Kingdom of Ash (Throne of Glass, 7)

There is a lot going on in this final chapter of Sarah j Maas Throne of Glass series so the book is longer than most of the others but does not feel as if it is full of fluff but rather a great meaty book with just enough pages to to tie up the plot points and subplots neatly and leave the reader happy but wanting more. For those who read the last book review before deciding if they should read the series I will say that this epic fantasy will satisfy almost any reader of the genre. While the series itself starts out geared more towards young adults and those who love epic fantasy the last three books do up the ante up yet with the romantic scenes that have a romance bin feel to it in the love scenes. Out of this book which is 1000 pages you might have a handful of pages that are more steamy but I do think it is enough to take it from a PG-13 to closer to a rated R. So the series does swing a bit but the quality of writing remains high. Overall this book like most of the series is high-quality fantasy in the world building plot and setting. The characters come to life and have a depth to them. In this last book there is quite a bit of jumping around between the chapters two different points of views and for those who only read a little bit of a Time this might be a problem in keeping track of what's going on. Still the story is pretty straightforward for the most part. There is little to complain about and it was a joy to read. They were a few editorial mistakes very few considering the length of the book itself. I do think that that there is a bit of continuity error in the strength of the bad guys. In their introduction the Valg princess pretty hardcore individuals could barely be harmed outside of our main protagonist is magic. They had magic that could overwhelmed and blanket and entire area and who's magic could not be countered buy those of wind and such. However in this book we see that their magic is countered by magic that previous could not stop it and they are taken down by fairly easy means compared to there unstoppable nature in their introduction. Lol but the truth is part of the reason this disappointed me a bit was because they have been built up to be that awesome... Or terrifying. this can also be applied to the two main antagonist of the series in the final confrontation that was still exciting but left a little to be desired in my opinion from what was promised. Again this is a good read particularly when it comes to the action and pacing of the story itself. There is real emotion connected to the characters and when crap hits the fan the reader feels it. The relationships arcs between the characters grow and shift he weighs that while a bit predictable are nonetheless interesting. From beginning to end the story flows in such a way that it feels like you've read an entire book series in one book. Some of the side characters that seemed more time in previous works do feel slightly neglected but not enough to really complain about because when we do see them it is impactful. that is the glorious problem with having a book with such great characters is that side characters are still Side characters and have to give away to the main protagonist and such. in the end if you read this book series you will not be disappointed but you will be tired because it will keep you from sleeping because it's always just one more chapter.

I just finished this series a couple weeks ago and am just now recovering from the emotional rollercoaster. This book was intense, at times devastating, and well worth the entire book series to get here. While the early books in the series were fun reads, they didn't really grab my soul until I got to Heir of Fire. From there on I couldn't put the books down. I stayed up way too late reading till my eyes hurt. Sarah J Maas has a very effective style of writing that causes the reader to constantly be on a cliffhanger waiting to find out what happens to this character or that character next. I truly don't think there was a moment in any of the last 3 books where I wasn't tense and desperate to find out what comes next. I think doing a tandem read of Empire of Storms and Tower of Dawn was the right choice but definitely elevated that tension. I honestly think the most surprising thing was how this book brought me to a place of love, understanding, and compassion for some of my least favorite characters. If you had asked me mid-way through the series what characters I liked or hated, my answers would have been a far cry from where they were at the end. Every character has a full arc, and none of them are surface level characters. They all have flaws and strengths. They all make poor choices that affect others. They all have emotional trauma they struggle to work through. While there are some aspects of this ending that I felt were a bit out of place in the story arc, most of the ending was well done and wrapped things up nicely. It will take a while before my soul is ready to do a re-read on this series, but I am looking forward to it when it happens.

A soul gripping, tear-jerking, whirlwind of a final book. One of the best reads I’ve had in a long time. Sarah makes you feel personally connected to each & every character & like we’re following them on this journey right next to them. Each character has depth & soul that makes you wanting to learn more. A beautiful end to the best series I’ve ever read. Highly recommend for everyone to delve into this series, and learn that sometimes a little kindness can go a long way.

