#Chaol Yrene (it’s giving vibes already)

[acourtofquestions]

YRENE TOWERS YALL

I have finally made it after four books of guessing it’s her every single time any healer shows up

[shadowsxgwynriel]

I wonder why El/riels find it so hard to believe that Azriel could have his own book?

I know that the main argument is that “it’s about the three sisters.” Okay so if that was entirely true then why are there two more books and a novella planned? SJM already said before that she wanted to tell Elain, Azriel, and Mor’s stories and that the next books will follow an individual couple so we know that Feysand won’t be getting the last book and I don’t think SJM plans on giving Mor a full length book so that means the novella will likely be about her which leaves the two books for Elain and Azriel.

Another argument is that “he’s just a side character.” Then how can they think that the final book is about Vassa with Lucien as a love interest? Isn’t she also a side character? And I myself don’t get any romantic vibes or tension from Vassa and Lucien. I think that Feyre and the Suriel had more chemistry than them. I think that Vassa will play an important part in the final book, but as a supporting character and not a main one.

I also see the argument that “SJM doesn’t write male protagonists.” Or that “she won’t change her mind about a couple that has been built up for four books.” And I have to wonder if they’ve read ANY SJM book, more specifically Throne or Glass? Chaol, who is also a side character and happens to be a male, got his own book. I even saw someone say that if Azriel got his own book then it wouldn’t be Gwyn as his love interest because one book isn’t enough time for him to get over Elain, or even Mor, and fall for Gwyn. But I’d like to point out that Nesryn was Chaol’s love interest at the start of his book, he addressed his feelings for Celaena, and by the end he was married to Yrene, which all took place in one book. And what about how in love Chaol and Celaena were in the first two books before Rowan came along? And let me just say that Elide and Lorcan had two books of build up and they had FAR more chemistry, sexual tension, and banter than El/riel could ever hope to have with “four” books of build up.

For me, I can see Azriel getting a book before Elain just for the simple fact that Elain. Is. Not. Ready. She’s just not. All of SJM’s main protagonists have hit bottom or are in dire circumstances at the start of their story. (e.g. Celaena, Feyre, Bryce, Nesta) We’ve barely skimmed the surface of any trauma that may reside inside of Elain, but Azriel has so much in him that he’s basically bursting to have his own book so that he can finally start to heal. And with his book, we can learn more about Elain and Lucien, who both have some healing to do. In fact I believe that SJM once said that “they have some healing to do together.”

El/riels also seem to forget that there’s still TWO more books planned. Since they apparently feel that if Azriel’s book is truly next then somehow that means Elain won’t get a book? But nobody said that Elain wouldn’t get a book, of course she will. She’s just not ready to go on her journey yet.

However, Azriel is more than ready.

[gwyns]

I'm surprised I haven't seen anyone draw parallels between Feyre leaving Tamlin for her Mate to Elain leaving Azriel for her Mate. (Ignoring the fact I hate Rhysand, the books obviously want me to think he's the best person ever so I'll just pretend). Because that's what I see happening.

Elain and Azriel are so clearly rebounds for one another. Elain's still grieving her human love and life, and Azriel is still hung up on Mor. They're both quiet and available, so they jump to each other. That's it. The Azriel POV was purely about what he wants. How he wants to fuck her and taste her. He's just sex to her.

Even if E/riels had a more convincing case, it's not like SJM hasn't pulled a SIKE on us before. If she goes anywhere with E/riel, she'll undoubtedly pull it back. SJM doesn't take Mating bonds lightly, and she's stated that she loves Lucien. And if anyone deserves the happiness of a bond, it's him.

Feyre and Rhys, and Cassian and Nesta, all had relationships/lovers before Mating. Elain "liking" Az now, (which we're not even clear on), doesn't really mean much.

I'd like to hear your thoughts! You're so good at this, and you always explain my thoughts so perfectly. Love and light 💕💕💕

honestly there are quite a few feysand/elucien parallels that people either don't see or choose to ignore.

rhysand was first presented as a villain to feyre, the same could be applied to lucien just bc of his envolvement with tamlin (that he wrongfully gets blamed for btw idk why e/riels love blaming tamlin's mistakes on lucien). feyre was engaged before she went to rhys, elain was engaged before she met lucien. both were/are? still hung up on their former fiances. feysand as a couple represents the night, elucien would represent (at least in part) day. it's literally night and day with them. they're similar but also wholly their own pairing, it's fascinating to me.

anyway i think i will use this ask to spill some of my e/riel opinions sorry about that! alright let's start off with this controversial statement: i don't think e/riel was ever meant to be endgame.

