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A review by nikimorr
A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
adventurous
dark
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I started this book and HATED the main character and questioned the hype surrounding this story. Essentially, the main character, Feyre, starts a woman willing to make herself small and quiet for the benefit of her (very ungrateful) family. A meek female main character is not one that catches my interest.
But as the book goes on, the better parts of her personality come out and I begin to root for her. Feyre is bold, stubborn and commits wholeheartedly to any goal before her.
Feyre’s love interest, Tamlin, is a complexity. BookTok has definitely ruined him a bit for me with all the commentary I have seen regarding his character in future books, so I may be prematurely critical. But there is nothing about Tamlin that makes me swoon (and I am fairly susceptible to book boyfriends). Besides being a nice character, there is no part of the story where I’m cheering for Tamlin or their love. Tamlin, from start to finish, comes across as fairly weak and complacent. Weak, clearly, is not a character trait I like to read.
Lucien, Tamlin’s best friend and emissary, is a character who is complex in the best ways. I am more excited to read about Lucien than Tamlin and am excited to see what the future holds for him.
Rhysand - both hate and love him. But at least he is ruthless and not weak.
Although a bit of a slow start, the plot itself is pure adventure, especially the ending. Learning and exploring the new fairy world with Feyre is an exciting journey. At times, a bit confusing - is ash required to kill a fairy? How can Feyre kill fairies without using ash in certain situations? I definitely got caught up in some of the confusing details. But overall the story unfolds relatively seamlessly.
The ending is what made this book worthwhile, and everything comes together in an amazing way. This is definitely the kind of book you re read just to recognize all the foreshadowing and details missed.
The ending plot is chef’s kiss. The motive of all of Feyre’s actions being for love and dying for her purpose is frankly inspiring. Although, I definitely questioned whether Tamlin individually was worth it. The ending was strangely realistic - the challenges Feyre faces do not come easily and it’s only from significant intervention that she succeeds at all. Mentally and physically, Feyre barely makes it through. She does not easily “win” and in fact dies, only with the help of others making it through. I had a feeling her being/becoming a fae was coming, and it’ll be interesting to see how that plays out.
All in all, I’m definitely very excited to continue on through the rest of the series.
But as the book goes on, the better parts of her personality come out and I begin to root for her. Feyre is bold, stubborn and commits wholeheartedly to any goal before her.
Feyre’s love interest, Tamlin, is a complexity. BookTok has definitely ruined him a bit for me with all the commentary I have seen regarding his character in future books, so I may be prematurely critical. But there is nothing about Tamlin that makes me swoon (and I am fairly susceptible to book boyfriends). Besides being a nice character, there is no part of the story where I’m cheering for Tamlin or their love. Tamlin, from start to finish, comes across as fairly weak and complacent. Weak, clearly, is not a character trait I like to read.
Lucien, Tamlin’s best friend and emissary, is a character who is complex in the best ways. I am more excited to read about Lucien than Tamlin and am excited to see what the future holds for him.
Rhysand - both hate and love him. But at least he is ruthless and not weak.
Although a bit of a slow start, the plot itself is pure adventure, especially the ending. Learning and exploring the new fairy world with Feyre is an exciting journey. At times, a bit confusing - is ash required to kill a fairy? How can Feyre kill fairies without using ash in certain situations? I definitely got caught up in some of the confusing details. But overall the story unfolds relatively seamlessly.
The ending is what made this book worthwhile, and everything comes together in an amazing way. This is definitely the kind of book you re read just to recognize all the foreshadowing and details missed.
All in all, I’m definitely very excited to continue on through the rest of the series.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Blood, Gore, War, Murder, Alcohol, Animal death, Death of parent, Sexual harassment, Torture, and Violence