So I finally read the A Court of Thorns and Roses series by Sarah J Maas [SJM] – and this is my pretty unhinged review – please note, this does have spoilers, if you haven’t read it, I would hate to ruin it for you – so proceed with caution.
I’m sure if you’re here, you’ve already read the ACOTAR series, but I’ll put a brief summary of each book as they come. When I was reading this series I made notes at the end of each books, as well as messaging the book besties as I went – you may get a wee giggle out of those interactions [I apologise for any offensive language].
A Court of Thorns and Roses
This series opener is a Beauty and the Beast-inspired tale with a darker, magical twist that follows Feyre Archeron as she struggles to provide for her family in the mortal world. On one of her hunting trips, she kills a wolf in the forest near her house, unaware that it is a faerie in disguise. On learning of this death, Tamlin, a High Lord from the Spring Court demands retribution and takes Feyre to his land in punishment.
During her time in the Spring Court, Feyre learns about the fae world, falls in love with Tamlin and learns that the Spring Court is under the control of Amarantha, a powerful fae tyrant. As the story progresses, Feyre heads ‘under the mountain’ to try to free the lands. This is where we we meet Rhysand for the first time, and see as he strikes a bargain with Feyre to protect her in her trials. This bargain, unbeknownst to Feyre creates a permanent link for Rhysand to see and hear her emotions and thoughts.
I think that about sums it up….. So, I actually avoided this series for a long time as I just felt there was no way it would be able to live up to the hype, but I definitely enjoyed this first book. It was a little darker in places than I was expecting, and I was genuinely surprised when SJM decided to kill off Feyre at the end – I remember gasping out loud. It was also a pleasant surprise that the three people involved in the final challenge were not her father and sisters, I think that would have been a little too cliched. There were a few twists and turns I thought I was predicting correctly and was proven wrong which is always good to keep you on your toes. I’m glad Feyre didn’t stay dead, but think how interesting the trilogy would have been if it was one book per sister right from the get-go?
I loved that I couldn’t get a proper reading on the Fae, they’re written really well to reflect their tricksy nature and Lucien was a fascinating character – I remember saying to my friend that he was either going to sleep with her or kill her. I kind of missed this sassy version of Lucien as the series progressed though, he definitely gets toned down in later books.
One of my favourite visuals through the whole book, was finding out that there have been Fae all around Feyre the whole time – but they were glamoured to her. Whilst I think it would be horrifically invasive thing to find out, in her position, the mental image of her ‘sneaking around’ whilst surrounded by people really tickled me!
Even if I had not already bought the whole series, I would have sought out book two off the back of A Court of Thorns and Roses – it wasn’t a ground breaking love at first read for me, but it was a great book and absolutely set the scene for a grand love story – which is always enough for me to keep reading!
Book Bestie 1 [BB1] in grey, is the instigator of both myself and BB2 [in green] reading this series, and she was good at throwing us off the scent when we thought we’d figured things out! And for protecting the spoilers when we guessed things right!
A Court of Mist and Fury
So this instalment of the series shifts the narrative, and moves more towards exploring themes of healing, empowerment, and found family. We still follow Feyre as lead character, as she returns to the Spring Court after the trauma of her trials Under the Mountain, however we start to see the cracks between her and Tamlin as he gets increasingly more controlling over her, keeper her sequestered away in his castle.
Just as we see the relationship about to meet its doomed marriage, Rhysand invokes their bargain from their time together under Amarantha and sweeps Feyre away to discover the truth about the Winter Court and its leader. Whilst in Velaris, Feyre is given training in how to use her new found powers, how to read and write and spends enough time with Rhysand to discover she is his fated mate. However, it’s not all fun, games and romance – Feyre is forced to hide this bond and return to the Spring Realm as a spy, after witnessing her sisters forcibly turned into High Fae.
Now this book captures what I was expecting from the hype around the ACOTAR series – I found this one to be so much more engaging than the first book. I love the character development and the world building, particularly around Velaris, of course. I loved that the reader discovers the truth about Velaris and the Winter court at the same time as Feyre, the impact of finding a hidden city of culture would have been so much less had we been in on the secret beforehand. Oh my goodness – I wish I could visit in real life!
From what I’ve read online, Chapter 54 has it’s own cult following, and with good reason. When SJM breaks down just how awful Tamlin is, particularly for not getting her out from under the mountain when he had a chance, it really hits home with Feyre, and with the reader just how cowardly he is. It’s clear how his understanding of love is so entirely skewed from that of Rhysands, but it took seeing it laid out like this for is to really crystalise in my mind. Again, SJM was bringing the reader into the loop at the same time as Feyre, its a writing style that she does incredibly well.
