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A review by anupammahadeo
A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J. Maas
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
I am not the target demographic of this book series. This is a fantasy embedded with a modern, smutty, romance novel within (complete with “mating bonds” that are basically text messaging). This book somewhat takes a step back from the romance plot of the series and focuses on the fantasy aspect, but it continues to be plagued with tonal inconsistency, and somewhat indulgent “always a bigger fish” world building that doesn’t always make sense. Characters jump from having angsty, teasing conversations that wouldn’t be out of place in a 2024 high school to grand, epic speeches about shaping the world in the blink of an eye, and it lessens the impact of both moments immensely. Characters are also constantly introduced as all-powerful, mysterious monsters, just to then be killed off to demonstrate the power of a bigger threat.
And of course, rounding out some of my criticism is the concept of a “mating bond” which, in conjunction with the smattering of smutty sex scenes in this series, kind of just felt icky when choice and freedom to love are themes Maas tries to discuss.
There’s a lot wrong with the logic of the narrative, the characters themselves, the pacing and sequence of cliches at the end of the book to possibly be discussed - but yet this was a relatively enjoyable read.
All of these problems are there with a deepish reading, but on a semi-superficial reading of this book, I found the characters to be interesting if a little cartoonish, and enjoyed learning about the world that Maas dreamed to life in these pages. There may be some problematic themes or writing, and sure the book does not hold up to criticism from either a literary or fantasy POV, but I couldn’t help but still overall enjoy reading this.
And of course, rounding out some of my criticism is the concept of a “mating bond” which, in conjunction with the smattering of smutty sex scenes in this series, kind of just felt icky when choice and freedom to love are themes Maas tries to discuss.
There’s a lot wrong with the logic of the narrative, the characters themselves, the pacing and sequence of cliches at the end of the book to possibly be discussed - but yet this was a relatively enjoyable read.
All of these problems are there with a deepish reading, but on a semi-superficial reading of this book, I found the characters to be interesting if a little cartoonish, and enjoyed learning about the world that Maas dreamed to life in these pages. There may be some problematic themes or writing, and sure the book does not hold up to criticism from either a literary or fantasy POV, but I couldn’t help but still overall enjoy reading this.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Violence and Cursing