Short review: A Beauty and the Beast retelling with few faeries, no beasts and lots and lots of snarls, growls and groans. And a few eye rolls from me.

My advice: if you’re a fan of Throne of Glass, you’ll like this. If not, skip it.

I found it hilarious that the marketing recommends this book to fans of George R. R. Martin. It’s like saying if you love fine wine, you’ll like this Tesco boxed grape juice. Don’t get me wrong, I like me some grape juice occasionally, it can be a fun, light and pallet cleanser after all the genocide, murder and slavery of grimdark fantasy, but there is no comparison here.

Long review, no spoilers:
This book is very uneven. The first 80% of it was plain boring and I was close to DNF-ing it many times, only progressing out of the curiosity to discover why this series is so incredibly popular.
I have to admit the last 20% was an improvement, more action and development of the plot. Entertaining and suspenseful, a popcorn read overall.

Prose:

I will not criticize the abundant sex scenes because I always knew they were included. But the repetitions. Oh lord the repetitions.

Having read the whole trilogy, I am pleased to include the following total word count:

“mate” – used 313 times

“male” – 257

“claim” - 118

 Callused fingers must be a trademark of SJM because she shoved them down my throat every other page.

Plot:

Ferye is taken from her home and kept in a fairy castle because she did something bad and now she has to navigate this court of thorns and roses. I mean of intrigue and mystique.

I don't mind a slow moving story. Somehow this one just felt bland. The romance didn't have that slow burn / fire, so not believable. One day Feyre just decides Tamlin is too steamy and wants him.

The ending was so predictable that it had me laughing out loud..

The worldbuilding is some of the laziest I've encountered in fantasy lit. Everything (magic rules, history, backstory) is introduced via someone TELLING Feyre. The dialogue is basically constant info-dumping. At the end you understand why every time Feyre asked a million questions, answers from the Fae were offered up on a platter, but it could have been done better, more engaging, to keep the reader's interest until the end.

Characters:
Tamlin is quite lacklustre, the whole premise of this book is that it’s meant to be a Beauty and the Beast retelling, which would be charming and tugging at my heartstrings except it’s not that at all. The “Beast” is handsome, with a strong jaw, brilliant green eyes and glistening corded muscles. Eye roll. Who could ever fall in love with this monster?
Feyre is a bit of an idiot. I hated it when she made stupid decisions constantly, even though expressly warned by others not to do something ( Fire Night incident, Suriel incident, going into the forest etc). Everything she's good at she learned only from watching others. There’s no development, no evolution, even towards the end when she must face some trials, she succeeds Mary Sue style.

Rhysand single handedly saved this story. Lucian was hilarious. Her relationship with her family was indeed interesting to see unfold, especially with Nesta, a welcomed complexity.

Overall, this was a soap opera in written form, it had the potential to be something cool, but wasquite amateurish.

My 15 y.o. self probably would have enjoyed this.... probably.

"I could never paint this or that or capture that on canvas" - Yaaaaaawn.

A Faerie romance. Feyre, the youngest of three daughters living with their (broken) father in a cottage that's little more than a hovel. Once they had money, but that's all been lost and it's Feyre who keeps them fed by hunting in the forest. It's cold and bleak, and so one day when she sees a huge wolf in the forest about to take the doe she's been tracking, she kills it with an arrow. But the wolf is from Faerie, and there's a price. Tamlin, a High Lord, comes for her with a choice, return to Faerie with him or die. It's not much of a choice, but she loathes everything Faerie. Though there's now an uneasy truce, there was once a terrible war between humans and Faerie. Feyre fears the worst, but Tamlin is polite and even kind, though he has scary moments. She comes to realise that not every Faerie court is the same, and she slowly falls in love, though there's much she doesn't know. Outside of Tam's court there is danger for a human, and, soon, within the court, too. Feyre has to fight to break an ancient curse. There are three (so far) full length novels in this series and a novella, but it looks as if more are planned. Note to new readers: Spoilers! Do not read reviews of the next book in this series before you've finished reading this as there's a 'thing' which you might wish you'd not known in advance.

