Book Review: Crescent City: House of Earth and Blood by Sarah J. Maas

Title: Crescent City: House of Earth and Blood
Author: Sarah J. Maas
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Publication Date: March 2, 2021
ISBN: 9781635577020

Synopsis:
Bryce Quinlan had the perfect life—working hard all day and partying all night—until a demon murdered her closest friends, leaving her bereft, wounded, and alone. When the accused is behind bars but the crimes start up again, Bryce finds herself at the heart of the investigation. She’ll do whatever it takes to avenge their deaths.

Hunt Athalar is a notorious Fallen angel, now enslaved to the Archangels he once attempted to overthrow. His brutal skills and incredible strength have been set to one purpose—to assassinate his boss’s enemies, no questions asked. But with a demon wreaking havoc in the city, he’s offered an irresistible deal: help Bryce find the murderer, and his freedom will be within reach.

As Bryce and Hunt dig deep into Crescent City’s underbelly, they discover a dark power that threatens everything and everyone they hold dear, and they find, in each other, a blazing passion—one that could set them both free, if they’d only let it.

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So, I started the Sarah J. Maas books out of order, not realizing my error, but all I can say is that House of Earth and Blood is a total WOW! I’m in love with this series and it’s sent me down a path that I’m completed enamoured with. I’m completely ok with being swept away in this author’s backlist. I’m forging ahead and not looking back. Starting with Crescent City has filled me with an insatiable desire to work through all of Maas’ book with fervour and gusto. This week alone I’ve read three of her books and I’ve started a fourth. I haven’t looked back.

House of Earth and Blood is an absolute ride. The pacing is impeccable. The world building is honed to an art form. The magic is vast and profound. The characters are complex and so believably real. This is one of the most intricate novels I’ve read in a long, long while. The thought and the detail in the writing is so notable and beautiful to behold. It’s an absolute masterpiece.

Bryce is initially the least likeable character in the story, but her arch and character development are incredible. She is so much more than what she portrays externally to the world, including the reader. Though she seems least likely to succeed, she’s so intelligent and pointed in her actions. She’s not without error and failure, but she triumphs above all through sheer grit, cunning, and determination.

Hunt, too, is so much more than he seems beyond the surface. Slapped with a lifetime of punishment for rebelling against the highest archangels, he is bound to spend his eternity serving as a slave and a master of death. He is a killing machine, but beneath the terror and the strength, there is the simplest, most normal man who enjoys sports, cooking, and relaxing on the couch with the best of them. It is through Bryce that he begins to imagine a life beyond what he thought possible for himself. There is so much more to fight for and through Bryce’s journey, Hunt begins to discover more possibilities than he’d imagined.

I’m floored by this story and all it has to offer. I’ve had to take a pause on this series to five into Throne of Glass and A Court of Thorns and Roses, but I’m absolutely itching to dive back in. As a recent Sarah J. Maas convert I urge any readers who also have not experienced her before to join me in this journey of discovery. There is so much to sweep you away. I’m absolutely enthralled.

Happy reading!