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Read a full Tower of Dawn summary right here! This page is full of spoilers, so if you haven’t read this book yet, stop here! If you need a refresher on what happened in Tower of Dawn, then you are in the right place!

Author
Sarah J. Maas

Ratings
4.7 stars on Amazon
4.48 stars on Goodreads
Add Tower of Dawn at Goodreads.

The Throne of Glass Series
#0.1-0.5 The Assassin’s Blade
#1 The Throne of Glass

#2 Crown of Midnight
#3 Heir of Fire
#4 Queen of Shadows
#5 Empire of Storms
#6 Tower of Dawn
#7 Kingdom of Ash

***** Everything below is a SPOILER *****

What happens in Tower of Dawn?

Chaol and Nesryn arrive in the beautiful seaside city of Antica. They see white cloth hanging from windows everywhere and realize someone important has died. They reach the palace, where the khagan and his six children live. Tradition in Antica says his heirs will eventually battle it out for his throne. Nesryn is emotional about arriving in Antica, where her father is from and where her aunt, uncle, and cousins still reside.

They greet the khagan and his children. Chaol presents the large amount of gold and jewels Aelin sent. The khagan rejects it. He talks of what his spies have heard about Aelin. He knows they will request that he join the war. He addresses Chaol’s injuries and permits him to work with the Torre Cesme healers. He will send a healer to Chaol’s suite in the morning. Sartaq says their sister Tumelun has died. The khagan informs them Rifthold has been sacked. Chaol’s worried about Dorian and knows Nesryn’s in shock about her family’s possible fate.

Kashin tells Chaol how the Torre healers have helped many people with injuries similar to his. He invites them to their family dinner each night. He speaks of his sister’s suicide but says he believes she might have been murdered.

Yrene Towers has been training and healing with her magic at the Torre Cesme for two years. Hafiza calls for her. She’s heard Yrene is leaving them soon to head home to help heal the injured on the battlefield in the war they all know is coming. Adarlanian soldiers had killed her mother for possessing magic many years ago, and Yrene wants to help her homeland defeat them.

Hafiza wishes she would stay and continue her training. She passed her final test with the highest marks ever, so Yrene knows she’s prepared. Hafiza asks one last thing of Yrene: to heal a special guest of the khagan. It will be a long healing process that will delay her departure. Hafiza thinks healing an enemy will heal the old wound in Yrene. Yrene agrees to assess him.

Yrene is late to her evaluation of Chaol. She’s ruder than she’s ever been to a patient because he served the king who had her mother killed. She’ll send word when she’s decided whether she can and will heal him.

Yrene is embarrassed and speaks with Hafiza about her assessment. Her mentor says to do better next time. Chaol is different than she expected an Adarlanian soldier to be. The dark magic tangled in his spine will make healing tricky.

Nesryn goes to her family in town. Sartaq escorts her to the gate.

Chaol asks Arghun what else he knows about Rifthold since he’s the one who brought the intel to his father. He won’t provide any further details. Chaol is angry.

Yrene arrives at the royal dinner and intentionally doesn’t look at Chaol or Kashin. Kashin talks to Chaol about Yrene. Chaol hears his ‘territory claimed’ tone. Chaol is worried and furious when Nesryn gets home late into the night from her visit with her family.

Yrene tells Chaol she’s going to try to heal him. She warns him to be careful what he says in the palace. They talk about Antica and its differences from Adarlan as she examines him. He tells her of the horror aligned with Perrington and what he’ll be fighting against once again if she can heal him. She’ll research this dark power at the Torre library. Chaol’s surprised his treatment is free.

Chaol requests a private meeting with the khagan during their next family meal. The khagan says his focus is helping his wife grieve their daughter.

Yrene studies ancient books in a desolate part of the library and finds one about the Valg. She feels like she’s being watched. When she’s almost back to the main area, she finds someone murdered. The girl looks much like Yrene. She can hear someone behind her but gets away.

Yrene is late the next morning, so Chaol begins working through some exercises on his own. She looks terrible when she arrives and sends Kadja on a false errand immediately. She tells Chaol what happened. It sounds like a Valg demon murdered the girl. He apologizes for bringing the demon to Antica as surely it followed them here. But one might have murdered Tumelun, too, which would mean they were already here. He wants Yrene to be very careful. Yrene asks him to help teach a self-defense class to the young healers. Yrene has a special contraption that will allow him to ride a horse to the Torre.

Yrene thinks she needs to push the magic down and repair the injury for Chaol to be healed. It’s torture, but he’s willing to endure it to be healed. They need to discuss the darkness in his psyche that is feeding the magic for healing, too. He says it’s none of her business.

Nesryn is in the aerie early one morning. Sartaq offers to let her ride Kadara with him. It’s exhilarating. Sartaq talks about his siblings and what will happen among them when an heir is chosen. He loves and worries about them.