i've seen it said a few times over the years that sarah changed her mind about elucien and while that's possible bc she also previously changed her mind on lucien and nesta one has to ask themselves..... if she wanted to write a mate bond rejection why didn't she stick with her original plan of lucien and nesta being mates? she's said herself that they wouldn't work but she chose to change lucien's mate to someone who compliments him better, and it's to feyre's other sister no less. that tells me lucien is important and powerful, he's mated to one of the sisters, one of the key players of the entire series.

another point is we can assume (and we could be wrong, let me put this here before someone yells at me or vague blogs about it) that sjm had an elucien endgame in mind when writing acowar, right? and when she was touring for that book hadn't she already started work on acofas? and we know that she's never on social media, so if she had an elucien endgame in mind when she wrote all of the supposed e/riel "evidence" where does that leave us?

drama. tension. conflict. angst.

i think that's what it all comes down to. people will say that elucien was a front while e/riel is the true endgame but... it all seems a bit easy, doesn't it? e/riel is right in your face while elucien is silently brewing in the background. what if the bait and switch isn't elucien, but e/riel?

sarah has shown us before that she likes to use her characters as ways for her other characters to end up with their endgame matches. for example, without tamlin, feyre wouldn't have met rhys. and moving over to throne of glass for a second, if not for chaol, aelin wouldn't have met rowan. and in turn, if aelin hadn't given yrene the money she needed in tab, chaol wouldn't have met her.

are the e/riel scenes romantically coded? yes, probably. i'm not saying they aren't, some people picked up on it but i personally didn't get that vibe myself, especially in acowar, but acofas kinda blurred the lines a bit. but even then, i didn't think they'd work out and i still don't understand the arguments that are supposed to be in their favor from that book. elain says she doesn't want a male so that excludes lucien but not azriel somehow? that line means she doesn't want any fae, she wants a human man, she wants graysen. then we have lucien saying he can't even stand to be in the same room as elain which i never read as a "oh i hate this person" kinda way. no, it's bc the whole situation between them is awkward and it obviously makes both of them uncomfortable. it doesn't help when literally all of the inner circle is constantly around them, and being in the night court in general doesn't give them the privacy to get to know each other.

some people like to ask why build e/riel up at all if they're not going to be together? one thing i've always loved about sjm's books is how she can write relationships. now, let's say you meet someone irl and you like them, eventually maybe fall in love with them, and fail to notice how they're not good for you. maybe everyone around you can see it, but you don't. you want a relationship and you're in a decent one, it should work out. like they're not a bad person, this relationship just isn't right for you in the long run. why waste your time? it's life. sometimes things are good for you at a certain point in time but not later on. sometimes you just end up in a relationship that was never good for you. sometimes you fall out of love with someone. you're constantly learning and adapting to things and that's my stance on e/riel. i think they're both looking for companionship and they're the "safest" and most available option.

taking it back to acofas, azriel was relived to not have to get elain a gift and was still gazing longingly at mor. now in acosf he's avoiding talking about her while wanting to fuck elain and getting defensive when helion mentions mor. he's not over her. he's not going to just completely forget 500 years of pining bc elain showed up, especially when they haven't even helped one another to move on. if they had, we would have seen the proof of that. not just "oh she's hot we both want sex", that doesn't make a healthy relationship.

as for elain, she's been taught she has to act a certain way her entire life. she has to downplay her trauma and emotions to appease others so they don't worry about her. maybe she's even had visions involving lucien that upset/scare her somehow and she's reaching out for something else. i think they're both lonely and desperate (at least on az's end) for someone that they ultimately are drawn to the wrong people.

as for the lack of elucien development... this is how i see it. if they're endgame, why would sarah have all of their big moments happen off screen or as a throwaway line in acosf? elain is getting a book, we know this, and with how much of the story is tied to lucien and how much is left unresolved with him, we can also assume he'd get a pov at some point. so imo it makes sense for the fact we got little to no development for them in acosf. no, she wants a huge wedge between them so we can watch them come together. the payoff will be that much sweeter. kinda similar to how she put a wedge between nessian before acosf, sure they had more development in acowar than elucien but i think that's bc sarah knew they'd get the first spinoff. she had to give them that development whereas elucien can wait, a bit longer. it's frustrating yes but i do think we'll get something in acotar 5.

maybe i'm an optimistic fool, maybe sarah did at one point have an endgame in mind for them, but i find it hard to believe she wouldn't see how wrong they are for each other in the long run. she's very good at showing us how well characters fit together with just a few lines.

