u/Life_Scientist_7799

Hi everyone! I’m new to the Dramione fanfic world, but I’m a huge Harry Potter fan, so I’m not new to the HP universe itself.

I’d love some recommendations for where to start as a beginner. I’m especially looking for fics that are emotionally immersive

Since there are so many beloved classics and popular fics in the fandom, I’m a little overwhelmed and don’t know where to begin. If you were guiding someone totally new to Dramione, what would you recommend starting with? And is there any particular reading order you’d suggest?

Hi everyone! I’m fresh out of reading Alchemized, and it has officially pushed me down the Dramione rabbit hole.

I’m new to the Dramione fanfic world, but I’m a huge Harry Potter fan, so I’m not new to the HP universe itself. I’d love some recommendations for where to start, especially fics that are really well written and emotionally immersive. writing matters to me!

From my TikTok search I’ve downloaded a few popular ones so far, Green Light, Breath Mints / Battle Scars, Bloody, Slutty, and Pathetic, The Auction, and Isolation. I also read the beginning of Green Light, and I really liked the writing style, so I’m wondering if that’s a good place to start.

I know Manacled is the source material for Alchemised and I definitely plan to read it eventually. I’m just wondering if, as a total beginner, it’s better to start somewhere else first and come back to it later especially since I’ve just finished Alchemized and want to experience Dramione with a fresh headspace.

Basically if you could guide a Dramione beginner, what are the must-reads, and in what order would you suggest reading them?

I just finished Alchemised and I genuinely don’t know what to do with myself now.

I devoured this book in three days and I have not stopped thinking about it since. Like i knew people loved it, but I was not prepared to be this obsessed. Easily five stars. Easily one of my favorite books ever.

And Kaine and Helena?? I fear they have ruined me. Their dynamic, the tension, the devotion, the pain, the way everything between them felt so intense and complicated. I need something that gives me that feeling again.

I also found out there’s a Kaine POV fanfic from TikTok, so I’m reading that now because apparently I’m not ready to leave this world yet.

But please, what do I read after this? I’m looking for books, fanfics, or couples that have a similar emotional grip. It doesn’t have to be the exact same plot, just something with a really compelling story, high stakes, aching tension, devotion, and a couple that gives Kaine and Helena energy in the best way.

Basically, I need something that will emotionally destroy me and make me obsessed.

Help. What should I read next?

Who would be the funniest, most unhinged crack pairing in the TOG universe?

I was thinking about this the other day just for fun. By crack pairing, I mean two characters who were never actually a thing and probably would make absolutely no sense together, but imagining them as a couple is so chaotic that it becomes hilarious.

For me Manon &Chaol , They would be comedy gold 

Arobynn Hamel was underutilized as a villain

I know a lot of people say Arobynn was irrelevant by QOS and that he deserved an irrelevant death, and I understand that argument. But honestly, I kind of feel like he was one of the best-written villains in TOG and could have been used way more.

What made him so interesting was his twisted history with Celaena. He wasn’t just a random villain he had a personal, psychological hold over the main character, and that made his presence feel much more intense.

That’s what made him such a strong villain to me. The fandom hates him with passion, and honestly, that says a lot. Not every villain gets that kind of reaction. With Arobynn, every time he was on page, there was tension. You wanted his downfall. You wanted him exposed. You wanted him to lose.

I get that after QOS, the series takes a very different turn with bigger villains, bigger magic, and wider fantasy arcs. But I still think it would have been really interesting if Arobynn had been tied into one of those later arcs somehow, instead of being pushed into irrelevance so quickly.

Maybe he deserved an irrelevant death, but as a villain, I don’t think he was irrelevant at all. No other TOG villain made me hate them in the same personal, satisfying way that Arobynn did.

Question about Rowan wanting to take Aelin’s blood oath at the end of HOF

This scene honestly felt so out of place to me. Rowan had just been freed from Maeve after centuries, and then almost immediately he wanted to take Aelin’s blood oath? Like why?

At that point, they weren’t even together romantically, and while I understand that he cared about her and respected her but the intensity of him wanting to bind himself to her felt sudden. He had finally gotten his freedom, and his first instinct was to swear himself to another queen.

I know the story wants us to see it as loyalty/devotion, but for me it came across as rushed. I didn’t feel like there had been enough buildup for him to want the blood oath that badly yet.

Did anyone else feel this way, or did that moment make sense to you?

Does anyone have a chapter guide for rereading only certain characters’ storylines throughout the series?

For example, all of Manon’s chapters, or Lorcan and Elide’s chapters together. I know the storylines eventually overlap, but I would love to do a reread focused on specific characters and their arcs without having to go through every book from the beginning again.

Does anything like this already exist, or has anyone made their own list?

I finished ACOTAR, I finished Throne of Glass, and now I’m finally about to start Crescent City!

I’ve heard that the beginning of House of Earth and Blood is very world-building heavy and can feel confusing at first, so I wanted to ask: what advice would you give a first time Crescent City reader? Is there anything I should keep in mind going into it?

