Reviews with content warning for Drug abuse - A Court of Thorns and Roses (Parts 1 & 2) [Dramatized Adaptation]

Reviews tagging 'Drug abuse'

A Court of Thorns and Roses (Parts 1 & 2) [Dramatized Adaptation] by Sarah J. Maas

51 reviews

niamhct's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Content Warnings

meganpbennett's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous challenging dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

A Court of Thorn and Roses is one of those books on the "how have you not read this yet" list that everyone seems to judge readers by. It was far better than I was expecting, based on my last few experiences reading total duds, recommended by BookTok. It's not a romance novel by any means, and it's not a Beauty and the Beast adaptation, not really. The elements are there, but there is way more than the Belle et Bete story. I enjoyed it, and I like that it didn't end on a cliffhanger. I'll probably read the next book in the series.

Content Warnings

zhannuksela's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Rhysand my darling you deserve more screen time

Content Warnings

jaremyreads's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

0.5

Content Warnings

felix05's review

Go to review page

adventurous medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

It's entertaining, but nothing more (for me at least) Maybe it's the way the audiobook I listened to, but I honestly think both Feyre and Tamlin are charming pieces of cardboard. Rhysand was the only interesting character imo. But I guess that's what is expected of this type of book. I get why people like it, but it's not for me.

If I'm going to continue this series, I'm definitely going to be reading, instead of listening.

3.5 stars

Content Warnings

bree_h_reads's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous emotional lighthearted mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

0.25

I will start by saying that I can totally get why people enjoy this book. There are scenes where I could find myself really enjoying the book and beginning to fall into it, but it never properly lasted. I think if I turned my brain off for the book I would have enjoyed it far more, but the book doesn’t set the reader up to turn their brain off, so I could never fully fall into it.

Aside from that, I generally enjoyed the prose. There were moments I really enjoyed it and felt like it captured a certain feeling of magic. The biggest example being the Firelight Festival and the Summer Solstice celebration, it captured a feeling of old magic and enchantment that I really enjoyed. There were several points that I found the exposition for the world building fairly well done, though there were a handful of moments it felt like info dumping.

Finally, the audiobook narrator did an amazing job and I really enjoyed her performance. She also pronounced Rhysand so it sounded like “reason” and it cracked me up, so that’s another point in her favour.

OKAY THAT ASIDE! Spoilers ahead, I have A LOT to say about this book.

CONTENT WARNINGS: Mentions of SA, sexual harassment, drugging, & victim blaming

A Court of Thorns and Roses it a story about a 19-year-old human, Feyre, that is lied to and intimidated into coming to the home of a hot fey man that is several hundred years old. Why is she coming to his home? So she can fall in love with him obviously, but she doesn’t know that bc she’s told she needs to come to the fey land as penance for killing a fey. After being told she doesn’t have to stay at Hot Fey Man #1’s house by Hot Fey Man #1, the book immediately forgets and makes a big deal about her trying to escape. Eventually, she falls in love with Hot Fey Man #1 only to be sent away because Dangerous Things Are Coming. She returns to rescue Hot Fey Man #1 and ends up stuck doing 3 trials or solving a very simple riddle that the answer is obviously love to save him and their buddies. To complete the three trials she teams up with Hot Fey Man #2, who spends their time as allies sexually assaulting and drugging her! But it’s okay because it’s for “her own good”. (Gross!!!) Eventually she solves the riddle after a lot of suffering and basically getting beat to death. Then she’s revived and Hot Fey Man #2 is teased as a future smooch interest.

So, I have a LOT of thoughts on this book. To start, let’s tackle my biggest issue: The romanticisation of SA.

While at the beginning of the book we don’t see any of this, we have our first hint at the end of the Firelight Festival where Tamlin (Hot Fey Man #1) is all horny, can smell Feyre has been at the festival. Afterwards he encounters her in the house before the horny magic as worn off. What does he do? Well he pins her to the wall of course. She tells him to let her go, but he doesn’t. Instead he tells her how gentle he would have been if he got to have sex with her at the Horny Festival. He stops pinning her then, but Feyre continues to VERBALLY say that she’s not interested in engaging in anything. What does Tamlin do? Well obviously he bites and kisses her neck what else. Then he leaves. The next morning when Feyre wants to make him feel bad about it, he instead blames her for being out and about that night. While Feyre was told to remain in her room, she was given no explanation as to why, and was lured there by fey magic. Furthermore, she repeatedly did not give consent, which Tamlin ignored. The victim blaming, however, matched only by how that scene and the events after are portrayed as sexy and heavily romanticised. Don’t get me wrong, it’s fine if Feyre is into having her neck bitten, but it’s completely different when she doesn’t give consent and the book hypes up how sexy it is Tamlin just takes what he wants. This later shows up again with Rhysand (Hot Fey Man #2.) Once he and Feyre make an agreement he’ll help her with the trials, every night he brings her to a party, drugs her, and makes her give him lap dances and dress in skimpy clothes. This is later justified by it being “for her own good and protection”. Overall, the way the book handled these topics was gross, and it’s not helped that it seems to want to reader to like and kind of fall for Rhysand a bit by the end.

