Book Review: A Court Of Thorns And Roses by Sarah J. Maas

Published May 2015 by Bloomsbury USA|380 pages

Where I Got It: I own the e-book

Series: A Court Of Thorns And Roses #1

Genre: YA Fantasy

A thrilling, seductive new series from New York Timesbestselling author Sarah J. Maas, blending Beauty and the Beast with faerie lore.

When nineteen-year-old huntress Feyre kills a wolf in the woods, a beast-like creature arrives to demand retribution for it. Dragged to a treacherous magical land she only knows about from legends, Feyre discovers that her captor is not an animal, but Tamlin—one of the lethal, immortal faeries who once ruled their world.

As she dwells on his estate, her feelings for Tamlin transform from icy hostility into a fiery passion that burns through every lie and warning she’s been told about the beautiful, dangerous world of the Fae. But an ancient, wicked shadow grows over the faerie lands, and Feyre must find a way to stop it… or doom Tamlin—and his world—forever.

Perfect for fans of Kristin Cashore and George R. R. Martin, this first book in a sexy and action-packed new series is impossible to put down!

Since I really like her Throne Of Glass series, and since I’ve heard a lot of really good things about this book, I knew I had to read it.  I’ll admit, I was a little scared to read it, because what if it didn’t live up to the hype, and I hated it or something?  That seems to happen with me quite a bit, but I actually didn’t have anything to worry about, because I really liked it!

I definitely see the parallels between Beauty And The Beast (from what I know via Disney) and this re-telling of it through faeries.  Is it set in the same world as Throne Of Glass?  Because it feels very familiar, and I’m too lazy to go double-check.  Either way, I really liked how dark it was.  I’m not sure how much it draws from the original story (I am only vaguely aware that there is one, and again, I am too lazy to go look it up), but considering the original versions of fairy tales tend to be dark, and this story has its dark moments, it wouldn’t surprise me if a lot of the original tale made its way into this book.

I really liked Feyre and Rhysand, but in all honesty, Rhysand was my favorite character.  I’m glad we’ll be seeing more of him in the next book, what with certain deals and all.  I know it’s supposed to be Tamlin and Feyre, and not Rhysand and Feyre (and that Rhysand and Feyre might not be the best choice as far as romance goes) but part of me is kind of shipping Rhysand and Feyre.  I can’t tell you why I like them together, or why it wouldn’t be a good choice (because really, I’m going off of feelings for both things), but together, they intrigue me more than Tamlin and Feyre. The only thing I am sure of is that Feyre went through too much in order to save Tamlin, so maybe that’s why I’m not completely sold, and I’m hoping that it doesn’t turn into a love triangle, because, just once, it would be nice to see two people faeries just be together without a randomly thrown in person faery.

I do like Tamlin and Feyre together- a little bit more than Feyre and Rhysand, but not much more.  But with how things went in this book, it will be interesting to see how things are developed in the next book.  Because Rhysand certainly throws a wrench in things.  But I also really like Tamlin, and by the end of the book, I definitely saw why he acted the way he did.  I also loved how Feyre pieced things together in order to help him, and also how hard the last trial was for her.  And I loved all of the stuff with her family so much.

It makes me wonder how things are going to turn out and where things are headed, because right now, I have no idea what’s going to happen.  It’s actually really refreshing, because I like not knowing what’s going to happen to next. Probably something not good, and things may work out in the end, but maybe not?  Who knows?  There’s only one way to find out, and that’s to keep reading the series.

I think ACOTAR and Cruel Beauty are really good read alikes for each other.  There’s something mysterious about Feyre staying with Tamlin that you also see in Cruel Beauty.  It has a darker, slightly older feel than Cruel Beauty (although it’s been a while since I’ve read it, so I’m a little fuzzy on Cruel Beauty).  There’s more action than I expected, and I loved how everything was described.

4 stars.  I really liked it, and I’m looking forward to reading the next book in the series!