Overall, I loved meeting the inner circle, particularly Amren, I would love to see a book with her as the lead, possibly even a prequel to her story before meeting Rhys. I was also somewhat shocked by Nesta and Elain being forcibly turned towards the end of the book – I remember thinking that something major was about to happen, but that was absolutely not what I was expecting. I can’t wait to see more of Elain’s story, she’s been such a gentle soul up to now and I’m interested to see if her inner strength shines through as she grows in confidence.
So, I did have a minor personal annoyance in reading this book, it’s a small thing – but the sheer number of times that the words ‘my mate’ are used is baffling, and incredibly off putting for me. We get it, and it is of course, a major plot point, but it becomes repetitive so quickly that I found myself getting being thrown out of the story by it. Maybe it’s because I’m British – and ‘mate’ is definitely a not the way you would refer to the love of your life, more like, a random man causing issues at the pub! Regardless, it’s my only real fault and overall I still absolutely loved this book! On completion of the series, I did actually sell my box set but I rebought a hard cover copy of this one for my shelf.
See – BB1 trying to cover up how awful Tamlin is!
A Court of Wings and Ruin
This book concludes the main trilogy of the series, and focuses on war, alliances, and sacrifice. This storyline sees us joining Feyre as she’s balancing her role as a spy and her position as High Lady of the Night Court [side note – I love that Rhysand made her High Lady after Tamlin saying it couldn’t be done]. As tensions rise between the courts, the King of Hybern is preparing for war, Feyra is manipulating Tamlin, and Rhysand is gathering allies from across the court – despite their mistrust in each other.
In the climactic battle scene, we see massive losses to characters from all the books previous and ultimately Rhysand sacrifices himself to save Prythian, before being revived by the High Lords. Ultimately, peace is tentatively restored, although there is an underlying tension between the Fae and Human Worlds.
If it sounds like there’s a lot going on, it’s because there is, this book needs a lot more focus than some of the others, and if you drift into skim reading, you’ll definitely get lost.
Well – there were tears, there were laughs and there was more than one time I wanted to throw the book across the room, my goodness this one put me through the mill! But, in the interest of being fully honest, I’m not sure I loved the ending. Whilst it’s always good to see characters get everything they ever wanted, it would have been incredible to see how Feyre ruled, or became bitter or harder or more vengeful had Rhysand died. To me, the fact he was restored in the exact same way as Feyre felt a tiny bit lazy and left me with a niggling feeling of a forced happy ending.
One thing that stuck with me was the feeling that the characters that we’re not primarily following are off doing their own thing the whole way through – I was a little surprised by Nesta / Cassian in this one, but I guess they’ve had their own lives as we’ve been following Feyre and Rhysand. It brought to mind a concept I read about called Sonder, and once I sat with it, I was kind of on board, it certainly made me want to see more of their story.
Sonder: n. the realization that each random passer-by is living a life as vivid and complex as your own—populated with their own ambitions, friends, routines, worries and inherited craziness
https://www.alustforlife.com/videos/sonder-the-realization-that-everyone-has-a-story
BB1 was a full running commentary of my thoughts, hopefully I didn’t drive her mad!
A Court of Frost and Starlight
So this novella is a shorter instalment, that serves as a bridge between the original trilogy and the first [and hopefully more] spin off. This books sees us following Feyre and Rhsyand, in addition to other members of their inner circle as the prepare for Winter Solstice with their friends. It’s one of the first times we get a more detailed look into friendships and relationships outside of our main leading couple, and we see for the first time just how isolated Nesta has become – setting up for ACOSF.
I loved this as a pallet cleanser after the original three books, it was so nice to see the characters without wondering who was going to die or get betrayed next. It felt to me like this may have been written some time after the original trilogy, almost as a way to ‘check in’ on the characters – which is something I love in a series, it’s so fun to go back as see how your favourites are getting on.
Whilst I loved reading about the celebration it didn’t quite have the same imagery for me that the starfall night had in ACOMAF – I would have loved to have read about that celebration in a time of true peace, but you never know – perhaps it will be in a later book.
I did eventually come to really love Nesta, and to be much more understanding of the fact that her actions were a result of her grieving – but honestly, in this one, I kind of felt she just needed a kick up the backside and I wasn’t super excited to go into reading a whole book based around her. But I will admit, A Court of Silver Flames did get me rooting for Nesta.
A Court of Silver Flames
This book shifts focus away from our beloved Feyre and Rhysand and on to Nesta Archeron as she undergoes a brutal journey of healing, growth, and self-acceptance.