Next is the characters. This is a romance novel, so obviously the characters should be likeable and the reader should be invested in them. By the time I hit the 60% mark I had one character I liked and by the end I didn’t like any of them. That doesn’t mean I can’t see the appeal in some instances. Tamlin had plenty of scenes where he was very endearing and sweet (his awkward compliments of Feyre at the beginning, giving her dirty poems using the words she struggled to read, and heightening her senses so she could hear the willow tree sing to name a few) and I can understand why people like Nesta after going through and entire book of very bland, one note female characters. Her rudeness, spunk, and straightforwardness are a welcome change of pace. However, throughout the entire novel I found just about every character switching between unlikeable, tolerable, and likeable. None felt particularly consistent, one moment Lucien (Hot Fey Man #1’s bestie) are having fun and enjoying each other’s company, the next he’s snarking at her for killing his friend. (Which it’s fair to be upset, but bro y’all literally sent the man out to be killed so some random human chick could come smooch Tamlin. This is not on her and she wasn’t even 100% sure he WAS fey.) Most characters fell into this cycle of being friendly and likeable and then railing against Feyre for things she didn’t know or understand because they weren’t explained to her. Not to say Feyre is much better, I personally found her insufferable, but at least she was consistent in that. I was also confused by people’s love of Elaine and Nesta at the beginning. While I understood Nest’s appeal by the end, the book tells you Elaine does nothing because there’s not a single thought in her head. She’s bland and one note, just pretty, nice, and stupid. Those three things do not a likeable character make.

I also overall found the consistency in the book lacking. We’re beat over the head at the beginning with the information fey can’t lie, but they frequently do and it isn’t until the end we’re told that tidbit that kept slapping us in the face wasn’t true. (I will be fair though and admit I might have forgotten the scene where it’s mentioned.) There was also the issue of Feyre constantly saying she didn’t trust Tamlin and Lucien, but then being upset when they themselves didn’t trust her. This was especially obnoxious when she had barely been around them for a week. It made the book feel like it needed a few more rounds of edits to catch these consistency issues and make sure it was called out when ideas were being proven wrong. The issues of consistency also spill into character development. One moment Feyre hates the fey, the next she loves them and hates humans because they aren’t as hot or graceful. Not having a consistent arc for the characters or consistency in the world made it hard for me to keep up with things and often left me wondering if I had missed scenes.

Finally, general flow of the story. I think the beginning was too condensed and the ending too spread out. I think if there were more time skips at the beginning showing us Feyre meeting the major players and then allowing more time to pass for a more natural flow of relationship growth. Having them quickly start to fall for each other within 2-3 weeks and then skipping over huge portions to get to the festivals and steamy scenes feels like a cop out and like we were deprived of watching a romance legitimately bloom between these two.

Final short notes. I will always make a disgusted face at the use of “female” and “male” as nouns and the use of “my mate”. It’s gross, I don’t like it. Also if I hear “I could never paint it” or “my bowels turned to water” (girl just say you shit yourself it’s okay) one more time I will lose my mind.

In conclusion, I can see why people enjoy this, if I turned my brain off I likely could. However the book refuses to set you up for such and in the interim romanticises SA and unhealthy relationships. Also Tamlin’s a creepy for only taking the 19-year-old human that killed a fey and not one of the older women that were stated to have also killed fey unprovoked because they were “too old”. Tamlin, I seriously doubt only grandmas were killing wolves.

Content Warnings

chaptersofamylea's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

“Be glad of your human heart, Feyre. Pity those who don't feel anything at all.”

4 ⭐️

And so continues my next instalment of my Maas mass reread, and onto the series that is etched into my soul. While I loved my reread, this is probably one of my least favourite of the series. I do love the plot, the setting and rereading wise, loved picking up hints I’ve missed in other read throughs - I just think this one lacks personality and rawness of the characters the rest of her series and the rest of this series has. But so it begins and I’m ready to be broken and healed again. Found family, I’m coming for ya.

TWs: SA, murder, kidnapping, drugging, ref to torture

Content Warnings

giulianasbooks's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

4,5⭐️

Reseña en español e inglés. / review both in English and Spanish.

⚠️ESTA RESEÑA CONTIENE SPOILERS⚠️

Wow, qué libro. Me ha sorprendido muchísimo, no esperaba para nada que fuera a gustarme tanto.
Llevo viendo esta saga por todas partes (tiktok, tiendas de libros, aquí en goodreads, etc.), y en principio no tenía pensado leerlo, pero al final una persona a la que quiero mucho (Helen ily) me convenció de leerlo y aquí estoy.

