By Sarah J. Maas
A Court of Thorns and Roses is the first book in the ACOTAR series. This series was originally published as YA Fantasy, but was later changed to NA Fantasy due to content in one of the books later on in the series.
This series will be converted into a TV show on Hulu, but it is still early on in the development process and has no known release date as of yet.
Synopsis
The forest had become a labyrinth of snow and ice. (Pg. 1)
Feyre must hunt in the woods near her house in order to ensure her and her family's survival. The winter can be a bleak time for them, so when Feyre spots a deer being pursued by a wolf, she can't help but fight for the kill. In doing so she much kill the wolf, but it comes at a price for that wolf isn't an ordinary wolf. Dragged into a world pf magic for killing a faerie, Feyre discovers that the world isn't what she had thought, and her captors are hiding more than they let on.
*Beauty and the Beast retelling*
No Spoiler Review
The world was awash in hues of dark blue, interrupted only by shafts of buttery light escaping from the shuttered windows of our dilapidated cottage. It was like striding through a living painting - a fleeting moment of stillness, the blues swiftly shifting to solid darkness. (Pg. 9)
This book was definitely a surprise. I had put off reading this book for so long for disappointment that it wouldn't live up to the hype, but it was really good! It started out a bit slow, but once things got going it was hard to put down.
Let's start with our main character, Feyre. Feyre is a mortal girl and the youngest of 3 girls. After a fall from grace, her family was left poor and unable to support themselves (because they're all kinda useless). This led to Feyre learning how to hunt and care for her father and two sisters. This is what leads her to be in the woods at the start of the book. Feyre honestly reminded me a lot of Katniss from The Hunger Games in the beginning of this novel, but they quickly went down different paths, severing that connection. Once she get's taken into the Farie realm, called Prythian, her only goal is to escape and get back to her family. However, the more she learns about Prythian and those inhabiting it, the less inclined she is to leave.
Tamlin is the "beast" that takes her from her family into Prythian. He is the High Lord of the Spring Court, and definitely has a lot of secrets, though Feyre can see that he's trying to be as honest as he can be with her.
Lucien, Tamlin's right-hand-man, is probably my favorite character in this book. He is the embodiment of the sarcastic, loyal, comic-relief, best friend. While he and Feyre don't exactly get off on the right foot, he quickly grew to be one of my favorites.
This book was well written and the world is absolutely beautiful! Every new thing that is learned about Prythian just made me want to know more. From wanting to know more about the other courts, to the mysterious Big Bad that haunts the land, I was completely enthralled.
Final Thoughts Before Spoilers
This book was definitely worth the read! I thoroughly enjoyed reading it and will definitely be recommending it to everyone from now on! It's so much more than just a Beauty and the Beast retelling. While it started off slow (in my opinion; I'm not big of retellings usually), it definitely picked up and especially the last hundred pages or so alone made it worth reading! Definitely check it out if you haven't already, and stay tuned for my review of the second book!
Spoiler Review
"Because when the legends get written, I didn't want to be remembered for standing on the sidelines. I want my future offspring to know that I was there, and that I fought against her at the end, even if I couldn't do anything useful." I blinked, this time not at the brightness of the sun. "Because," he went on, his eyes locked with mine, "I didn't want you to fight alone. Or die alone." (Pg. 413)
This book was insane, specifically the entire second half. It was so good though! I had so many thoughts while reading this book, but of course I never wrote any of them down so let's see how many points I can remember to hit.
Okay let's start with Amarantha. There have been very few times when I have despised a character this much! She didn't have a single redeeming quality throughout. If you disagree with me on that, I don't think we were reading the same book. The entire time that Feyre was Under the Mountain, while very well written, was so stressful for me. I definitely think that she got what she deserved, especially after she still killed Feyre after she answered the riddle. That was such a low blow and pissed me off so much. The third trial was also incredibly cruel (no shocker there) and so unnecessary. Like I get that she wanted to test Feyre, but she didn't have to bring innocents into it, she could've just had Tamlin there.
Rhysand was a surprising twist. I honestly never hated him even though he was painted as the bad guy. From the first moment that we meet Rhys he was helping Feyre, and never stopped throughout her time Under the Mountain. While I hated how he gave her the fae wine and made her dance every night, I can also see why he did it. At least the fae wine kept her from remembering, and he never touched her anywhere bad. Plus, at least it got her out of her cell for a little while. Throughout the trials, we really see a different side of Feyre, but only when the two of them are alone. I'm not exactly sure what to make of the Rhys that he only seems to show to Feyre, as it completely contradicts what he presents to everyone, but it's interesting. Finally, I'm so very confused about why he was so startled and shocked the last time Feyre sees him before she returns to the Spring Court. I really hope that it's explained more in the next book.
Finally we come back to Feyre. Feyre has gone through so much in this book that I think it's an understatement to say that she's changed throughout, and I don't just mean physically. This girl really went through it. Let's start with being forced into trials that will probably kill her to try to free an entire nation. Then there's the fact that she was kept in a cell in between the trails which caused irreparable damage to her mental health since all she had to do was think about what new horrors would await her. But the absolute worst thing she endured Under the Mountain (besides death) was the third trial.
Feyre had grown so much throughout the book, going from someone who absolutely despised fae to someone who genuinely loved them, and Amarantha knew this and knew that she could use it to her advantage. She genuinely never thought the Feyre would be brave enough to kill an innocent fae, let alone two, but she did, and she hated herself every minute. My heart broke for Feyre in this moment, especially when she saw that Tamlin was the third. I was incredibly proud of her for figuring out the loophole, but as expected Amarantha was a two-timing snake who "never specified when they would be released" (not the exact quote but that's basically it). Even then, this poor girl was able to figure out the riddle in the midst of being magically beaten to death, and still dies, only to come back as a High Fae.
Final Thoughts
This is already super long, but I just cannot believe the ending of this book. It took me on a roller coaster of emotions. This book was definitely worth the read! I'm so happy that I finally decided to pick it up and I can't wait to see what happens in the rest of the series. I really hope that SJM explores the idea of PTSD in the next book as there's no way that Feyre doesn't have it after everything she's been through. Other than that, I'm really not sure what to expect from the next book.
Thank you so much for reading and I'll see you all in the next one! Stay tuned for my next review which will be my review for A Court of Mist and Fury!