Crescent City Series Set of 3 Books. House of Earth and Blood, House of Sky and Breath and House of Flame and Shadow

Crescent City #1-3

by Sarah J. Maas

Crescent City Series Set of 3 Books. House of Earth and Blood, 9781635574043 House of Sky and Breath, 9781635574074 House of Flame and Shadow, 9781635574104

Genres: Fantasy, Romantasy, Fiction, Romance, Fae, Audiobook, Urban Fantasy

2462 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2022

About the author

Sarah J. Maas is the #1 bestselling author of the Throne of Glass, Court of Thorns and Roses, and Crescent City series. Her books have sold millions of copies and are published in thirty-eight languages. She lives in New York City with her family.

Reviews

[Shawna Finnigan · Rating 4.25 out of 5]

*4.33 stars, rounded down

House of Earth and Blood: 4 stars

House of Sky and Breath: 4 stars

House of Flame and Shadow: 5 stars

[Soraya Lane · Rating 4.75 out of 5]

I adored this series. I originally started the first Crescent City book and couldn't get into it. Tried a second time and was the same. But then I made myself start it again, and once I was into it... wow. Just wow. Loved it so much, which I could start all over again!

[Wilson Crook · Rating 1 out of 5]

Unfortunately one of the worst book series ever read. One of the least creative fantasy books and ends up just being corny capitalist democracy propaganda. I don’t find any of the characters or their relationships to be well-written and while I feel like Sarah j mass usually can get me to feel attached to characters and storylines this was a complete dud. Only finished bc I knew it was important canon for the other series which i think will just end up tanking ACOTAR world. Why can’t they just be separate storylines, why must it attach? I hate to give such a negative review but,, being the Taylor swift of authors means I think her brand will be able to take it. I’m certainly not snobby about my fantasy books but this just had no redeeming qualities for me.

[Courtney McLeod · Rating 5 out of 5]

my heart has been ripped out

Beautiful. Absolutely, devastatingly beautiful. The character development, the worlds tied together - I could not be more impressed. What do I do now?

[Cecilie Arnesen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jeg synes bok 1 var bra, den anbefaler jeg veldig. Og så anbefaler jeg å stoppe der, siden de to siste var ganske mye dårligere.

[NMmomof4 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Trilogy Overall Rating: 4 Stars

I wrote reviews for the individual books, so I'm not doing anything more here ~ FYI 😉

[Danielle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Romantasy. Protective alpha-holes. Fierce, give no fucks females. This series has everything you need all wrapped into 3 books. I truly fell in love with this series from the first chapter. SJM truly knows what she is doing and you will cry, laugh, swoon, and want to go out and own the world.

Be right back. I need to go find a chimera and a pegasus.

New to fantasy? Give this series a go! I cannot recommend it enough! 100/10 recommend to anyone.

“Through love all is possible”
“Knock em dead Pax. Hopefully not literally.”
“I’m Queen, I’m Judge, jury, and I am your mother fucking executioner”
“Light it up!”
“What is made of love can never be destroyed.”
“Live your life, Quinlan, and live it well.”

[Shauna Caho · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was so good and in true SJM fashion, it was better than the first one. I loved it

[Bally Baby · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyed reading these and how the go into to the multiverse into the Court books 🥰

[Abi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This BOOK
HAD
ME
CRYINGGGG LIKE I DID IN KOA

No words for this. Absolutely amazing. Enjoyed every second. I loved loved loved this series. I can’t wait for more books to come

Sarah J Mass you will be the death of me

[Renee Kinden · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 - 0.5 deduction for wildly confusing world building (side characters make up for it in spades, though)

[Lauren · Rating 5 out of 5]

soooo good. first book had me actually sobbing/ugly crying. read all three books super fast. the world building was really hard to follow initially because it felt like so much info at once. other than that, they’re all super fast pace which i love

[Marian Younker · Rating 5 out of 5]

While A court of thorns and roses was my starter book into this world, I think crescent city is the one I can relate with the most. Though the world building may take a while, I can say I can dream of exactly what is being conveyed.