Both Yrene and Chaol are exhausted after their first magical healing session. She didn’t have much luck in her first go but saw visions from Chaol’s past and heard words like ‘Morath.’ It will take a long time to penetrate this darkness.

Nesryn goes into the city to investigate how the Valg demon got into the Torre and runs into Sartaq. They search the city together for them but find nothing.

Yrene oversleeps the next morning due to her exhaustion from her session with Chaol. Chaol didn’t wait for her and is mounting his horse with the help of a few guards and the brace. They ride to the Torre. Chaol loves being on a horse again and seeing the city.

A crowd of girls have gathered in front of the Torre for their lesson. They are excited to see Chaol. Yrene tells the girls about Chaol’s injury and his brace. She asks girls to volunteer to help him dismount and into his chair. He helps Yrene teach the self-defense class.

Kashin greets them in the palace courtyard. He tells Yrene he has put guards in place at the Torre to try to keep them safe. She thanks him but cuts the conversation off before he is ready. Back in his room, Yrene finally drags out of Chaol why he’s angry: the fact that she put him on display. She’s sorry.

Yrene attacks the black magic on his back again. Chaol sees painful memories about how his dad treated him. Yrene ends up with a bloody nose from the strain of the session. She saw Morath and its armies. Chaol orders her to rest before she leaves. Chaol’s toes begin to move.

Nesryn visits her aunt and uncle, which is both wonderful (to be around family) and hard (to miss and worry about her father and siblings). She tells them of the attack at the Torre and how she fears it’s because of her and Chaol’s presence in Antica. She’s afraid they might target her family to try to get to her. Her aunt and uncle say they will take precautions but aren’t too concerned.

Hasar calls Yrene to her, and they discuss Chaol, Kashin, and the war on the northern continent. Hasar asks Yrene to try to get information about Aelin from Chaol. Hasar thinks maybe the Torre attack was orchestrated by Chaol and Nesryn to get her family to relent and join their war. Yrene silently disagrees. Hasar threatens to never let Yrene leave Antica if she doesn’t play the spy for her. Yrene reluctantly agrees.

Yrene doesn’t show up on time the next morning, so Chaol mounts a horse (with a little help) and heads toward the Torre. Hafiza sees him in the Torre courtyard. Yrene is still in bed, exhausted from yesterday’s session. Hafiza tells him it is a natural process for a healer.

Chaol is already in the courtyard—on his horse and with one for her—when Yrene finally rises the following morning. She puts him through a few exercises right there in the courtyard while he’s on the horse. She needs to check on a couple patients before they begin Chaol’s full session at the palace. He goes with her. They decide not to do a session today, so Yrene gives him a tour of the city by horseback.

That night, Chaol and Nesryn go to a royal party together. Hasar tells Nesryn to move to make room for Yrene. No one’s sure what to do. Finally Sartaq asks Nesryn to come join him. Chaol assumes whatever Yrene was keeping from him earlier goes hand in hand with this display by Hasar. Chaol and Yrene keep their conversation professional because they know everyone is listening.

After dinner, the party really begins with music, dancers, and incense laced with opiates. Chaol sees Nesryn walk to a place to view the festivities without being hindered by the smoke with Sartaq. He sees Kashin lean over to invite Yrene with him, so Chaol beats him to it with an invitation of his own.

They move to a couch and speak to each other in code. The opiates begin to affect them. Yrene tells Chaol she needs some small thing to take to Hasar, like a possible place to search for Aelin. Chaol has to act like he’s entranced and willing to give her intel. It’s hard for them to tell what’s real and what isn’t between them. Chaol comes back to his senses. He gives the location of Skull’s Bay for Yrene to take back to Hasar because he doesn’t think Aelin would ever return there.

Nesryn tells Chaol she’s tempted to go with Sartaq when he flies to his people to see if they have any information on the Valg. Chaol asks Nesryn to tell him all about her time with her family. She knows what passed between him and Yrene at the party was real but stays and talks to him until they’re both asleep.

Yrene finds Chaol and Nesryn asleep in his bed the next morning. She rushes out. Chaol rushes to her. He explains nothing happened. Yrene is embarrassed that she feels relieved. Chaol’s attention snags on a new scroll she’s brought because Wyrdmarks are on it. He tells her to hide all of it immediately. She puts the scrolls in a spare pair of his boots. She tells him of something new she read in the library. There are two other kings besides Erawan: Orcus and Mantyx. They were defeated and either killed or sent back to their realm long ago.

Yrene asks about Chaol’s scars. He won’t share about the one Aelin gave him, but he tells her about the one from his father. When they begin his session, Yrene taps into a related memory, when Chaol’s dad threw him out of their house. Yrene’s mind travels to a memory of her mother. At the end of the session, Chaol can feel and move his whole foot. She tells Chaol of her journeys after her mother died.