Este retelling de La Bella y La Bestia nos cuenta la historia de Feyre (la protagonista), que, intentando cazar para alimentar a su familia, acaba matando a Andras (un inmortal) y como castigo, Tamlin la lleva a Prythian, concretamente a la Corte Primavera (donde él es el alto lord) para que esta pueda pagar por su delito. A medida que va pasando la historia, vamos conociendo más acerca del mundo donde estos inmortales habitan, así como siete Cortes diferentes (Corte Otoño, Corte Invierno, Corte Verano, Corte Primavera, Corte Día, Corte Noche y Corte Amanecer) en las que su tierra está dividida. Aunque este libro está más centrado en la Corte Primavera, la autora explica de una manera preciosa cómo esta Corte es, como por ejemplo los jardines, la mansión donde viven, las plantas, las lagunas, etc. y me ha encantado. A medida que el tiempo pasa, Feyre disfruta más y más de estar ahí, rodeada de magia, bailes y nuevos sabores, y poco a poco se va enamorando de Tamlin, quien es víctima de una maldición. La protagonista, para salvar su nuevo hogar y los de más allá del muro donde residen los inmortales, se expone a la oscuridad para salvar a todos los habitantes de Prythian de la maldad que lleva décadas amenazándolos, a la vez que rescata al amor de su vida.

Te amo. Con espinas y todo.

Feyre es increíble, me ha encantado. Al principio se notaba que su pesimismo era lo único en lo que se basaba, pero, cuanto más cosas le pasaban, mejor actuaba. Es un personaje fuerte, totalmente decidida y que no se rinde jamás, dispuesta a luchar por lo que quiere hasta conseguirlo. Además, después de los mil fanarts que me ha pasado mi amiga, puedo decir con certeza que es PRECIOSA, tanto por fuera como por dentro.

Tamlin… ay, Tamlin, te tengo un amor y un odio increíble. No es un mal personaje pero tampoco me ha gustado mucho su manera de actuar en muchas ocasiones (aka morderle el cuello a Feyre sin su consentimiento).

Lucien me ha sorprendido también, no sabía que me iba a caer tan bien. Su amistad extraña con Feyre me ha parecido muy buena y es un buen personaje.

Rhysand dos palabras: cásate conmigo.

Amarantha eres una puta loca, me encanta.

La verdad es que me ha encantado. Me ha tenido enganchada desde el primer capítulo y no hacía más que mejorar. Me ha gustado la manera en cómo Sarah J. Maas describe Prythian (como si ella misma estuviera viviendo allí) su pluma me ha parecido muy buena, porque me ha transmitido unas emociones/sensaciones indescriptibles. Como he dicho antes, me ha sorprendido muchísimo y no me lo esperaba para nada. Después de haber leído unas cuantas malas reseñas sobre el libro, la verdad es que le tenía miedo, así que cuando lo empecé mis expectativas eran totalmente neutras. Y eso ha sido mejor, ya que me ha encantado y sigo flipando de lo mucho que lo ha hecho.
Como siempre, el punto negativo en este caso, a mi parecer, sería:
1. El síndrome de Estocolmo que tiene Feyre no es ni medio normal (Tamlin NO te merece).
2. No me ha gustado para nada como, en ocasiones, trataban a Feyre como si fuera un juguete.
Poco más que añadir, salvo que no puedo esperar más a seguir leyendo la saga ACOTAR y seguir fangirleando muchísimo (sí Helen, contigo), y no puedo esperar a leer más sobre Rhysand, que se ha convertido en mi crush definitivo desde el momento en que aparece.

Si te gusta la fantasía con romance este es tu libro, engancha muchísimo y los plot twists son muy buenos. Aún así, siempre aconsejo buscar información sobre los trigger warnings, ya que pueden haber cosas que para algunas personas puedan ser fuertes (rapto, muerte, gore, alcohol, no hay mucho smut pero sí un poco, violencia, tortura, agresión sexual, etc.).

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

⚠️THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS⚠️

Wow, what a book. It surprised me a lot, I didn’t expect at all that I would like it so much.
I've been seeing this series everywhere (tiktok, book stores, here on goodreads, etc.), and at first I wasn’t planning on reading it, but a person who I love very much (Helen ily) convinced me to read it and here I am.

