Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

I'd heard a lot about this series on the interwebs and was hesitant to start it, afraid it wouldn't live up to the hype. In November, when Amazon had a 30% off 1 book coupon, I figured, what could it hurt. If I don't like it, I'm only out $6 and I can donate it to my neighborhood Little Lending Library.

It sat on my tbr pile for a few weeks, until right before Christmas. I'd finished my cross stitch Christmas gift and was itching to get back into a book. I was enthralled from page one and only put it down for obligatory family time. I finished it in 4 days and had to make a special trip to the library to pick up Crown of Midnight because I had to know what happened next.

I don't know if I've ever been so glad to be proved wrong and disappointed that I hadn't started reading sooner.

Throne of Glass stars Celaena Sardothien (aka Adarlan's Assassin), 18. She has spent the last year as a slave, doing hard labor in the brutal salt mines of Endovier, serving out a sentence for her crimes. One day she's sprung by the captain of the king's guard, Choal Westfall, and Adarlan's Prince, Dorian, on the condition she be Dorian's champion in a competition to become the King's Assassin.
She is brought back to Rifthold to live in the castle with the other champions over the course of the trial. Things seem to be going okay until one of the champions is murdered. Then another. While trying to win the competition, Celaena is navigating the dangerous world of the palace, discovering dark secrets, and trying to keep herself together.

I'm leaving a lot out to avoid spoilers, but I loved Maas's world building and characters. You learn about the kingdom of Adarlan, how it used to be a land full of magic - that mysteriously disappeared 10 years ago, the corruption of the kingdom, and the minds of those residing there.

Celaena is extremely complex and has lived a hard life in her first 18 years. There are hints about her past throughout the novel so pay attention. She's hard, witty, and fierce, but she's also an 18 year old girl with fears and anxiety.

Choal and Dorian are both easily taken with her, as is usually the case with female heroins, but it's not some cheesy teenage romance that I typically roll my eyes at in YA.

Basically, I say if you like fantasy, magic, and/or strong female characters, you'll enjoy.