Reviews tagging 'Gore'

A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

636 reviews

sipblueberrytea's review against another edition

dark slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

1.0

I’m sorry how is this so popular? So many things are wrong with this and it’s deeply unsettling that so many people don’t see anything wrong with it. Multiple times the main character gets sexually harassed or assaulted by the “love interests” and every single time it’s justified in favour of the men that forced themselves onto her. She was even blamed for one of the instances. Now the main character herself isn’t much better. She’s stupid and passive until it’s time to make such an obviously terrible decision. The first 60-70% of the book are no plot and all romance and then plot and gore random drop in during the last 30%. Also, can we talk about how only 5 women (Feyre, Nesta, Elaine, Alice, Amarantha) are present and somewhat relevant in the book and 2 of them are depicted as villains, one is disagreeable to the main character, another is vain and stupid, and the main character herself is just as idiotic? It’s boring, rushed, and utterly a waste of my time. Read it on audiobook at 1.75 speed or would never have gotten through it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Sexual assault, and Sexual harassment

nikkilerae's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

A Court of Thorns and Roses 
By Sarah J Maas
5⭐️

This book was so much more than I could have ever imagined! It is definitely a 5 star read that every fantasy lover should read! I really think this would even be a great fantasy starter book for those that want to see if they might like fantasy. 

Feyre, a human, finds herself forced from the human lands to the lands of the Fae. She is stubborn, strong, and very capable for a human. However, as she enters the lands of the Fae she meets members of the fae that are unlike anything we could imagine. Their physical characteristics and personalities are so well crafted by the author that you almost forget that you are reading. The story holds you in its grip the entire way through the book! 

I am super excited to start the next book in the series. This is my first book by Sarah J Maas and I can already tell she’ll be one of my favorite authors! 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Animal death, Confinement, Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Murder, and War

madi_reads13's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional inspiring mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Pandemic/Epidemic

neron's review

emotional tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

For new readers:
If you're just starting in the fiction genre or reading as a hobby, this book is a welcoming one, it is easy to read, has a linear plot; you can't get lost in it. The thematic and world building is consistent and solid albeit pretty basic. More than the actual plot or writing, what I found more interesting is the insight on the female gaze and how the main character views, sexualizes and appreciates things around her; from people to art.

For experienced readers:
Now, time for a rant, as a big fan of fiction and has read a bit in general; I found the writing insufferable. It is sadly superficial and over explained for most of it. There were some sections which really had me engrossed but for the most part, It was a let down. Interestingly, the most well written parts were when the main character described either

paintings

or sex. Everything else felt bland or an after thought. The world building is pretty good but again, it feels like a lot of potential wasted.

The main character is really annoying, and not for any good reason; her arc and development felt very rushed just for the sake of romance. The love interest pretty two dimensional and a lacks realistic imperfections to be considered a believable, well-lived and

ancient High Fae lord

.

Comically, what gave me the strength to finish the book was two side characters:

Lucien & Rhysand

who both felt like they had much more depth, experience, quirks and personality. I am hoping the second book has more of them.

The main reason I stuck through is because many reviews and friends told me that the second book is much better when I was complaining about the first.  

TL;DR: There are much better books if you're getting into fiction or reading in general. If you are already an avid reader, and don' have time to spare but are curious about the series, I'd say look up detailed videos on the book rather than waste your time on it. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore

Moderate: Sexual content

my_personal_escape's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Murder, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Vomit, Kidnapping, Abandonment, and War

Minor: Child death

chronic_listener's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Sexual assault, Vomit, Kidnapping, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and War

Minor: Child death

rewatchrereadrewind's review against another edition

medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Gore, Torture, Kidnapping, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Animal death, Sexual content, Slavery, Excrement, and Vomit

Minor: Sexual assault

jess2025's review against another edition

dark tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gore, and Sexual content

Moderate: Sexual harassment

amylangdown_'s review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I loved this book. From the very beginning it was clear that nothing was quite what you expected it to be. It had endless twists and turns and the action was so full and rounded - as was the world it was placed in.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Death, Gore, Violence, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Physical abuse, Torture, Kidnapping, and Murder

Minor: Slavery

ananya_b's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This was a really wonderful read! The pacing is fast and the plot is gripping. I could hardly put it down until I'd finished. Maas has a wonderful writing style too, apart from one too many uses of "my throat closed up" and "my mouth went dry" and a couple of grammatical errors- I found it slightly more ornate than that of most other modern writers, and there's definitely a lot less swearing. 

The characters are well-rounded, especially Feyre. However, there are a couple of plot inaccuracies

- for instance, the question of why Feyre couldn't see the Attor at first, despite the fact that it wasn't a member of the Spring Court.

Nonetheless, this was one of the best books I've read. I can't wait to read the rest of the series - I hope they're as good as this one!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Death, Torture, Violence, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Confinement, Emotional abuse, Gore, Sexual content, Slavery, and Murder

Minor: Child death, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual harassment, and War