Feb 28

Feb 28 House of Sky and Breath (Crescent City, #2)

Author: Sarah J. Maas
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Goodreads | The StoryGraph

Click above to buy this book from my Bookshop.org shop, which supports independent bookstores (not Amazon). You can also find it via your favorite indie bookstore here.

Note: Content and trigger warnings are provided for those who need them at the bottom of this page. If you don’t need them and don’t want to risk spoilers, don’t scroll past the full review.

Cover Description

***Description is spoiler for House of Earth and Blood***

Bryce Quinlan and Hunt Athalar are trying to get back to normal―they may have saved Crescent City, but with so much upheaval in their lives lately, they mostly want a chance to relax. Slow down. Figure out what the future holds.

The Asteri have kept their word so far, leaving Bryce and Hunt alone. But with the rebels chipping away at the Asteri’s power, the threat the rulers pose is growing. As Bryce, Hunt, and their friends get pulled into the rebels’ plans, the choice becomes clear: stay silent while others are oppressed, or fight for what’s right. And they’ve never been very good at staying silent.

In this sexy, action-packed sequel to the #1 bestseller House of Earth and Blood, Sarah J. Maas weaves a captivating story of a world about to explode―and the people who will do anything to save it.

TL;DR Review

House of Sky and Breath is a worthy follow-up to House of Earth and Blood. If you liked that one, you’ll won’t be disappointed by this one! It’s fun and steamy and THAT ENDING.

For you if: You like escapism fantasy and VERY steamy open-door romance.

Full Review

I am going to do my best to write this without any spoilers, even if you haven’t read House of Earth and Blood yet. But if you HAVE read Earth and Blood and liked it, you won’t be disappointed by this sequel.

SJM’s Crescent City books deliver on a lot of what her fans love about her other books: extreme steam (in fact smut is a better word; you might even call it faerie porn, lol) between extremely sexy people, a magical world, a compelling plot with a compelling central question, and interesting and lovable characters to root for. Are they Great Literature? No lol. Are her books one hell of a ride, an escape, a mental vacation from the world? Hell yes. One that I am happy to be taken on.

There are a lot of things I would like to say about Sky and Breath that might hint at something I don’t want you to even suspect, because I read this book without a drop of inkling and want the same for you. In fact, I enjoyed the whole reading experience with this one (I was very hooked into the story’s central mystery and surprised by several reveals), but as others will tell you: THAT ENDING. The last four words blew my brain apart!! I was just so unprepared. My husband came home from a friend’s at midnight to find me draped backward across the chaise side of my couch, staring at the ceiling. Had he come home five minutes earlier, he would have found me pacing. It took me an hour to calm down enough to sleep, lol.

I wouldn’t recommend starting with the Crescent City books if you’re new to SJM. Read her backlist, at least ACOTAR, to get a sense of her style. And THEN read these. Because let me tell ya, I love some me some heartbreaking literary fiction any day of the week — but a book hasn’t made me feel like I was going to explode like this in a looooong time.