Clearly I’m going to be in the minority here. It’s taken me a few days to decided how to rate and review ACOTAR. Contrary to what my 2-star rating suggest, I didn’t hate it...I just found it super problematic, and for that reason alone I felt I couldn’t rate it any higher.
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ACOTAR is described as a “young adult” high fantasy novel. The story follows Feyre, a 19 year old huntress, and her journey into the faerie lands of Prythian after murdering a faerie wolf.
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While I enjoyed bits of the novel (the fantasy elements/world building) I really struggled with the characterisation of Tamlin and Rhysand as highly attractive/sexually aggressive male saviour figures and found the relationships between Feyre and Tamlin and Feyre and Rhysand hugely inappropriate. For a novel marketed for young adults I’m shocked that more people haven’t commented on the many scenes of sexual misconduct, assault, enslavement or drugging. I’m not going to lie, a lot of this novel just made me uncomfortable. Nothing justifies that kind of behaviour. Nothing. Yet in ACOTAR, these actions/this behaviour are not only “justified,” but glamourised, celebrated. It’s not okay. It also completely detracts from the rest of the plot and undermines Feyre’s strength and independence throughout the novel.
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In many instances, the language that Maas uses is also quite problematic, and at times just downright unsettling and creepy (there is a lot of ‘growling’ and ‘purring’ going on here). Near the end of the novel for example, a lot of the descriptions/language expresses these ideas of power/control and ownership over others. I just don’t get it. It’s not sexy. It’s not acceptable...especially in a book aimed towards younger individuals. Overall I feel that Maas has missed the mark...I simply can’t rave about a book that perpetuates the normalisations of toxic relationships/masculinity.

Feyre is a huntress. And when she sees a deer in the forest being pursued by a wolf, she kills the predator and takes its prey to feed herself and her family. But the wolf was not what it seemed, and Feyre cannot predict the high price she will have to pay for its death..Dragged away from her family for the murder of a faerie, Feyre discovers that her captor, his face obscured by a jewelled mask, is hiding even more than his piercing green eyes suggest. As Feyre’s feelings for Tamlin turn from hostility to passion, she learns that the faerie lands are a far more dangerous place than she realized. And Feyre must fight to break an ancient curse, or she will lose him forever.

I loved this. Completely, Utterly loved this from the first page and right the way through the whole series. Which I I read night and day until I had finished the entire set. This is an extraordinary and exciting retelling of the Persephone and Hades myth - and Maas adds her usual spin on the subject of fairy tales by subverting what you think you know and turning the story into a much more layered, truthful and darkly intriguing version of the story.
I cannot wait for the next installment.

A surprising good read. 5 stars.
This series has been out for a while and I usually loose track of fantasy novels with their made up words, names and lands. I did attempt to read this before but gave up quickly. Im so glad I gave it another chance. I was quickly rooting for the main characters and found myself falling in love with the world and romance interest that had been built. There was enough action and tension to keep the fantasy reader engaged, and brewing romance to keep the romace reader turning the page
I'll be investing in the rest of the series!

I loved this book so much that I already pre-ordered the rest of the series.
It's amazing and brilliant, a gripping read that I couldn't put down.
The cast of characters is well thought and interesting, the world building is amazing and Ms Maas is a master storyteller that delivered a fabulous plot.
I strongly recommend it.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

Great book that I regret putting off reading for so long. Interesting characters and nicely paced. I didn't realise it was a retake on Beauty and the Beast until half way through and also enjoyed that aspect. Looking forward to diving into the rest of the series.

Yikes! I am so behind with this series!

The ACOTAR series completely passed me by when it came out - I missed it, I didn’t know it existed for a long time but then I kept hearing about it. I resisted still, I thought I had left it too long, that I wouldn’t be the right audience for it and to be honest I didn’t know which books went with which series when it came to Sarah J Maas!

