[book-info]

The Assassin and the Pirate Lord – This is where we get to meet Celaena. I really didn’t enjoy her arrogance but that was tempered by knowing what’s to come. I cheered when Celaena and Sam finally decided to work as a team rather than against each other.

The Assassin and the Healer – I loved seeing Celaena start to come more into her own. She started the process in the Pirate Lord but she’s continuing to do so here. She also doesn’t want to see other women in the same situation and does something about it. (I kind of hope this woman was Sorcha. Does anyone know if this is the case?)

The Assassin and the Desert – Celaena starts to gain more strength as a person physically. In the Silent Assassin’s keep she learns agility and strength. We thought she was already at the top of her game but there’s still room for growth and she does it. I would have loved to be a fly on that wall when Celaena came back to the Keep.

The Assassin and the Underworld – Just when you feel that you’ve reached the depths of human deprivation, you find that you haven’t. This short story was a bit hard to read. I was shocked at the manipulation but also not really.

The Assassin and the Empire – Oh boy. This one is the one that just ripped my heart into tiny confetti pieces. It makes you realize how we get to where Calaena was at the beginning of Throne of Glass. I know it was needed though. It gives us a level of understanding that we just don’t get in the full length novels.