Sartaq finds Nesryn with Kadara. He asks her to accompany him when he goes to visit his people. He’ll be gone a few weeks. She decides to go with him without even asking Chaol or telling him goodbye. She sends a note to him instead.

Yrene and Chaol do further research in the Torre library. He eats dinner at the Torre afterward and stays the night in a room there. Yrene has a meeting with Hafiza the next morning, so Chaol travels back to the palace with Eretia. He sees the note from Nesryn. He’s mad he treated her badly enough that she left.

Sartaq and Nesryn set up camp after flying far from Antica. They discuss Nesryn’s people, and the accurate information Sartaq has from his spies surprises her. He even knows about her bow and arrow shot that saved Lysandra.

Yrene is confused when Chaol’s in a bad mood during their next session. She tries to get the reason out of him. She learns from Hasar that Nesryn left with Sartaq. That evening Yrene goes back to see Chaol. She feels something following her. They barricade Chaol’s door. The creature pounds on it. It whispers Yrene’s name. They hear palace guards in the hallway. Prince Kashin arrives because Yrene sent for him. He orders more guards to be stationed throughout the palace. She stays because she feels safer with Chaol. She sleeps in his bed. He’s in his chair keeping watch.

Chaol wants to see how the Antican soldiers’ training is different. They allow him to join them.

Nesryn and Sartaq travel in the bitter cold. Nesryn learns about the different rukhin clans and the rivalries between them. Sartaq asks her not to refer to his royalty among his clan. Among them, he’s known simply as captain of their forces.

They arrive at the mountain home of Sartaq’s clan. Nesryn meets Borte, his hearth-sister.

Sartaq tells Nesryn about the training process for ruks and young riders. He talks of his father’s smart battles in his younger years. They discuss the army Erawan is rallying. Nesryn isn’t sure what his motive is but suspects it’s more than just conquering the continent.

Borte challenges Nesryn to see how good her archery is. She hits her target again and again and impresses Borte. Borte is training to be the next hearth-mother and must learn many things in addition to fighting, so she asks Nesryn to teach her archery.

Sartaq introduces Nesryn to Houlun, the clan’s hearth-mother and Borte’s grandmother, who has just returned home. An Adarlanian merchant named Falkan is there with her. Sartaq has things to tell her in private. She says he’ll have to wait. She feels an ancient evil stirring in the mountains and was checking on the ruk nests that have been raided. She believes it’s stygian spiders.

Nesryn always believed the spiders were myths. Falkan has proof they’re real: a piece of cloth made from their unusual silk. He bartered 20 years of his life for pieces of spidersilk, but now he wants them back. Houlun wants Sartaq to help search for the spiders.

Houlun dismisses Falkan and asks Nesryn whether the darkness is starting again. She asks if the khagan knows. Sartaq says he’s too wrapped up in his grief. He wants to know what else Houlun knows. She wants to rest first. She tells them to prepare for a storm because she barely beat one home.

The storm hits while they’re gathered around the fire that night. Houlun is also a Story Keeper and tells of a rip that occurred in the world long ago and let nefarious creatures in.

Chaol and Yrene head back to the Torre library to determine how those books and scrolls ended up there. Nousha, the head librarian, doesn’t know. Nousha suggests they look for information in desert caves in the Aksara Oasis. The oasis is not accessible by the public. It’s a private refuge for the royals. Yrene might be able to request access from Hasar.

Yrene asks Chaol to stay at the Torre for dinner because she’s not ready to say goodbye. He suggests they got out for dinner instead. They learn a lot about each other as they eat. Chaol feels lighter afterward, like there’s something that’s been on his chest his whole life that finally lifted.

Nesryn and Sartaq fly to the watchtower to look for the spiders (kharankui). They enter the tower and quickly discover it’s booby-trapped. They maneuver through the traps safely and make it to the dungeon. A kharankui bigger than a horse descends on them. A giant grey wolf rescues them. Kadara attacks and kills the spider when the wolf lures it outside. Falkan is the wolf; he’s a shapeshifter.

Falkan needs help with his injuries from the fight. It’s a tough flight home with his extra weight on Kadara. Sartaq is furious but discovers Houlun already knew what Falkan is.

Houlun remembered more stories while they were gone, this time about the three Wyrdkeys. Sartaq follows Nesryn to her room to question her. He realizes Erawan must have one or two of them and asks what Nesryn knows. She just says now he knows why they want the khagan’s armies. Houlun has learned of three other watchtowers in ruin.

Chaol’s legs are regaining strength and movement through his knee. He trains with the soldiers in the morning and tackles the darkness and pain of healing in the afternoon. He continues to help train the female healers in self-defense.

The khagan returns to the nightly dinner after two weeks away. Hasar announces how excited Chaol must be for Nesryn to return tomorrow. Yrene’s disappointed. Chaol says he just received word that they’re extending their stay by another few weeks. Hasar says Dorian and Aelin were both kidnapped at Skull’s Bay. Yrene discovers Aelin and Chaol were lovers. It appears Antica will not be coming to Aelin’s aid.