** spoiler alert ** Kingdom of Ash was the epic conclusion to the Throne of Glass series. I don’t know if it is possible to talk about it without giving away spoilers, so you’ve been warned. There were many intense scenes throughout the book. Action packed, this story had me on the edge of my seat every hundred pages or so. Aelin’s escape was pulse pounding, heartbreaking, and impactful in equal measure. Aedion leading the battles in Terresan was stressful and epic. The battle of Anielle kept the hits, both emotional and physical, coming. Elide’s desperate search of the battlefield had me glued to the page. Dorian’s assault on Morath had me totally fooled and confused until the end. I shouldn’t have fallen for it. It turned into one of the smartest parts of the book. When Lysandra fights as Aelin my heart was racing. When Manon shows up to Terresan just as Morath is approaching had me in tears. The hope they offered when all hope was lost was beautiful. Then the fate of the 13 had me wrecked. For me this was the emotional pinnacle of the book. No other part moved me as much as this sacrifice, going out in a blaze of light. For being 980 pages long, I didn’t feel like it was too long. Everything had purpose and direction. There are some 600 page series finales that could have been 300 pages shorter, so for this many pages to be merited is quite an accomplishment. I did find the big moments with Aelin to be more predictable than usual. When they mention the dam in Anielle, right away they tell you about what would happen if it came down. So your first thought is “Well, obviously, that’s coming down.” So when it does, it’s not as surprising. How Aelin had been tunneling her power that whole time was surprising but the big moment of the dam coming down was not so. Additionally, later when they read about that wrydmark that can open portals to move from place to place, it is once again obvious that it is going to be utilized. What I can’t figure out is why they didn’t use it to move the army when they agonized again and again about how they were never going to make it to Terresan in time. Did they want to save that trick as a final surprise? I know it is written as she doesn’t think of it until later. But they still traveled for days after that. So the use of the portals was a nice final surprise for Maeve, but I thought it could have been utilized sooner. The timeline of the story was a little confusing for me as well. I think I would need to go back and write down every movement in time and see how the days add up, but while reading it seemed like things were being told to build the suspense and the drama and not necessarily as they line up specifically day by day. The ending for me wavers between love and okay. On one hand, it was epic and beautiful. It built to a final battle and left us with the satisfaction of seeing the demise of all that was evil. Good triumphed and all of the characters we loved, lived to fight another day and live in peace. Everyone goes off to rule their specific parts of the world and make a better world there. It was heartwarming, witty, and hopeful. There is a lot to love about seeing the characters you adore live on in the peace they worked so hard to achieve. The bit with Rhysand and Feyre was so amazing I read it like three times in a row. On the other hand, toward the end I got a little sick of it being the end of everything and then they get saved by another random army of people coming to save the day just in time. I like the incorporation of all of the different kinds of people, but it was a few too many times of this is the end, see you in the afterlife, ope just kidding, here’s another army to save the day. I liked Aelin and Rowan’s final plan, but maybe was a little sick of everything being built up as the final moments only to have that rewritten a few sentences later. So maybe shaping that part a little differently would have resonated with me more. Additionally, in the nicest way possible, I was expecting more important people to die in the end. As I said, I am torn because I’m really happy that most everyone ended up alive. But for such an epic battle with such a dark presence to overcome, I was waiting for more loses. Not that I could pick anyone to put in that position, but it seemed a little too perfect that all of the couples ended up alive together. A strange thing to be torn about but that it what I observed while reading the book. The most wonderful part though was that after finishing such a favorite series, it made me want to go out and read more so I could try to find another series that would grab on to my heart the way this one did and take me on a memorable journey.

