BOOK REVIEW: A COURT OF WINGS AND RUIN BY SARAH J. MAAS

Title: A Court of Wings and Ruin
Author: Sarah J. Maas
Genre: Fantasy, romance
Published on: May 2, 2017 by Bloomsbury Publishing

 

The epic third novel in the #1 New York Times bestselling Court of Thorns and Roses series by Sarah J. Maas.

Feyre has returned to the Spring Court, determined to gather information on Tamlin's actions and learn what she can about the invading king threatening to bring her land to its knees. But to do so she must play a deadly game of deceit. One slip could bring doom not only for Feyre, but for everything-and everyone-she holds dear.

As war bears down upon them all, Feyre endeavors to take her place amongst the High Fae of the land, balancing her struggle to master her powers-both magical and political-and her love for her court and family. Amidst these struggles, Feyre and Rhysand must decide whom to trust amongst the cunning and lethal High Lords, and hunt for allies in unexpected places.

In this thrilling third book in the #1 New York Times bestselling series from Sarah J. Maas, the fate of Feyre's world is at stake as armies grapple for power over the one thing that could destroy it.

The story of Feyre Archeron continues in A Court of Wings and Ruin. This is the third entry in the series. It picks up the story not long after the ending of the previous book. And it was quite an ending. Feyre and her friends had their first confrontation with the series’ main antagonist. He’s known only as the King of Hybern. Feyre saved her group just narrowly. This was thanks to her special powers. Feyre unwittingly acquired them after the seven High Lords of Prythian revived her in book one. She was human then, but now she is High Fae.

There is a change that happened “off-screen”. To recap a little, Feyre has been living in the Night Court for a while. She fell in love with Rhysand, the High Lord of Night. Feyre not only accepted his love, but became his equal: the High Lady of the Night Court. This was significant, as the continent of Prythian has never had a High Lady before. Feyre hides her new status during the beginning of this book, as she embarks on a personal mission. This involves pretending that Rhysand brainwashed her (most of Prythian thinks he’s sort of a bad guy).

Feyre’s aim is to get revenge on Tamlin, the High Lord of the Spring Court. He’s her first love, and the man for whom she defeated Amarantha, the antagonist of ACOTAR. Tamlin loved Feyre too, but he suffocated her with his overprotectiveness. These feelings led Tamlin to betray Feyre’s sisters to Hybern, in exchange for getting her back. Feyre allowed him to take her back to the Spring Court to make him pay. The way she planned her revenge really impressed me. Feyre thinks through everything that needs to happen for things to go her way. This shows how good of a strategist she is. It will probably serve Feyre well later on as a newly-minted High Lady.

Once Feyre is done with the Spring Court, she returns home to Velaris. That is the secret, prosperous city located somewhere in the Night Court. But before she can get there, Feyre must fend off an enemy she hoped to avoid. Thankfully, Lucien is there to protect her. He ended up accompanying Feyre due to a certain development. During the ending of ACOMAF, Feyre’s sisters, Nesta and Elain, were forcibly turned into High Fae by the King of Hybern. This was his way of testing the Cauldron, an incredibly powerful and ancient artifact. When Lucien laid eyes on Elain afterward, a mating bond was formed between them. This works much the way werewolf imprinting does in the Twilight series. The mating bond is less absolute, though, and the consequences for rejecting it aren’t as dire. I wonder whether Elain will end up accepting Lucien.

The transformation Elain and Nesta underwent brought unexpected changes. Elain seems to still be herself, but she spends a lot of time mourning her old life. As for Nesta, it’s soon apparent that she is more than High Fae. She fought extremely hard to avoid being turned. Nesta is a woman you cross at your own risk, so she seems to have ripped more power from the Cauldron than she should have. This is a mystery that spans the entirety of the novel. Amren, Rhysand’s second in command, is the one who works to figure out what happened to Nesta. She also studies the Book of Breathings to find a way to defeat Hybern.

Feyre has also changed a lot over the course of the past two books. By now, she’s nearly unrecognizable from the girl she was at the beginning of ACOTAR. Feyre’s more mature and a lot more powerful. She is also much less easily frightened. All of this is mostly thanks to Cassian, the general of Rhys’s armies. He has been training Feyre in hand-to-hand combat. This really pays off, as there’s a scene that Feyre wouldn’t have survived a book earlier. It really impressed me. Feyre has come a significantly long way from the girl who hunted to feed her family.

ACOWAR is a very long book, much like the second book was. There isn’t any fluff, though. Pretty much every scene is important to the story. And the closer you get to the end, the more exciting the book gets. You’ll realize where things are headed not far in. The climax surprised me a little bit. I thought something like it would happen in another book or two. The final battle is the biggest and most epic yet in this series. It’s almost Avengers: Endgame-esque in scale. Hope that doesn’t spoil too much! Unexpected characters also play a role at certain key points. The scene that recalls the ending of ACOTAR seemed odd to me, though. It seems to stretch the rules of this series’ magic system. The end result is worth it, in my opinion. And what happens with Amren was epic. I eagerly look forward to continuing this thrilling series.

My rating: ★★★★ 1/2

4.5 stars - A fantastic page-turner!