Review: A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

Title: A Court of Thorns and Roses

Author: Sarah J. Maas

Genre: New Adult, Romance, Fantasy,

Reviewed by: Cassie

Summary (from Goodreads.com)

A thrilling, seductive new series from New York Times bestselling author Sarah J. Maas, blending Beauty and the Beast with faerie lore.

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 grows over the faerie lands, and Feyre must find a way to stop it . . . or doom Tamlin—and his world—forever.

Perfect for fans of Kristin Cashore and George R. R. Martin, this first book in a sexy and action-packed new series is impossible to put down!

Hmm.
Hmm.
Well, I have to first state that I was very confused and misinformed when I read this, so perhaps my review is flawed.
Nevertheless, I shall march on!
To elaborate, I thought this was like the prequel series to Throne of Glass. So, um. Yeah. I thought Feyre was like the mom or something. I also thought it was Young Adult, so I was raising my eyebrows at the bedroom scenes, thinking to myself, "My my, how YA has progressed!"

WEIRD. Messed with my mind.


Despite this, A Court of Thorns and Roses was still entertaining. Steamy, too, if you didn't already guess. I like to categorize this kind of book as guilty pleasure reading. The kind you blaze through (somewhat skimming), enjoying like you would a delicious cookie, and in the end kind of forgetting it.

Because, while it was enjoyable, in no way was it fantastic or extraordinary.

Characters:
Woefully underdeveloped. And Feyre had some kind of personality disorder, I might add. She went from strong/icy/hateful to playful/light/happy to confused/weak/sad. Alright, yes you can have mood swings. But you can't just change personalities for weeks at a time! I understand some people have a cold exterior that melts as you get to know them (seeing as I am one of those dastardly people) but you don't just LOSE it! You don't! It goes right back up when you're thrust into a new situation and even if you have a moment of weakness, it still lingers in the recesses of your mind, waiting for the right time to rise.
Trust me. I KNOW THIS. Therefore, Feyre has a serious personality issue, seeing as she kept morphing from person to person.
Tamlin was boring. Too pretty and good. Not even a hint of malice or ill-will. Let me shudder for us all, because that's just disturbing.
Even the one promising character, Rhysand, turned out to be disappointing. He was first portrayed as evil and shadowy and deliciously despicable and awesome, and THEN. And then he turned out to be "deep" and sorrowful and not even a proper villain/tyrant. Because obviously, no one can be evil just because he feels like it. He has to have a "reason".
Blegh.
Ridiculous.

Plot:
Despicable.
No, that's rather extreme. But it was predictable and somewhat boring. Also, that riddle?

The one that lamely determines the fate of basically the entire world? EASY. GOD. I figured it out within a minute of reading it, because it was so obvious. It was in no way difficult, and it made me roll my eyes (while one of them twitched in annoyance).


Romance:
Questionable? Indeed.
Hot? Indeed.
Some scenes actually made me put down my phone and take a little breather, because the writing was chock full of STEAM. Like, wowzers. And it was a nice, seductive steam.
But as for the romance behind it?

Uhhhh. I didn't feel the spark.
It wasn't instalove or that disgusting mess, but I couldn't get in the groove of Feyre/Tamlin.

Writing:
As many already know, Maas has fantastic writing skills that draw you in. Yet even the most gifted writer will struggle to keep her audience ensnared when she writes scenes that aren't her strong-suit or have a weak plot. This book is a prime example of that: Maas, as other readers have pointed out, excels in constructing action scenes and fierce, breathtaking battles/fights. A Court of Thorns and Roses has a glaring lack of these instances; most of the narrative is wasted describing the beauty of the fae, their courts, or the terror of it all.
Meh. Boring. Please.

Read at your own peril. (Although, it is fun, so . . . )

Hugs and kisses~
Cassie