House of Earth and Blood, by Sarah J. Maas
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Series?: Crescent City #1
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Release Date: March 3, 2020
Length: 816 pages
Source: ARC
Format: Paperback
Times Read: Once
Rating: All the feathery stars/5
#1 New York Times bestselling author Sarah J. Maas launches her brand-new CRESCENT CITY series with House of Earth and Blood: the story of half-Fae and half-human Bryce Quinlan as she seeks revenge in a contemporary fantasy world of magic, danger, and searing romance.
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.
With unforgettable characters, sizzling romance, and page-turning suspense, this richly inventive new fantasy series by #1 New York Times bestselling author Sarah J. Maas delves into the heartache of loss, the price of freedom—and the power of love.
MY SOUL IS RENEWED WITH EVERY WORD OF THIS 800 PAGE TOME.
♥ Gentle readers, I loved, loved, loved this book. I hope you will all read it and love it too. But I want to offer you a warning before you start to read this magnificent book that I hope might spare you some of the heartache I endured. Two warnings, actually:
1. THERE ARE A LOT OF CHARACTERS LIKE WOW SO MANY.
Usually if a book has so many people in it that I have to make a character chart and map out how they connect, it is TOO MANY PEOPLE and I’m out. But I will do anything for Sarah J. Maas, so you’re damn right I made my own (YES it’s color-coded, what kind of savage do you take me for?)
HOWEVER! There is space at the front of the ARC for both a Map and Special Content, which is supposed to be Lists of Houses and their ruling powers. So this might be a non-issue in the finished copy. But if you are someone who gets confused or bogged down by names and whatnot, I highly suggest you take some notes while you’re reading because if someone is mentioned once they will probably be back again.
2. “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.” THIS IS THE VERY FIRST LINE OF THE SYNOPSIS OKAY, SO EXCUSE ME FOR THINKING THE BOOK WOULD OPEN WITH HER CLOSEST FRIENDS ALREADY HAVING BEEN MURDERED.
Well, guess what they are super not and I HIGHLY RESENT that I had to spend the first 60 pages FALLING IN LOVE with them only to have to bear witness to their gruesome death. So I just want you to go in knowing that you will have to spend the beginning of the book watching Bryce interact with her friends AND an adorbs LI, knowing they are all about to die.
Also, Hunt does not make his first appearance until about 10 pages AFTER the murders, and he and Bryce don’t start working together until two years and 150 pages in.
Pages and Pugs 
I’m so happy to hear how good this book is. I have high hopes for it! I love books with a lot of characters and different hours a la Song of Ice and Fire but I do hope they list them in the front so I can flip back as needed..
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I’m still waiting on my copy to come in from Waterstones, but from what I can see on the kindle preview pages, there IS a map, but not a character list. There’s a list of the different houses, so I would still recommend making your own character list to help keep people straight!
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I probably will, thanks for the review!
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Let me know what you think!!
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Did her writing get any better at least? If i hated her YA books for poor writing and being a poorly disguised harem fantasy, would I be able to set that aside and read this? Are the descriptions a little more adult-oriented and not spelled out to the ridiculous point? I kind of want to try to read it but just detested her early work so much
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I’m not sure I can speak any of this very much, because I’ve always thought Sarah’s writing was fantastic. As of right now, the kindle preview runs through chapter 6, which is about 70 pages–a pretty good chunk to help you decide how you feel about her writing this time around!
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ARGHH I have preordered this book and I cannot WAIT for it omg!!! I read and reviewed the excerpt but I am itching to get my hands on it! Great post!! 😀
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I love your review! I think the map and special content definitely made it easier in the final version. My favourite thing about this book is how female friendship really is at the forefront of it!
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Thank you so much!
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