Title: Crescent City: House of Earth and Blood
Author: Sarah J Maas
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Release Date: 3rd March 2020
Genre/Age Group: Adult, Sci-fi, Fantasy, Romance
Format: Hardcover (816pages)
Source: Finished copy, gifted from Bloomsbury
Rating: 
(Disclaimer: This review is spoiler free!)
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.”
Review
From beginning to end, this book was a real page turner, it grips you tight and won’t let go till you finish all 816 wonderful pages. There’s not one boring moment throughout this behemoth book, and I cannot stress that enough. It’s slow but entertaining at first and then quickly snowballs into something absolutely epic. By the end you will be left with your jaw dropping. It’s unlike anything I’ve ever read, it blew my mind in ways that no Maas book has done before, and it’s a book that’ll stick with me for a long long time.
The characterisation is flawless and Maas delivers seamless, realistic and heart-breaking character development that will seriously move you.
What really stood out to me was the relationship development. We’re joining Bryce and Hunt on an investigation which they’ve both found themselves thrown into without an ounce of warning. Hunt believes he’s babysitting your resident party girl whilst Bryce cannot stand Hunt’s brooding demeanour. We get to experience how these two broken characters, constantly bickering and clashing, find solace in each other’s company and slowly start to heal as they find a true friendship blossoming between them. And then eventually something more…
They’re dynamic was one of my favourite parts about this book!
Let’s go make our ancestors roll over in their graves.”
World building? I truly didn’t know what to expect. I knew it was Adult Sci-Fi Fantasy and there would be Fae, Wolves, Archangels and even Mer folk. But I was completely sucked into this new world Maas created. She’s weaved sci-fi and fantasy elements to create an entirely unique setting which I adored so much more than I thought I would. The time and effort that’s went into creating Crescent City and Lunathion truly shines through!
Speaking of shining, let’s talk magic systems. Maas doesn’t leave anything to the imagination. It’s clear she knows the ins and outs of every magical system mentioned within Crescent City. She describes it so vividly that you can’t help but be wowed but the mentions of magic such as; The Drop. Which sounds equally terrifying and exciting.
Through Love, All is Possible”
The last 200 pages had me in a tizzy in the best possible way and also solidified the fact that Bryce Quinlan is now one of my favourite protagonists ever. If you know, you know. It’s non-stop action till the last chapter which is where things really become emotional, for me at least. Because, let me tell you, I sobbed. And I haven’t cried that hard since Clockwork Princess and that’s saying something!
I can’t recommend this enough and I encourage you to pick this up asap. I truly believe that this is a book people need to read.
I can say, without a shadow of doubt, it’s officially one of my favourite Maas books to date.
☾
Be sure to check out my other social media…
Instagram | Twitter | Pinterest | Goodreads | Bloglovin
Follow FictionTea on WordPress.com
This makes me so desperate to go out and get the book right now. Your review is fantastic and I’m so hyped to read this book now. I’m so glad to hear that Maas has only gotten stronger as a writer, I love her other works so much.
I hope you love it when you buy it! (:
Love your review! I totally agree the world of this book is so complex and fascinating you can tell some serious thought went into it. In comparison to her other books, this book just seems so clever and amazing to me. She definitely delivered!
I totally agree! She is a world building queen and Adult fiction is definitely where her strengths are.