45. Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

Throne of Glass #1
read/listened to on Audible
2012 Bloomsbury USA Children
404 pgs.
YA Fantasy
Finished 8-4-17
Goodreads rating:  4.24 - 327,825
My rating:  3.5

First line/s:  "After a year of slavery in the Salt Mines of Endovear, Celaena Sardothien was accustomed to being escorted everywhere in shackles and at sword-point."

My comments:  3.5. I couldn't stand the protagonist and that makes enjoying a book a little tough. Celaena was pretty impressed with herself, to the point of cockiness. Granted, she did always come out on top - which was a bummer, in a way. Always? Seriously.
          I liked many of the other characters and see great possibilities for the future, although other than Celaena, the bad guys were very, very bad and the good guys were very good. I suppose that happens in a lot of fantasies when you have the good guys versus the bad guys, but this seemed a little overwhelming. I'm looking forward to more magic, more word symbols, and Dorian growing a little more spine - AND I'm sure we're going to discover that Celaena has hidden roots...

Goodreads synopsis: After serving out a year of hard labor in the salt mines of Endovier for her crimes, 18-year-old assassin Celaena Sardothien is dragged before the Crown Prince. Prince Dorian offers her her freedom on one condition: she must act as his champion in a competition to find a new royal assassin.
          Her opponents are men-thieves and assassins and warriors from across the empire, each sponsored by a member of the king's council. If she beats her opponents in a series of eliminations, she'll serve the kingdom for four years and then be granted her freedom. Celaena finds her training sessions with the captain of the guard, Westfall, challenging and exhilarating. But she's bored stiff by court life. Things get a little more interesting when the prince starts to show interest in her ... but it's the gruff Captain Westfall who seems to understand her best.
          Then one of the other contestants turns up dead ... quickly followed by another. Can Celaena figure out who the killer is before she becomes a victim? As the young assassin investigates, her search leads her to discover a greater destiny than she could possibly have imagined.