A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J Maas #review

Title: A Court of Thorns and Roses
Author: Sarah J Maas
Publisher: Bloomsbury, 2015

I’ve seen quite a few people drop Sarah J Maas’s name all over social media, so naturally my curiosity has been piqued. So, of course, when the opportunity to review A Court of Thorns and Roses fell into my lap, I seized it.

A brief disclaimer: I’m generally leery of books that get hyped, especially when they involve supernatural critters like vampires, angels and fae. These are perennial, timeworn and popular favourites. There’s a reason for this. It’s easy to be blown away by “Oooh, glittery vampire” and overlook the fact that the narrative elements or writing are merely adequate. Um, hello, Tweelight much?

Like why in heaven’s name would an immortal, ancient being deign to fall in love with a scrappy mortal girl? Trust me, the first few chapters into A Court of Thorns and Roses this was all I thought. Why oh why, when Tamlin *should* have requested blood for blood and just offed Feyre in terms of a supposed treaty did he drag her off into fairytale Prythian, the magical realm of the faeries.

I’d have expected Tamlin to use Feyre poorly, treat her like a slave and avenge himself on her for the death of a friend. She did, after all, slaughter a shapeshifted faerie in cold blood. (In her defence, she had been hunting at the time.) Instead Tamlin treats Feyre like a princess. Cue major eyerolls from me accompanied by much gagging.

Granted, if this had been a run-of-the-mill fantasy bodice-ripper, this unlikely romance probably would have bloomed into unabated and gooey, icky love. But, you see, Maas is far too clever for that. Just when jaded Nerine starts to think the story’s taken a turn for the obvious, Maas pulls the proverbial bearskin rug from beneath her feet.

Superficially, this story *borrows* from Beauty and the Beast. Kernels of the timeless classic form the spine, but what Maas has done is to spin out an epic revising of the concept and flesh out her faerie politics to Machiavellian proportions. Nothing is as it seems. Everyone has something to hide, and Feyre is lost, caught between her human existence and the fascinating and very deadly world of the fae.

By the time she starts figuring out what matters and what the hell is actually going on, it’s seemingly too late for her to save the day, and this is where she goes up against the Big Bad with everything she’s got, and even her love for her faerie lord is not enough. She will have to dig deep if she’s going to become the champion Tamlin didn’t realise he needed.

I’ve read faerie books and I’ve read faerie books, and this is offering is a cut above the rest. Yes, there is the beginning of a love triangle that I suspect will play out in future books, but yeah, I’ve come to expect that. It’s not totally annoying, and said bad-boy rival is quite charming in his own way.

I’ve seen some folks make comparisons between Feyre and our lovely little Katniss Everdeen (most likely due to the fact that both are proficient with the bow and were forced to go hunting to support their families) but let me tell you, Feyre is most certainly not a whiny Katniss, though like Katniss, Feyre is determined to do what she must to protect the ones she loves. Come what may, she doesn’t pause to bemoan her fate. She simply gets on with what must be done, and endures.

In closing, if you like fae, magic, curses and a heroine who is brave, determined and loyal, then Feyre is your lady, and this is an epic faerie tale that will surprise you with its complexity and leave you breathless with worry for what happens next.

Fae by CJ Abedi

Title: Fae (Book 1)
Author: CJ Abedi
Publisher: Diversion Books, 2013

The first thing that struck me when I started with Fae was that it’s going to appeal to your Twilight fans. The premise is simple: an ordinary girl gradually discovers that there’s far more to her past than meets the eye. Enter the new boy and their decidedly tsundere situation. Of course the new boy isn’t quite human, and there are greater forces at play … you get my drift.

Caroline is likeable from the get-go. She’s that ordinary girl next door. Thank goodness for that. She isn’t the class reject either. The school’s new quarterback, however, Devilyn Reilly, falls squarely into Edward Cullen territory. He’s tall, dark and just so g
oddamned perfect. And he’s a Dark Fae who’s doing his level best not to turn out like his evil father.

The attraction between the two is instant, since they’re puppets to a prophecy that Caroline is heir to the Light and, once wed to Devilyn, they’ll unify light and dark and end ages of enmity. Of course this has been foretold to tragic consequences, and Devilyn’s determined to prevent this from taking place while still looking out for his destined mate.

Meddling in all of this is Odin, of the Norse pantheon, which left me curious by the end of the story as to what the old guy was doing getting mixed up in Fae affairs. And where were the others, like Freya or Loki. Just curiosity on my part. The authors do a solid bit of world-building and pacing is generally strong.

So that’s pretty much the plot. We’ve got Light vs. Dark (check); destined mates instaluv (check) and a whole lot of high school hijinks ensue. If this is your thing, you will probably love Fae and overlook its rough edges.

But this has to be said. There *are* rough edges, and I’d be amiss if I didn’t point them out. Apart from the obvious fondness for the word “suddenly” (sorry, this is one of my pet hates), there were some *very* strange things going on with the dialogue’s punctuation. Once or twice I might’ve overlooked, but there were consistently bizarre quirks I’d expect from newish writers. I don’t know if this was just the version of the novel I was given to review, but nowhere did I see any notification that this was an ARC e-copy. So… A note to the publisher, if this was the final, and it can be fixed, please do.

This being said, this is a fun story, filled with magic, fair folk and hints of a greater mystery, and the series is off to a promising start.

Review: Tithe by Holly Black

Title: Tithe

Author: Holly Black

Publisher: Simon Pulse, 2004

Kaye isn’t your average teen. At the age of sixteen, she’s seen the inside of more bars than she can be remembered, and follows her rocker mother around from venue to venue. This is until one night when her mother is attacked, and Kaye finds herself back at her grandmother’s while her parent tries to get her life back on track.

This is when we discover that Kaye is no stranger to the supernatural. She grew up in the company of so-called “imaginary” friends that were no other than faeries, and she is drawn into a world of magic that exists beyond the mundane reality she had taken for granted.

A chance encounter with a wounded warrior in a forest has unexpected repercussions as Kaye uncovers her past and the many layers of deception. She discovers herself in the middle of a power struggle between two faerie courts with her as a lynchpin in an ages-old struggle.

First off, I must say that this novel stands head and shoulders above some of what’s landed on my desk. There is no stereotypical love triangle or wimpy female protagonist at the whim of her alpha male love interest and his beta. Kaye is dreamy yet resilient. She’s not the good girl next door. Even better, she has a malicious edge to her, which is kept in check by her sense of justice.

There is nothing nice about the faeries in this novel. They’re neither good nor bad, which I absolutely adored. Roiben, a somewhat unwilling knight in service to the Unseelie queen, is the main love interest. Yes, his good looks and the slightly insta-desire that springs between him and Kaye is a little on the obvious side but Black handles it well. Not once does it feel forced.

The rather geeky (and human) Cornelius plays second fiddle to Roiben but, for the sake of spoilers, I won’t go into too much detail except to say that I enjoyed the interplay between him and Kaye immensely—the seeds of a genuine friendship are sown here.

The setting is absolutely fantastic. Black truly succeeds in painting a vivid landscape down to the tarnished sequins and rotten apples. If anything, read this novel for the descriptions. The world-building is lush without being heavy-handed.

I can’t find much to fault this novel. There were perhaps one or two scenes where I felt the author rushed a little and some details could have been clarified but it was easy to forgive her for writing fast. This is a lovely story that remains somewhat gritty and scratchy behind the eyes, and is unsentimental.

If faeries are your thing, read this one. I’ll close with my favourite line:

Waves tossed themselves against the shore, dragging grit and sand between their nails as they were slowly pulled back out to sea.

How can one not love prose like that?