I finished this book a couple of days ago, and had to think on it a bit before writing this review. I've seen a lot of 5-star ratings for it already, and while this series overall is a 5-star read for me, I found this last installment to be a bit disappointing - it was a good book, not a great book, in my opinion. And it actually made me sad while reading it - this time not because it was the last book in an outstanding series (and there is usually sadness when bringing such a series to an end) but rather because of just the sheer misery our characters suffered throughout the entire book. Please note I do have spoilers in my review below. Let's start with Aelin, who has been my favorite character from the start. I still don't understand why she allowed herself to be captured by Maeve and after reading this book, I still don't get it. For literally 25% of the book, Aelin is being tortured. And since this is almost a 1000 page book, that's a lot. I kept thinking, is it almost over? And also, what was the point of all that? And the only answer there possibly was, was that she had been drilling down into her power that entire time, which she did to be able to defeat Maeve and Erawan, but instead she used that power to save Anielle - which was an awesome scene and I loved that - but it seemed like all that torture Aelin suffered was for the purpose of that one shot, which she wasn't able to use against her intended targets - Maeve and Erawan. And then since Aelin was later robbed of most of her powers, we never do get that scene later of Aelin going toe to toe with them with her powers, which I felt like I was cheated out of that. And that Lock scene with Aelin and Dorian, which left their powers greatly reduced, really infuriated me. After all those two have suffered, this is their result? And for what? I get it that closing the Lock kept Erawan from bringing over his two brothers or additional Valg, but killing Erawan would have done the same thing, so I still don't get what ended up being so purposeful about them sending the gods away and closing the Lock. Seems kind of pointless to me other than as a tool for those two to become less powerful in the story. I will say that the best thing about the Lock scenes was the interplay between Rowan and Aelin - Rowan is a wonderful character, and any scene he was in throughout the book was made better for it. The battles - I know this is a war, but the battles were non-stop in this book, and depressing. Literally everyone in Aedion's army was slaughtered and almost no one was left by the time help came at the very end. And the Thirteen - wow, that was crushing in the book, did not see that coming. Gavriel - he pretty much had the opportunity to have a conversation with his son, and then was brutally killed off. As I was reading all the battle scenes (hundreds of pages), it just continually got worse and worse, and at some point I just wanted it to be over because I couldn't take all the death and suffering anymore, and the lack of any hope. Most of the allies that Aelin had gathered throughout the various books ended up being pretty much decimated, except for the Little People. Everyone else seemed like fodder. I loved Tower of Dawn, and rated it 5-stars. So I am a fan of Yrene, but thought it was odd that a character that we met only in the last book ends up being the big hero - I liked that Dorian was a part of the showdown with Erawan, but ultimately it was Yrene that saved the day. So again with everything that Aelin had done to help save their world throughout the entire series, and all that she had sacrificed and suffered in doing so, and it's Yrene and her healing powers that save them all in the end and has everyone cheering her name. I still can't quite wrap my mind around that since Aelin had been built up throughout the series - her assassin background, her incredible powers, her return as Queen, and I felt like she was shown up by a healer we met last week. The Maeve showdown was fine, but not what I had been anticipating throughout the books. So ultimately I rated this book 4-stars. I could not put it down, and that's a testament to the author's writing and also my investment in this series. And there were other things that I highly enjoyed, such as when Dorian went to Morath, or the incredible Lorcan and Elide scene, when she rode out onto the plains to find him before the dam broke. And the characters are all ones that I truly loved and connected with, which is why I had such high expectations for this book. So overall I loved this series and would recommend it in a heartbeat to anyone, but when I think of books I'll reread, this installment will not be one of them, though.

Wow. Nearly 1,000 pages of relentless suspense, heartbreak, courage, war, loyalty, rivalry, and raw power—and not a single moment felt wasted. Kingdom of Ash was impossible to put down and served as the perfect, devastatingly beautiful conclusion to the series. It was truly the icing on the cake. What made this ending so powerful was that there was no single hero—every character played a vital role, each sacrifice shaping a better world. Dorian finally stepped fully into his purpose and claimed his strength. Aelin, broken and reborn after her captivity under Queen Maeve, battled not only her enemies but her very identity. Yrene brought healing and light where only darkness reigned. Lorcan found redemption through love. Fenrys found a home. Manon discovered unity and forged a future from ashes. Rowan defied the fate of gods themselves for his mate. In the end, Erawan and Morath were reduced to nothing but memory and ruin. Where there was once only dirt and devastation, life bloomed again—flowers growing from the ashes. Kingdom of Ash is not just an ending; it is a testament to sacrifice, resilience, and the hope that even the darkest worlds can be rebuilt.

This entire series was very entertaining and fun to read. Loved seeing the characters develop and grow over the course of the books. It will be a good one to share with my daughters so we can discuss our favorite characters and plot twists.

I will always love this book and series. Sarah did well with her other series, but nothing will have the depth and breadth of this series with its character development, storytelling, and wonderful characters.