Summary
TheThrone of Glassnovellas add context to Celaena Sardothien’s story, and they’re all compiled inThe Assassin’s Blade— butsome of these additions toSarah J. Maas' fantasy seriesare stronger than others. Although the stories inThe Assassin’s Bladeare set before the events ofThrone of Glass,they pack just as much of a punch after readers have finished the series. These novellas shed light on Celaena’s life before being locked up in Endovier, bringing readers back to when she was Adarlan’s Assassin. Her life under that title isn’t easy, and Maas' stories highlight that fact.
They also reveal how Celaena comes to know some of the characters introduced intheThrone of Glassbooks,elaborating on connections that help her during her fight against the Valg. The stories inThe Assassin’s Bladedon’t tell readers much they don’t already know. However,they add emotional weight to Celaena’s backstory and the events mentioned throughoutThrone of Glass.They’re certainly worth reading, especially for those invested in Maas' series, but some ofThe Assassin’s Blade’sstories prove more compelling than the others.
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5The Assassin And The Healer
Yrene’s Introduction Makes For The Weakest Story
The Assassin and the Healeris the second novella inThe Assassin’s Bladecollection,and unfortunately,it’s the weakestThrone of Glassstory in Maas' repertoire. This novella introduces Yrene, the healer who goes on to become Chaol Westfall’s love interest inTower of Dawn.It’s obvious that the entire point of this narrative is to set up Yrene’s character, ensuring that she has a connection to Aelin before the finalThrone of Glassinstallments. Outside establishing Yrene as a character,The Assassin and the Healerdoes little for Celaena’s journey or growth compared to the other novellas.
In fact, Celaena isn’t even that likable in this story. Although she teaches Yrene to defend herself and pushes her to pursue her dreams,Celaena makes some questionable choices while doing so. Leaving Yrene to fend for herself and refusing to drop her weapons when the other woman is held at knife point, Celaena paints a questionable picture of her morals. She claims to be in control of the situation, but it still seems cruel to force Yrene’s hand like that. And although the story’s lesson — that “the world needs more healers” — is well stated, it doesn’t make up for it.
Outside establishing Yrene as a character,The Assassin and the Healerdoes little for Celaena’s journey or growth compared to the other novellas.
AlthoughThe Assassin and the Healerhas a fairly high averageGoodreadsrating — it currently sits at 4.19 — it is one of the lowest-rankedThrone of Glassnovellas, tying withThe Assassin and the Pirate Lord.The fact that it doesn’t push Celaena’s story forward and feels relatively low-stakes is probably the reason for this.The Assassin and the Healerisn’t a novella to skip, butit just doesn’t compare to the rest of the stories inThe Assassin’s Blade.
4The Assassin And The Pirate Lord
A Strong Start To The Assassin’s Blade (But Just That)
The Assassin and the Pirate LordopensThe Assassin’s Blade,and it gets the novella collection off to a strong start. This story follows Celaena and Sam Cortland as they embark on a mission for Arobynn Hamel. The two travel to a remote island to deal with Rolfe, the Lord of Pirates, andthis adventure makes sense of Aelin’s interactions with this character inEmpire of Storms.When Celaena and Sam meet with Rolfe, they realize their master has sent them to barter for slaves. Damning the consequences, Celaena sets out to free these people rather than trade for them.
UnlikeThe Assassin and the Healer,The Assassin and the Pirate Lorddoes a solid job of highlighting Celaena’s moral code, which she continues to showcase throughoutThrone of Glass.Although she’s raised as an assassin, Celaena has a good heart — and her refusal to cooperate in the slave trade drives this home. It also marks the first rift between her and Arobynn. Celaena’s efforts to stop Rolfe and Arobynn’s transaction are successful, and readers get a suspenseful and action-packed narrative leading up to this point. They also see the beginnings of Celaena and Sam’s rivals-to-lovers dynamic.
The Assassin and the Pirate Lordis a decent story, especially when it comes to setting up Celaena’s journey. However,it doesn’t pack the emotional punch of the other novellas in Maas' collection. It very much feels like a beginning, and to be fair, it’s supposed to. But the novella’s 4.19Goodreadsrating confirms that it isn’t on the same level as the otherThrone of Glassstories. It has high stakes, but readers don’t feel them nearly as much as they do in the later narratives.
3The Assassin And The Underworld
High Stakes & Tense Moments With A Few Notable Flaws
The Assassin and the Underworldsits in the middle ofThe Assassin’s Blade,soperhaps it’s fitting that it’s also at the middle of Maas' novella ranking. ThisThrone of Glassstory finds Celaena returning to the Assassin’s Keep after time away, and her relationship with Arobynn is clearly strained. Celaena intends to leave the Assassin’s Guild with the money she was given in the previous novella. However, Arobynn persuades her into a final mission to gain her freedom — and it’s an easy sell when he reveals she could prevent slavery from coming to Rifthold.
