If you would rather watch my review on YouTube, click here. Otherwise, continue reading and enjoy! 🙂
For more than a year I have been seeing A Court of Thorns and Roses and its sequels around Instagram. But I was always wary about reading them. Whenever I saw these books, the first thought that came to my mind was “Ok this is just another fantasy book. Should I really spend my time reading it?”. And then I moved on to other books. Because fantasy has always been something that I read when I take a break from my thrillers.
Ever since the library closed here, I’ve been reading more e-books. Obviously I searched for thriller recommendations first and read quite a few good ones. When May started, I felt that it’s time for a break from my thrillers. And the first non-thriller recommendation given by AnyBooks App was A Court of Thorns and Roses. This time I thought “Hmmm! Maybe it’s time I gave this series a go!” And that’s how I started reading them.
Let me give you an idea about how much I loved these books. I read only 3 books in April. And in May, I completed this series, which is 3 books, in around 6-7 days. Yes. You heard it right. I don’t know what I was thinking when I saw these before. I should have read them sooner. Anyways better late than never right!
Ok so let me give you a brief idea of what the books are about.
A Court of Thorns and Roses is a retelling of the fairy tale Beauty and the Beast. Even though I love the original version, I have to admit I loved this version too. The story centers on Feyre, whose father was a rich merchant. He makes a few bad decisions resulting in them losing all their riches. Now it is up to Feyre to go out and hunt and put food on the table. The world is divided into human lands and faerie lands by a magic wall. During one of her hunts, Feyre goes nearer to the wall and kills a faerie. As retribution, one of the High Lords from the faerie land takes her back to his house. Once there, Feyre soon learns that whatever she had heard about the fae are outright lies. The friendships she forms there and the people she falls in love with, discovering herself and fighting to free both the humans and the fae from a tyrannical king is what the books are all about.
Coming to the review. The first thing that stood out for me was the world-building. It was amazing. Normally when I read a book, I tend to forget the character names and other details after a week. Sometimes I don’t even remember the characters after a few days. I finished reading these books more than a week back and I can still remember the names of every character. I can still vividly imagine even the minute details. For eg: Velaris, the town that was untouched during the war, where everyone lives peacefully; I can still hear the waves and the laughter of children. I can see The Court of Dreams, the night of Starfall! I could keep going, but you get the point.
The second is how the relationship between Rhysand and Feyre is portrayed. In my opinion, Sarah J Maas has nailed it. They have such great respect for each other. The way they care for each other and handle each other’s nightmares is so heartwarming. And the most important part is how Rhysand gives Feyre a choice in everything. Even though he has his own opinion on every matter, the choice is always with Feyre on what she wants to do. I’m sure most of you would agree that those are relationship goals.
The third thing that stood out was Rhysand’s Inner Circle. Thereâ’s always a delicate balance to be maintained when you’re both a leader and a friend. You need to know when to be stern and when to let go and be a friend. Rhysand does this so beautifully. The friendship between Rhysand, Mor, Azriel, Amren and Cassian is written so well. I loved it.
Now let’s go book by book.
The first book is A Court of Thorns & Roses. Most of the reviews I had read mentioned that the first book was a bit slow and boring. That some people found it hard to get through and even thought about giving up on it. Personally, I didn’t feel that way. It was not fast-paced like the other 2 books but it wasn’t boring either. It has its own good moments. I loved how Feyre rediscovers herself and fights for what she loves in this book.
The second book A Court of Mist & Fury is where the relationship between Rhysand and Feyre develops. I’m sure almost all of you will agree with me that this is the best book in the series. I enjoyed reading this book. Once I finished it, I took a break of 1.5 days before starting the third book. I was in a book hangover. I was literally dreaming of all the characters and I didn’t want the series to end. I haven’t had such an experience in recent times with any of my recent reads.
Now the third book A Court of Wings & Ruin did not appeal to me as much as the first two books. It was not bad in any sense. Just that comparatively, the first two books were better. This could be because the third book is mostly about the war. What I did love in this book is how Feyre and her sisters learn to care for and trust each other. Feyre’s family from both the worlds come together in this book. And it had one of the best endings I could have asked for.
More than a week after completing the series, I’m yet to pick my next read. I’m still enjoying recollecting my memories of the books. The series also has a novella A Court of Frost and Starlight. I’m still trying to decide whether I should read it or not. I’ve read that this novella is more like a fan fiction. It is set in the future. Maybe I will give it a go.
My Rating: 5⭐.