A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas (Review)
Greetings all! Welcome to my first official book review. I have had this book sitting on my bookshelf for well over a year and have never picked it up for one reason or another (laziness of preferring an e-book over a physical book or being too busy to start a new book and preferring to re-read something). Starting this blog has given me a renewed interest in visiting my own shelves for something to read instead of reverting to my Nook. I hope you enjoy my review and I also hope you enjoy the novel.
Book Overview
"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 over the faerie lands is growing, and Feyre must find a way to stop it . . . or doom Tamlin—and his world—forever."
-Barnes and Noble.com
Pronunciation: Feyre (Fay-ruh)
Review
Sarah J. Maas is and has been my favorite author for about 5 years now. I love her other series, Throne of Glass, and it's my favorite book series of all time (which means alot coming from me). Although this book came out a little over 2 years ago, I was hesitant to pick it up. I had been burned in the past by authors who had written other series and they had not been as good. Despite this, knowing that this book was exceedingly popular in the YA realm and that many people couldn't be wrong (probably) and the fact that I already owned the book, I decided to give it a shot (along with some encouragement from my friend Ashley who is a big fan of the series).
While I will say that I do not think this book is better than the first novel of her other series, Throne of Glass, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Despite my biased skepticism, I read the book with an open mind. I will try not to make too many comparisons to her other series but may make them, if necessary.
For any fans of the fantasy genre, this was a great novel. It did not give in to the stereotypical tropes that many of its predecessors have and it brought new life to the "fairy/ fae" genre. This is a genre that I have never personally liked myself as I usually find it to be oddly unappealing. This novel leans away from the image of Tinkerbell you may conjure in your mind when you think of fairy/ fae and brings it to a stronger, more warrior- like level.
One of the things I really admire about Sarah's writing is her ability to go into such fine detail. In both of her series, she constructs a large and expansive world for her characters to interact in, and she doesn't shy away from it as some other authors may do. It gives her novels a sense of gravitas that stands out to me, and is one of the aspects about her books that makes her my favorite author.
One of the things I found really interesting in this novel is the "Beauty and the Beast" aspect that was woven into the narrative very lightly, and I barely picked up on it. I won't spoil any of it here but people who have read the book and people who go on to read the book will see what I mean.
One of the things that I found a bit abrupt were the romance scenes. Although this novel is marketed as a YA novel, the romance scenes in this novel could easily be in any romance novel in the bookstore. It surprised me and, as an avid reader of YA novels, although I did enjoy it, it felt out of place, almost like it was trying too hard. Keep this in mind if recommending this novel to some younger readers!
Another part of the book that I thought was a little weak was Feyre's character development through the novel. In Sarah's other series, Throne of Glass, the main character is a a very strong female lead. I just felt that Feyre was introduced as a character who had the potential to be such a great female lead and she fell short until almost the end of the novel.
Wrap- Up
Overall, I enjoyed this novel but thought it had a few low points. Feyre deserved to be shown as a stronger willed character throughout the book than she was. I also think that upgrading the romance scenes to an R- rated level are to the novel's detriment and will limit the series' audience.
However, as I have also finished the other 2 books in the series at this time, I will tell you that I greatly enjoyed those books and this is definitely a series the gets better as the books continue.
This is a good series in Sarah J. Maas's portfolio and a great re-introduction of the fae genre. If you enjoy novels of fantasy, romance, and adventure then this is a book you would most definitely enjoy and hopefully you will also enjoy the other 2 novels in the series.
I give this book 3.5 out of 5 stars.