This retelling of The Beauty and the Beast tells us the story of Feyre (the main character) that, trying to hunt to feed her family, ends up killing Andras (an immortal) and as punishment, Tamlin takes her to Prythian specifically to the Spring Court (where he is the high lord) so that she can pay for her crime. As the story progresses, we learn more about the world where these immortals live, as well as six other different Courts (Autumn Court, Winter Court, Summer Court, Day Court, Night Court and Dawn Court) in which their land is divided. Although this book is more focused in the Spring Court, the author beautifully explains how this Court is, such as the gardens, the mansion where they live, the plants, the lagoons, etc. and I loved it. As time passes, Feyre enjoys being there more and more, surrounded by magic, dances and new flavors, and bit by bit she falls in love with Tamlin, who is the victim of a curse. The main character, in order to save her new home and those beyond the wall where the immortals reside, exposes herself to the darkness to save all the people of Prythian from the evil that has been threatening them for decades, while rescuing the love of her life.

I love you. Thorns and all.

Feyre is amazing, I love her. At first you could tell that her pessimism was the only thing she relied on, but the more things happened to her, the better she acted. She is a strong character, totally determined and never gives up, willing to fight for what she wants until she gets it. Also, after the thousand fanarts that my friend sent me, I can say with certainty that she is BEAUTIFUL, both on the outside and the inside.

Tamlin… oh Tamlin, I noth love and hate you. He's not a bad character but I didn't really like the way he acted on many occasions (aka biting Feyre's neck without her consent).

Lucien surprised me too, I didn't know I was going to like him so much. His weird friendship with Feyre seemed was really good and he is a good character.

Rhysand two words: marry me.

Amarantha you are a crazy bitch, I love it.

The truth is that this book is incredible. I was hooked since the first chapter and it just kept getting better. I like the way Sarah J. Maas describes Prythian (as if she herself were living there). The way she writes is so good, she made me feel indescribable emotions/sensations. As I said before, I’m totally surprised and I didn’t expect that at all. After reading a few bad reviews about the book, the truth is that I was afraid of reading it, so when I started it my expectations were totally neutral. And that was good because I am still freaking out at how much I’ve loved it.
As always, the negative point in this case, in my opinion, would be:
1. Feyre’s Stockholm syndrome is not even normal (Tamlin does NOT deserve her).
2. I didn’t like at all how sometimes Feyre was treated by everyone as if she were a toy.
Little more to add, except that I can't wait to continue reading the ACOTAR series and keep fangirling a lot (yes Helen, with you), and I can't wait to read more about Rhysand, who has become my ultimate crush from the very moment he appears.

If you like fantasy with romance this is your book, it is very engaging and the plot twists are very good.
I always recommend looking for information about the trigger warnings before reading (tw such as: kidnapping, death, gore, alcohol, there is not much smut but a little, violence, torture, sexual assault, etc.).

(English is not my first language, if you find any mistakes please let me know).

Content Warnings

zc2's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous challenging dark emotional lighthearted tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Ok listen… I didn’t think I would like it imma be honest. Howeva once I got to the plot 👀. I finished the book in 2 days however I’m curious as to why Tamlin is referred to as “tampon” on booktok. I’m scared to read the next one. Although intrigued. Smut not good don’t recommend😐.

Content Warnings

ketreads's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot

3.0

So, I don't usually read romance especially fantasy romance but this was a 'Heck, why not?!' read when I saw my local library had it available.

I did listen to the audiobook, so I suspect I had an easier time with it due to the great character voices and emotions BUT THIS ISN'T HALF BAD?!
I've heard such differing opinions on the Maas books, and most of them lean towards negativity. So, I was shockingly surprised when I started listening to this and found myself really enjoying the story.
Maas' world and use of fae magic is engaging and her characters were made easy to root for.

The story's basic premise is Feyre, after killing what she suspects is a fairy transformed into a wolf, is dragged into the fae relm as punishment. Much to her surprise, it's not what she expected. Feyre must now navigate her way through an unknown territory filled with unknowable threats while striving to do what she does best: survive.

MINOR SPOILERS
So yes, this book is a little cliché with it's wish fulfillment. Feyre is, in fact, not taken to a gross mouldy dungeon but a high lords manor to live out her days. While we don't know exactly why she's there initially, the overall reveal wasn't too unexpected. I really enjoyed this part of the story. Listening to Feyre learning about the fae and the 'I wish that were me' aspect of living in a rich house, eating great food, talking to hot fairy men, and having an overarching mysterious secret hidden from her. It was done effectively and kept me invested for the majority of the book.

My one gripe (or many?) is that the last 30% of the book WILDLY shifts gears. While the stakes are raised and we get to see Feyre in action, the overall slimy feeling to characters we're supposedly meant to (I presume) eventually root for just wasn't it. The small bits of world and history we got to see WAS well done and I loved seeing more of the world outside of Feyre and her manor. The character choices that were made and will be made in the coming instalments just isn't something I enjoy/ed.

Overall it's a fun and easy read...mostly.

Content Warnings

More...