Book One: A Court of Thorns and Roses
Blurb from Goodreads
When nineteen-year-old huntress Feyre kills a wolf in the woods, a terrifying creature arrives to demand retribution. Dragged to a treacherous magical land she knows about only from legends, Feyre discovers that her captor is not truly a beast, but one of the lethal, immortal faeries who once ruled her world.
At least, he’s not a beast all the time.
As she adapts to her new home, her feelings for the faerie, Tamlin, transform from icy hostility into a fiery passion that burns through every lie she’s been told about the beautiful, dangerous world of the Fae. But something is not right in the faerie lands. An ancient, wicked shadow is growing, and Feyre must find a way to stop it, or doom Tamlin—and his world—forever.
My thoughts
I really enjoyed this book! I have to say it is definitely not a Young Adult book, which is what I think the marketing audience was. Young Adult….the category of books that should not be a category – it’s more like a…..range. This one is on the upper end of that range. Young Adult, as in, 16 plus, not 12 plus.
Anyway, now that’s covered, I liked the blending of fairy tale elements in this story and how they were brought together. It’s definitely a romance but the character building is good. Maas also pays attention to the relationships beyond the love interests, which is, I always feel, the important difference between a basic romance and a story that uses a fantasy backdrop to explore different types of relationships.
Book Two: A Court of Mist and Fury
Blurb from Goodreads
The seductive and stunning #1 New York Times bestselling sequel to Sarah J. Maas’s spellbinding A Court of Thorns and Roses .
Feyre has undergone more trials than one human woman can carry in her heart. Though she’s now been granted the powers and lifespan of the High Fae, she is haunted by her time Under the Mountain and the terrible deeds she performed to save the lives of Tamlin and his people.
As her marriage to Tamlin approaches, Feyre’s hollowness and nightmares consume her. She finds herself split into two different people: one who upholds her bargain with Rhysand, High Lord of the feared Night Court, and one who lives out her life in the Spring Court with Tamlin. While Feyre navigates a dark web of politics, passion, and dazzling power, a greater evil looms. She might just be the key to stopping it, but only if she can harness her harrowing gifts, heal her fractured soul, and decide how she wishes to shape her future-and the future of a world in turmoil.
Bestselling author Sarah J. Maas’s masterful storytelling brings this second book in her dazzling, sexy, action-packed series to new heights.
My Thoughts
I enjoyed this book more than the first one. Without revealing too much, I really like how the love story in this book develops, particularly as it feels a departure from the usual romances I have read. The characters and their relationships receive Maas’s full attention, and I really enjoyed how she continued to build the dynamics, not just between the love interests, but between each of them and their deep friendships with each other. Loved it even more than the first one!
A Court of Wings and Ruin
Blurb (from Goodreads)
Feyre has returned to the Spring Court, determined to gather information on Tamlin’s actions and learn what she can about the invading king threatening to bring her land to its knees. But to do so she must play a deadly game of deceit. One slip could bring doom not only for Feyre, but for everything-and everyone-she holds dear.
As war bears down upon them all, Feyre endeavors to take her place amongst the High Fae of the land, balancing her struggle to master her powers-both magical and political-and her love for her court and family. Amidst these struggles, Feyre and Rhysand must decide whom to trust amongst the cunning and lethal High Lords, and hunt for allies in unexpected places.
In this thrilling third book in the #1 New York Times bestselling series from Sarah J. Maas, the fate of Feyre’s world is at stake as armies grapple for power over the one thing that could destroy it.
My Thoughts
I think the books in this series keep getting better and better. Of course, this could be a function of the fact that the characters are becoming more and more familiar, as is the world. I always love to find a world, live in it for a bit, then leave for a while, only to return to find old friends. This could be why I genuinely enjoy each of these books just a little more than the one that came before. I just get more and more invested!
But, even with that, the series becomes increasingly interesting as time goes on. We move beyond the relationships between Feyre and Tamlin, then Feyre and Rhysand, to further explore those of the other characters with each other. It feels like there are many stories to be told here, and I hope that we get filled in on the back stories. Perhaps some of these characters deserve their own novels!
A Court of Silver Flames
Blurb (from Goodreads)
Nesta Archeron has always been prickly-proud, swift to anger, and slow to forgive. And ever since being forced into the Cauldron and becoming High Fae against her will, she’s struggled to find a place for herself within the strange, deadly world she inhabits. Worse, she can’t seem to move past the horrors of the war with Hybern and all she lost in it.
The one person who ignites her temper more than any other is Cassian, the battle-scarred warrior whose position in Rhysand and Feyre’s Night Court keeps him constantly in Nesta’s orbit. But her temper isn’t the only thing Cassian ignites. The fire between them is undeniable, and only burns hotter as they are forced into close quarters with each other.
Meanwhile, the treacherous human queens who returned to the Continent during the last war have forged a dangerous new alliance, threatening the fragile peace that has settled over the realms. And the key to halting them might very well rely on Cassian and Nesta facing their haunting pasts.
Against the sweeping backdrop of a world seared by war and plagued with uncertainty, Nesta and Cassian battle monsters from within and without as they search for acceptance-and healing-in each other’s arms.
My Thoughts
And then there was this one. Loved it, as I have the previous ones! Because it was Nesta’s story, it’s dropped some hope into me that perhaps those stories I hope for will be told, where we get to find out what is next for the others. We perhaps will see their pasts, hear their thoughts, and they’ll get their happy ending, whatever that looks like for them.
Ultimately, I’ve really enjoyed these books, as well as the novella, A Court of Frost and Starlight. I highly recommend them for anyone looking for a delicious escape.