If you’re a fan of YA or NA fantasy, I’m sure you know all about Sarah J Maas’ fantasy series ‘A Court of Thorns and Roses.’ But in the odd chance that you have been living under a rock for the past few years, let me just put it simply, this series is nothing short of amazing.
ACOTAR reintroduced me to my long-lost love of Fae stories. I became so invested while reading this series, it sort of threw me off guard.
ACOTAR is captivating and whimsical and oh my goodness, the characters and plot just rip you from reality and plunge you so far into the story, you feel as though you are watching it right before your very eyes.
I have been wanting to write this blog for a while now and with Maas’ latest installment in the series, ‘A Court of Frost and Starlight,’ coming out on Tuesday, I feel like now is the perfect time.
I cannot wait to see where this story leads me next, but until then, I thought it would be fun to dive into what I feel are the top five things you should know before reading the ‘A Court of Thorns and Roses’ series.
(I will keep this blog as generic as I can as to not contain any spoilers)
1. ‘A Court of Thorns and Roses’ is a loose retelling of the classic fairytale, ‘Beauty and the Beast’
Going into the first book, I actually did not know this. To be honest, I had kinda been living under a rock myself. I bought the first book and began reading without truly knowing much about it at all. Let's face it, sometimes that's more fun. But I was hooked from the first few chapters. I know that fairytale retellings can sometimes make readers a little nervous — especially if you are particularly attached to the original — but this one really is executed so well and has just enough originality that you may not even realize it is one without knowing beforehand. The story contains some key ‘Beauty and the Beast’ elements…. A curse, a castle, a timeline, but there is so much more to it. And the romance is much steamier might I add!
2. The series is a perfect mix of both character-driven and plot-driven parts
While don't get me wrong, I love a good plot, personally it is the characters that really pull me into the story as a reader. Maas does a great job of developing her characters while also moving the plot forward. The first book begins by telling the story of the main character and explaining her past and how she came to be where she is. You immediately feel a connection to the character. The chapters moves forward at a fast-pace introducing more and more characters that further drive the story. Meanwhile, amidst all of this character development, you also find yourself at the center of all the action and adventure (how exciting!) Especially in ‘A Court of Mist and Fury.’
3. You will become very attached to these characters
As I mentioned above, not only is there some strong characters in this series, but before you know it, you will find yourself growing quite attached to them. I cared deeply about each one of them in this series. I so whole-heartedly want them all to find their happy ending. Starting with the main character, Feyre, a 19-year-old human girl who spends her time in the woods hunting animals for food and trying to keep her family afloat. After killing what she believed to be a wolf in the woods, she is taken to the Fae-world in exchange for it. This is where the development of her character really begins. When you first meet her, she is actually not very likable in my opinion. I found her to be very cold and harsh, but over time — or dare I say pages— she begins grow on you. Enter Tamlin. Another character you will quickly become quite attached to….. at least for some time. I enjoyed the development of the relationship between Feyre and Tamlin and through it, I began to deeply care for Feyre. As she begins to soften and let go of some of her anger, you start to see the different facets of her. She has now become one of my favorite literary characters. She’s not the stereotypical "beautiful but doesn’t know it" heroine who can somehow do everything without even having to try. She has flaws and she’s relatable. And then there is Rhysand….. I’m not even going to go into all of the emotions I feel regarding Rhysand. Especially if you haven’t read the series yet…… but let me just say that in my opinion, Rhys is BAE.
4. Be prepared to fall in love….. more than one
I’m not kidding. I think I fell in love with each and every one of these characters at some point throughout the reading of these books. Especially two of them. And I definitely had conflicted moments where I felt an attachment and loyalty to more than one and thought to myself, “however will they choose?!” But to keep from spoiling anything for future readers.. I am going to keep this point short and sweet. Just be prepared to fall in love.
5. Be prepared to feel
Lastly, and probably most importantly…… be prepared to feel ALL OF THE EMOTIONS while reading this series. There were times where I wanted to cry. There were times where I was literally laughing out loud. There were some steamy, sensual parts. There was friendship and happiness mixed with darkness and danger and frightening parts. This series truly takes the reader on a literary journey through it all, and I cannot recommend it enough.
That being said, I am counting down the minutes until ‘A Court of Frost and Starlight’ arrives in my mailbox. I will post the links to purchase the books below in case you have decided to join me on this literary adventure.
As always, thanks for reading and leave me a comment below letting me know what you think of the series if you’ve read it!