Melissa reviews Court of Thorns and Roses
, Bloomsbury Books, 2016.
“Pity those who don’t feel anything at all.”
Court of Thorns and Roses is the first installment of Maas’ second young adult fantasy series, and it more than lives up to Throne of Glass if you are already a Maas fan. This first book is actually a retelling of the classic fairy tale Beauty and the Beast, but with more mature themes and a dash of dystopian Hunger Games.
Feyre is a strong human protagonist, with the novel opening to her hunting in the woods to provide for her family, despite being the youngest. She unknowingly breaks a clause of a centuries old treaty with the fae to the north of her human lands and the story begins to unfold from the consequences of her actions. There is adventure, mystery, and romance as Feyre learns to navigate and save a world that is wholly unfamiliar to her and of course break the curse binding them all.
About three-quarters of the way in the book, we begin to deviate from the classic fairy tale. From that point on, and in future installments of the series, the books are entirely their own without relying on the fairy tale framework we are so familiar with. I’ve read some other reinterpretations of other fairy tales, but this is by far my favorite of the genre so far. I specifically love that the later installments are kind of like a window into what may of happened after the end of Beauty and the Beast.
Court of Thorns and Roses currently has three full novels and a novella released, with an anticipated three more novels to follow in the future.