Book Review: House of Flame and Shadow
Editor’s Note: this review contains spoilers for House of Flame and Shadow, as well as for House of Earth and Blood and House of Sky and Breath.
Coming nearly two years after the release of House of Sky and Breath, House of Flame and Shadow was highly anticipated by Sarah J. Maas fans all over the world. However, considering the beginning of a crossover in House of Sky and Breath, newer fans also had to prepare by reading the five A Court of Thorns and Roses books.
House of Flame and Shadow starts off right where the last book left off, with Bryce in Velaris and Hunt, Baxian, and Ruhn being tortured by Rigelus. Bryce works to get back to Midguard, tangling herself into Prythian’s history and making acquaintances with Azriel and Nesta. Meanwhile, Ruhn, Baxian, and Hunt are being tortured nearly to their deaths while also struggling with the status of their mates- Lidia, Danica, and Bryce. Ithan is trying to free the mystic alpha wolf, while Dec and Flynn try to free Ruhn. Tharion is busy paying off his debts to his many masters- the Queen of the Undersea, the River Queen, and the Viper Queen. Ultimately, together they must kill the Asteri and save Midguard.
While I overall enjoyed this book, I struggle to give it more than a 3/5 because of its inconsistencies, plot holes, and my general sudden dislike of Bryce. There are also a significant amount of editing errors- such as at least ten quotes missing quotation marks.
Most importantly, Bryce has become very brash and inconsiderate. Specifically, after Hunt has escaped the prison- after having been tortured for two weeks- Bryce has barely any sympathy for him and victimizes herself. While I enjoy a dual POV, this book switches so quickly you don’t ever fully attach to one plot line and it isn’t well established who’s POV you’re reading.
The Crescent City universe seems to have greatly improved their medical technology since House of Sky and Breath. Hunt regrows his hand, Lidia’s heart heals, and Hypaxia develops an antidote to parasite within hours- so there aren’t many stakes between life and death anymore. When Bryce is brought back from the dead it felt too much like we’ve already read in her previous books and I’m a little tired of that trope. Contrary to her previous books, this book didn’t have any massive battle at the end. The Asteris’ death was actually surprisingly calm and had little bloodshed, which was a disappointment as I feel she writes those epic battle scenes so well.
It didn’t read like any of the other SJM books and that isn’t a good thing. Even so, when I finished the book I was satisfied and happy. However, Fury, Juniper, and Baxian are left with a hugely undiscussed ending- the former two having only been mentioned one or two times. Considering SJM has said she scrapped the entire book and rewrote it in a month, I would have rather them taken longer editing and pushed back the release date than rushing it out with issues.
SJM said recently in an interview, she is planning a fourth Crescent City book, which I guess will be called House of Many Waters and will focus on Tharion and Ithan in their new lives.