Monday, April 18, 2016

{Mini Review} A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas



A thrilling, seductive new series from New York Timesbestselling 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! 




4 "I Am Very Conflicted" Stars

This will be a short review today! I had a lot of thoughts on this one, but my poor dog broke her tooth over the weekend, so we're off to the vet's today. She's not feeling too good right now. :(




A Court of Thorns and Roses was a well written and intriguing retelling of Beauty and The Beast, and is a refreshing and exciting addition to the new adult genre. It was definitely a hyped novel, and in a lot of ways I can see why. In others...well, I'll just do a pros/cons list and keep it simple. ;)


On the one hand, I love:

- Tamlin. He was an enjoyable character, if slightly one-dimensional. I enjoyed how he did not push Feyre into anything, his loyalty and protectiveness of his people, and he's admittedly pretty sexy.

- Tamlin's best friend, Lucien. That man was hilarious, and I want to see more of him! He and Feyre had some awesome banter.

- The world building is just gorgeous. Rich, vivid, and thought provoking, but thankfully didn't enter the realm of "I have no fucking clue what is going on" high fantasy.

- The Fae were interesting! I've been intrigued by fae since reading Karen Marie Moning's Fever series, and it's always interesting to see another author's perspective. This cast of characters was slightly different from anything I've read before.

- The last 10-15% blew my mind. The action was heart pounding, emotions ran high, and I felt like I was right there with them.

- After the first 70 pages or so, it was incredibly addictive and I didn't want to put it down.

- Despite having more of fade-to-black sex scenes, this was a surprisingly sensual novel!

- I feel it could be read as a standalone without problem.

- The audiobook is pretty decent!




I wasn't as big a fan of:

- Feyre. First of all, I bought the audio version just so I could figure out how the hell to pronounce her name. I was thinking something along the lines of Fay-re, Fear-re, ect, but nope. Her name is pronounced Fair-uh. Never would've gotten that.
Second, I didn't really care for her as a heroine. She's just okay; a bit bland, not too well defined. She wasn't much of anything, good or bad.

- I have a sneaking suspicion that there will be a love triangle. I really, really hope I'm wrong.

- Like I said, it took around 70 pages to get into the story.

- The pacing for the book was a little weird to me. Nothing so hugely, glaringly obvious that I can pinpoint and say "that's what's wrong with it", but more like a nagging little something that set it off as odd to me.

- The romance. This was my biggest disappointment for me, especially because it's a Beauty and The Beast retelling and that storyline needs a romance that is all consuming. This one...wasn't. It was just okay. I wanted, needed to be completely enthralled with their romance, needed to believe in it one hundred and ten percent. The entire plot is revolves around love, and I didn't fully buy Tamlin and Feyre's love.

Overall though, it was an enjoyable read and I look forward to the next!

- Amanda, aka The Bibliophile Babe





9 comments:

  1. You nailed everything I felt in your review! It was lacking in places for me, too. I felt it was a bit slow, but I still enjoyed it. I was glad it ended like a stand alone - I don't feel a big urge to keep reading the series. Maybe I will, if the mood strikes. Glad you enjoyed it!

    I hope your doggy is feeling better!

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  2. I have this one I got on sale. I think I will add on the audio because I hate when I can't pronounce the names!!! I will remember that it takes a bit to get into. Great review!

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  3. I hope your dog is feeling better. I hear you. I listened to the audiobook and I had some issues as well. I didn't like the romance, I too, feel like a love triangle is in the works, and I liked Lucien way better. I loved the world buildling and the retelling of Beauty and the Beast though.

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  4. Well at least you are enjoying it for the most part. I'm sad about the romance and was hoping for something more.

    Poor puppy! I hope she is feeling better very soon!

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  5. I'm curious about this one, but probably more of a library pick than anything. Sorry the MC wasn't all that enjoyable.

    Aw, your poor doggy! I hope they feel better soon.

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  6. I *really* hope there won't be a love triangle, but I see why you think there might be.

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  7. I was so addicted to this book but I definitely agree with you that there were some weird parts. I found myself mentally screaming at Feyre.. I also spent a good portion of the book trying to figure out her stupid ass name in my head... LOL

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  8. I own this, but have been struggling with YA of late and keep moving it around my tbr pile. The love triangle has me feeling blech about it. I do hope your little guy is ok.

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  9. Everyone loves this author. Everyone loves her writing. I, on the other hand, am the black sheep. I relatively enjoyed this one, but I so wish I could love it more.

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