The action moments and political maneuvering also make this one of the collection’s more gripping stories. It certainly has the highest stakes, with Celaena’s decisions impacting more than her own life.
The unfortunate twist is that Arobynn is actually helping the person pushing for the slave trade, and Celaena learns this too late.This crushing revelation makesThe Assassin and the Underworlda tense and surprising additiontoThe Assassin’s Blade.And Celaena finally buying freedom for herself and Sam is that much more satisfying after Arobynn shows his true colors. Of course, the action moments and political maneuvering also make this one of the collection’s more gripping stories. It certainly has the highest stakes, with Celaena’s decisions impacting more than her own life.
Unfortunately, whileThe Assassin and the Underworldtakes readers on an anxiety-inducing and emotional ride,it has a few flaws that prevent it from ranking higher. They may be responsible for its middling 4.33Goodreadsrating as well. For one, the story’s main conflict and ending twist center on slavery in Adarlan, but it fails to go as deeply into this topic as it should. Additionally, Celaena and Sam’s romance moves far too quickly in this installment, turning what seems like an obvious rivals-to-lovers pairing into something that reads more like insta-love.
2The Assassin And The Desert
One Of Throne Of Glass' Most Fascinating World Expansions
The Assassin in the Desertis very close to being the bestThrone of Glassnovella, and it certainly proves the most fascinating expansion of Maas' world.The Assassin and the Healersees Celaena traveling to the Red Desert as punishment for her antics inThe Assassin and the Pirate Lord.The following novella follows Celaena as she arrives and begins training with the Silent Assassins. Arobynn tasks her with getting a letter of recommendation from the mysterious assassins before she returns, and it nearly seems impossible at first.
Celaena’s stay with the Silent Assassins proves a fascinating exploration of what Adarlan’s killers could be,if only Arobynn had a moral compass. The Silent Assassins live a far quieter and more spiritual life than the assassins from Celaena’s city, and they also prove much kinder to their trainees. Celaena learns the value of this sort of compassion when she trains with them, and the whole thing makes for a thoughtful and heartfelt read. There’s also plenty of action at the end, when Celaena realizes her friend from the keep plans to take out the Silent Assassins' leader.
Celaena manages to stop this from happening, and it gains her the approval of the Silent Assassins — which comes back to help her inThrone of Glass— and the ability to return Rifthold.The Assassin and the Desertmay not be the most thrillingThrone of Glassnovella, but its 4.37Goodreadsrating proves it resonates with readers. It also drives home the importance of compassion and mercy, andit has an incredibly distinct feel compared to Maas' other stories. This lands it among the top-two narratives, though there’s one that surpasses it.
1The Assassin And The Empire
The Emotional Climax Of Sarah J. Maas' Novella Collection
The Assassin and the Empireis the final novella inThe Assassin’s Blade,andit perfectly sets the stage for thefirstThrone of Glassbook. It also serves as the emotional climax of Maas' collection, as it contains one of Celaena’s biggest pre-Throne of Glasslosses. The original series speaks of Sam’s death from the beginning, but watching Celaena experience it firsthand is considerably more devastating.The Assassin and the Empirefinds Celaena and Sam doing one more job before leaving Rifthold. The tragedy, of course, is that this mission prevents them from ever doing so.
It also serves as the emotional climax of Maas' collection, as it contains one of Celaena’s biggest pre-Throne of Glasslosses.
This novella encapsulates the anxiety and grief that comes with a loss like Sam’s, andthis makes it the biggest tear-jerker ofThe Assassin’s Blade.Watching Celaena cycle through various stages of grief and land on revenge is both expected and heartbreaking. And her revenge hardly ends better than her mission with Sam, as it gets her captured and imprisoned in Endovier. Anyone who’s readThrone of Glassalready knows this is coming, and Maas uses that to her advantage. The tensions are higher than ever as readers follow Celaena, knowing every step of the way that she’s making mistakes.
With its emotional impact and direct lead-in toThrone of Glass,there’s no doubt thatThe Assassin and the Empireis the best novella in Maas' lineup. Its impressive 4.4 averageGoodreadsrating speaks to this story’s quality, as well as the effect it has on readers. If there’s one must-read novella fromThe Assassin’s Blade,it’s this one — thoughThrone of Glassfans shouldn’t skip out on any of them.