Chaol fumes in bed that night because he knows more than anything Hasar doesn’t want to leave her comfortable life and Arghun deals more in power and knowledge than brute strength. Kashin shows up to tell him another piece of information: Captain Rolfe ordered a large number of firelances from Antica and just placed another big order.

Sartaq insists on taking Falkan with them on their next mission, but ten days later he still isn’t healed. Nesryn can’t imagine going back to her former life. They ask Nesryn to tell stories of her homeland as they’re gathered around the hearth. She sings a couple songs for them instead.

Falkan is finally strong enough to travel again. They visit the other watchtowers. On one of their stops, they are confronted by The Berlad and their leader Yeran. They’re searching for three ruk hatchlings that went missing. He and Borte are mouthy to each other. He’s her betrothed.

Chaol makes a surprise appearance at the khagan’s council meeting to speak to the foreign trade adviser. He wants to know how much each firelance costs. He asks to double Aelin’s order. He will use the four trunks of priceless treasure as payment. He wants to show how lucrative the war could be if Aelin continues to buy weapons from Antica. The khagan asks the guards to escort Chaol back to his rooms.

Chaol’s still in a foul mood from the meeting when Yrene arrives. He initiates a fight with her just because he’s spoiling for one. The whole time Yrene is beckoning him to take a step. He takes one, then another and another until he pushes her against the wall and kisses her.

They kiss again on the castle grounds the next day after one of Chaol’s training sessions and are caught by a servant. Yrene keeps her distance after that because acting unprofessional like this could jeopardize her job.

Yrene tells Chaol she’s convinced Hasar to take them on an overnight excursion to Aksara to celebrate Yrene’s birthday.

Sartaq and Houlun study the Dagul Fells maps for a week before they decide to go. They make Borte stay behind. Nesryn asks Sartaq why he’s never married as they fly. Nesryn mentions how much harder it will be to ask the rukhin fighters to join Aelin now that she knows the riders and their families.

Dagul Fells is covered in webs. They fly high over the area to investigate. They see a ruk hatchling. They end up tangled in a web as Kadara flies in to rescue it. It was a trap. Sartaq takes the brunt of the impact for Nesryn. They scramble toward the web Kadara is tangled in. The hatchling is injured. Sartaq begs Kadara to fly away. Spiders descend. Nesryn shoots the one closest to them. Kadara flies away. Nesryn and Sartaq run further into the mountain pass.

The group from the palace leaves for Aksara. The royals ride ahead. Chaol and Yrene race on their horses.

Yrene and Chaol act embarrassed to join the scantily clad royals in the bathing pools to give themselves a chance to roam the grounds and search for the lost city. They finally come across old pillars leading below, displaying men, animals, Fae, and the Valg. It’s a Fae burial site. Chaol never thought Fae settled anywhere besides their own kingdom and Terrasen. He wonders if they bred down here on the southern continent to produce healers gifted in magic. If they can find someone to interpret the scrolls they have, would they possibly describe something the healers could do to help defeat the Valg? They decide to ask Hafiza.

They return and get dressed up for the evening party. Hasar tries to provoke everyone. She says maybe they would join the war if Aelin would come down here and marry one of her brothers, maybe Kashin. Chaol explains that Aelin will soon marry Rowan Whitethorn, a Fae prince they’ve all heard of. When they’ve all imbibed way too much, Hasar makes a comment about Chaol’s chair. Yrene flips Hasar’s chair, and she falls into the pool behind her. Yrene’s afraid she’s dead. Everyone is quite for a long time. Then Renia and Kashin begin laughing. Hasar just says she wondered when Yrene would grow a backbone.

Yrene asks about Aelin and if the things Chaol said about her at the party were true. She feels him out to see if he still has feelings for Aelin or Nesryn. He assures her he doesn’t. She says she’s glad. He presents her with a locket as her birthday gift. He wants her to be able to keep whatever she’s been fingering in her pocket inside the locket. They are intimate. Yrene tells Chaol of the note that now lies in her locket. It’s from the woman who taught her how to fight and left money for her to travel to Antica.

Nesryn, Sartaq, and Falkan climb the mountain pass, trying to find the way out of the trap the spiders laid for them. A slide happens. Sartaq gets stuck. Nesryn can’t pull him free. He tells her he loved her before he even met her from the stories he’d heard. She and Falkan leave with a plan. It lands Nesryn and an unconscious Sartaq in the spider’s lair covered in spidersilk. Falkan is behind Nesryn slowly chewing away her trap. A kharankui comes in. The spider says she’s waiting for the Queen of the Valg to arrive. Maeve.

