Reviewing the ACOTAR Book Series
Since the start of the new year, I don’t know what has gotten into me, but I’ve suddenly gotten really into reading! I definitely read some books here & there before this, and in 2023, I read a decent amount of books (11 total, and I’m proud of this given I hardly ever read before), but I would’ve never classified myself as a “reader” prior to now. Since the holidays though, I have been in a bit of reading slump – nothing was holding me, and I saw everyone talking about the ACOTAR (A Court of Thorns and Roses) series all over every social platform, so I figured hey, let’s give it a shot – well… I read the entire series in just over two weeks. I don’t think I’ve ever finished a single 600+ page book in two weeks before, let alone multiple!
So, today, if you’re looking for a full break down of how I rated each of these books in the series, this blog is for you! And I promise this is a spoiler-free rating, so let’s get into it!
Book No. 1
A Court of Thorns & Roses
When I first picked up ACOTAR, I have to admit, I found the first couple of chapters kind of difficult to get into. It starts off very slow, introducing the main female character; Feyre, and her environment, family, and so on – it just wasn’t something that grasped my attention immediately upon the first few pages. But having discussed this book with a few others who read it, I knew that I had to “get through” this book to enjoy the rest of the series. However, as the book went on, the love story and friendships that develop really started to grabbed my attention, and made it difficult for me to put the book down. When I was about two-thirds of the way through the book, the excitement really started to pick up, and the last one-third of the book is what really pulls you in. There’s so much excitement, intensity and insane character development. By the time I finished the book, I had already gone and bought book 2, so I started it immediately after finishing book 1.
My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Book No. 2
A Court of Mist & Fury
ACOMAF is by far a fan-favourite due to the developing love story throughout this one, and a lot of blanks being filled in that you didn’t even realize were blanks. The beginning, though not overly “exciting”, kept me curious and wanting to read more, but was a bit slower, similar to the first book – in fact, as you read, you’ll notice that the author tends to keep all of the excitement within the last one-third of the book, and book 2 is no exception. We see Feyre struggle and change so much in this book, and one of the greatest parts of ACOMAF, in my opinion, is how insanely well Sarah J. Maas can write a scene. The courts are so well described, I swear every piece of fan art I’ve seen looks exactly as how I imagined it. Similarly to book 1, the excitement really picks up at the end of the book, so much so that I was quite literally yelling as I was finishing chapters (Chapter 54 and 55, particularly come to mind!), and there is a massive plot twist in the last couple hundred pages of the book that practically commands you to pick up book 3 immediately so you can learn more.
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Book No. 3
A Court of Wings & Ruin
I’ll start out of the gate by saying, this book was by far my favourite of the series. Unlike the others, I found the excitement started immediately on the first page, and kept me so engaged throughout. Of course, it wouldn’t be a Sarah J. Maas ACOTAR book if the ending wasn’t super intense, but regardless, this one felt to be the most engaging from start-to-finish for me. There’s some great fight scenes, growing love stories, changes to characters & stories, and a few massive redemptions for multiple characters throughout this book. There’s also a few shocking, and “mic-drop” moments near the end that had my jaw drop as I read the words on the page. Additionally, within the last few chapters, there’s some very emotional scenes that had me reading through a few tears while finishing off the last handful of chapters in this book, so just a heads up if you’re a crier, like me!
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Book No. 4
A Court of Frost & Starlight
ACOFAS, though technically is book 4, is more like a short story, or novella. I will admit, I found this one to be not nearly as exciting of a read as the first 3 books. The narrative is much slower, but allows for some great opportunity to dive into the characters – who they are, what they may be struggling with, their emotions, etc. One small complaint I personally have about this book was how frequently the chapters changed narrators (or into third-person to follow a character). Though I’m sure many people aren’t bothered by that, I found it to be a bit tricky to keep up with whose POV I was reading, and it kind of felt like a bit of whip-lash for me, moving around between Feyre & Rhysand in first-person, and others in third-person. Overall, it’s a great little “fluff” novella to read after the intensity that is ACOWAR, and very festive. I can definitely see myself re-reading this series closer to the holidays strictly so I can enjoy this novella more.
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Book No. 5
A Court of Silver Flames
The (current) final book in this series switches narration, though it doesn’t feel as drastic due to the constant changing from Frost & Starlight. Books 1-3 are narrated in first-person by Feyre, and in book 5, we see a change to be in third-person, showcasing Nesta & Cassian as the main characters that we are now following. When I started this book, I found it to be kind of slow, and wasn’t really enjoying it. As I made my way through the book, the story did pick up and become more interesting (as with all of the other books), but one thing I will note is that this book is far, far more vulgar & smutty than the rest – though it starts to make sense as to why it feels like an outlier in comparison to the other books in the series towards the end. The last 200 pages or so are what made ACOSF another 5-star read for me, and overall, I loved this series & plan to re-read again; which I can’t say I have ever wanted to re-read a series before!
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Overall, it’s safe to say that I’m so happy I dove into this book series. I really see why there’s such a hype around them, and people are right – every book just keeps getting better! I can’t believe we still have another two full novels to come in this series as Sarah writes them, but for now – I’ll be diving into her other, complete series Throne of Glass now!
Thank you so much for reading this little review that I put together of the ACOTAR series. Have you read them?! If so, let me know your thoughts about everything in the comments below – but please keep your comments as spoiler free as possible for other readers who might want to enjoy this review to encourage them to read the series!
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