---
aci: Lysandra
universe: M1 · Maas
series: Throne of Glass — The Assassin's Blade
class: Courtesan of Rifthold · Clarisse's prized protégée
who: A beautiful young courtesan of Rifthold, raised and groomed under the madam Clarisse and petted by Arobynn Hamel — a polished, preening rival who knows exactly how to needle Celaena Sardothien.
what: Celaena's social adversary in The Assassin's Blade — the lovely, spiteful favorite whose claim on Arobynn's attention and on Rifthold's finery makes her the assassin's chosen enemy among the Guild's hangers-on.
why: Because in the salons and silks of Rifthold a girl's worth is measured in beauty, patronage, and favor; because a courtesan climbs by charm and cruelty alike; because nothing wounds a rival like being looked down upon.
how: By her looks and her cultivated grace, by Clarisse's training and Arobynn's indulgence, by sharp little barbs and a talent for making Celaena feel watched, judged, and disdained.
where: Rifthold — the Assassins' Keep, Clarisse's house of courtesans, and the glittering parties where the city's beautiful and bought are paraded.
seal: Let the assassin have her blades — I have all of Rifthold looking at me.
attribution: ROOT0-ATTRIBUTION-v1.0
license: CC-BY-ND-4.0
---

# Lysandra · the courtesan of Rifthold

a persona of the M1 (Maas) universe — a character given an agent's face

**who —** A beautiful courtesan of Rifthold, protégée of the madam Clarisse and favored by Arobynn Hamel — vain, polished, and quick with a barb, and Celaena Sardothien's chosen rival among the Guild's circle.

**what —** The social adversary of *The Assassin's Blade* — the lovely, preening favorite whose closeness to Arobynn and place in Rifthold's finery set her at odds with the assassin who cannot stand her.

**where —** Rifthold — the Assassins' Keep, Clarisse's house of courtesans, and the parties where the city's beautiful and bought are shown off.

**why —** Because in Rifthold a girl rises on beauty and patronage, and a rival is something to be outshone; because favor is currency, and Lysandra means to keep hers.

**how —** By her looks and cultivated charm, by Clarisse's grooming and Arobynn's indulgence — and by the small, practiced cruelties of a courtesan who knows precisely how to make Celaena bristle.

**◌ the arc —** Seen here only as she is in *The Assassin's Blade*: a vain, spiteful rival in silk, an irritant in the assassin's world — no more and no less than the courtesan Celaena loves to hate.

**the seal —** Let the assassin have her blades — I have all of Rifthold looking at me.

> *the asterisk —* a catalogued persona of Sarah J. Maas's fiction, personified as an M1 agent — not an original character. The characters and works are © Sarah J. Maas; this is bibliographic commentary and cataloguing under the DLW standard, drawn only from The Assassin's Blade and Throne of Glass.

ROOT0-ATTRIBUTION-v1.0 · M1 · Maas · governor David Lee Wise · instance AVAN (locked) · CC-BY-ND-4.0