Nesryn asks to hear the story. The spider tells of three powerful dark kings who conquered their world a lifetime ago. They all three fell in love with a dark queen. She married Orcus, the oldest and most powerful. Maeve was curious about what else is out there and found a way into Nesryn’s world. The spiders came with her and stayed in this spot to guard the gate between the two worlds. Orcus found a way to control these gates. He made three keys, one for each king. They went from gate to gate conquering realm after realm as they searched for her.

Meanwhile, Maeve had found the Fae land, ruled by two queens. She got into their minds and convinced them they had an older sister. She got into the minds of everyone in the realm and convinced them there had always been three. When the dark kings arrived, they did not recognize her in her Fae body. She defeated them and took their keys. She sent the first two back to their world. Before she could send Erawan back, Brannon arrived and took the keys from her. He wasn’t sure what she was but could sense the darkness in her. Maeve greatly feared Brannon’s fire, as all Valg do. He left. Maeve built her kingdom with many powerful defenses in case Erawan rose again.

Another spider comes in to warn that twenty ruks are approaching. While the spiders are gone, Falkan chews both of them free. They grab their weapons and flee. Sartaq was awake and heard it all. He’s unsteady on his feet from blood loss. Since the spiders hate fire, they shoot fiery arrows at them. Falkan shifts into a spider like them to stay behind and fight. He asks Nesryn to search for his niece, possibly a shapeshifter, who he’s been looking for. He leaves his fortune to this niece.

The spiders descend on the three of them. They begin to fight. A ruk sweeps in to help. Its rider is Borte. Yeran’s there, too. Ruks pick up Nesryn and Sartaq and fly away. Dagul Fells burns behind them.

Chaol and Yrene leave Aksara ahead of everyone else. He arrives at the palace to find his room trashed. The only thing they didn’t find were the scrolls they had stuck in Chaol’s boots.

Chaol asks Yrene to go to the Torre where it’s safe. That’s part of his purpose, but he also knows Nesryn is due back soon. He needs to properly end things with her. Yrene discusses the scrolls with Hafiza. She tells her how they think healers might be involved and how the Fae might have started their civilization here long ago. Hafiza has a locked trunk full of Wyrdmark books. Her predecessor told her they weren’t for human eyes, but she didn’t know what they were. Yrene wants to take them with her to the person Chaol knows who can read Wyrdmarks.

Yrene says she’s ending this today. She’s going in and conquering the darkness in Chaol’s spine. It’s hard, but it works. He ends up fully healed. Chaol and Yrene express their love for each other.

Sartaq and Nesryn sleep away their first day back. They gather with the clan so Sartaq can fill them in. Nesryn then tells them the full history of Erawan and Maeve. Nesryn tells Falkan she might know his niece and asks if he will come north with them if the clans decide to join the fight. He agrees to. A messenger rushes in with a note from Chaol. He requests their presence back in Antica immediately.

Chaol tells Yrene his full story starting with when he first met Celaena until now. He tells her how Aelin’s fire burned the Valg demons out of Dorian and his father. This makes Yrene think that the Valg are parasites. She thinks her healer gifts could treat those infected by the Valg with much greater success in saving the host. Powerful people like Aelin and Dorian would have to hold them down while Yrene works. This is probably why Erawan’s minion is hunting her: because they know what her powers can do.

Hasar tells them that Aelin’s group defeated Maeve’s fleet. Aelin called in debts to many people: the Silent Assassins of the Red Desert, Wendlyn, and of course Antica. She promises Hasar a better world if they join her.

When they make it to the Torre to look at the ancient texts, Hafiza is nowhere to be seen. They find her iron key wedged under her door. They search the Torre and end up in the lost tunnels beneath the library. They find her bound and gagged by Duva, the khagan’s youngest living daughter. She’s possessed by a Valg demon. She killed her younger sister when she got suspicious. She says Maeve has been hoarding healers. Erawan wants Yrene for his own. Duva threatens to hurt Hafiza if Yrene doesn’t come with her.

Hafiza knocks her chair into Duva. A fight ensues. Yrene stays behind to try to heal Hafiza. Duva begins to fight Chaol. He eventually uses a mirror to rebound a blast of darkness onto Duva. It knocks her out. Yrene and Chaol worry about the baby in her womb. She was faking and blasts power at Yrene. Chaol pushes her out of the way and takes the blast directly in the back. Chaol’s feeling begins to vanish once again. Yrene throws Chaol’s sword at Duva and runs. Duva chases her, trying to get a Valg ring on Yrene’s finger. Yrene gets Chaol’s dagger and is about to kill her. Chaol begs her not to. Nesryn and Sartaq arrive. Hafiza breathes sleep over Duva.

Yrene can feel death imminent on Chaol and tries to heal him. There’s too much damage to repair. She feels her ancestors moving in to help. The Torre healers line up behind her, each with their hands on the shoulders of the one in front of her. This eventually heals Chaol, even the old scar on his cheek. Yrene pays a price to bring him back. She bound his life to hers. His legs will only function properly when Yrene’s power is at its fullest, acting as a brace. When her power isn’t full, he will have to use a cane or maybe even the chair.

