A Court of Thorns & Roses by Sarah J. Maas

Rating: 3.5/5 Stars ⭐️

Summary:

After 19 year old Feyre kills a wolf in the woods, she’s kidnapped by a beast who drags her to the magical world of fairies as retribution for the murder of his friend. When Feyre arrives she learns that her captor, Tamlin, is the High Lord of the Spring Court who's been placed upon a curse and is forced to wear a jeweled mask to cover his face.

Reluctantly settling into his estate, and fighting her growing attraction for the mysterious and often hostile High lord, Feyre learns of a wicked shadow spreading across the faerie lands that's wrecking havoc and threatening to damn the life of Tamlin and his world forever and she just might be the key to stopping it.

Review & Reaction:

This was my first book by Sarah J. Mass and I was really excited to dive into it because it had been recommended to me by SO MANY PEOPLE. It’s safe to say that I had super high expectations for this one but honestly, it took me longer than normal to get through. I’m still having a hard time trying to figure out if I had more issues with the plot or the characters.

I admired Feyre’s love & dedication to help her family. They went from being one of the wealthiest families in her town to the poorest and Feyre seems to be the only one that mastered that transition with grace and dignity. While her sisters and disabled father sulk in their living conditions Feyre does what any head of a household should do: provide so that they can survive. In the beginning of the story I found her to be incredibly smart and brave. She was mouthy and gave 0 F’s about who she was talking to. I loved her brazen responses. But as the story progressed she started to annoy me (more on this below). I felt like everything they told her not to do she did. She was like a little kid who tested the waters to see how far they could go until they drowned. Nothing courageous about that she just made me want to:

Then there’s Tamlin. The mighty High Lord of the Spring Court. Damned for years (and possibly eternity) with a jeweled mask stuck on his face and carrying the burden of his family’s legacy. I had mixed feelings about him. I did feel for the guy. He was young when the great battle between human and Fae occurred and unlike the rest of his family, he didn’t agree with wiping out the whole damn human population. He seemed very noble:

“I was a child at the time, too young to understand what was happening --or even told. But had I been old enough, I would have. Against slavery, against tyranny, I would gladly go to my death, no matter whose freedom I was defending” (Pg 144)

For what it’s worth, he had a lot of weight on his shoulders and I think for the most part he tried to do the right thing and Mass does a great job at letting the reader feel his burden with simple descriptions of his facial expressions and Feyre’s perception of him. Tamlin wanted no part in ruling the Spring Court but he did it anyway in hopes of cleaning up the mess left behind from his father's tyranny and vowed to protect the people of his court from the Queen. I can get behind that.

However, there wasn’t much else about him that I liked. I wasn’t very convinced of his and Feyre’s relationship. He makes her his prisoner, treats her like royalty and then they fall in love barely knowing each other. Literally, aside from their little outings, he spends most of his time making snarky comments at her and trying to come on to her in sexually aggressive ways. Their relationship felt more lust than love AND after we found out the truth about the curse and why she became important to him it made me wonder: Did he really love her for her? Or did he love her because she was the only hope he had for saving himself and the people he vowed to protect?

Tamlin’s actions frustrated me even more when Feyre joined him under the mountain. I just kept hoping and waiting for him to do more. You know, help me understand why Feyre loved him so much that she would make great sacrifices for him. But nope. He barely did shit and whatever excuses Lucien gave for them sucked. To me, their relationship fell flat. Feyre had more chemistry with Lucien 😂.

Then there was Rhysand. Another one I had mixed feelings about. I know many people who rave about him but I guess this isn’t the book that he shines in. He saved Feyre’s life at a hefty cost. Then to spite Tamlin he makes her do outrageous and inappropriate things. I know The Queen didn’t mind seeing Feyre make a fool out of herself but really? Am I the only one that saw that as fuckery ? On top of that, the situation with Clare Beddor. Enough said. Like, did I miss something ? Did he have a soft spot for Feyre after meeting her and hoped she’d never return? If so, why?

Yes I know he helped Feyre when she needed it the most but I would have loved to know more about his “greater good”.

And now, The Queen:

Amarantha: She. Was. Terrifying. This was me when I found out the truth about how she came to power and how she punished those who did and didn’t wrong her:

She’s probably the most evil of villains I’ve read about in a long time. Something I think that the book gets right. I know a lot of women can be vengeful but damn she definitely took the cake. And I am absolutely referring to certain special ring she wears 👀 👀 She was CRUEL AF.

Overall I felt that the beginning was too slow and the ending of the book was too rushed. I felt bad for Feyre, she seemed to be more like a pawn in this vicious game against the Queen and unfortunately for her she fell right into it. I did enjoy the illusions of the story's settings & its characters. Sarah J Mass made it difficult for me to guess who was on whose side--I really liked that. I felt like this book was a cross between Beauty & the Beast, Hunger Games and Game of Thrones. I would have liked to know more about Rhysand’s history and how he ended up where he did. But the ending felt like the end of a very short series not the start of it.

Would I still recommend it? Yes!

Re-read it? Probably not

Read the next book in the series? Still debating. I keep hearing that the sequel is so much better so I just might 😉

Shocking/Cringe Worthy Moments

Warning: Major plot spoilers below

Can we talk about when Feyre & Tamlin finally reunited under the mountain?! Feyre was beaten, tortured, drugged, taken advantage of right in front of him for DAYSSS and instead of asking if she was okay the first thing he tried to do was have sex with her LOL I was like

Rhysand drugging Feyre and touching her inappropriately while also making her dance like a damn fool

Feyre sacrificing her life for a man who barely did shit for her

There you have it! Comments, feedback are all welcome!