A review by colin_s
A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

adventurous dark sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

 Quote:
"I was as unburdened as a piece of dandelion fluff, and he was the wind that stirred me about the world."

Setting:
The world is split into to parts. The human side is traditional medieval land with no magic and a good bit of sorrow. The faerie side is high magic though with a taint of evil upon the place that we explore as the book takes place. 

Plot:
There is a magical wall separating the humans and the land ruled by the faerie, one day a human, Feyre, while hunting kills a wolf who turns out to be a faerie in wolf form. A short while later a faerie shows up and demands he join her to repay the debt for killing on of his kind. She is then whisked away to the land of faerie and it's unlike anything she expected.

Writing:
Sarah J. Maas's writing is perfectly serviceable, at times it's even inspired. I found some paragraphs really well written while others just didn't distract me from getting to the next. 

Characters:
Feyre the main character through the first half of the book is insufferable and I found it hard to care much for her. This does get much better in the second half I will also admit. The remainder of the cast of characters are really fleshed out and make decisions that feel in character through the whole of the book.

Pros:
Well written
A compelling tale that keeps you reading

Cons:
Sexual Assault
First half is a chore

Recommendation:
I read this story as part of a book swap with my wife. I was to some extend aware of what I'd signed up for when we started. I wasn't prepared for the plot driven sexual assault but luckily it was brief and not a major focus of the book. If you can look past this and don't mind the focus on lust/love there is a good story in the book as well. One I'd almost continue reading if the love scenes didn't make me squirm to read. 
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