Usually, I gravitate towards all different kinds of thrillers and mysteries. The first time I laid eyes on A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas, I did not think much of it. My initial reaction to seeing this book in stores was nonchalant, but then I noticed it started getting popular on social media. I started seeing it more and more, until one day I decided to see if it was worth all the attention.
The book begins by introducing us to Feyre and her family. Feyre is her family’s savior, as they suffered a tragic loss: once a wealthy family, Feyre’s father was known as the “prince of merchants,” and her mother, an extravagant party planner. Feyre’s childhood was shared with her two sisters: Nesta and Elaine. Unlike Nesta and Elain, Feyre does not remember much of her childhood because her family fell into debt when she was a little girl, causing the family’s home to be raided and her father purposely injured by the men who raided their home. Shortly after, Feyre’s mother passed away. What Feyre has known for most of her life was poverty and being the only one persistent enough to keep her family together. Elaine and Nesta refused to help, completely depending on Feyre’s capabilities. Feyre’s father lost all will to survive, spending his days inside the tenebrous imaginings of his mind.
Feyre lives in a town bordering a magical continent by the name of Prythian, which is made of seven courts, all different from each other: the Summer Court, Spring Court, Autumn Court, Winter Court, Night Court, Day Court, and Dawn Court. Prythian is filled with (mostly) human-like creatures, the Fae. Fae and humans despise each other due to a brutal history of humans being slaves to the Fae, until a grotesque war led to their separation. A magical border lies between the human world and Prythian, but it does not stop occasional Fae appearances. One particular appearance changed the course of Feyre’s life forever.
On another one of her hunting adventures, Feyre spots a wolf in the woods. Tension building, Feyre manages to slay the wolf. She sells its fur and is now calm about managing through the rest of the winter — until a Fae in the form of a giant golden wolf takes her away to his lands in the Spring Court as punishment for killing his friend,the wolf from the woods.
For the rest of her days, Feyre is meant to live with the creature who took her away. This creature, as it turns out, is a High Lord (High Fae) by the name of Tamlin of the Spring Court, and has the ability to turn from a human into a beast. As each day passes, Feyre notices the unusualness of the court — every Fae is not only associated with an animal, but wears a mask of that animal every waking moment.
As time passes further, Feyre grows close with Tamlin as he shows her the castle and lands. Feyre also learns that every Fae of the Spring Court wears a mask because they are cursed and physically incapable to take the mask off. Amarantha, the empress of all seven courts, is a High Fae who, in attempt to have Tamlin as her betrothed, cursed his court until he decided to marry her. The alternative, however, was to break the curse by having a human, who hates the Fae, fall in love with him. If Tamlin did not succeed in this alternative after 49 years from the day his court was cursed, he was bound to Amarantha forever.
Feyre finds out that she had met Tamlin right at the end of his 49-year sentence. In an attempt to save him and his court, Feyre faces Amarantha in three life-threatening challenges, in which Feyre succeeds with the help of her new acquaintance: Rhysand, High Fae of the Night Court. Little did she know, Feyre would become the savior of the Spring Court, and turned into a High Fae.