[anjibooks]

Tower of Dawn by Sarah J. Maas (Book Review)

Imagine this. A rich world of magic, action, fantasy and adventure, with a witty protagonist and an intruiging plot. A story following an extraordinarily powered group attempting to defeat a seemingly undefeatable enemy. Want a story chalk full of cleverly done plot twists-- one that will forever be one of the most spectacular series you will ever read? Yeah, this is the series for you... Kind of. Tower of Dawn is a spin-off// companion novel to the Throne of Glass Series by Sarah J. Maas aka the author of my favorite book of all time as well of two of my favorite series, one of them being this one. Throne of Glass follows cocky assassin Celaena Sardothien as she compeats for her freedom... well, that's the first book. I guarantee the next books in the series get better and better. I promise, if you like fantasy novels, this is the series for you. There's no going back after reading a Maas book, so I'm warning you now, it's going to be hard to find other fantasy novels that compare. If you're interested, I highly encourage you to go check that book out-- it's a great series. That's all I really feel the need to say about it (it's your loss if you don't read it), but if you haven't read this series up to Queen of Shadows (Book 4) or even Empire of Stoms (5), I don't reccomend reading further. This review will contain spoilers for those books, so read them first! Anyway, on to talking about Tower of Dawn. First off, just a quick comment on the over. It's a pretty good cover, it just doesn't look like it belongs in the Throne of Glass series. It looks more like a... Game of Thrones book. I like it, I just don't like how it doesn't fit in. In with the rest of my books. On to the Tower of Dawn book, I'll start this review (not actually starting it anymore, is it?) by saying how I felt going into this book. Eh. Chaol? No too interested in him, especially after reading Queen of Shadows. Then I really wasn't into him. He was pretty much a dick for the entirety of that book. Coming out of this book? I felt the complete opposite. I felt reluctant to end the story, and beyond excited to read the last Throne of Glass book (which is shocking, seeing how much I was already eagerly anticipating that release.) Tower of Dawn follows Chaol Westfall and Nesryn Faliq as they venture south to Antica in search of someone with the ability to heal Chaol's fractured spine. Antica holds the world's best healers, and among them is Yrene Towers, a young woman who has an intense dislike for men of Erilea. Especially those associated with the monarchy. She also has a special connection to a certain blonde, hot headed assassin we all know and love... Basically if you haven't read The Assassin's Blade before this, I recommend you do, because it gives a little back story between Celeana and Yrene. This book is set in a fascinating and rich world, and Maas' world-building are spot on. In every book she improves her technique, and this book may be the best book in terms of world-building yet. As well as character building, there was a whole cast of new characters introduced in this book, and not one of them felt flat. No, instead all of them are well-founded, fascinating characters with different motives driving each of them. I was intrigued to learn more about each character, and still am. I hope to be seeing a lot more of these characters in the future, as well as their mythology and their word in general. This book all around surprised me, the writing, world-building, character-building, and all the technical aspects were phenomenal, as was the plot-- which was intriguing. All in all this book was the epitome of good books, it has everything you could ever want... Except maybe Aelin and Rhysand as principal characters, but hey, I can't be that picky, can I? Not only was this book a great story, it was also not your typical YA story cutout (then again, are Maas' books ever?), its plot went in a direction that I wasn't expecting going into it, and that somehow made the book even better. The relationships in the book were the thing that surprised me the most, I just loved the way they were built, and just the different way the characters saw each other// the different relationships all the characters had. That had to have been my favorite part about reading this book-- it went in a direction I wasn't expecting at the beginning, and not a complete 360 hey I hate this because I never saw it coming direction change. I saw it changing and was kind of like no, is this really happening? It was a change you, as the reader, can really appreciate, because of how it helps further the characters and their journeys. Though, I did also love the world-building. I think I'm now officially in love with Antica. Just everything about it, including the complicated royal family that we didn't see nearly enough of (and trust me, you see a lot of them). Honestly I can see an entire series just set in this world as well. I'm giving Tower of Dawn 9/10 stars. Yeah, it was that good. I absolutely loved it. If you love the Throne of Glass Series and have hesitations about reading this book? Chuck those hesitations out the window because trust me when I say this book will blow you away. (Blow us all away *whistling*) This is not a book you want to miss, and not just because you might get confused when the last book comes out, but also because of just how amazing this story is on its own. Seriously, you'll regret not reading this one. Don't miss out on this fantastic journey. Synopsis: In the next installment of the New York Times bestselling Throne of Glass series, follow Chaol on his sweeping journey to a distant empire. Chaol Westfall has always defined himself by his unwavering loyalty, his strength, and his position as the Captain of the Guard. But all of that has changed since the glass castle shattered, since his men were slaughtered, since the King of Adarlan spared him from a killing blow, but left his body broken. His only shot at recovery lies with the legendary healers of the Torre Cesme in Antica—the stronghold of the southern continent's mighty empire. And with war looming over Dorian and Aelin back home, their survival might lie with Chaol and Nesryn convincing its rulers to ally with them. But what they discover in Antica will change them both—and be more vital to saving Erilea than they could have imagined. SPOILERS   OKAY HOW ON THE EDGE OF YOUR SEAT WERE YOU THE ENTIRE BOOK, WAITING FOR CHAOL TO BE LIKE "YO GUESS WHAT? YOUR SAVIOR? THAT'S AELIN, THE QUEEN I WORK WITH AND AM TRYING TO GET HELP FOR." Like seriously that was me for this whole book. Like WHEN WILL SHE FIND OUT???!!  She finally did, but it wasn't shown in the pages which was SO ANNOYING BECAUSE I WAITED THE WHOLE BOOK FOR THIS!! (Also, side note: how heart breaking is it gonna be when Yrene thinks she's meeting her savior, but her savior has no idea who she is, because it's actually Lysandra?) (Also, is Maas incapable of writing wedding scenes??? Huhhhhh?1) The unpredictable thing I Was talking about above was the whole Nesryn and Chaol thing not working out. I went into the book assuming they were an established couple and came out pleasantly surprised. That's what's so fantastic about Maas-- she doesn't follow the whole established couple thing. It can change at any moment, and when I started to notice a thing between Chaol and Yrene, I couldn't believe it. But then it happened, and I was happy about it. Especially because you know, Sartaq and Nesryn. Can I get a hell yes? That entire time they were out with Sartaq's bird people I was getting a whole Illyrian vibe, which I appreciated. I also loved the whole relationship development between Sartaq and Nesryn, because when you look at Nesryn and Chaol's relationship it was really doomed to die-- he never went to see her family, and it was clear from the start of the book they didn't have that BAM love feel between each other. Back to being out with the bird people, oh my god, that scene where Sartaq didn't fit through the chasm? I almost died when I thought Sartaq was actually gonna die for good. Like nooooo, luckily we saved my baby. But yay for that cuteness between Nesryn and Sartaq. Going into this book I didn't think I'd get attached to the relationships, but look at me. I did. And then that scene where there was a giant wolf I was SO excited because IT'S ONE OF THE CADRE. Nope it was a shoe shifter... bummer, but still, he was a cool guy who's Lysandra's uncle (that was pretty predictable), so I guess it was okay. Also how frustrating is it that we spent the whole book healing Chaol's back only to have it permanently broken again? That irked me, like ugh, all that hard work down the drain. And that Aelin part at the end? SOMEONE GET ME INTO 2018 RIGHT NOW BECAUSE I NEED THIS NEXT BOOK!! Thanks for reading, ​Anj

