Sarah J. Maas’s fantasy romance trilogy titled A Court of Thorns and Roses has gained extreme popularity since its exposure to TikTok’s #booktok community. Published in 2015, A Court of Thorns and Roses, or ACOTAR, as the community calls it, is a mix of mythology, fairytale, and folklore wrapped into an epic fantasy.
The original trilogy follows Feyre, a young woman who hunts for her family’s survival, who is taken to Prythian, the land of the fae, as punishment for killing one of the fae herself. It’s an interesting premise, though you’re probably wondering if it’s worth all the hype it gets on social media. Today we’re going to talk about what makes A Court of Thorns and Roses so special.
A Brief Summary of a Court of Thorns and Roses
Feyre Archeron is a huntress not by choice but by necessity. She and her family live in poverty in a small town near the border to the faerie lands. She hunts for food and materials to trade by risking her life going into the woods on the border. Faeries are dangerous, the people say, but Feyre doesn’t have a choice if she wants her family to live.
One day when she’s hunting, she kills a wolf. It happened to be a faerie wolf. She is then taken captive by a beast who tells her that the debt for ending the life of a fae is for the human to live in Prythian, the faerie lands, forever. Thus begins the story of Feyre and her life in Prythian. She is thrust into court politics and even finds an unexpected romance. It’s a wonderful retelling of Beauty and the Beast.
Exploring The Sequels
When people talk about A Court of Thorns and Roses and all the hype surrounding it, they’re often referring to the sequels – A Court of Mist and Fury, A Court of Wings and Ruin, A Court of Frost and Starlight, and A Court of Silver Flames. The first 3 sequels follow Feyre through a series of trials and tribulations. While book 1 is a beauty and the beast retelling, A Court of Mist and Fury could loosely be considered a Hades and Persephone retelling. It introduces new characters, new courts, and more politics and scheming than ever. The romance in A Court of Mist and Fury is also to die for.
A Court of Silver Flames a spin off novel, following Feyre’s sister Nesta. Without going into too many details, it covers a transition period in her life where she struggles immensely with self-identity and grief. A Court of Silver Flames is probably the most popular of the entire series for those who read that far.
So Why the Hype?
A Court of Thorns and Roses has one of the most beautiful found-family tropes I’ve ever read. The romance is beautiful, sure. But it’s the side characters and the found family working together to save the world that people truly fall in love with.
As you get deeper into the series the story evolves from just being about Feyre and her punishment for killing a faerie and dives into deeper themes like domestic and sexual abuse, grief, poverty, privilege, and more. These books are not for the lighthearted, but they do well to explain and explore the topics that they cover.
A Court of Silver Flames especially touches on the concept of consent, of having choice and freedom taken away, and of gaining positive things even during unhappy or tragic circumstances. One thing Sarah J. Maas does extremely well is delve into these topics on a below-the-surface level and really make you think. Now, yes, A Court of Silver Flames is probably a 5 out of 5 peppers on the spice scale, so that’s appealing to readers too. But that’s just the cherry on top for most readers.
Will There Be More Books?
Right now, A Court of Thorns and Roses has 5 books. The original trilogy and it’s companion novella, and then the spin-off, A Court of Silver Flames. Sarah J. Maas has confirmed in interviews that she does plan on writing more within the world, and fans have speculated based on clues she’s left on her Instagram posts that the next book will be about Feyre’s other sister, Elaine.
Whether there are more books or not, it’s important to know that book 1 is the slowest moving and the least compelling of the series, but in my humble opinion, it is worth the hype. If you can get through A Court of Thorns and Roses, the rest of the series will blow you away.
Conclusion
A Court of Thorns and Roses is increasingly popular in recent years. It’s intrigue, romance, and spice all add up to make a fantastic fantasy romance series that is absolutely worth the hype in my opinion. If you can, I highly recommend the Graphic Audiobooks which can be found on the Graphic Audio website or on Audible and Libby through your local library. Enjoy!
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