimate entry, the occasions surrounding Chaol’s personal adventures closely tie into the ultimate e book, Kingdom of Ash, so skipping it’s not an possibility. Until, after all, you want to learn the ultimate e book utterly oblivious to sure plot factors and attempt to wrap your head round them as you push ahead, though there’s little to no earlier context explaining any of it.

6. The Murderer’s Blade (prequel)

Studying The Murderer’s Blade is an absolute pleasure. Consisting of a group of 5 tales set earlier than the occasions of the principle books, The Murderer’s Blade facilities round our important heroine and follows her adventures when she roamed Erilea with Sam for firm. These 5 tales, previous her arrest, embrace The Murderer and the Pirate Lord, The Murderer and the Desert, The Murderer and the Underworld, The Murderer and the Empire, and The Murderer and the Healer, all beforehand revealed in e-book format.

There’s plenty of debate within the fandom about whether or not new readers ought to begin by delving into The Murderer’s Blade first. I believe studying about Aelin earlier than she was pressured into the match could make you sympathize together with her in a method that wasn’t doable earlier than The Murderer’s Blade, however that doesn’t imply Throne of Glass can’t stand by itself two ft as a story. Some even choose to go in blind and counsel not going anyplace close to The Murderer’s Blade till after studying the third or fourth books.

At any fee, you possibly can’t skip this prequel, because it incorporates a few of Aelin’s most badass scenes earlier than she picked up the mantle of chief and have become the savior of the world.

5. Throne of Glass (e book 1)

I don’t know what it’s with Sarah J. Maas and her insistence to incorporate a lethal trial in her first books, the place the protagonist has to battle for his or her lives in a collection of more and more tough checks, however in that specific regard, each Throne of Glass and A Court docket of Thorns and Roses eerily parallel one another. 

And simply as Feyre needed to navigate a love triangle in A Court docket of Thorns and Roses with Tamlin and Rhysand, so does Celaena discover herself being yanked between Prince Dorian, who saved her from the jail and obtained her into the competitors, and Captain Chaol, who’s a pricey good friend of Dorian’s and trains Celaena to face the match. Dorian is type and playful, whereas Chaol is aloof and emotionally indifferent, and as Celaena finds herself combating to remain alive and determine the destiny of the realm, she learns that there have to be extra to like than a prepared coronary heart.

From these very first pages, Throne of Glass introduces readers to a compelling protagonist who might be witty and susceptible in addition to competent and lethal. The e book is fast-paced, and the world-building is finished with meticulous care, neither bombarding the reader with too many particulars and exposition nor utterly forsaking the nuances of the bigger world in favor of its action-packed plot. And certain, there are a lot of clichés to be discovered, particularly the generic love triangle and the tonal inconsistencies that plague each debut novel. However finally, Throne of Glass hits the bottom working and serves as the right setup for the remainder of the collection.

4. Inheritor of Fireplace (e book 3)

All the pieces involves a head on this third e book from the Throne of Glass collection. Celaena is touring to Wendlyn on a mission to kill the royal household there, however she has no intention of serving her personal courtroom any longer. In the meantime, again in Rifthold, Westfall grapples with the reality about our heroine’s identification and struggles with himself over his loyalty to the crown and his emotions in direction of Celaena. 

As Dorian involves phrases along with his powers and obligations, Celaena meets Rowan, a strong Fae warrior who helps her grasp her talents and confront her previous. The 2 slowly type a deep bond, one which transcends all the pieces she had with both Dorian or Chaol. The novel ends with Celaena mastering her fireplace talents and deciding to return to Adarlan to overthrow its tyrant king.

Whereas Inheritor of Fireplace is a vital e book by way of character growth for our important heroine, the e book can really feel convoluted at occasions, with a number of factors of view all vying for the reader’s consideration on the identical time. The introduction of Rowan and his evolution from an antagonist to a beloved facet character is the spotlight of the e book, and the ultimate cliffhanger involving Dorian may have you lunging for the subsequent entry simply to see what occurs to everybody’s favourite misunderstood princeling.

Now going by her true title, Aelin Galathynius, our protagonist returns to Adarlan to confront the king. Dorian remains to be imprisoned by way of the Wyrdstone collar, his powers dampened and insignificant, whereas Chaol leads a resistance towards the king from the shadows.

3. Queen of Shadows (e book 4)

Aelin needs to free her cousin Aedion, however the resistance struggles to achieve a foothold towards the king. The e book finally ends with Aelin liberating Aedion after which infiltrating the fort to rescue Dorian. She unleashes her full powers, however right here, Sarah J. Maas does a traditional rug-pulling turnabout by revealing that the individual we thought was the story’s huge unhealthy is nothing however a puppet himself. Aelin reclaims her throne, realizing all too effectively that the battle for Terrasen and Erilea has solely simply begun.

Queen of Shadows will hold you on the fringe of your seat all through its virtually 700-page narrative, and the most important shock is once you attain these final pages and notice this felt a lot, a lot shorter to learn than all the opposite earlier installments within the collection regardless of its size.

2. Empire of Storms (e book 5)

The fifth e book within the Throne of Glass collection picks up the story instantly after Queen of Shadows, with Aelin now racing by means of the continent on the lookout for allies, having accepted her destiny because the rightful queen of Terrasen. 

If there’s one phrase with which I might completely seize the vibe of studying Empire of Storms, it might be “cathartic.” The Throne of Glass collection will not be lengthy by excessive fantasy requirements, however once you attain this fourth e book, you are feeling as if our characters have already been on one hell of a journey, and that it wouldn’t be such a horrible concept to shake issues up a bit and take the plot down an unsure path.

The writer understood this completely and wrote Empire of Storms in a method that slowly builds as much as an epic climax after which delivers on that promise with emotional payoff after emotional payoff. There’s additionally a little bit of overlap once more with the Court docket of Thorns and Roses, by which I imply Aelin lastly learns the reality about Rowan: the truth that they’re Fae mates, a bond extra highly effective than something within the Sarah J. Maas shared universe. (Wait, is {that a} factor?)

1. Kingdom of Ash (e book 7)

The ultimate battle for Erilea is happening throughout the continent, however the queen isn’t there to steer the forces of sunshine towards Erawan’s demons. As Aelin’s buddies launch a determined rescue try to free her from the coffin jail, different characters undergo their respective journeys and put together for the final battle.

In a world-shaking conflict, which can arguably really feel like among the greatest fantasy battle scenes you’ll ever learn, Aelin and her courtroom sq. off towards Erawan to determine the destiny of the world, bringing the collection to a largely satisfying conclusion within the seventh and closing e book, Kingdom of Ash.

On the subject of epic tales of any scale, the concepts aren’t as necessary as their execution. We’ve got virtually seen each story we might ever provide you with retold time and again, so what finally makes a few of these tales stand out is the compelling execution. Sarah J. Maas, for all her pandering to clichés and drained tropes of the fantasy style, is aware of methods to execute an concept in a method that makes it work. And that is maybe the very best reward I might give the collection.