[tcookies]

my thoughts/reactions while reading Kingdom of Ash

Nooo it’s Aedion x Lysandra all the way

Darrow is such an asshole

Ayyyy it’s Nox!! Ya boi is back!

Damn, everyone is hungry for sex

babies already?!

Rowan please rest

That’s right Elide you give him that cold shoulder mhm

Ugh, darn that was sweet of Lorcan to shred his shirt for her blood

Oh snap that messenger almost revealed Lysandra’s true form omg I seriously thought everyone was going to find out that she’s just been pretending to be Aelin

I need more Ilias but please protect him!

Aelin no queen don’t give up

FENRYYYSSSSS! NOOOO DON’T, FENRYYYYYYYS!!

Oh thank god Fenrys you almost broke my broken heart

wait nooooo Fenrys nonononono please no oh damn it I really thought... 

OH WAIT YESS.. YESSSSS. HELL FUCKING YES DO IT AELIN SAY THE MAGIC WORD. COME ON FENRYS LET’S GO BOIII YEEEEEE YOU GONNA LIVE OR SO HELP ME ahahaha HE LIVES PRAISE BE TO MALA AND AELIN

Wait I still don’t get it: whom did Dorian want to shift into? what did the golden hair mean?

Aw damn Manon & the 13 getting their hands dirty for the fallen :(

KALTAIN?! did not expect you :’(

the Little Folk are so cute but at the same time I envision them as those creatures from the horror film Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark 

Aww Fenrys hugging Aelin tugs at my heartstrings!