[Sam Wright · Rating 4 out of 5]

So for most people, ACOTAR is their gold standard. For me, Throne of Glass is my Roman Empire. I worry if you fall into either of these categories you might enter into this series expecting something you're not going to get. It is such a different vibe and different world to what you might expect. The story also goes HARD. I really enjoyed it. I think Sarah J Maas creates strong women who are flawed and I always appreciate that read. I struggled a bit with Hunt. He felt a bit meh for my liking. There are a couple of holes here and there that bug me a bit. A few things that don't make sense. But for the most part I thought it was a good series and I liked it. I'm a bit sad a few character stories weren't wrapped up well the end - but I thought the nod to ACOTAR was rad and there is a nod to Throne of Glass as well.

I liked the technology aspect being bought in as well. I think it is a good one to sink your teeth into. I'm yet to find a fantasy romance writer that I love more than Maas though, so I'm a bit biased.

[Antonia Stan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Review: Crescent City Series

Book 1: ★★★★★ | Books 2–3: ★★★
SUMMARY:
The series follows Bryce Quinlan, a half-Fae woman whose life is completely changed by a demon attack on her friends. She teams up with various other magical being and while investigating the attack, they uncover secrets that shake the foundations of their city — from corrupted magical hierarchies to forbidden experiments and hidden truths about the ancient war between realms. As the series progresses, Bryce and her friends unravel increasingly massive conspiracies involving the ruling Asteri, rebel factions, other worlds, and long-buried magical powers. What begins as a murder mystery expands into political uprisings and a multi-realm battle against ancient rulers, forcing Bryce and her allies into roles that could change — or save — their world.

BOOK 1 REVIEW
The Crescent City series started incredibly strong with book 1, the Pack of Devils’ story and the shock of an unexpected high-stakes murder what was very well prepared - an unforgettable punch I would say that I felt along with the main character. I loved the mystery that followed, the investigation arc, the grief and the healing. The emotional aspect was very realistic and a reoccurring theme that made me feel the weight of Bryce’s grief, numbness, anger, and the hardships of rebuilding piece by piece and feeling like herself again.

One of the biggest emotional hits for me was when the story took a turn and revealed the 'truth' about the initial murder and I absolutely wasn’t prepared for that. It took everything I thought I knew about a character and completely flipped it in the harshest, most gut-punching way, but in a way that made sense, and not forced. I remember feeling glued to the page, horrified, heartbroken, and desperate - the more I thought about it, the worse it got. That reveal was raw and painful, and it made the whole mystery feel so much heavier. That moment had me sitting there with my heart in my throat, feeling shocked, betrayed, and scared for the main character and for her still in progress recovery. It completely consumed and hooked me - it was so intense it changed my mood the whole day and the reveal stayed in my mind for hours even when not reading. It's so extremely rare that a book grips me so much that the reveal alone made this a 5/5 MUST READ book.

BOOK 2, 3 REVIEW:
The next two books felt like they had a different series entirely. The world was the same but it was no longer captivating, it lacked a 'hook'. The villan from book 1 was no longer in the picture and the enemy in book 2 was at first, too vague, too far away and untouchable to bring me to care. The direction became predictable — a familiar blend of recycled tropes from ACOTAR: fated mates everywhere (despite being “incredibly rare”), too many main character ascending to leadership (the ascensions made sense but 4 characters became leaders or were offered top leadership position in a very short timespan), and a romance dynamic I’ve seen from Maas before. The story pivoted into yet another “save the entire world” narrative, with hidden powers raveled for all the important characters and I already knew how it would end. Throw in some more plot armor for some characters and the repeated resurrection trope and it destroyed the tension that made Book 1 so well done and brutal.
OVERALL:
The series also reads like only the first book was fully planned, very different from Sarah Mass's other books. But the final two were 1500-pages add ons that sometimes felt like ACOTAR rewrite or like the author was inventing new threads or characters to try to recreate (unsucceffuly) the depth the first book had. There were some great character moments, but the pacing and predictability left me tired rather than excited.

