House of Flame and Shadow
I can't say that I am a die hard fan of all of Sarah J. Maas books don't get me wrong, I've enjoyed them for the most part but if you sat down and asked me all about them I probably would draw a blank.

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House of Flame and Shadow is probably one of those books that was so highly anticipated and I'm guilty myself of preordering the Kindle edition because it was going to be out before the hard cover, then I get the hardcover because let's be honest she is beautiful. Which I feel the publishing industry lately has been taking full advantage of this phenomeno of people buying books just to buy (like me ) LOL, in the fantasy realm of books is that we all get suckered in with these overly hype books and the beautiful art to only get a so- so story.

In all honestly these books are too long for no reason at all by the time I get to the end I have forgot half of what I already read, or maybe it's just me. I mean I just finish reading this book this morning and I'm already blanking out on a lot of it, however them last 6 chapters were what saved this book from being a 2 star for me. What happened in the beginning was just a cross between a weird cross over that you would see on The Flash and Arrow, then the next episode they move on and the cross over didn't exist at all.

I am not even a huge fan of ACOTAR, but wtf was the lack there of in control with the characters. I don't know I want to think maybe Sarah J. Maas is working something out to bring out a bomb shell in another book with the characters of ACOTAR but there seemed to be a lot of plot holes, like there was a huge element missing. Also did and I probably forgot or missed something but where the hell were Fury and what's her face throughout this whole book. I don't know you would think I really disliked this book but I didn't. The last 6 chapters is what saved it for me and had me really loving it but only enough to give it the rating that I did. I even shed a few tears because wtf that was an emotional roller coaster for me.

This for sure taught me a lesson, stop buying books that are highly anticipated and overly hype because they never meet my expectations. ( )

I am at a loss for words... I giggled, I laughed, I high-fived them all... I sobbed, I cried and I had multiple minor heart attacks... But I am happily speechless ( )

I understand why some people are upset at this book, and it does have its flaws — I struggled with the pacing during part one, and had hoped for more expansion on *that* plot twist (iykyk) at the end of HoSaB... But as a passionate fantasy reader this was perfectly plotted for me.

I saw someone compare HoFaS to Kingdom of Ash and I think that's an apt comparison in the way both stories bring everybody together in a "this is it" final battle. Romantasy is definitely put on the backburner like in KoA in favor of wrapping up an intricate storyline, and for me that was perfect. But there's also enough curious possibilities left unresolved to make a return to this world, (and the Maasverse at large), extremely enticing. ( )

Tucked in amidst the fantasy world building, adventure, and sex (book 2 was hotter) is a thoughtful exploration of legacy, accountability, rehabilitation, and change. I especially appreciated that the happy ending had some ragged edges and lingering questions - perhaps just to lay the groundwork for another book / a new linked series, but satisfying never-the-less. ( )

Bryce finds herself not in Hel, where she meant to go, but to the Night Court being held by Rhysand, where she learns important information about the history of Midgard how to beat the Asteri. Meanwhile, Bryce, Ruhn, and Baxian are being held - and brutally tortured by Pollux - in the dungeons, and the Hind, Lidia, is working to free them. Their other friends, including Tharian, Ithan, Declan, and Flynn, will also be working towards the ultimate goal of upending the corrupt government set up by the Asteri to use everyone's firstlight for their own power.

What I generally like about Sarah J. Maas's books is that she writes characters I care about and plots her stories with twists I don't see coming but in a way that makes perfect sense upon reflection. This book doesn't do any of that. Almost nothing of note other than Bryce's discoveries in the other world happen after 400 pages, and I almost put the book down then. I wish I had, because it doesn't get better. To be fair, it's been almost two years since I read the last book, so I'd forgotten who some of the characters were and how they got where they were. But there are an awful lot of characters to follow, and the point of view changes between them frequently, sometimes only a couple of pages at a time, for no discernible reason. A brand-new character gets introduced halfway through the book, and only really has a role for another 200 pages or so. Characters don't talk when they could and then have really awkward conversations at stupid moments when they should be concerned about other things, like surviving. The story is fairly predictable and even felt jerked around to get characters to the right place or the right thing to happen, with the magical abilities of a character just conveniently being what was needed at a particular moment. I kept reading because I knew that things got resolved with the Asteri and Bryce & Hunt's story wraps up in this book, and I wanted to know what happens. But I was annoyed with the characters most of the time, not invested in the story at all, and by the time I got to the action at the end, I didn't really care. The book needed a good editor and about half as many pages, and sadly could've much better. ( )