Chaol sees the new bond between Nesryn and Sartaq. They have a silent exchange and a quiet understanding about their new relationships.

How did Tower of Dawn end?

They take Duva to the khagan, show him the ring, and tell him how Erawan is living in Perrington and has enslaved her to him with this ring. Arghun tries to argue. Hafiza shuts him up by asserting this is the truth. Kashin begs Yrene to fix Duva. She says she’ll try. Chaol talks to the khagan about what his country has to offer in the war against Erawan.

The demon in Duva is even worse than what was in Chaol. Hafiza tries to keep her under a sleeping spell while Yrene works. She goes into Duva’s consciousness and fights the demon with light. It’s hard work. Duva begins vomiting until the demon finally pours out in black smoke. The khagan says he will give Yrene anything for saving his daughter. She has one request.

Chaol and Yrene meet with Nesryn and Sartaq to catch up on all they’ve learned in their time apart. They will join Aelin and help her mount her defense. Hasar will join them, too.

Nesryn finds a two-week-old note from her uncle and rushes to his house. Her father and sister are there! Sartaq shows up a couple hours later, landing Kadara right by the ruk Nesryn rode. Sartaq meets her family and then takes Nesryn on a walk. He told his father he’s following the woman he loves into battle. His father appointed him Heir.

Chaol and Yrene set off northward on a boat. They were married before they left Antica. Yrene declares she’s found her courage and doesn’t need the note anymore. She takes it out of her locket. Chaol cannot believe he recognizes the author’s handwriting. He can’t believe Aelin saved his wife’s life so long ago. He tells Yrene to keep it a little while longer. There’s someone he knows who would like to see it.

There you go! That’s what happened in Tower of Dawn, the sixth book in the Throne of Glass series!

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63 thoughts on “What happened in Tower of Dawn? (Throne of Glass #6)”

  1. I fucking hate Chaol. I did read the book, I just wanted to be refreshed ’cause I read it a year ago. Thank you for reminding me, how much the fire of hatred that I have towards Chaol, hasn’t diminished in the slightest.

    1. I’m so sorry I’m just now seeing this! Maas definitely inspires strong emotions in us, doesn’t she? Chaol is actually one of my favorites of the series, but there are others who I really dislike. So I understand the high level of emotion you feel! 😉

        1. I love how fiercely readers defend the pairing(s) they love and hate in this series! 🙂

  2. Btw, this recap is really good. Don’t think I’m being salty, from my previous comment(I was tho) In the ‘thank you’ part, I wasn’t being salty towards you, or your recap, I was just being salty towards Sarah, and Chaol.

    1. No, I totally get it! I have been very mad at times during this series, too. And thanks for the compliment on the recap. I appreciate it!!! 🙂

    1. I highly recommend this book! But I hope you’ve enjoyed the others in the series. 🙂 Did you read the finale?

  3. This was wonderful. This series is SO long and I’ve been reading it as the books come out. There are a million characters, and it lose track of them all. I definitely needed a refresher that took 20 minutes, rather than a 20 hour reread! Now, on to Kingdom of Ash!

    1. I’m so glad the recap was helpful! That’s exactly why we developed this website. It’s hard to keep everything straight, especially in longer series like this one. I hope you enjoyed Kingdom of Ash!!! 🙂

    1. Thanks a bunch!!! I’m so glad the recaps are helpful to you. I hope you’re enjoying Kingdom of Ash!!! 🙂

  4. I didn’t feel like reading this book because I can’t stand Chaol in the others. BUT after reading the truth about Mauve I’m like “well crap… now I have to go back and at least read that part!” lmfao

    1. Big things definitely happen at the end! I highly recommend this book. Granted, I’m a big Chaol fan, but I really enjoyed it. I’ve read some people who didn’t like him before Tower came around by the end. Happy reading! 🙂

  5. Thanks for the recap. I really needed it .I was confused for moment but your recap helped explain the story .

    When will you post the recap of King of Ash?

    1. You’re welcome! I’m so glad the recap was helpful. 🙂 This series is so long and complicated that it’s easy to forget the details. We usually don’t write recaps for the last book in a series, so we’re not planning on recapping Kingdom of Ash. I’m sorry!

