Book Review: Crescent City #1

5/5

The Mortal Instruments meets Ninth House. House of Earth and Blood is one of the best books I've read this year! Like we've seen with her other novels, Maas has created a stunning world, and her writing is lush and spellbinding. I'm a very character driven reader, and I absolutely loved so many in this novel. They were all so well-developed and richly detailed. Maas dives deep into their hearts and minds, and shows us all of their raw, gritty essence. I particularly loved how Maas portrayed Bryce and Hunt's trauma. It was realistic and well done, and it creates an emotional connection between the reader and the characters that is heartbreaking. Bryce is a force. She's strong, independent, and unapologetic in most of what she does and who she is. She loves her friends and even though she screws up sometimes, she still fights for the people close to her. Hunt is complex and threw my emotions all over the place. I went between wanting to swoon, give him a hug, and wring his neck throughout the story. Ruhn is my soft princeling. I love him so much and he needs his own book. Danika and bold and boisterous, fiercely protective, and she walks her own path. The book is dense, and gives a lot of information, especially in the beginning. It starts a little slow, but it's intriguing all the same. With the world Maas has created, I feel like it's necessary to give as much as she did. The pacing picks up pretty quickly and you won't want to put it down. I blew through it in three days and wished I had more. Book two can't come quickly enough! I read the print edition and listened to the audiobook, both are fantastic.