Title: House of Earth and Blood (Crescent City #1)

Author: Sarah J. Maas

Pub. Date: March 4, 2020

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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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.

#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.

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This will be a spoiler free review.

Let me just cut to the chase.

I fucking loved this book.

So much.

I went in, knowing and expecting to enjoy this book. I’ve been a SJM fan since Throne of Glass was first on shelves in bookstores. I’ve done the painful, anxious waiting for her books, and I’m doing it again. I blew through this book. Once I started it, I legit couldn’t put it down. So now I must wait for book 2 and it already sucks. It’s been 3 days.

Fuck.

I thought giving myself a few days to gather my thoughts would be enough, but I still don’t know what to say. Like I just want to scream about how much I loved this book, the world, the characters, the plots, but anything in depth – I have no words. My brain goes blank. Why does it have to be the really good books that give me this problem? I should be able to formulate thoughts and feelings and tell you definitive reasons about why I loved the book, but all I want to do is this:

Which would hurt, because this book is a whopping 803 pages and heavy as hell.

Ugh, I keep typing sentences and deleting them because they sound like crap.

I loved this book.

I cried during practically the entire end of this book.

Like, not just teary eyed, but like actually tears dripping down cheeks.

I didn’t think after one book, I’d get that invested in the story, the characters.

Honestly, this might be my favorite SJM book.

Now I feel guilty and like I’m betraying TOG and ACOTAR, but honestly? It’s taking like all of my willpower to not pick it back up again and read it.

Y’all I really don’t know what to say. This might be the most boring book review ever. I just want to gush about how much I loved it.

I loved Bryce and Hunt. I loved their chemistry and relationship. I loved that they helped one another and that their relationship grew relatively organically. I say relatively, since the actions that lead them to becoming friends is unconventional. I also loved how they were both so incredibly flawed and in different ways, broken. It made them relatable and it made their sweet moments, that much more rewarding.

I loved the world building, and how basically all manner of fantastical creature existed in it. I did find it a bit confusing, trying to keep the different groups and the hierarchy straight, but eventually I kind of just gave up and kept reading. I grew less confused the more I read, but I couldn’t tell you off the top of my head the various Houses and who’s in them.

I really liked how Bryce was ultimately a pretty normal girl – I’m sure people won’t agree with that statement, but oh well. I actually kind of loved that most of the book, she was working at her job, and not just running around saving the world.

I also loved Lehabah and Syrinx. Lehabah is such a delightful character. She reminded me a lot of Tink from Jennifer L. Armentrout’s Wicked Trilogy. And Syrinx is just adorable, and I want him.

I said it before, but I loved this world. I loved the mix of fantasy with modern day technology. Honestly the whole book kind of gave me Lucifer vibes. I loved it and I was engaged the whole time.

But the ending…the ending to this book was tense, action packed and full of oh shit moments, and teary moments, and just visually epic moments. I can still picture them in my mind and fuck, this book would make a fantastic show.

Netflix get on it.

The murder mystery aspect and crime aspect lends so well to visuals and seriously, so well to a Netflix series.

My brain just went blank again thinking about how much I loved this book and how good it was. Like, there are no words, just emotions and some screaming.

If you’re a SJM fan, read this book. If you want to become a SJM fan, read this book. If you’re not a SJM fan, why are you hate reading this book? House of Earth and Blood is such a good read that emotionally connects you to the characters and the world. Sarah demonstrated her talents in this book and had me guessing and shocked at who was behind everything. That reveal is forever ingrained in my brain, and what comes after is truly epic. I really cannot wait to see what Bryce and Hunt do next, and what’s in store for this series. I’m already anxiously awaiting Book 2 and honestly it can’t come soon enough.