So it took a lot of prodding and encouragement from my fellow readers over on instagram but I decided this year I was at least going to dip my toe in the Maas worlds (it still took six months after I made the decision). Several people told me to read ACOTAR first and I had seen those beautiful new covers coming out but I just couldn’t wait. I bought the older covers second hand and set out to join in a readalong on Instagram with a few others.

Now I must apologise to the entire reading community and all the Book Gods. I’m sorry I didn't read this sooner, it was right up my street and I shall always listen to you in future!

I enjoyed it a lot, I loved the instant world-building and how fast-paced the story was. I kept pronouncing Feyre wrong so I’m glad Maas cleared that up in the narrative. Despite having the book split into five sections, I read it in three and I’ve really enjoyed experiencing this for the first time alongside those who have already read the books because they have made me excited to see where it’s going. I have to say I haven’t read any series specifically around faeries that I’ve enjoyed (I tried Cruel Prince and didn’t click with it). Faeries tend to drop in on my reading but don’t take centre stage, especially fantasy novels not set in our world so this was a pretty new phenomena for me.

BUT I’m not going to say it was perfect. After all the comments on the internet and references I had seen everywhere on Bookstagram. I just couldn’t help but notice the breathing and the purring and the tongue clicking. How many times?? I know it is going to get worse and I tried not to focus on it but maaaaan these tiny things are annoying when they pop up in every conversation! My only other drawback was while I was reading I couldn’t help but feel that Feyre fell pretty easily into her new life … yes she thought about leaving at first and then all of a sudden, nope she was cosy. I guess for me, when she first arrived in the Spring Court I thought Feyre could have been a bit more suspicious about what was going on.

From what I can gather, most people say this series gets better so I have all my fingers and toes crossed since the other two books are a bit chunkier than ACOTAR which I have to say was a pretty energetic and adventurous opener. I’m excited to be on this journey and I’m bringing you all along for the ride … sorry! Let’s see what the Night Court is like!

i have read this book a couple of years ago, and my opinion didn't change. a good start of a series that really shines in the second book. the second part is the most interesting to me, the first was a bit boring, i was a bit frustrated for the actions of a few characters. it was nice to reread it, knowing the entire story. one thing that this book does well is the beauty and the beast retelling. it's not obvious, it takes a few elements from the fairytale and creates an entire new story, completely different from the original. that's how i like my retellings, not carbon copies.

I finally got to read ACOTAR and see why it’s such a hyped and loved series.
It’s definitely not something that I was expecting, it’s beautiful done, darker and very descriptive but in a good way. I don’t read fantasy but this book made me rethink my choices 😅. I love Feyre and her strong character and driven willingness to do good things and also going through unimaginable pain for the one she loves.
Tamlin was a beautiful broken soul that needed love above everything else.
Rhysand was enigmatic and haunting and I need to know more about him.
As for my favourite character, that will be Lucien.
I’m looking forward to the next books.
Many thanks to @bloomsburypublishing UK for my review copy.

Thanks to #Netgalley and the publisher #Bloomsbury Publishing Plc (UK & ANZ)
for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review. After seeing the hype regarding this series I really wasn't sure that this would be for me, how wrong I was! I loved this book from start to finish and highly recommend this book.

A book I couldn’t put down. I needed to know how Feyre would save Tamlin in this this brilliant story where the weaker human/woman saves the High fae Lord / man, all whilst trying to survive in an environment that is hostile. I can’t wait to carry on with Feyre’s story. This is a must for anyone that loves the twisted riddles of the fae, a touch of magic and a beautiful ‘Beauty and the Beast’ esq love story.

A Court of Thorns and Roses is the first in a series set in a world where humans and faerie exist, but not together.  There is a wall separating them, which was built after the humans fought off their faerie enslavers 500 years before.

Feyre  had taught herself to hunt in order to be able to provide for her two older sisters and her father.  She kills a wolf whilst out hunting one day, just as it was looking to kill a deer that Feyre had been hunting.  

Feyre has to deal with the consequences of her actions, which lands her on a faerie's estate.