I’m also trying to decide what format to use. I have the GraphicAudio versions of all three books available through Libby, but I’m also planning to buy the paperbacks today. Would you recommend reading the books physically first, listening to the GraphicAudio, or maybe reading along while listening? I loved having an immersive experience with SJM’s other series, but I’m wondering whether the amount of world-building in CC might be easier to follow on paper.

I’ve also seen some very mixed opinions about the series in general, but honestly, at this point I trust SJM enough to give it a proper chance. And since we’re all waiting for ACOTAR 6, I definitely want the Crescent City context, especially knowing there is an ACOTAR crossover involved.

So, for those of you who have read it, what do you wish you had known before starting Crescent City? And which format gave you the best experience?

I’m looking for book recommendations that have the vibe of the earlier TOG books, especially The Assassin’s Blade, Throne of Glass, Crown of Midnight, and even Queen of Shadows.

What I really loved was the assassin storyline, Rifthold, the Assassin’s Keep, the King’s Champion setup, dangerous missions, palace secrets, betrayals, revenge, and that darker, more grounded fantasy atmosphere.

Fantasy elements and romance are fine, but I’m mainly looking for something that stays focused on assassins, court intrigue, dangerous people, hidden agendas, and personal stakes, rather than shifting heavily into Fae, mates, or a magic-dominated plot.

Any recommendations with this kind of vibe?

I don’t think we talk about Wesley enough in this fandom.

Like, this man tried to avenge Sam, was planning to rescue Celaena from Endovier, and ended up getting murdered for it. And somehow he is barely mentioned when people talk about the most tragic characters in this series.

I know he was a very minor character, but he was genuinely one of the silent heroes of the story. He saw what Arobynn had done to Sam and Celaena and actually tried to do something about it.

And then there is the fact that Lysandra loved him. His whole story is just so sad, and it happened almost completely in the background.

I’ve been wondering about this for a while: why doesn’t Sam ever appear to Aelin from the afterworld?

I’m currently in the middle of KOA, and after Kaltain made an appearance to Dorian, it made me think of Sam again. We’ve seen a few moments where people from beyond are able to appear or communicate in some way, so I can’t help but wonder why Sam never does.

And from a writing perspective, I do understand why SJM might have chosen to keep him as more of a haunting presence in the narrative rather than bringing him back directly.

But from an in-universe perspective, my little headcanon is that Sam is finally at peace. I like to think he’s reunited with his mom, happy somewhere beyond all the pain he lived through, and quietly cheering Aelin on from wherever he is. Maybe he doesn’t appear because he doesn’t want to pull her backward or interfere with the life she still has to live.

I’ve also seen the headcanon that Celaena’s human side eventually reunites with Sam, and honestly, I love that idea so much.

So what do you guys think? Why do you think Sam never appears from the afterworld not from a writer’s perspective, but from an in-universe one?

I started KOA and I’m only a couple chapters in, Reading the TOG series has honestly been such a journey for me. I absolutely love this series, and I already know certain parts of it will stay with me forever.

Having said that, I kind of feel like I’m reading the series more for the side characters than for Aelin and Rowan. I’m invested in Manon and Dorian, Lorcan and Elide, and even other subplots. Their arcs and dynamics just pull me in more.

It’s not that I dislike Aelin or Rowan. I understand Aelin as a character, and I understand why she is the way she is. I have no issue with her being confident, arrogant, or fully aware of her own worth. Honestly, rightfully so. But for some reason, I just don’t find Aelin/Rowan as interesting as the other characters and relationships.

Has anyone else experienced this while reading the series? I feel weirdly guilty about it because Aelin is the heart of the series, but my attention keeps going to everyone else.

I know the common recommendation is usually to read AB either first or third, but I read it right after TOG, and for me, it hit the perfect balance between mystery and emotional damage.

In TOG, you already get the sense that Celaena has a heavy past. She’s coming out of the salt mines, she clearly has trauma, and there are mentions of Sam and Arobynn. But TOG doesn’t fully explain what happened. You can tell Sam is important, and you can tell something went very wrong, but the details are still vague enough that there’s this suspense hanging over everything. You’re not going into AB completely blind, but you’re also not fully spoiled.

That’s why reading AB second worked so well for me. It felt like I was stepping backward into the mystery that TOG had just opened up. I knew enough to be nervous, but not enough to know exactly how everything would play out. So the emotional parts still hit hard, maybe even harder, because there was this horrible sense of “I know something bad is coming, but I don’t know how bad.”

And honestly, I feel like reading AB third would have spoiled way more for me. COM gives you a lot more about Sam, including more direct references to what happened to him and how brutal it was. By that point, the suspense of AB is kind of reduced because you already know much more of the outcome.

I also get why people say to read AB after COM, because by then Celaena is more ready to confront her past and you understand more of her identity. But for me, reading AB second gave me the best kind of ambiguity: I knew enough to care, but not enough to feel like the story had already been explained to me.

So yeah, I’m surprised the “AB second” reading order isn’t discussed more often. For me, it preserved the mystery, avoided the bigger spoilers from COM, and still made the emotional impact absolutely devastating.