A review by howlinglibraries
A Court of Frost and Starlight by Sarah J. Maas

5.0

#1 A Court of Thorns and Roses ★★★★★
#2 A Court of Mist and Fury ★★★★★
#3 A Court of Wings and Ruin ★★★★★
#3.5 A Court of Frost and Starlight ★★★★★

First of all, let me just express my total devastation that an entire year of counting down the days until this book’s release is gone in two and a half hours of reading. I mean, I knew it was only going to be a novella, but… *sobs quietly* I didn’t expect it to go by THAT fast! This amazing little series has pulled me through some really dark times and brought so much joy into my life that I know I will treasure it, always. ♥

Even now, with that bond again flowing between us like a river of star-flecked night, the echo of its vanishing lingered.

ACOFAS definitely doesn’t read anything like the 3 main novels; the chapters switch perspectives occasionally, featuring POVs from Feyre, Rhysand, Cassian, and Morrigan. What struck me as particularly odd about this was the fact that Feyre and Rhysand’s chapters were in first-person, while Cassian and Morrigan’s were in third—a slightly jarring writing style, but nothing too detrimental.

In his stare, I could have sworn galaxies swirled. In the shadows between his wings, the glorious depths of the night dwelled.

We do get some really sweet and domestic Feysand moments, but I was actually surprised at how little time they actually spend together during the novella (and how little sex there is—who is this author and what did she do with Sarah?!). We did finally get the infamous wall scene! There are some incredibly sweet moments, at least a few scenes of Rhysand being his lovable cinnamon roll self, and a completely expected but adorable turn of events for their little family.

Shadows different from anything my powers summoned, spoke to. Born in a lightless, airless prison meant to break him. Instead, he had learned its language.

Feysand obsession aside, I loved how much time we got to spend with Cass and Az, learning more about their respective histories and how they’ve healed from the war. With Cassian’s perspectives especially, it felt like this was written to be a legitimate “bridge” between the ACOTAR series and whatever comes next, which I was honestly fond of, even if the next book’s focus on Cassian and Nesta does have me pretty nervous.

Lucien had not come here to make amends during Solstice, I realized as Tamlin opened the door to the dark library. Lucien had come here out of pity. Mercy.

Perhaps the most unexpected bits were the ones in which we visited Tamlin—with a novella this short, I honestly didn’t expect to see him at all, and certainly not in the state in which Rhysand found him. I never thought I would feel sorry for him, and I still think he’s a walking, talking garbage can, but I still couldn’t help being at least a little bit sad to see how far he’s fallen. I truly do hope that Sarah will write more about him in the future, because I can’t help but always feel that, no matter what a jerk he is, there’s something interesting about his potential as a character.

Cassian set me down at last. “What’d you get me for Solstice?” I smacked his arm. “A heaping pile of shut the hell up.”

Was ACOFAS everything I hoped and dreamed it would be? Honestly, no. This is more of a 4.5 rating, but you can believe that I did not hesitate to round up to 5 stars, because at the end of the day, I got to spend a few hundred pages with my precious bat babies, and watch this adorable little family interact and taunt and fuss and cry and laugh with one another, and that was all I really needed this novella to offer me. I have missed the inner court so damn much since ACOWAR ended, and it just felt SO GOOD to fall right back into this world for a little bit longer. ♥

Bonus list of tiny things that made me squeal:
→ the sauna scene
→ snowball fight traditions
→ more “the power of art” scenes
→ Morrigan reminiscing (ow, my heart)
→ Amren’s newfound jigsaw puzzle obsession
→ “Illyrian babies”
→ Rhys cooking Tamlin dinner, like… what even?
→ all the fuzzy scarves and winter holiday vibes
→ Amren receiving a million pieces of jewelry as always
→ Mor’s terrible taste in gifts
→ SHAMELESS reference to Cass’ wingspan

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