A Court of Thorns and Roses

Introduction

A Court of Thorns and Roses was written by Sarah J. Maas and published by Bloomsbury Publishing on May 5th, 2015. This fantasy romance is currently a five book series with (hopefully) several more on the way. I began reading this series during my senior year of high school. Several of my friends were reading it, and I had seen it on TikTok and Instagram, so I decided to give it a try. Since then, I have read Sarah J. Maas’ most recent series, Crescent City, and I am currently reading her first series, Throne of Glass. Maas has been rapidly added to the list of authors I adore, and I will read just about anything she writes. This book is the start of an amazing series, one that I have read multiple times. However, this review was written through the perspective of a first read-through, and there will be no spoilers for future installments. There are spoilers for this book in the Thoughts section, but the Plot and Spoiler-Free Thoughts sections are safe for those who haven’t read it yet.

If you want to stay updated with Sarah J. Maas and her work, you can visit her website at https://sarahjmaas.com/ and follow her on social media @therealsjmaas.

Plot

A young huntress, Feyre, makes a mistake that forces her into the deadly world of Prythian, where she is forced to reside among the powerful High Fae. She tries to stay safe there, but there is a mysterious blight traveling across the land and killing everything it encounters.

Spoiler-Free Thoughts

This book feels a lot like the beginning of a series in that it doesn’t take on much of a life of its own until what I would consider to be its third act. Part one feels very similar to the beginning of The Hunger Games, and part two seems to shift into a retelling of Beauty and the Beast. However, when Feyre finally encounters the blight in this story - which is also my favorite part - the story moves beyond world-building and character establishment and finally finds its rhythm. I will say that the outcome of the book was somewhat predictable, but there were certainly shocking parts, and the ending absolutely left loose ends for the next book to follow up on, so I’m not too upset by it.

There are multiple villains in the story, which adds a layer of intrigue - one more than the other - and I like how they are differentiated from one another while both being antagonistic. The aspect of one's senses being easily fooled in Prythian was also interesting because it called into question the reliability of Feyre’s narration, though she was clever and resourceful enough that nothing felt too blurry. I’m excited to see how the relationships in the Spring Court develop with the changes wrought by the ending, as well as how the mental states of the individual characters are addressed moving forward.

Two characters I’m torn on are Nesta and Elain because while I think there are lessons to be learned from them, I struggle to reconcile that with how they treated Feyre at the beginning of the book. Nesta is fiercely loyal, which is admirable, but that doesn’t negate her cruelty. Elain is gentle, and there is absolutely strength in her kindness, but I get annoyed with the extent of her naivety.

I would say that while the third act of this book was its strongest point, and I did enjoy the characters and settings, the first two acts felt like recycled stories I’ve heard before, and I felt like I was waiting for something to happen. It didn’t keep me from enjoying the book, but I could definitely tell that it was a first installment finding its voice. For that reason, I’m giving this book an 8/10.

Thoughts

For me - as mentioned above - this book can be told in three phases. The beginning reminded me a lot of The Hunger Games, with Feyre being the stand-in for Katniss as the poor girl who hunts to protect and feed her family, and Prythian replacing the Capital as the corrupted land of whimsy. She also has sisters - though they are far less likable than Prim - and a single parent who fell apart following the death of their spouse. Feyre finally entering Prythian transitions the book into what feels like part two of the story. To me, this portion feels like a Beauty and the Beast retelling. Feyre was taken by a cursed, shape shifting beast, and the only way to free the royal is to fall in love with him. The third phase is where this story finally feels original to me.

The trials in part three were amazing, each interesting in its own right and incredibly clever on Amarantha’s part. She was an intriguing villain, but much like her riddle, I found the trick to her downfall to be relatively obvious. I knew immediately that the answer to the riddle was love both because the answer is always love, but also because that was Amarantha’s main issue with Feyre: her supposed inability to love faithfully. Amarantha herself was clever - her trials were much more entertaining than her riddle - but proud, and it was that unending pride and need for revenge that ended her.

Rhysand was a brilliant secondary villain presented in many shades of gray. He initially comes off as insane with bloodlust and gifted with more power than any of the rest of them, but that doesn’t seem to be the case in the end. He kept Feyre alive and eventually fought towards Amarantha’s downfall almost as much as Feyre did, and the ending makes me wonder if he is truly as cruel as he seems.

Tamlin is a good love interest, though he stayed true to the Beauty and the Beast beat, and was very awkward with Feyre. Eventually they warmed up to one another, and I think it will be interesting to see how things change with his full powers back. One thing I am worried about is his obvious jealousy issues regarding Feyre, even with Lucien, who he should know better than almost anyone else.

I really like Feyre as a character, and I found her to be capable while walking the line of naivety. She isn’t stupid by any means - quite the opposite - I read her as being very clever and strategic, but she can be rash and temperamental. Sometimes that can pass for bravery, as it did Under the Mountain, but sometimes it gets her into more trouble than it’s worth, such as on Calanmai. I will be very interested to see how her trauma is addressed in the next book.