This books sees Nesta struggling with guilt, anger, and trauma after the events of the war, and we see how she has isolated herself further, engaging in deeply self destructive behaviour. Eventually, Feyre and Rhysand intervene, forcing Nesta to train with Cassian and relocating to the work in the House of Wind.
Over time, Nesta begins to heal, forging unexpected friendships and discovering her immense power tied to the Cauldron. We get a front row seat as Nesta and Cassian’s romance deepens, and she ultimately reconciles with her sisters as a new threat emerges when ancient forces vie for control over Prythian.
If I’m being honest, this definitely wasn’t my favourite in the series, I spent a lot of the time feeling that Nesta needed to give herself a bit of kick up the backside. However, I will say that SJM does an incredible job of writing the less explored, messy sides of grief – showing how the reality can be anger, destruction and self sabotage. Once I sat with the story for a while, I realised I was being a little bit harsh in my thinking towards Nesta as she was fighting for her life through grief that threatened to drown her.
It was really interesting to see the world from a different point of view, and interestingly – Rhysand and Feyre were like two completely different characters. I wonder if this is because we’re getting an outsiders view of their relationship?
One of my favourite elements, was the sentient house, how amazing would it be to have a house that can predict exactly what you need and provide it on demand? I would love that! But only in a cool faerie kind of way, not in a creepy AI, smart home kind of way.
I will say, the spice in this one was definitely ramped up, and sometimes I was a little bit over it – but that might just have been because I was wildly creeped out by the idea that they all go around smelling each others arousal. It felt at times a little gratuitous, and I didn’t feel it always added much to the story, although it was good to see Nesta and Cassian finally get together.
My strongest takeaway from this book in the series is the reminder that great friends change everything, and sometimes you choose the family you want around you. It was incredible to see the girls draw their strength together and come out the other side feeling on top of the world. As a side note, it was also great to see Elain start to find her voice again, I hope we see more of her as the series progresses.
A few thoughts from the group chats…..
In closing
I avoided this series for a long time, I wasn’t convinced by the hype – and I wasn’t sure it was going to be my type of series. I’m happy to have been proven wrong, and I thoroughly enjoyed the story so far.
It’s impossible to discuss this book, without noting the rise of BookTok, filling our ‘For You’ pages so intensely. Multiple creators share how this was the series that got them back into reading, which is definitely something to celebrate! There has been an uptick in people visiting Switzerland as they search out the inspiration for Velaris, countless AI explorations of the characters and endless chat online about theories. I love that the distinctive spines of this series act as a calling card on social media, they’re so noticeable on a bookcase, that people can easily find their tribe.
Recently however, there has been small undercurrent of literary snobbishness rearing it’s head, with people claiming series like ACOTAR are ‘not real literature’ – this is of course, total bull. Reading is reading; anything that is bringing people back to exploring our world and the ones beyond, through the pages of a book is to be appreciated.
I have loved seeing the fandom, the memes, the theories and music develop and grow around this series, and I hope that it continues to grow and more books are released. I encourage you to check out Joel Sunny’s composition here, it makes a perfect accompaniment to the series.
So what’s next? There are rumours of the next book being released in 2025 – only time will tell if that will come to fruition, but there’s a lot of people getting very excited! I’d love to see a book exploring Amren’s past, even prior to her joining the inner circle – and I’d be interested in seeing a book from one of the male characters point of view too. The more the better!
Further Reading
So I did some digging around to find out what people suggested to read after ACOTAR, and these are 5 of the most frequently suggested:
- Throne of Glass series by Sarah J Maas – this is probably an obvious suggestion. It’s a sprawling epic about a young assassin, Celaena Sardothien, who becomes embroiled in political intrigue, magic, and romance. It has themes of a strong female lead, found family and slow burn romance.
- The Cruel Prince (The Folk of the Air) by Holly Black. This story follows Jude, a mortal girl raised in the faerie realm, struggling to navigate court politics and power games, especially with the wicked fae prince, Cardan. The main themes are dark faerie intrigue, morally gray characters, and enemies-to-lovers tension.
- The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon. This is a feminist high fantasy featuring dragons, ancient prophecies, and interconnected storylines. Perfect for those seeking out a story with an epic scale, LGBTQ+ representation, and powerful female leads.
- Rhapsodic (The Bargainer series) by Laura Thalassa. This series follows a siren as they call in a debt from the enigmatic fae Bargainer, leading to a blend of mystery, danger, and romance.
- Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros. In a world where only the strongest survive, 20-year-old Violet Sorrengail is forced to join the prestigious Basgiath War College, where candidates either graduate as dragon riders or die trying. Despite her frail body and scholarly upbringing, Violet must prove herself worthy of bonding with a dragon.
So what do you think – have you read any of these? What would you recommend after reading ACOTAR?
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