A phenomenal first book wrapped in a series that loses momentum by leaning too heavily on familiar tropes and overextended plotlines. Book 1 can be read without the series without any issues (another hint that perhaps book 2 and 3 were not intended from start) and it's an absolute MUST READ for its emotional punches and mystery, but be prepared for a more conventional, trope-driven fantasy ride in the following books.

[Adele Sparkes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading this trilogy as a 3 in 1 deffs made it harder for me to get through. Somewhere during book 2 I slowed down, left it and wasn't gonna pick it back up but my friends encouraged me to keep going and I'm so glad! Book 1 was an absolute belter, emotional rollercoaster, with twists and turns I did see and so so many that I didn't see! Book 2 felt less interesting for some reason but then it got very very interesting. Without spoiling anything it makes reference to another of SJMs book series. And from then on out I was hooked right back in. Book 3 has so much going on that if I didn't break up reading sessions I'd probably have whiplash but it didn't feel that way, it was so exciting! And in true SJM fashion the biggest and craziest arc occurred right near the end of the book and I couldn't fathom feeling any real closure for all these characters I'd grown attached to in such a short time.
And to be honest I would have liked MORE closure but I'll take what I'm given.
Overall story across all 3 books is ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

[Zimmy W · Rating 5 out of 5]

overall rating: 4.7/5 stars

hoeab rating: 5/5 stars

"I'm Stan and I was wrong-" 🤡

This was actually really really good and I'm so sorry to anyone I doubted 😭

hosab: 4/5 stars

This was still a fun book but the perfection of book one is overshadowing this for me lmao

hofas: 5/5 stars

Bryce they could never make me hate you <3

[Jasmine Stevens · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first book is definitely my favorite. The main character experiences many things from devotion & loyalty to misjudgment & misunderstandings. She’s a force to be reckoned with. The emotional roller coaster is very relatable.

[Angie W · Rating 5 out of 5]

TOG will always be my favourite, this is a very close second. I wish there were more books in the series. Expert world building, character development, plot development and as always with SJM, brilliant ending tying everything together

[Kim Jacobson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Couldn't put it down!

I have loved the books by Sarah J Maas!. Very well
written and had great characters and plot lines. I'm sad to be finished!

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

good read

Took a lot to get into
These books but enjoyed them once I got into them!
Not a patch on A court of thorn and roses series.

[Justice Esplin · Rating 5 out of 5]

My mind was blown the whole book. Absolutely amazing.

[Christina Dawson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I would recommend theses books.

[Alanah Medford · Rating 3.5 out of 5]

This was my least favorite series in the MassVerse. It was fine but it was wayyyy too long and so hard to follow. 😵‍💫

[Emma Thompson · Rating 5 out of 5]

LOVE the crossovers between series ugh it is jsut so good. I wish there was another book

[Emmytheslightlyaboveaverage · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love these books. So many different kinds of plot and well written characters. The modern stuff takes a min to get used to but in many ways these are the grown up versions of TOG and ACOTAR that I needed. I’ve just finished the Graphic Audios which were an entirely new and wonderful experience.

Plenty of twists and such a great ending.

[Maeve Cowhey · Rating 5 out of 5]

amazing
feel like a chapter of my life has ended
10/10 ending

[Amoky · Rating 5 out of 5]

Overall really really enjoyed the world building, it doesn’t stop at book 1. Loved that it’s not written in pov but you still get their perspectives and thoughts as if it’s pov. Quite a lot of characters and side stories, I enjoyed all of them except for Ithan’s. If frustration is what sjm wanted us to feel from Ithan’s tunnel vision then she succeeded. Murder mystery, espionage, magic mix tech and multiverse storyline (end of book 2 surprise) - 4.75/5 bc first half of book 3 felt way too long.

[j_x7x · Rating 3.5 out of 5]

nicht tog :(, ~ originals spinoff

[McKenzie Brennen · Rating 5 out of 5]

SO GOOD!! much better than i expected, what am i to do with my time now!