Throne of Glass Review: Worth Starting in 2026?

Is Throne of Glass still worth reading? Here's an honest review of Sarah J. Maas's epic fantasy series opener.

8/6/20263 min read

Throne of Glass Review: Worth Starting in 2026?

If you've read our ACOTAR review and are wondering whether to try Sarah J. Maas's other major series next, here's my honest take on where Throne of Glass stands — including the common criticism that its opening book is the series' weakest link.

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Quick Answer

Yes, but go in with the right expectations: this is widely regarded, including by me, as the weakest entry point of Maas's three series. The good news is that most readers and critics agree the series improves substantially starting with book two — so the real question isn't "is Throne of Glass good," it's "is it good enough to get you to book two."

What It's About

Celaena Sardothien, the kingdom's most notorious assassin, is offered a chance at freedom: compete in a tournament to become the King's Champion, serving a monarch she has every reason to despise, in exchange for eventual release from her sentence. What begins as a competition narrative gradually reveals a much larger magical and political conflict simmering beneath the kingdom's surface.

My Honest Take

I think Throne of Glass suffers from a common first-book problem: it reads younger and more surface-level than Maas's later work, with pacing and character depth that hadn't yet caught up to the ambition of what the series eventually becomes. I don't think this makes it a bad book, but I understand why it's consistently cited as the series' weakest link.

Celaena's introduction undersells her later complexity. Much of book one leans on telling readers she's a legendary, feared assassin rather than fully showing that reputation through her actions — a gap that closes significantly in later books, but is noticeable here.

The tournament structure provides decent, if somewhat predictable, plot momentum. It's an effective way to introduce the cast and world, even if the central competition itself isn't the series' most compelling material in retrospect.

The magic and political stakes feel underdeveloped compared to what's coming. Readers who've heard about the series' eventual epic scope may find book one's stakes comparatively small — that's intentional expansion, not a flaw exactly, but it's worth calibrating expectations.

The romance subplot is fine but not the book's strongest element. Unlike ACOTAR, where romance is more central and immediate, Throne of Glass's romantic threads feel more secondary in this first installment.

What to Know Before You Start

This is widely considered the series' weakest entry point. Nearly universal reader consensus (including my own take) is that the series improves substantially by book two, Crown of Midnight, and continues escalating from there.

It's part of an eight-book series, so go in aware of the commitment.

Maas's own recommended reading order places the prequel novellas (The Assassin's Blade) after book two, not before book one — don't start with the prequel material despite its earlier chronological setting.

Who Should Read This

  • Readers willing to push through a weaker opener for a series that improves significantly

  • Fans of assassin-protagonist fantasy with eventual epic-scale political stakes

  • Anyone who enjoyed ACOTAR's world and wants Maas's other major fantasy series

Who Might Want to Adjust Expectations

  • Readers expecting the same immediate quality as later Maas work or ACOTAR

  • Anyone who needs every book in a series to be equally strong

Amazon link: Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

Frequently Asked Questions

Does the series get better after book one? Yes, this is close to universal consensus — book two onward is considered a significant step up in quality and stakes.

Should I read this before or after ACOTAR? Either order works — they're unconnected series, so it comes down to whether you want romance-forward (ACOTAR) or epic fantasy-forward (Throne of Glass) as your starting point. Full breakdown in our Sarah J. Maas reading order guide.

Is it worth starting if I've heard book one is weak? In my opinion, yes — treat book one as necessary setup rather than the series' peak, and the payoff in later books justifies pushing through.

Final Thoughts

Throne of Glass asks real patience as an opener, and I won't pretend it's Maas's strongest writing. But the series' reputation for dramatic improvement starting with book two is well-earned, and for readers willing to treat this as setup rather than the main event, the eventual payoff makes the slower start worthwhile.