The hype and anticipation were real, but finally, after two years of waiting, the next and final installment in the Crescent City series was released on January 30. I was one of the readers who were eagerly awaiting this release by Sarah J. Maas. After the cliffhanger in House of Sky and Breath, I really wanted to know what would happen next and if everything was going to be OK. Please be aware that this review might contain spoilers for both House of Sky and Breath and A Court of Silver Flames. So, it is best to read A Court of Silver Flames before diving into this book.
About the book
House of Flame and Shadow by Sarah J. Maas Series: Crescent City #3
Published by Bloomsbury Publishing on January 30, 2024
Pages: 848
ISBN: 9781635574104
Genres: Adult, Fantasy, Romantasy
The stunning third book in the sexy, action-packed Crescent City series, following the global bestsellers House of Earth and Blood and House of Sky and Breath.
Bryce Quinlan never expected to see a world other than Midgard, but now that she has, all she wants is to get back. Everything she loves is in Midgard: her family, her friends, her mate. Stranded in a strange new world, she’s going to need all her wits about her to get home again. And that’s no easy feat when she has no idea who to trust.
Hunt Athalar has found himself in some deep holes in his life, but this one might be the deepest of all. After a few brief months with everything he ever wanted, he’s in the Asteri’s dungeons again, stripped of his freedom and without a clue as to Bryce’s fate. He’s desperate to help her, but until he can escape the Asteri’s leash, his hands are quite literally tied.
In this sexy, breathtaking sequel to the #1 bestsellers House of Earth and Blood and House of Sky and Breath, Sarah J. Maas’s Crescent City series reaches new heights as Bryce and Hunt’s world is brought to the brink of collapse-with its future resting on their shoulders.
My review
Expectations
To say that my expectations were sky high is an understatement. I know this author can deliver and it’s not without reason she is one of my autobuy and favorite authors. I also knew that this was going to be a wild, wild ride, especially after the events in the final chapters of the previous book. I was expecting to find answers, and also to be invested from start to finish. Yes, all my expectations came through. Once this book was out in the world and in my Audible app, I neglected every other book I was reading and solely focused on this one. I was squeezing in as much reading time as possible and read, or better say listened to the audiobook, every single moment I could. I really enjoyed this!
Characters
Okay can we talk about the characters first? Yes, of course I can! Because wow, these characters have gone through so much and endured so much in these past three books, and they only came out stronger each and every time. Bryce really knew who she was becoming and she was questioning whether she liked it or not. However, this group has become so much tighter throughout the entire series, and it shows. This make them grow both individually and altogether. Maas knows how to write characters and how to elaborate them in depth. Because that really happened here as well. In my opinion, Bryce and Hunt were elaborated best and experienced the most character growth. But, now it’s time to put Lydia in the spotlights. In the preveious book out we already found out that she was not who she seems to be. In this book however, her true character was revealed and she is so much more complex than I had imagined beforehand. I think she stole the show here, alongside Bryce and Hunt. Finally, we also get to meet some familiar faces from ACOTAR and they’re actually ones I didn’t expect. I am going to insert a spoiler tag here, so please don’t click on it if you don’t want to know who I’m talking about. View Spoiler » However, I think the entire bunch of characters were great overall!
Writing
The writing again was phenomenal. Maas has a way of writing that sucks you in right from the start and keeps you invested until the final sentence of a book. This was no different here. It explains why I was able to listen to a good portion of this in the first few days. Then, I had less time to read, so that’s why it took me about six days to finish this entire book. I really enjoyed the alternating POV narration, because the group had to split up a lot. This way, we learnt about all the whereabouts, and how they fit into the entire story. I didn’t mind the changing within chapters though, because I’m used to it.
Plot
Admittedly, I didn’t know where this series would take us when I started House of Earth and Blood once it was published. I found that there was too much of an infodump at the start. This changed and now I see how this story was built up. Everything happens to be so well-crafted and therefore so complex, I have no words to describe it. It’s so good and everything keeps coming back to Danika and the pack of wolves we’ve met very briefly at the start of this series. It happened that she really set stuff in motion and for Bryce, Hunt and the others to find out how everything was connected. Because so much is happening, it’s hard to get bored and easy to get invested. Everyting makes sense in one way or another and the enidng leaves room for more possibilities in this world. And I’m here for it.
Final thoughts
House of Flame and Shadow by Sarah J. Maas is the most anticipated book of 2024 and it really delivered on those high expectations. I was sucked in from start to finish. The characters were an awesome bunch and the entire plot really has been well-crafted from the first book onward. I could barely put this book down and that had been quite a while ago. I really can’t wait to see what this author is going to publish next!
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