The Assassin's Blade by Sarah J Maas is a collection of prequel novellas leading up to the first novel in the Throne of Glass series. We join Celaena Sardothien as her conscious gets the better of her and she starts rebelling against the King of the Assassins unknowingly starting her own downfall from her place as Adarlan's Assassin.Join Jen and Ellie as they dive into the underworld, discuss what prequels add (or remove) from a narrative, and detour to the best horses for a desert.
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Crown of Midnight
"Some things you hear with your ears. Others, you hear with your heart."Crown of Midnight is the second book in the Throne of Glass series by Sarah J Maas, and we stay with Celaena as she navigates going from Adarlans Assassin to the Kings Champion and finding where her allegiances lie.Jen and Ellie discuss how the world expands, the use of tropes and construction of plot, and most importantly, would they jump through a portal to another dimension for a puppy?
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Throne of Glass
"They’d gazed at him adoringly, while she just looked at him like a cat watching a mouse."Throne of Glass by Sarah J Maas is the start of the high fantasy series phenomenon that dominates booktok and bookstagram. We meet Celaena Sardothien, Adarlans Assassin and current slave in the Endovier salt mines, as she agrees to compete for Prince Dorian to be the Kings Champion in return for her freedomJoin Jen and Ellie as they look at the characters, writing style, and debate how well they'd do at assassin training.
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Circe
Each spell was a mountain to be climbed anew. All I could carry with me from last time was the knowledge that it could be done.Circe by Madeline Miller brings us back to ancient Greece and follows the nymph Circe, a powerful witch who is at war with her own divinity. A side character in the Odyssey, Circe takes centre stage as she stuggles with her exile and decides what kind of person she wants to be.Jen and Ellie set out across the seas in search myth retellings, character development, and how they'd fair against a baby minotaur.
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House of Flame and Shadow
House of Flame and Shadow is the third book in the Crescent City series by Sarah J Maas. Bryce finds herself in ACOTAR world with the others trapped by the Asteri. They find the final pieces of the Asteri puzzle and figure out what to do with this new and dangerous knowledge.Jen and Ellie return to Midgard and discuss character agency, progression and growth, before debating their chances of survival.(Jen would like to apologise in advance.)
A fantasy book club with a survival twist!Join Jen and Ellie as they discuss fantasy books - spoilers and all - from plot and language, to themes and character arcs, before taking a look at the challenges in the world and seeing if they have the skills to survive them. Can horse riding set you up for success at dragon riding school? Will scheduling skills help in managing armies? Is everything possible with a can-do attitude??? (No. Definitely not.)Part book review, part break down of the skills needed to truly be the main character. Let's see if we survive this!