    1. Same! I thought it was a great installment in this series! I’ve always been a big Chaol fan. 🙂

  6. I actually hate Chaol so much so I didn’t read the book but I’m reading Kingdom of Ash and there is a lot of characters with Chaol that are new so I just decided to read this. I actually HATE Chaol ever since the beginning, I thought my opinion on him changed when he was with “Celeana” but I was verrrry wrong. My friends and I hate him soooooo bad and we all LOVE Rowen and LOVE Rowan and Aelin’ s relationship and I would die for a carranum. Also for Empire of Storma I’ve also fallen in love with Fenrys😍. But anyways, just reading Kingdom and Ash and i can’t wait to find out what happens in the end. Damn i can’t believe so much happened since the beginning of the book. I was on pure shock after reading the ending of Empire of Storms and I actually didn’t like how it ended. Omg damn I’m still shocked and I hope Aelin never agrees to the blood oath to Maeve. Especially since I just found out SHE’S VALG AND MARRIED TO ERAWEN AND AELIN THOUGHT SHE SAW BLACK BLOOD ON HER WHEN SHE ATTACKED WITH THE GLASS SHE WAS TORTURED WITH AND THOUGHT SHE WAS HALLUCINATING BECAUSE IT WAS HARD FOR HER TO KNOW WHAT WAS REAL AND NOT AND IT’S SO CUTE HOW FENRYS WAS THERE WITH HER AND HOW THEY HAD A SECRET LANGUAGE BY BLINKING! THEIR FRIENSHIP IS WHAT I ADMIRE SO MUCH AND I KNOW FENRYS WOULD LOVE TO BE SWEAR A BLOOD OATH WITH AELIN!! But ya I’m saying all this in this recap because I’m reading the full book with no spoilers. Also this was the only book i didn’t read because I hate Chaol so much if he was a real person I would-be too harsh honestly but ya……

    1. I love your passion for these characters and books! 🙂 I feel strongly about this whole series, too, but in the opposite way. I have been a huge Chaol fan since the beginning (and don’t like Rowan at all), so I have been very frustrated with Maas since Queen of Shadows. Thus, Kingdom of Ash was my favorite book since Crown of Midnight. I totally respect your opinion, though, and think Maas is so gifted in her character development because she makes each of us feel so strongly about certain people. I can see why you’re going back to read this book because it would be hard to understand everything that happens in Kingdom of Ash without knowing what happened here. Happy reading! 🙂

  7. Ugh so many mistakes in my writing, I should’ve proof read this before posting.
    Mistakes: *Kingdom of Ash
    *Rowan
    *I was actually shocked (I don’t know why I put “on pure shock”??)
    *FENRYS WOULD LOVE TO BEAR A BLOOD SWORN OATH WITH AELIN
    *If Chaol was a real person I would- too cruel and harsh to say 😤😌
    *I’m saying all this stuff in the recap because I’m reading Kingdom of Ash at the moment and no freaking way am I reading a short detailed spoiler….you have to read every book with EVERY DETAIL to feel what we true fans feel. AGAIN, this was the only book i didn’t read because Chaol Westfall freaking sucks. Dorian Havilliard is a freaking cutie, Rowan is (too little for words 😍), Gavriel is too old for me (and Lorcan), Aedion is a douche but I would still take him, and Fenrys is mine. Thanks for reading my full comments if you did.

    1. I’m glad you’re reading the book instead of just reading the recap! I agree that there’s no way to read a recap and get a feel for the book as a whole! We provide recaps for people who have already read the book but would like to refresh their memory before reading the next release in the series. For readers who read many series every year, it’s hard to keep the details of each book they read straight when new releases are often a year apart. I hope you’ll visit our website again if you’re ever wanting to refresh your memory before a new book in a series is released! Thanks for both of your comments! 🙂

  8. Thank you for this summery I got the jist of the book haven’t go a copy! This is great

  9. I just need someone to talk to about this book I just feel like chaol and Nestryn’s breakup was too causal I think they should of discussed the whole thing better. And also I didn’t really like tower of dawn compared to the other books in the series because all the other books just seemed to balance with romance and battle but this one didn’t have enough romance it seemed. WHAT DO YOU GUYS think?

    1. To me, it seemed like the Chaol/Nesryn break-up was glossed over to help show that the relationship was never that serious for either one of them. (Just my opinion.) 😉 And I think this book is kind of a love letter to those of us who are Chaol fans, like me. We felt like he got a raw deal in books 4 & 5, so this was a way to keep us on board for the series. (Again, just my opinion.) This series is pretty divisive depending on who you’re rooting for. I’ve read lots of TofD reviews from people who aren’t Chaol fans, and they didn’t enjoy this book. I wouldn’t want to read a book that focused on mostly on Rowan, so I get where they’re coming from! If you haven’t read book 7 yet, enjoy! 🙂

    2. thank you for posting this recap!!!! i used it as a reference “i need this explained” while i read this book for the first time!! i’m loving it so far (i have 100pgs left!!) and i cannot wait to go read kingdom of ash next!!! i loved seeing chaols development in this book and some parts in the beginning where he was struggling with being in the chair and unable to walk was honestly heartbreaking!! i also i loveeee yrene and chaols relationship (their first kiss was everything???? like leading chaols first steps omggg) but i felt like their relationship developed too quickly after the kiss? like i love them but i also wish yrene didn’t kiss him that first time so we can have more tension!!! and i loved that nesryn (despite her initial and some chapters after part two we’re boring as hell and hard to get though) i loved that sarah didn’t write her out of the story and actually gave her somthing to do and had her go on her own self discovery journey just like chaol it was great despite me hating some of it bc of how boring it was lol it was still great to see nesryn also get some love and it wasn’t all JUST yrene and chaol!! the ending is so good too!!!

