A Court of Thorns and Roses has captured the hearts and minds of readers by storm! After engulfing the entire series in less than a couple of weeks, I can see the appeal!

A young human girl finds herself in the midst of a Fae war after she broke one of the laws written through a Treaty between humans and Fae. Feyre (our primary protagonist) is captured from her human home – if you can call the hovel of a shack she shared with her two sisters and crippled father a home – and taken to a Fae castle, after committing a crime against the Fae. 

Feyre is thrown into the world of Fae and the war raging within their continent. She soon finds that not all Fae live up to the nightmare and horrid bedtime tales told of them in the human realm (although some do!). Feyre begins to develop a small amount of feeling and emotion for those who serve in the castle she is living at the Spring Court, which quickly grows from a mutual tolerance of existence into that of friendship, respect and love.

Time passes, and Feyre unravels a truth about the land that is discomforting, to say the least. A curse has been placed on the realm that has suppressed Fae powers and is slowly killing the land and the hearts of the Fae living within it. Only Feyre can now save it from its impending doom. 

She makes a choice to do her best to save the realm, save her love (Tamlin, High Lord of the Spring Court), and break the curse forever. It is a choice that will forever change Feyre, from the inside out. Once she is reborn as a Fae with extraordinary power, she must make some difficult choices to ensure she does not fall into the darkness with this new life.

Feyre’s character is incredibly complex and goes through a huge amount of change through each novel. I love seeing her grow with her power and adapt to her new life. I did feel that her anger and residual hatred of Tamlin after the broken curse was a bit far gone and overdone. In the long run, if he had not partnered with the King of Hybern to “rescue” Feyre, then they would have lost the war entirely. So, in essence, that was the true game changer.

However, her resentment of Tamlin later fueled her recovery and mastery of her powers. So, it perhaps all ties in together to build Feyre to her best self.

Rhys and his band of misfits truly made the entire series raise to another level. Rhys’s character was so deep, complex and powerful that he captured my heart immediately. I could have throttled Feyre for fighting her mating bond with him for so long. It was so obvious they would end up together, but Feyre ignored it for much longer than necessary.

Feyre’s two sisters play a MUCH larger role in the final few books of the series and it seems like they both may get their own novels down the road. The fifth and final book of ACOTAR focuses much of its attention on Nesta and her recover, and I loved it. Nesta is another character who had a lot of depth once she began to recover from her trauma and resentment. I enjoyed her growth and LOVED the Valkeryie references and emergence of that idea within the realm. I think there is much more to come on that side of things.

Elaine was quiet enough to take a back seat in much of the focal points on the novels, but there was enough of a reference to her that we see the strength and power hidden beneath the external beauty and timid shell. I heard rumors of Elaine getting her own novel as well, which would be interesting to learn a bit more about her potential. I also heard rumors she MAY have been assigned TWO mates by the Caldren. Azriel should have been her only mate, but his state of health was so critical that the Caldren decided to give her Lucien as well. This explains Azriel’s quiet respect and adoration of Elaine and also Elaine’s clear draw to him. I would like to see how that plays out!

Rhys’s inner circle was truly a delight. Amren is by FAR my absolute favorite. Her ruthlessness and seemingly evil sole are counterbalanced by her fierce loyalty to Rhys and her dry humor. She fell perfectly into place with the rest of the band. Cassian’s blunt bruteness, Azriel’s sexy and mysterious shadow vibe, and Mor’s up front and welcoming personality all balanced out deliciously! There is so much power within that inner circle that they could truly have ruled the entire realm, should that have been their desire. 

My only complaint (somewhat complaint) is I felt the fourth novel of the series was incredibly stagnant. It focused on the recovery after the war, but I think it could have been looped into a longer closing in novel # 3, and eliminate the need for the fourth book entirely. I feel if I would have skipped the fourth book, I wouldn’t have missed much. I did read it, obviously, but I didn’t gain any new insights or awareness from it.

All in all, though, ACOTAR lived up to the insane hype for me. It was on the same level as Crescent City Series and Throne of Glass – both very high on my list of favorites. 

I read Sarah J. Maas’ series a bit out of the “recommended” order, and ACOTAR was the last series I read. Reading ACOTAR certainly made the ridiculous cliff hanger from Crescent City Series make a bit more sense. I do understand why they say to read Crescent City AFTER reading ACOTAR. But really, any order as fine, as you figure out the jest of what is going on in both series pretty easily. 

Maas is quickly becoming a top author in the Fantasy realm. Her writing style is incredibly engaging and pulls the reader into her world completely. Not to mention that she might be building a unique metaverse to intertwine her series into a complex, delightful world with multiple universes in existence. She eludes to it just briefly in ACOTAR, referencing some research a Priestess is conducting within Rhys’ library. So, I think there is much more to come on that subject matter.

Imagine a world where Feyre meets Aelin meets Bryce! WOW – talk about a crazy trio of some sarcastic and immensely powerful females who have all found themselves mated to a uniquely powerful male. I cannot wait!