The Assassin's Blade by Sarah J. Maas

The guards saluted Rowan, who didn’t spare them a passing glance.

She took in every detail, every exit, every weakness as they entered the large courtyard beyond the wall, two rather mortal-looking stable hands rushing to help them dismount. It was so still. As if everything, even the stones, was holding its breath. As if it had been waiting. The sensation only worsened when Rowan wordlessly led her into the dim interior of the main building, up a narrow set of stone stairs, and into what looked to be a small office.

It wasn’t the carved oak furniture, or the faded green drapes, or the warmth of the fire that made her stop dead. It was the woman seated behind the desk that made Celaena’s world shrink and expand with each breath. Maeve, queen of the Fae.





She Is Her Kingdom’s

Most Fearless Assassin





DON’T MISS ANY OF THIS

EPIC SERIES FROM SARAH J. MAAS



www.bloomsbury.com

www.facebook.com/throneofglass





Text copyright © 2014 by Sarah J. Maas

Map copyright © 2012 by Kelly de Groot

All rights reserved.

You may not copy, distribute, transmit, reproduce, or otherwise make available this publication (or any part of it) in any form, or by any means (including without limitation electronic, digital, optical, mechanical, photocopying, printing, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written permission of the publisher. Any person who does any unauthorized act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.

First published in the United States of America in March 2014

by Bloomsbury Children’s Books

www.bloomsbury.com

This electronic edition published in March 2014

For information about permission to reproduce selections from this book, write to

Permissions, Bloomsbury Children’s Books, 1385 Broadway, New York, New York 10018.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Maas, Sarah J.

[Novellas. Selections]

The assassin’s blade: the Throne of glass novellas / by Sarah J. Maas.

pages cm

Contains four previously published e-books: The assassin and the pirate lord, The assassin and the desert, The assassin and the underworld, and The assassin and the empire, plus one never-before-published novella, The assassin and the healer. Summary: In these five prequel novellas to Throne of glass, feared assassin Celaena embarks on daring missions that take her from remote islands to hostile deserts, where she fights to liberate slaves and avenge tyranny.

[1. Fantasy. 2. Assassins—Fiction.] I. Title.

PZ7.M111575As 2014 [Fic]—dc23 2013041954

eISBN: 978-1-6196-3221-9

Visit www.bloomsbury.com to find out more about our authors and their books.

You will find extracts, author interviews, and author events, and you can sign up for newsletters to be the first to hear about our latest releases and special offers.