Maas tends to end her books on a cliffhanger. The first three books should be read as one, almost. Although the second and third are quite long.

The books do get better as you go along. This book feels like the end of a trilogy - a planned trilogy. It wraps up nicely and has a good denouement. I was a little surprised that there is another book. Because of the nice wrap-up, and my pile of books to read already, I don't feel the need to read the fourth book right away.

For the first time, I do not feel like this story is the re-telling of another story. There are still the hints of other authors stories. Scenes and characters and arcs hit me with Laurell K. Hamilton vibes and J.R.R. Tolkien vibes and Jacquelyn Carey vibes. Perhaps most authors in a genre will have echoes of other authors, but the ones in Maas still make her work feel not-quite original even when it isn't the re-telling of a fable or myth.

I'm still unsure about recommending these books. It should not take three books to hit your stride in a series, though I've read other series that was true for as well. I'm just not sure about telling people that they need to read hundreds of pages before it gets better. I guess in general, if you like YA fantasy that moves out of YA with stories of fae and maybe don't mind re-tellings and heavy borrowing and read without critique, then these would be good.