A Court Of Thorns And Roses by Sarah J. Maas



Title: A Court of Thorns and Roses

Author: Sarah J. Maas

Genre: New Adult Fantasy

Length: 416 pages

Published: 5th May 2015

Series: First book in a trilogy

 

* this review contains mild spoilers*

 

A Court of Thorns and Roses is a book that's been in my peripheral book vision for quite a long time. I've always stumbled across it on Goodreads or when watching some BookTube, so when I saw it in Tesco (?!) I grabbed it without giving it a thought. I'm not going to lie and say I devoured it in one sitting - it actually took me about a week to read, which is unusual for me. But I'll get to that in a minute.

The book opens up to introduce Feyre (pronounced fey-ruh), out hunting in the woods. It's winter, and her family are starving, their supply of food slowly dwindling and Feyre is the only person willing to replenish the stock. Feyre soon comes across a doe, and prepares to shoot it with an arrow until she realises she's not the only one hunting it. A great wolf - big enough to only be one of the Fae - is lingering nearby. Long story short: Feyre decides to shoot both the wolf and the doe, and this decision sets off a chain of events unlike anything she'd ever imagined.

 

I like Feyre. She's strong, bold and quick to dish out some sarcasm. I like that she loves to paint, but can't read. I can't quite decide if she's brave or stupid, but I think you can decide that for yourself should you choose to read this book. Another thing I really liked about Feyre is her attitude towards sex. This is a new adult book, and there are some very steamy scenes, whether that's through two character's physical interactions or just Feyre's thoughts. As she's 19 she's a lot older than most characters I'm familiar with, but it was unique and refreshing to have this dynamic to both her character and the story.

But back to the plot. As Feyre murdered the wolf-Fae, she is at the mercy of the Fae High Lord Tamlin. As she has killed one of his friends, she must offer her life in punishment. She is given two options: get killed on the spot, or move to the Faerie Spring Court with him for the rest of her life. Feyre takes the second option, and is whisked away by Tamlin, never to see her family again.

 

This was where the problems began for me. To be honest, things didn't really get interesting or addictive until about 170 pages in. The plot moved at a snail's pace, and things just seemed very disjointed and irrelevant. At the Spring Court, Feyre is introduced to some new characters (Lucien and Alis) who I liked. Tamlin is obviously intended as the love interest, but I found him... quite underwhelming, really. Not boring, exactly, but just... I feel like I never really got to know him. The villains of this tale add some excitement amidst the 'meh' scenes, and there's plenty of them, but even during the spectacular ending chapters, the main evil isn't really given a chance to bloom.  

 

The last two thirds of this book were my favourite parts to read, and only took a few hours to get through, where-as the first third literally took me about a week. Once the romance begins to kick in things got a hell of a lot more interesting, and several plot points began to thread together to make a lot more sense. The ending was another disappointment for me, but I'm looking forward to seeing how it will play out in the next instalment of the trilogy. There are a few moments in this book that personally, I didn't agree with, mostly in regards to sex. At one point, Tamlin says "If we keep going, I wont be able to stop at all." I get that it's supposed to be sexy and romantic and full of lust, but I'm just like... how about no? There are a few moments like this (although not all involving Tamlin) that make my little feminist heart scream in frustration.

 

But this book isn't all bad. There are some wonderfully unique aspects to it, which I loved reading. Like how all of the Fae in the Spring Court are forever to wear masquerade masks due to a secret plot point I'm not gonna tell you about. I love the idea of the Courts and all of the Fae and High Fae within them. I love the blend of new adult, fantasy and (loose) fairy-tale re-telling. The last third of the book is definitely the most explosive, interesting and thrilling part, so much so that I almost feel like it should be separate from the rest of it. The writing overall is wonderful, rich and full of detail, and the characters are all very original. There isn't one character that seems 2d or unnecessary.

 

I've decided to give this book 4/5 stars. The characters, new adult elements, writing style and unique idea all contribute to this star rating, but the slow plot and slight lack of personal enjoyment pulled it down from me giving it a full 5 stars. 

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If you liked A Court of Thorns and Roses, I'd recommend The Jewel by Amy Ewing.

 

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