Thrilling and sexy is a description I've read for this book, and I'd have to agree.

I enjoyed this book enough that the version I had from NetGalley hadwordsthatjoinedtogether which made it hard to get into the story. And so I bought this book, and the next two on Kindle.  

My friend Barry won't read this, but Barry, this is the kind of book you tease me about.  And I'm unrepentant.

This edition of  A Court of Thorns and Roses  was published on 3rd June 2020.  It's available on  Amazon  and  Waterstones .   I’ve found a  link  to where you can search for local bookshops, including independent!

You can follow Sarah J Maas on her  website  or on  Instagram .

I was given this book for free in return for an unbiased review, so my thanks to NetGalley and to  Bloomsbury Books  (the publishers) for this book

A beautifully republished edition of the 2015 popular YA fantasy series.

A compelling and otherworldly adventure that is the perfect escape during lockdown.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

A Court of Thorns and Roses tells the story of Feyre, a young huntress who, whilst hunting, accidentally on purpose kills a faery in cold blood. When a monstrous beast comes calling demanding retribution for the life she took, she forfeits her freedom, abandons her dependent family and returns with him to the magical land of Prythian to the north where she will remain a prisoner for the rest of her days. On arrival, she discovers that her ferocious captor is in fact a beautiful shape-shifting faery named Tamlin, and that her new home is on the brink of chaos and collapse from the mysterious ‘blight’.

Similarities with the Beauty and the Beast story are to be expected, as Sarah J. Maas has explained that ACOTAR began life as a retelling of that tale. In the process of writing, the narrative took on a direction all of its own, but still a few allusions to the traditional fairytale remain – the relationship between the protagonist and the shape-shifting fae, the prominence of roses, and the curse which blights Tamlin’s court.

A striking difference is just how darn sex-crazed this book is! Considering this a YA book, I had not imagined just how much raunch Maas could squeeze into the narrative. And yet here we are. Needless to say, this is not a book for a younger YA audience. The sheer abundance of sexual references was notable, but felt relatively appropriate for the storytelling (for the most part), although I can't say that all of these events were entirely unproblematic.

Character chemistry was a great strength of this novel, as were their personalities. The relationship between the High Lord Tamlin and his best friend Lucien, and again their interactions with Feyre, felt real and the banter authentic. Some conversations ocassionally felt stilted, and the high frequency with which Feyre repeated her thoughts and feelings was jarring at times, but on the whole the narrative was carried well by the cast.

The plot itself drove me forward chapter after chapter, each ending on a cliffhanger or hook that always left me wanting more. I appreciated that, although the book was the first in a series, ACOTAR read as a stand-alone novel and reached a fairly satisfying conclusion in and of itself. There were few surprises throughout and it’s in no way a challenging or life-changing read, but the book didn’t necessarily suffer for it.

What I would have loved to have seen explored more in the book were Feyre’s family dynamics. We’re told that she lived a hard and loveless life with her horrible sisters and a distant father, but then when Feyre is whisked away to a magical faery kingdom full of all she could wish for, she aches with longing to be back in her crumbing cottage. The internal conflict Feyre had in this first half of the story just didn’t seem authentic or well realised, and may have worked better with a more sensitive portrayal of her family life at any point in the novel.

Pacing was also an issue: after a long build up of Feyre’s becoming accustomed to Prythian, we then race to the ending with a disappointingly formless villain who only really appears in the last chapters of the story. That said, the longer set-up contributed to my greater emotional investment towards the end of the novel, and so it’s not a factor that severely impacted my enjoyment of the narrative.

All said, ACOTAR exceeded all of my expectations, proving itself to be a fun and flirty read with some likeable characters and interesting ideas, most of which were brought to a satisfying conclusion (just don’t think too hard about any of the romances because that’s an ethical blackhole). While it doesn’t break any new ground in terms of YA fantasy conventions, I’m still looking forward to continuing the series and am curious to see how the story develops.