LOOOL ofc Aelin you would so raid treasure from the dead but it does make sense yeah

Everyone giving Lorcan the cold shoulder is pretty amusing

I’m on Chapter 39 already?! I feel pretty lost without a Table of Contents

Awww I am absolutely living for the blink communication between Aelin and Fenrys!

I need a longer Rowaelin sex scene please

Ok but the battle at Anielle reminds me of the Battle of Helm's Deep from LOTR, especially when Princess Hasar and her army arrive to flank Morath

NOO AEDION! LYSANDRA! COME ON!

A witch tower?! Holy shit omg I hope no character I know just died in that group of 4k soldiers that are now dust in the wind

Aelin is reuniting with Chaol, Nesryn, Yrene, and Falkan!! Omg oh my fuck nuts it is HAPPENING.

Ok seriously the battle at Anielle's Keep really reminds me of the Battle at Helm's Deep

Manon yaaaas Queen light 🔥 it 🔥 up 🔥

Aedion please hang on gods he's taking the worse of it this whole story

I agree with Lysandra he cannot just apologize and all is forgiven just like that bc seriously it took her to be nearly killed for him to apologize? But at the same time poor Aedion

Fuck you Darrow you worthless pos

Omg is Aelin going to stop the dam with her water powers?! Oh ok that's cool too

Chaol's father is such an ass

Yrene/healers are basically a metaphor for killing the enemy with kindness

ROLFE FUCKING FINALLY DUDE WHERE YOU BEEN BUT AAAYYY YOU CAME THROUGH THANK GODS

I legit started tearing up when Manon and the witches began lighting the hearth fires calling all other witches scattered to heed the call of their Witch Queen and go to war

Major LOTR vibes when everyone started responding to Terrasen's call for aid but ffs Aedion why didn't you call for aid earlier?

Everyone is getting smutty sexy time but Rowaelin :(

Please I need to see more of Ilias, Ansel, Rolfe, Nox and Falkan pleeaassee it's been years

Everyone's going to Terrasen now ahhhhh

Dorian no oh damn it Dorian yes but be careful

WTF Erawan was seeking Maeve and now she just waltzes right to him and now they're conniving together?! Surprised, but also not surprised. Erawan probably doesn't know she's the runaway wife of his brother... they would make such a power couple though

Aw fucking hell Dorian

Dorian wtf you are out of your mind blegh I can't imagine you with Maeve

Dorian agh jfc are you serious. You had one job. One job....

Ohhh I see. I judged you too soon Dorian, nice work!

Awww YEAH BABY. I am literally tearing up. Just when Aedion and co. Thought it was over, Manon swoops in with her army! I can just imagine the entire scene :')

PETRAH IS THE MVP

What no no no oh no I am crying ... the 13 are the true MVP oh God damn it

Bruh I am choking up at the 13's sacrifice and everyone paying their respects I am so close to crying

Bruh I'm listening to the Haunting of Hil House OST while reading the scene where Dorian and Aelin are using the Wyrdkeys and wtf is happening

Oh wtf?! Dorian's father of all people to appear?!

UWWAAH HOLY SHIT THAT PLOT TWIST I NEVER THOUGHT ABOUT DORIAN'S FATHER AND NOOO AELIN

BROOO AELIN JUST PASSED BY FEYRE AND RHYSAND'S WORLD SHE MADE A CAMEO IN THEIR UNIVERSE

Aw man she lost most of her power but guess that's the price to pay :'(

I ALWAYS IMAGINED AELIN RIDING THE LORD OF THE NORTH INTO BATTLE (I was listening to The Hobbit Battle of the 5 Armies OST) AND IT HAPPENED

NOOO GAVRIEL! Man I knew he'd do this for his son 😭

Where is Nox amongst all of this?

Come on Aelin come on you can do this!

Yes Rowan and the Cadre have arrived and--oh crap FENRYS NO NOT AGAIN--ROWAN--MY HANDSOME FAE WARRIORS NOOO

"Dorian" well who would have guessed that was his father's name

Did NOT expect Fenrys to be the one to deal the first blow almost thought it was the killing blow

YRENE IS THE TRUE MVP

"Lord Lorcan Lochan" try saying that 5x fast

I'm done and I feel empty... I feel like the book could have been a bit longer because some moments did feel rushed. I'm still wondering what the hell happened to Nox because he just ghosted halfway through the book and never made another reappearance

There wasn't as many difficult losses as I feared for and that's good but I still cry over the 13 and Gavriel and & Murtaugh