[Spoilers] Frustration/Confusion Rant - Just finished Crown of Midnight
Note: I’ve only read throne of glass and crown of midnight so far, so I’m sure I’ll change my mind as I learn more about the characters. But this is my initial thought. Also, I’m fully open to having completely missed the mark with/not having properly interpreted or understood the actions or thoughts of Chaol and am happy to be corrected.
Celaena’s Choice in Men:
Personally, I get that Celaena has her tastes and preferences. But I truly don’t get the appeal of Chaol. Dorian just seems to be a way better person? Dorian accepted her regardless of her station, background, and treated people with kindness and seems to value doing “the right thing” over blind loyalty to the crown. Yes he’s scared of his father, but it’s not like Chaol wasn’t afraid his own father. Not to mention that Dorian is more intelligent, and I don’t think he’d have betrayed her or Nehemiah like that.
I will say that it’s super refreshing to see Dorian actually treating her like a person and not just an object of romantic pursuit. He genuinely loves her as a person and as a friend more than anything else.
Chaol Sucks generally:
He seems to consistently recognize how shitty the king is but then is still so scared about *others* trying to overthrow him? He was disgusted by fae Celaena even when she risked her life to save him and Fleetfoot. As if her being fae suddenly makes her less worthy or any less of the person she is?
And he learns about the King’s plans but then is still freaking out over her being Aelin and his actions essentially helping her? Like, if anything, he should recognize, at least by now, how evil and shitty the King is, that he’s harnessing dark powers, and using people and torturing them into monsters. He should know all of this and yet, he’s acting like the king having an adversary with a stronger claim to the throne is a bad thing?
If his issue was just that he really strongly believes in rule of law - I get it, but then he should support the rightful succession. He doesn’t because he doesn’t care that King has violated his own laws, went against the natural order, took over places and killed off the rightful rulers of those places. He’s just very pro-colonization. He acts like a martyr, but what he seems to want is just for Celaena to live a quiet life, away from the King… while constantly fearing the king’s retribution if she’s ever caught? Despite knowing that if the King continues to be successful, she will eventually be caught or at least suffer (as all civilians in the conquered areas have/will)?
Where’s his integrity? And why does he struggle so much to grow a spine? And how can he love Celaena while also being freaked out every time he learns something about her (like when he realized she was likely former nobility and his instinct was to try to warn and protect Dorian - as if Dorian’s own father wasn’t himself a threat to Dorian’s life?)
Also how could he not have realized that the King was basically asking him to look the other way while Nehemiah may be killed (either by the king or some other assassin)? He knew what Celaena went through losing her family and how close she was to Nehemiah. If he loved her, why wouldn’t he try to protect her from having to be retraumatized? And he couldn’t even be bothered to care about Nehemiah enough to warn her personally of the threat? Although it probably wouldn’t have made a difference, knowing what we know now, but he didn’t know back then - it feels like he only really cares about Celaena because of his romantic feelings for her, and doesn’t care about protecting Nehemiah because he wasn’t interested in her.
[bonus Nehemiah rant]
Also, I get why Nehemiah did what she did and Martyred herself, but boy was it frustrating to see how much she was willing to traumatize Celaena for it. I get that it was for a bigger cause and Celaena needed that emotional trigger for it, but it’s still messed up.