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For anyone who hasn’t heard of Sarah J Maas, she is a bestselling author of three fantasy series: “Throne of Glass,” “A Court of Thorns and Roses,” and “Crescent City.”
Maas is known for her immersive worlds, complex heroines, and dramatic twists. Her books often blend romance, action, and political intrigue in medieval time periods, but “Crescent City” pushes those elements even further by combining high fantasy with a modern, urban setting. The result is a story that feels both familiar to Maas and entirely new.
I recently had a conversation with my friend where we tried to rank the best Sarah J Maas books. Regardless of who was correct (it was definitely me), we both agreed that “Crescent City” is the most underrated work by Maas.
When it comes to Maas, underrated does not mean overlooked. While “Crescent City” may be her least read series, the first novel still has over one million ratings on Goodreads.
So how is it underrated? Well, I’m glad you asked. “Throne of Glass” has double the number of ratings as “Crescent City”, and “A Court of Thorns and Roses” is regarded as the novel that started the romantasy genre, which is a subgenre that combines fantasy and romance. Compared to the success and popularity of her first two series, “Crescent City” can feel like the middle child: successful, but not often celebrated as Maas’ best work.
In 2020, Maas told NetGalley that “Crescent City” began as a “secret passion project” while she was writing “A Court of Thorns and Roses.”
“I love urban fantasy; I love paranormal romance. I never thought that I would write one myself because I could never think of an idea for one,” Maas said.
At its core, “Crescent City” follows Bryce Quinlan, a half-Fae, half-human party girl living in the city of Lunathion. Working for a rich sorceress, Bryce spends her days in a gallery filled with magical tombs and creatures. After a brutal murder shatters her world, Bryce is pulled into an investigation that forces her to confront both the city’s dark underbelly and her own unresolved grief. Partnered with Hunt Athalar, a fallen angel enslaved to the ruling authorities, Bryce navigates a web of secrets, power struggles, and hidden magic. What begins as a murder mystery quickly expands into something much larger, revealing threats that could upend the entire city.
Bryce Quinlan herself is another reason the novel stands out. Unlike Maas’ other protagonists, Bryce begins the story not as a trained assassin or a chosen hero, but as a party-loving young woman dealing with grief, trauma, and guilt. Her emotional journey is human, making her one of Maas’ most relatable characters. She doesn’t want to be the hero, and she probably wouldn’t have stepped up to the plate otherwise. Watching her transform over the course of the novel from someone running from her pain to someone willing to confront it is one of the greatest and most heartbreaking parts.
One complaint I frequently see about “Crescent City” is the length of the world-building. And yes, it is a lot. The opening chapters throw readers into a dense, information-heavy setting filled with different species, political structures, and magical systems. But what readers often overlook is how intentional this pacing is. That buildup is intertwined with a murder mystery that happens early on in the novel, giving readers a clear narrative to follow. Instead of learning through exposition alone, we experience the world through Bryce’s investigation, piecing together clues, exploring the city, and gradually understanding the world.
The most memorable part of the novel is chapters 78 through 81. These few chapters alone are the reason I regard this book as Maas’ best. It is a masterclass in suspenseful, creative writing, and Maas uses a sneaky tool to keep readers on the edge of their seats. Combine the plot buildup with the novel’s exploration of friendship and loss, and “Crescent City” becomes more than just an urban fantasy with a good romance.
If you like “Crescent City”, I would recommend reading “This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me,” by Ilona Andrews. Maggie, an epic fantasy reader, goes to sleep in Texas and wakes up, without explanation or warning, in the streets of the “fictional” kingdom of Rellas, the setting of her favorite unfinished trilogy. From there, she realizes the only way she can survive is by trading her secrets and knowledge of the world. Like “Crescent City,” the novel blends humor and danger, with a lovable, unsuspecting heroine like Bryce.
While there is no news on when the final “Crescent City” book will be released, Maas announced last month that the next two books in the “A Court of Thorns and Roses” series will be released this fall and winter.
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