Celaena Sardothien won a competition and became the official assassin of
despotic King Havilliard of Adarlan. Unknown to the king, Celaena fakes
the assassinations he orders, and plans to conquer King Havilliard and
free the lands he's seized.
As
'Heir of Fire' begins, King Havilliard has sent Celaena to Wendlyn,
with instructions to kill Wendlyn's royal family. Instead, Celaena -
who's REALLY Aelin Ashryver Galathynius, the lost Princess and rightful
Queen of Terrasen - plans to learn how to destroy King Havilliard, who's
using magic Wyrdkeys to gain power and enslave people.
Celaena
is depressed about the death of her friend Princess Nehemia, and the
end of her relationship with Captain of the Guard Chaol Westfall. For
this reason, Celaena has been wandering around Wendlyn for days, and is
dirty and reeking.
Celaena is in a tavern when she's approached
by a Fae warrior called Prince Rowan. Rowan has been sent by Queen
Maeve, ruler of the Fae in Wendlyn. (The Fae are an immortal race who
possess magic, enormous strength, ancient cultural traditions, and
secondary animal forms.) Rowan is none too impressed with disheveled
smelly Celaena, and he rudely and harshly escorts her to Queen Maeve in
Mistward. 
Celaena
has come to ask Queen Maeve how to destroy the Wyrdkeys possessed by
King Havilliard. Maeve says she'll answer the query after Celaena -
who's half Fae - trains with Prince Rowan to master her Fae heritage and
to use her fire magic.
Rowan
is a VERY HARD taskmaster, and Celaena's training is grueling,
exhausting and dangerous. Over time, though, the shared experience
forges a bond between Celaena and Rowan, who are blood relatives.
Meanwhile,
there's a lot going on elsewhere. King Havilliard has entered into an
alliance with the ferocious Ironteeth witches, to provide him an aerial
force for battle. The king supplies the witches with resources and
wyverns (flying dragon-like creatures), and the witches train to fight. 
One
of the most ambitious witches is Manon - of the Blackbeak clan - whose
autocratic grandmother rules all the Ironteeth clans. There's
competition among the younger witches for leadership roles, and the
rivalry leads to backstabbing, deceit, and worse. During training, Manon
bonds with a wyvern named Abraxos, and goes to great lengths to
strengthen and train him for battle.
Meanwhile,
back in Adarlan, a rebellion against King Havilliard is fomenting.
Captain of the Guard Chaol Westfall, who was once a loyal supporter of
King Havilliard, has become disillusioned with the monarch's
ruthlessness and hunger for power.
Likewise General Aedion Ashryver, one of the king's greatest military commanders, is secretly planning to overthrow the king. 
So Chaol and Aedion form a shaky alliance, not quite trusting one another.
Meanwhile,
King Havilliard's son Prince Dorian is in a precarious situation. The
king banned magic from Adarlan under penalty of death, and Dorian
recently discovered he has magic.
The
prince's attempts to suppress his abilities results in tremendous pain,
so Dorian goes to castle healer Sorscha for remedies. Over time, a
romance develops between Dorian and Sorscha, which is dangerous for them
both.
During
all this Chaol and Dorian remain best friends. Chaol tries to help
Dorian hide his magic and is sympathetic toward Dorian's relationship
with Sorscha. As things play out, both Chaol and Dorian are in peril
from King Havilliard.
By
the end of the book there's been much death and destruction, and
Celaena is embarking on a new path to destroy King Havilliard. 
For his part, the king is becoming more of a megalomaniac, with ambitions to conquer the world.
The ongoing story is engaging, and it will be interesting to see what happens next.
Rating: 3.5 stars
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