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9 out of 10

Ревью в моем блоге/This review on my blog
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Short-Soundtrack:




Genre: high-fantasy, retelling, upper-YA
Stuff: faeries, humans, two worlds, curse
Fail: MC's family
WOW: I'm too shy to admit what exactly xD
POV: 1st-person, female
Love-Geometry: not yet, though possible

Quote-Core:

“Pity those who don't feel anything at all.��

Summary for those who don’t have any intentions to read my fangirling-parade:

The book is really good, its flaws aren't bigger than its great sides. You may give it a try, but there’s no guarantee you’ll love it. One of the most important things within the high-fantasy genre is world-building, and I have to admit Sarah did well: the Fae realm is beautiful and quite unique. Characters are complex, the language is rich, there are emotional moments. The final is predictable, ‘cause c’mon, this is a retelling, BUT an intrigue is still there. It's a fast read, also this book has its own melody like a song. The conclusion of the story was logical and complete (there are gonna be sequels, but you can consider this one as a standalone if you please).

Now, here's the part for those who don’t like dry-texts and ready for more.

After a painful experience with boring like hell Heir of Fire, I wasn't eager to read SJM's new work called A Court of Thorns and Roses, but GR attacked me with praising reviews and alluring status-updates for this book, so here I am...

Yes, here I am, despite the fact that some of my friends, whose opinion I can rely on, had tipped me that ACOTAR is a super average read. Opinions differ after all, right? I decided to give SJM a chance minding potential plot-holes and holding on to whatifs. What I was warned about? MC was supposed to be pretty crazy, plot - static, boredom - all around, hot scenes and male-leads - acceptable.

"Well", I thought. "That's totally fine. Let's go."

What did I get? Not a dull moment (okay, maybe a few), no stupidity in the MC (okay, maybe a bit), no dragging plot (yes, no dragging plot).

Okay, let’s start�� from the start. Once upon a time there was a rich family (which surname I forgot or didn’t know to begin with): a merchant-dad, a soon-to-be-dead-mother, and their children. After the mother's death, this family lost their fortune, 'cause a good merchant must know better than to invest all the money in a risky deal. Creditors took everything that was left, including their house. Also, they broke the father's knee (remember this fact).

Disabled man and his daughters moved to a small village. The father couldn't work, 'cause he had a bad KNEE (that's just me or a man can be a merchant even with such a 'horrible disability'???), so in the short run three sisters found out what hunger and poverty are. Fortunately, Feyre, the youngest, saved them from starvation and cold by becoming a huntress. Why did she do this? The dying Mom did ask her to swear that she would take care of the father and sisters no matter what. Yes, a grown-up woman with brains took an oath from a 8-year-old girl to feed a healthy (back then) man plus two older and educated (unlike Feyre) chicks. WHAT DA FUCK?

That's why Feyre had started to hunt as long as she turned 14. She had to kill cute animals instead of painting them. The girl adored to paint, but one can't eat her arts...

The book would begin with Feyre being nineteen, fornicating with a local golden boy and still providing for her family. Feyre's relatives don't try to help her but have no problems with taking her money and asking for more. Winter. Lazy folk hasn't eaten for a while and Feyre is wandering through the forest searching for anything to shoot. She’s desperate and tired, and then she notices a deer. But her dreams about dinner get interrupted by a huge wolf. "Faerie", thinks the girl. Then looks closer. "Not a faerie". Then shoots. With an ash-arrow. Just in case. 'Cause only this thing can kill faeries, so she heard. After being done with the wolf, she kills the deer and takes the skin of the first and the corpse of the second home. All is good! Feyre gets enough money in exchange for the wolf's skin while venison would save her family from starvation. But suddenly a lion-ish-wolf-ish beast breaks into Feyre's house, the creature is hairy, tusky, and really pissed off. It says, “Come with me or I'll tear you to shreds��. What a nice choice.

Okay, let me tell you about the world this beast is coming from. Once upon a time humans and fairies were living without barriers. As rulers and slaves, where people were slaves. Then an epic-battle had happened and faeries left humans be: they created a wall between their paradise and human’s trash-lands. It’s been centuries since that moment and now people hardly remember their history. Some see Fae as Nazi, some as gods. Ptythian, Fae-realm, is shared between seven Courts: Dawn, Day, Night, Winter, Autumn, Summer, and Spring. Hairy-thing came from the last one and right there it was going to take Feyre.

What Feyre expected? Dark dungeons, torture chambers, sex orgies. What she’s got? A room with a garden view, silks and jewels, cakes, and two hot men in addition. Where the men came from? The first from the beast, the second turned out to be his palace-mate.

Btw, all the subjects of Spring Court wear masks. Why? Tamlin (the kidnapper) said there's a magic blight that is sucking powers from every creature of his Court and doesn't allow them to take off masks. This decease has a weird sense of humor and smells like... curse!

