Crown of Midnight, written by Sarah J. Maas, is the second book in the Throne of Glass series, a New York Times Bestseller. This high fantasy young adult novel was published in 2013 by Bloomsbury and has sold over 20 million copies worldwide, with five more books following Crown of Midnight in the series. Crown of Midnight picks up the story of Celaena Sardothien after she wins a fight-to-the-death tournament and becomes King’s Champion. This guide references the Bloomsbury 2013 edition of the book.

The novel’s plot centers on the continent of Erilea in the kingdom of Adarlan. Adarlan lies on the east-central coast of the continent, bordering the Great Ocean. Rifthold, Adarlan’s capital, sits on the kingdom's southern border, with the Great Ocean on its east and the River Avery on its south. Other areas of significance are Eyllwe to the far south of Adarlan, Anielle to the west, and Terrasen to the far north. The novel references two labor camps: the Endovier Salt Mines and Calaculla. Endovier—the mine where Celaena works after being captured in Throne of Glass—lies northwest of Rifthold. Calaculla—the mine where the King of Adarlan sends Eyllwe’s rebels—is to the south.

Plot Summary

By winning the king’s tournament in Throne of Glass, Celaena is bound to serve as the King of Adarlan’s assassin for four years. The novel opens with Celaena on such a mission, but she stages the target’s death and lets him go free. When Celaena reports to the king, he gives her the name of her next target: Archer Finn, a very handsome and popular courtesan.

Celaena spends the next several weeks following Archer and learning more about him and the alleged rebel movement. When Celaena tells him the king sent her to kill him, Archer says he’s not a rebel. He sneaks her into a ball the following night, where she finds a riddle in the host’s office. The riddle takes her to Queen Elena’s tomb, where Elena and Mort—a magical door knocker—guide her with tasks while urging her to accept her destiny. When Celaena solves the riddle, she’s only rewarded with a second one, which greatly frustrates her.

At the same time, Celaena’s relationships deepen and grow complicated. After she makes a birthday dinner for Chaol, the Captain of the Guard, their friendship turns to romance. This damages her friendship with Prince Dorian, the king’s son, as Dorian is jealous of Chaol. Celaena cherishes her friendship with Nehemia, Princess of Eyllwe—she opens up to the princess about everything that’s happened in the glass castle, and this honesty brings them closer as they work to solve the riddles together.

As Dorian begins to defy his father, he discovers that he has magic. He visits the library and Baba Yellowlegs, a witch who comes to the castle with a carnival, to find answers and learn to control his power. Dorian knows his father will execute him if he finds out about Dorian’s magic. Meanwhile, Nehemia asks Celaena to help save her people and restore the King of Eyllwe to his throne. Celaena, however, only seeks her own freedom. She refuses because she thinks it’s a lost cause to fight the King of Adarlan. Nehemia calls her a coward, and their relationship is damaged; this stays with Celaena for the rest of the novel, inspiring Celaena to finally see herself as the leader she must become.

One day, Chaol goes missing. Celaena finds a ransom note in his room, so she goes to the address listed and fights her way to Chaol. She discovers that Archer was behind the kidnapping, but she also learns that the king intended to question Nehemia about rebel activity, something Chaol knew but didn’t tell Celaena. She rushes back to the castle to find Nehemia dead. Celaena’s grief causes her to lose control. She attacks Chaol, enraged by his dishonesty. Before she gets knocked out by another guard, Celaena tells Chaol he will always be her enemy.

After a few weeks, Celaena hunts down Grave, Nehemia’s killer. She finds him and tortures him until he explains who hired him. She kills Grave and takes his head to the king, accusing Minister Mullison of orchestrating the assassination. This gains Celaena the king’s respect and trust. The stress of losing Nehemia helps heal her friendship with Dorian. Celaena remains cold toward Chaol, but she slowly softens as time passes.

To solve the second riddle, Celaena goes to Baba Yellowlegs. She learns about the Wyrd, Wyrdkeys, and the Wyrdgate, extremely powerful and dangerous magic. She realizes the king has at least one of the Wyrdkeys, which is likely the source of his power. Baba Yellowlegs mentions Dorian while they talk, and Celaena kills her, both to save herself and to protect Dorian’s secrets.

Celaena realizes that the second riddle tells the location of the Wyrdkeys. She goes to Elena’s tomb and discovers the Wyrdkey is missing, confirming the king has it. She then opens a portal to talk to Nehemia’s spirit. As Nehemia disappears, Archer enters the chamber. He explains how he posed as Minister Mullison and hired Grave to kill Nehemia, whom he thought was detrimental to his plan. He also explains that he set Chaol up to gain Celaena’s trust. Celaena attacks Archer and accidentally reopens the portal; a monster emerges as Chaol and Dorian enter the chamber.

Archer flees, leaving the three friends to fight the monster. Dorian and Celaena go look for a way to close the portal, but the monster drags Celaena’s dog Fleetfoot inside, and Chaol follows. Celaena sees this, knocks Dorian out, and follows Chaol and the monster. Once in the Otherworld, Celaena changes into her Fae form and chases the monster away. Celaena, Chaol, and Fleetfoot return to their world and seal the portal.

Chaol realizes the danger Celaena is in by staying at court, so he convinces the king to send her to Wendlyn to assassinate the royal family there. The king agrees. On the docks, just before boarding a ship, Celaena tells Chaol everything she has uncovered, including the Wyrdkeys and Wyrdgate. She tells him she must come back to Rifthold to stop the king. After Celaena leaves, Chaol returns to her room and discovers she is Aelin Galathynius, the Lost Queen of Terrasen and a major threat to the kingdom.