YA in Review: Tower of Dawn (Sarah J. Maas)

This post will essentially be Spoiler Free, however comments by other users may possibly contain information that spoils portions of the plot, so read at them your own risk. As this is part of a series, this review may spoil portions of the plot from previous books in the series.

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What it's about:

Chaol Westfall, former Captain of the Guard, now Hand of the King, has been given two missions: one, to convince the khagan of Antica and his children to join their side in the war against Erawan, and two, to heal the damage to his spine at the Torre Cesme - home to the greatest healers in the world. Yet the khagan's recent tragedy - the loss of a beloved daughter - clouds his judgement, the healer assigned to help him holds a grudge against his former king, and Erawan's forces grow stronger every day. There is no time to delay, and yet Chaol must use all of his past training in the palace to remember that political games, as well as true healing, take time.

Why it's worth a read:

•  If you like Chaol (or even if you liked him at one point and then started to hate him when his personality changed), this is one you should pick up. His character completely redeems itself.
• Maas does some of her best writing here. If you love her writing, this is a beautiful example. The imagery is lovely.
• To get the full impact of Kingdom of Ash, this is a must-read. Although you'll understand most of the plot for KoA without reading it, there is a heck of a lot of character development that occurs that is crucial for the final book.
• There is a rich world developed in Tower of Dawn unlike that seen in the rest of the series. If you want to experience another location that, although fitting right into Maas's world, feels brand new, this will be refreshing.

Where it disappoints:

• If you want to continue with Aelin's journey, or want some sort of resolution to the events of Empire of Storms, you will be sorely disappointed. This doesn't cover it at all, it only mentions her storyline a few times in a way that reminds you of the painful cliffhanger.
• It feels a bit more like Crown of Midnight and Heir of Fire. That's not a criticism, however if you like how Maas's writing has transformed with each book, you might find it a bit jarring that it bears similarities to the previous works rather than Empire of Storms or Queen of Shadows.
• It was quite predictable overall. I didn't mind that I knew where things were going, but if you are looking for a book with an intense mystery element, you won't find it. There are a lot of intense moments that will keep you on the edge of your seat, regardless of this fact.

Final Thoughts:

Tower of Dawn was definitely one of my favourite books of the series. I put off reading it for so long because I had grown to really dislike Chaol (after previously adoring him), and didn't think I could stand reading a book entirely about him healing. I was so pleasantly surprised. I whipped through this one, and haven't looked back since. The romance, overall plot, imagery, and action were all great, and I would absolutely recommend this one.