Book Review: A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas
“No one was my master—but I might be master of everything, if I wished. If I dared.”
Title: A Court of Mist and Fury
Author: Sarah J. Maas
Series? A Court of Thorns and Roses (#2)
My Rating: ★★★★★
Genre(s): Romantasy, Fiction
Age Range: Young Adult
Publication: 3 May 2016 (Bloomsbury USA Childrens)
CW: emesis, abuse, PTSD, sex, trauma, sexual assault, violence
All readers are intimately familiar with the feeling of falling in love with a book.
It’s the feeling you get when you put down a book and feel utterly disappointed with the fact that you have to leave behind the fictional world and return to reality. It’s a bond with the characters, a passion for the worldbuilding, and personal sense of connection with a story. You have to physically rip yourself out of the pages, out of the plot, out of the lives of the characters in which you are so invested — and somehow, people expect you to just go on with your life.
Yeah, that’s how I felt about A Court of Mist and Fury.
A Court of Mist and Fury is the sequel to the acclaimed novel, A Court of Thorns and Roses. Set three months following the events of the first novel, Feyre is back at the Spring Court, grappling with the horrors she faced Under the Mountain. She’s locked up in the manor, left with nothing to do but plan her wedding to the High Lord, Tamlin. Meanwhile, she awaits Rhysand, who she is indebted to one week each month.
SPOILERS AHEAD! If you haven't read A Court of Thorns and Roses, you have been warned.
In A Court of Mist and Fury, everything changes. If you ask me, it’s for the better.
At the start of A Court of Mist and Fury, Feyre is an extremely vulnerable state. The events that occurred Under the Mountain physically and psychologically affected her. Now a High Fae, she has undiscovered powers lurking within her which Tamlin forbids her from exploring — or even acknowledging. At first, I had some sympathy for Tamlin who thought he could protect Feyre by locking her away from danger. Quickly, however, I grew tired by this and wanted him to get his ass beat.
As the first quarter of this novel unfolded, it became increasingly obvious that Feyre needed to get the hell out of the Spring Court. Even Rhys, who was initially painted as a “bad guy”, was horrified to find Feyre wraith-like in the manor. Soon, she was removed from her shackles and brought to the Night Court — the most feared place in Prythian.
The Night Court is Rhys’s home. It’s where his friend group — and quite frankly my favourite group of secondary characters ever written — reside. It’s no small feat to create four secondary characters who equally grab the reader’s attention while not overshadowing or outpacing each other. Sarah J. Maas nailed it, in my humble opinion. I would enjoy reading a novel about any one of these characters.
It wouldn’t be A Court of Mist and Fury without Rhys.
Rhys. High Lord of the Night Court. We know him. We fear him. We love him.
Readers are introduced to Rhys in A Court of Thorns and Roses where he is painted as the most terrifying and heartless villain. However, the script gets flipped entirely in the sequel. Rhys is everything you want in a love interest. He’s understanding and compassionate; he stands by Feyre and allows her to develop her own sense of self. He’s charming and even quite funny. His support of Feyre — never forcing her, but gently encouraging her to pursue her interests and face her fears — is admirable.
Rhys is a good partner for Feyre, a good friend to his Inner Circle, and a good High Lord to his people. Is he perfect? No. Does he have his flaws? Certainly. But I’ve encountered far worse male characters in fiction (read: Tamlin).
READ: Book Review: A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas For me, the highlight of this book was Feyre’s character development. She has been to hell and back — quite literally. And it shows. She doesn’t think she can recover. But she’s a bird in a gilded cage, bound to the Spring Court in invisible chains with no room to stretch her wings and discover herself. By the end of the novel, however, she’s savvy, collected, and using her wits to outsmart anyone and everyone in her path.
While Feyre’s haunted memories of Under the Mountain persist, the support of her friends and her own personal strength allow her to conquer her past and her fears. It was awe-inspiring to see what Feyre becomes in this novel. While I liked Feyre just fine in A Court of Thorns and Roses, I feel that it’s A Court of Mist and Fury where she truly becomes a protagonist to root for.
Goodbye, Spring Court. Hello, Prythian.
One of the details I enjoyed best about this book was the journey outside of the Spring Court. In my review for A Court of Thorns and Roses, I identified this an area I hoped Sarah J. Maas would explore. Feyre spent the majority of the first novel in the Spring Court, only journeying out to go Under the Mountain, and this was the first time we got to truly explore different courts — including the infamous Night Court as well as other areas across the realm.
Not only was this book my favourite out of the A Court of Thorns and Roses series, it has quickly become one of my favourite books.
Synopsis: Feyre survived Amarantha’s clutches to return to the Spring Court—but at a steep cost. Though she now has the powers of the High Fae, her heart remains human, and it can’t forget the terrible deeds she performed to save Tamlin’s people.
Nor has Feyre forgotten her bargain with Rhysand, High Lord of the feared Night Court. As Feyre navigates its dark web of politics, passion, and dazzling power, a greater evil looms—and she might be key to stopping it. But only if she can harness her harrowing gifts, heal her fractured soul, and decide how she wishes to shape her future—and the future of a world cleaved in two.
With more than a million copies sold of her beloved Throne of Glass series, Sarah J. Maas’s masterful storytelling brings this second book in her seductive and action-packed series to new heights.
Are you Team Tamlin or Team Rhys? Let’s chat in the comments!
Enjoyed this review? Check out my other book reviews.
