A review by jahnvikaushik
A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

adventurous dark medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No
I read this book within 24 hours. It was captivating. The lore of the world entranced me, made me want to learn more about it.
The characters were adequate, though the typical dystopian novel kind of personalities I had grown to expect. You could replace Feyre with Katniss Everdeen and it would be the same book. I do appreciate Maas’ attempt at making the villain sympathetic - it was effective though we were not shown hr vulnerable side - just the monstrous, which would have made her more likeable. Then again its not necessary for her to be likeable.
The storytelling aspect was lovely. The way that everything tied back perfectly to what we had seen before and seeing that with a new lens after Feyre returned to Prythian was very satisfying.
Love interest wise, I do like Tamlin as a person, he seems lovely although he has been shown to be an insensitive asshole in the past, he seems to be a very gentlemanly character - I absolutely adore the way that he treats Feyre - I mean I get that his intention was to get her to fall in love with him, but we also see authentic aspects of his personality, like with the dying winged faerie. But otherwise I do also enjoy Rhysand’s interactions with my girl, he’s more like the bad boy kinda person which was refreshing after endless chapters of nice guy Tamlin.
Feyre herself was a dull character. Like I mentioned before, she’s your typical normal girl with exceptional bravery. Think Clary Fairchild, Katniss Everdeen, basically the lead of any dystopian/fantasy type novel’s main character. Her moves were predictable and boring, especially since she’s not exactly a smart person. But for some reason I can’t bring myself to dislike her. There’s this certain appeal to be treated specially even if you are unimportant.
The world-building in this book is exceptional, I love the descriptions of the beauty of the fae world, the heart-breaking nature of such intense beauty. The various evil beings in the book were effectively scary.
I did find this book quite slow though. It was veryyyyy draggy, the real action didn’t really start until the last 10-15 chapters. There was just so much buildup to it that it felt too short and concise. I feel like it would have been nicer if more of the book was Under the Mountain but whatever it is what it is.
Overall, good first book.
Expand filter menu Content Warnings