      1. You’re welcome! I’m glad it helped you understand the story a little better as you read. I agree with what you said about Chaol and Nesryn! Maas’s characters are always so well-developed, and it seems she doesn’t leave anyone behind. If she mentions someone even once, you can assume they’ll be important and their story will be developed further at some point. I hope you enjoy Kingdom of Ash!!! 🙂

  10. Personally I’m not a big Chaol fan(used to be when he was with Aelin) but tower of dawn wasn’t the best but does seem necessary to read. My heart just melted with Chaol and yerene😍 but I all feel like tower of dawn lets people get to know Chaol better as a person and I love that especially coming from a point of view where I’m not so much a Chaol fan! I somewhat understand Chaol now and feel like I like him better. Beginning not so much cause I was all for the other relationships (Dorian and Manon, Adieon lasyndrya, and of course ROWAN AND AELIN😍😍😍😍) I literally love Rowan I like have a crush on him I always pictured him super HOT and was always a fan of Dorian even after things with him and Aelin. He’s always been a great friend. Aelin I can’t even begin with she is like a role model to me so brace and yet shows so much care towards ones she loves. She’s just generally amazing 😉. I love her soooooo much.

    1. I love your passion for the series, Lily! And no problem about the typos you mention below. I always see typos as soon as I leave a comment or sent a text; you’re not alone. 😉 I think any author that can write characters we love and hate is doing their job, right? I actually feel the opposite about Chaol (love him!) and Rowan (don’t like him so much!). But that’s the cool thing about being readers: We get to interpret the book as we see it and latch onto characters with traits we love and identify with. Happy reading with this series and anything else your TBR! 🙂

      1. Totally right about the whole opinion thing on Chaol and stuff….and thanks do you have any other book suggestions for after this series?

        1. Have you read any of Cinda Williams Chima’s books? I highly recommend her Seven Realms series! All four books are out. I also really love Neal Shusterman’s Arc of the Schythe series. The third and final book in this series drops in November. 🙂

  11. I have sooo much mistakes in my writing..SORRY. Well give we a break 14 year olds mess up writing at 1:00 in the morning

  12. OMG I always pictured Chaol to look like Chris Evans(captain America)

  13. Thank you! I work so much I would not have had time to re read these books just so I could read the final one. I read the books years ago but needed a refresher. Now I feel ready. Thanks so much!!

  14. Is this going to spoil the last book as well? And if I read this do I have to read the actual book “tower of dawn”?

    1. This recap will not spoil the last book (Kingdom of Ash) in any way. It is a recap of book 6 (Tower of Dawn) only. I highly recommend reading the book. First of all, it’s great! 🙂 Also, this recap is only meant to serve as a refresher to remind readers of the high points of TofD before they read Kingdom of Ash.

  15. I bought the first and second book YEARS ago. Barely made it through the second book – found it kind of boring back then for some reason. However, about 4 days ago I decided to give it another shot. I just finished the fifth book and was so excited to read the next 2 books. Imagine my disappointment when I found out Tower of Dawn was all about Chaol – only Chaol. 700 pages of Chaol. I was bored of his character in the previous novels. Usually would just skim the chapters he was in. Also (I’m so sorry), I was actually pretty happy that he wasn’t in the 5th book – had thought that several times. But then I read that this book was necessary to understand Kingdom of Ash. Thank you so much for summarizing it so I don’t have to buy a book that I genuinely wasn’t interested in! I really just want to move on right to the last book. Thanks again 🙂

  16. Omg, I’m so glad people are still reading and loving Throne of glass, I can’t find anyone I know who loves it as much as I do!! I love your recap, wasn’t ro sure I was going to buy it as I’m so excited about what will happen to Aelin, but now I am DEFINITLY getting it, thankyou!!

  17. I just finished EofS today and after that ending, I just wanted to dive to the final book but remembered that there is tower of dawn so I came here. Thank you for this comprehensive summary and it made me interested in reading the book especially when I found out about Maeve. Maybe I’ll read it after kingdom of ash.

    1. It’s a great book! I definitely recommend it if you’re a fan of the series! And I hope you’re enjoying Kingdom of Ash. 🙂

  18. THANK YOU! for taking your time to do this. I love chaol for some reason but I really just wanted to get to Kingdom Of Ash. I will read tower of dawn after!

    1. You’re welcome! Enjoy Kingdom of Ash! And you’ll definitely want to read Tower of Dawn, too, especially if you’re a Chaol fan. It’s a fantastic book! 🙂

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