If the ruthless trial to become the King’s Champion hooked you—the duels, the poison test, the relentless training at dawn with Chaol—you’ll love Yelena’s razor-focused mission to survive as the Commander’s new food taster. Like Celaena, she’s bargaining for her life under a tyrant’s eye, mastering poisons and courtly dangers while unmasking conspiracies. The mentor–student dynamic with Valek echoes those disciplined sessions in the glass castle, and the steady drumbeat of escalating tests gives you that same propulsive, goal-driven rush.

You admired how Celaena strides into rooms—daggers, wit, and confidence intact—whether she’s trading barbs with Dorian or reading a foe across the sparring mat. Katsa brings that same ferocity and agency, a lethal young woman feared for her Grace who’s entangled in royal politics and a dangerous mission. Her growth—learning to define her power on her own terms—mirrors Celaena’s evolution beyond the assassin’s mask, while the bond with Po offers character intimacy without sacrificing edge or momentum.

If the glass castle’s back corridors, coded Wyrdmarks, and the tightrope between the king’s will and Nehemia’s secrets drew you in, Daevabad’s palace intrigue will feel like home. Nahri’s arrival pulls her into factional knife-fights as precarious as Celaena’s dance between Chaol, Dorian, and the king. Watch princes (Ali), warriors (Dara), and viziers maneuver with lethal politeness, while every alliance hides a trap—much like Cain’s smiling menace during the Champion trials.

If you were captivated by an assassin who can gut a man and still wrestle with right and wrong—Celaena sparing rivals, questioning the king’s orders—Ismae’s path will grip you. Trained by a convent of Death to eliminate targets in a court rife with betrayal, she infiltrates power and uncovers rot, much like Celaena’s undercover work in the castle. Her uneasy partnership—and slow trust—with Duval recalls the wary alliances and buried tenderness that complicate Celaena’s lethal life.

If you enjoyed the sparks and tension between Celaena, Chaol, and Dorian—those training ground glances, the library confessions, the loyalties put to the test—Lou and Reid’s enemies-to-lovers, forced marriage delivers that same emotional voltage. The witty jabs and grudging care turn into real stakes once secrets and magic collide, echoing how hidden truths (Wyrdmarks, Elena’s warnings) complicate love and loyalty in the glass castle.