Empire of Storms

by Sarah J. Maas

I actually finished this 4 days ago, but it's been CRAZY in my world. This is the first chance I've had to put this up.

This book was amazing! It started where the other left off and kept going. I was full of twists and turns, just like the others, but I think Sarah J. Maas upped the ante some more. She brings in new characters but also some old ones that Celaena once knew. This book ends with a HUGE cliffhanger, and again I'm left waiting for the next one.

There is a small difference in this book. It starts with a prologue of sorts, going back in time to when King Gavin and Queen Elena were trying to defeat Erawan, a Valg King who was left in the world and was trying to take over.  It hints at how Elena and Gavin (Aelin's and Dorian's ancestors) contain Erawan. Unfortunately, as we all know, Erawan escapes and now Aelin and Dorian and everyone else have to deal with him.

Aelin and her court make it to Terrasen, her homeland, and meet with lords just to find out that they don't think she should be queen. She leaves, promising aid if they need it even if they are turning their backs on her. She travels to a coastal town with her court (Rowan, Aedion, and Lysandra) and causes some trouble. Brannon, a long dead ancestor/god/Fae, visits her and tells her to find the Lock. Only with the Lock can the Wyrdkeys be placed back in the gate. They decide to head south to Skull Bay where Rolfe, the Pirate King, has promised to kill her if she should return. But she needs his help and comes up with a very creative way to get it.

Meanwhile, Erawan wants Dorian who sits alone in the shattered glass palace. He sends the witches to sack Rifthold, destroy the people, and capture Dorian, bringing him to Morath for Erawan to use. Manon, for reasons she doesn't understand, races to Rifthold and kills a witch to prevent Dorian's death. She helps him escape, sending him with Rowan. (Aelin heard about the upcoming destruction of Rifthold and sent Rowan to help save Dorian since he could get there fastest.) Rowan and Dorian escape and make their way to Skull Bay to await Aelin and the others. They also make friends with Rolfe and find that Gavriel and Fenrys, two of Rowan's group under Queen Maeve of the Fae, are already there. They were sent to kill Lorcan, another of their group who went rogue, trying to capture and destroy the Wyrdkeys before they destroyed his queen.  They all sit and wait for Aelin to come and explain her plan to Rolfe.

Manon heads back to Morath where she is tried for being a witch killer. She lies and says that Dorian was her kill and the other witch got in her way, allowing Dorian to escape. She is found guilty and her punishment is that her second, Asterin, will be killed. Instead of killing her, Manon attacks her grandmother, allowing her Thirteen to escape, but she is almost disemboweled. Also, her grandmother reveals that Manon is not all she thinks she is. She is the special. Manon falls off the ledge onto Abraxos, her wyvern, and he flies her away. She's losing too much blood and tells him to fly somewhere safe.

Aelin shows up and convinces Rolfe to join her cause. Again, she's very creative and sassy and it takes some strategic planning and conniving to get Rolfe to help, but in the end he does. She, with her reconnected court and Dorian, and a part of his crew head south to the Stone Marshes where the Lock is supposed to be located. Along the way, Manon and Abraxos show up. They heal Manon but keep her prisoner because they don't know if they can trust her. Dorian is drawn to her though and they get to know each other better. When they get to the Stone Marshes, Aelin and her small group travel inland. The Stone Marshes are a creepy place with vicious predators and dead bodies buried in the water. They find the chest when contains the Lock, but before they open it, they are attacked with a legion of one of Erawan's monsters.  Aelin digs deep, deeper than she's ever dug within her power, and throws everything she has at them. Anything she doesn't get is taken down by the others. Aelin utterly destroys the legion but also depletes her powers. She's empty.

They take the Lock and head back to the boat, only to find more ships waiting for her. They are led by Ansel of Briarcliff, Queen of the Wastes, and one time friend of Celaena. (Ansel is from the novellas. She betrayed Celaena and the Silent Assassins, but Celaena defeated her and spared her life. She called in the debt.) When they all are introduced and plan to head out, they all find another armada waiting. It's Queen Maeve waiting for surrender.  Aelin can't fight because she's depleted her powers. Instead, Dorian solves a riddle and send Aelin and Manon into the Lock, which is really a special mirror. They see the secrets of the past revealed, of how Elena and Gavin contained Erawan in the Lock. The Lock was only a one time thing and it was used once already. The only way to make it work again is for Aelin to fill it with her power. But to do that, she must give all she has.

Meanwhile, Rowan and Dorian and everyone else start to battle with Maeve's armada, trying to stay alive. However, they find out that Maeve is on the shore behind them. The tides of the fight turn, especially when Manon's Thirteen show up to help. This allows Rowan, Dorian, and the rest head to shore to find out what Maeve is doing.

Aelin and Manon return from the mirror, but not from where they started. They are on the shore where they find Maeve waiting. Maeve demands too much, and Aelin sacrifices herself. Maeve takes her away in an iron coffin, vanishing before anyone can stop them. Manon, however, has a great secret! It's a great one.

Galan Ashryver, prince of Wendlyn, shows up with his armada, as well as all the Silent Assassins from across the desert. Aelin called in all her life debts to build an army that can take on Erawan. Manon and Dorian and the Thirteen plan to head to find other witches that can help in the north, and Aedion plans to travel back with Lysandra to Terrasen. Lysandra has shifted into Aelin so that no one knows Aelin's really been taken. Rowan promises to save Aelin, and Gavriel and Lorcan go with to help.

And that's the end!!!!

What I liked: Again, this book had all the great qualities of a Sarah J. Maas book: secrets, twists, turns. Aelin leads us on an adventure. She's such a brilliant, intelligent character, even when she's sassy and frustrating to the others. She's got a heart of gold, even if no one else really sees it. She does her best to protect her family. I also really like Manon and her character. She's like another Aelin. They are two sides of a coin, and now that they've allied together, they will be unstoppable.

What I didn't like: There were two sex scenes in the book that included details. I was really disappointed in this. As an adult, that's fine, but I like to share my books with my students, and I can not do that with this book. Such brilliance and my students will not get to read it.

I would recommend this book for at young adults, both male and female.