Throne of Glass (Throne of Glass #0.1–0.5, 1–7)

by Sarah J. Maas

“You’ve been dreaming,” Maeve said, running a finger over the mask still clamped to her face. “Such strange, wandering dreams, Aelin.” No. No, it had been real. She managed to lift her head enough to peer down at herself. At the shift and too-thin body. The scars still on her. Still there. Not wiped away. No new skin. “I can make this easy for you,” Maeve went on, brushing Aelin’s hair back with gentle, loving strokes. “Tell me where the Wyrdkeys are, swear the blood oath, and these chains, this mask, this box … all of it will go away.” They hadn’t yet begun. To tear her apart. All of it a dream. One long nightmare. The keys remained unbound, the Lock unforged. A dream, while they’d sailed here. Wherever here was. “What say you, niece? Will you spare yourself? Yield to me?” You do not yield. Aelin blinked. “It’s easier, isn’t it,” Maeve mused, bracing her forearms against the lip of the coffin. “To remain here. So you needn’t make such terrible choices. To let the others share the burden. Bear its cost.” A hint of a smile. “Deep down, that’s what haunts you. That wish to be free.” Freedom—she’d known it. Hadn’t she? “It’s what you fear most—not me, or Erawan, or the keys. That your wish to be free of the weight of your crown, your power, will consume you. Embitter you until you do not recognize your own self.” Her smile widened. “I wish to spare you from that. With me, you shall be free in a way you’ve never imagined, Aelin. I swear it.” An oath. She had sworn an oath. To ...