So, landlords are treating Feyre as their dear guest, even trying to say some compliments, like “Your hair is�� clean��, “Your eyes are�� right on your face�� and so on. Lucien is a king of sarcasm (this is the second hot thing living in the palace). Readers love him. Me too. He’s snarky, has a brute scar and dark charisma. He’s fiery-red-haired, BTW. After Rene Hasard from Rook, I got fond of such “torches��. As to Tamlin, he’s Apollo-like (of course) and hot as the lava of Eyjafjallajokull volcano. I know, he wears a mask, but the tiny thing hardly hides anything. We can’t see his nose and brow, that's not a big deal. Lips (sensual) and eyes (green) are in sight.

From time to time our beauty-beast is annoying Feyre with “let’s go for a walk��, “let’s have a chat��, “what’s up?��, “what are you thinking about?�� and suchlike things. Lucien is teasing her endlessly. And Feyre herself is waiting for the only one thing: to go home and get back to her Dobby-lifestyle.

But all it’s not what it seems.

A head-on a stick, deadly dangerous monsters, faerie with ripped wings, night hallucinations, LSD-wine�� Prythian is one hell of a place! What is waiting for Feyre? Who will leave a love bite on her neck? What kind of trails will lay on its scrawny human shoulders? This and more are on the pages of “A Court of Thorns and Roses��. Sounds like a commercial jingle)

Ah, well, how could I forget! Erotica! Maas is awesome, really. Minimum anatomy, maximum feelings.

The writing. “The Heir of Fire�� was a challenge for me to read. Its language was rich but had no rhythm. The ACOTAR’s writing is so much better. I can see through the author's words that she’s a very intelligent person. I like how she expresses herself, what kind of metaphors she uses, the way her imagination works. Her story is upon words, it consists of pure feelings, images, and emotions.

Off-topic. I've heard ACOTAR was a fan-fiction work, which Maas had been posting on a site, and the story existed before Throne of Glass (though the idea of ToG is older). Those who have read ToG would notice what kind of luggage Sarah moved from ACOTAR to ToG. Two guys: the first is a prince/king/lord; the second is a I-could-be-a-prince/king/lord/-but-I-had-left-my-kingdom-and-decided-to-live-with-my-friend-also-my-family-is-awful. One killer-girl (huntress/assassin) with a girlish hobby (painting/reading). Relationships from hate to love. Trials. War. Slavery. Fae-mythology. Amarantha is a prototype of Maeve, Rhysand of Rowen, mountain king of Adarlan's one, and so on. Maybe Sarah had no intention to be back to ACOTAR while working on ToG, that's why she took so much from her older story. I wasn't irritated, though, 'cause ACOTAR's version is better, IMO.

PS: Tamlin is hot, but he's not my favorite male-lead. Lucien is awesome, but my heart isn't his either. Who took it? That's simple...

(view spoiler)[Rhysand. He’s everything I was needed! I can’t even! I, for the first time in my bookish life (okay, with Shatter Me was the same situation), am eager for a love triangle. I WANT IT! And as I see, there's a lot of changes I'll have. Usually, I know from the start which team I’m in when it comes to love-triangles, but here�� when Feyre with Tam I’m happy, when she’s with Rhys I’m happier. I won’t be mad, no matter who'd win her heart! But she has to make love with Rhys as well. Must to.

What sort of man my dear Rhysand is? High Lord of Night Court is tall, muscled, pale, has black hair with a dark-blue shimmer and violet eyes. Instead of fur and claws, this guy can grow a pair of leathery wings (hello, Raffe!). He’s amazing! I adore bad boys with good intentions and a heart that is hidden from every person in the world except MC (and cute puppies�� and kittens�� you’ve got the pattern). Also, I knew I’ll be in love with this character from the moment he helped Feyre during the spring-mass-fucking-festival. I knew he won’t be a nice person, but I was sure he’d be sexy as hell.

I was right. And I’m really in love.

The final. Feyre has become a Fae. It reminds me about the ending of Angels' Blood, but if there I was LOL and hard, here I was, "Well, ok". I loved Feyre as a human, ‘cause a human among faeries is an interesting thing while faerie among faeries is dull. But I'd been thinking like that only before Pang had mentioned that Feyre may turn out to be someone’s mate! Remember how Rhys looked at her in the end? It may be a thing! I’d love to see how it would be developed.

And if you have no idea what sequels would be about, I’ll tell you. The king, the master of Amarantha, is still alive and he still wants to bring back people to slavery times. So there would be a war, I guess. And there would be a week per month at Night Court. I foresee many hot scenes�� (hide spoiler)]

And I can't wait for the next book!

A Court of Thorns and Roses (Двор терний и роз):

�� A Court of Thorns and Roses (Двор терний и роз) #1/3
�� A Court of Mist and Fury (Двор тумана и ярости) #2/3
�� Untitled (Без названия) #3/3