A Court of Thorns and Roses

A Court of Thorns and Roses

Sarah J. Maas

It must be a running theme for me lately to adore half of books. Seriously, the second half of this book was amazing, it was just the beginning that felt a bit boring to me.

This book is about Feyre, a human girl who hunts daily to keep her once wealthy family alive. Everything changes when she kills a wolf who was actually a Faerie. A beast comes to take her across the wall to the land of Faeries (that she's learned to fear and hate after years of war). However, she starts to fall for this beast who is actually Tamlin, a powerful faerie.

I actually didn't mind the very beginning. Feyre's life pretty much sucks and we completely empathize with her. She made a promise to her mother on her deathbed that she would take care of her family. After all of their wealth vanishes and they're forced to live in a tiny little cabin, Feyre, her two sisters, and her maimed father are struggling to survive the winter. Feyre hunts for their food and trades whatever she can manage, while her older sisters do nothing but complain and her father whittles useless wood statues. This part made me so angry I could barely contain myself... her sisters were completely useless and whined about everything while Feyre sacrifices her life for them.

Then there's the whole 'I hate faeries' ... 'wait I think I love you' montage that's pretty well done, but I just wasn't feeling it. Not that I didn't like Tamlin, I do, it's just predictable since this is basically a play on Beauty and the Beast. It also wasn't that hard for us (and Feyre) to fall for Tamlin. He wasn't very beast-like at all to me. After all of that, though, Tamlin sends Feyre home to save her from this 'blight' that's affecting Tamlin's land, people, and power. After being home for a few weeks and telling her sister everything (which she was way too quick to accept since they've all hated faeries for their entire lives), she realizes that something more was wrong and she should've fought to stay with Tamlin so she returns. That's when shit gets good. She finds out about a curse and goes to battle with the most fearsome faerie there is.

I seriously can't explain how great the second half of the book was. I read it in one sitting. I loved the world-building, loved the characters, and loved the ending. I can't wait to read the second book.