After hearing so much hype surrounding this book I was excited to finally read it.

Unfortunately this book was just really not for me. I nearly DNF'd it several times. I didn't feel compelled to keep reading the majority of the time and I didn't feel the sexual tension that was building between the two main characters.

I am wondering if faerie books are not for me as this is the second that I just haven't got.

I have been missing out!

This is the first book I have read by Sarah J. Maas and wow! What a read!

Fantasy is not what I like to read, but this one is amazing! I loved all the characters and fell in love with Feyre and Tamlin.

This is set in a dystopian world of mortal land and faerie lands. When 19-year-old Feyre is hunting for food to feed her father and 2 sisters she kills a wolf. But the wolf is no ordinary wolf, in fact, it was a faerie. One of the high lords from Prythian, the faerie land demands that Feyre has to come and live with him for killing the wolf or be killed herself.

But all is not happy in Prythian and there is a blight filling their land and making faeries lose their magic powers. There is also a fairie queen called Amarantha who is taking control of the lands and the faeries in them.

This book had me gripped. I really loved Feyre and was rooting for her all the way through the book. I loved Tamlin too and I really enjoyed reading about their relationship together. Amarantha really reminded me of Tilda Swinton when she played the white witch in the Narnia films.

I really enjoyed the ending of this book and can't wait to pick up the next book in the series.

5 big stars for me!

Great worldbuilding, a great story. Love the trend of modern fantast turning traditional stories on their heads. Will definitely keep an eye out for more of books by Sarah Maas.

A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas is such a fun book, loosely based around a much-loved Beauty and the Beast theme, only this retelling opens up to a whole new world of faerie folklore and secrets. The main character, Feyre, develops an unusual attraction to her mysterious captor, and soon discovers that life as she knows it, will never be the same again. I have to admit, this far exceeded my expectations. I wouldn't say it was perfect, since it could be slow at times, but knowing there are more books to follow, I half expected that. (Put together it's an epic story!) Still I couldn't put it down.

There's always been a lot of hype surrounding this author's books, and maybe that (perhaps subconsciously) prevented me from reading them the first time round. I am so glad to have had this opportunity to finally find out what all the fuss was about, and to say how much I enjoyed it!

This series has been given a new cover, which is a great way to share a older book with new fans. One of which I have just become!

My thanks to Bloomsbury Publishing U.K. for a digital edition via NetGalley of ‘A Court of Thorns and Roses’ by Sarah J. Maas in exchange for an honest review.

It was originally published in 2015 as a YA fantasy though is now being rereleased with stunning new cover art as Adult SF/F. I am pleased by this for while there are aspects of the novel, and presumably the series, that indicate YA, such as the age of its protagonist and her angsty sighing over her love interest, the designation of YA can prove off putting for some readers, even though it’s never been a barrier for me.

The story is narrated by Feyre, a young huntress. When she sees that the deer she has been hunting is being attacked by a wolf, she uses her skill with a bow to kill the predator and take its prey to feed her family.

Yet it turns out that it was actually a Fae in wolf form. For killing the Fae, even if by accident, she is forced to pay a high price. She is taken from her family into Faerie to become the captive of Tamlin, the Faerie Lord of the Spring Court. Tamlin also is able to transform into a monstrous bestial form though his face is always obscured by a jewelled mask. Over time Feyre learns that the faerie lands are under an ancient curse.

This novel is inspired by two tales: the classic French fairy tale, Beauty and the Beast, and the Scottish Ballad of Tam Lin, which is a personal favourite. The connection with the latter is made quite obvious by the name of the Feyre’s Faerie Lord. I would also say that there’s a touch of Cinderella and the myth of Cupid and Psyche in the list of inspirations.

I found Feyre to be an appealing protagonist combining a down-to-earth nature, a quick wit and courage with a genuine sweetness. I also enjoyed the story itself and the rich descriptions. I am planning to read the rest of the series to see how Feyre’s journey continues.

Recommended for lovers of tales of Faerie and beautifully constructed retellings.