A little over a week ago, I read
A Court of Mist and Fury and I just haven't been able to get over it. Today I want to share
and fangirl with you all about what made
A Court of Mist and Fury so special for me. Be warned, spoilers ahead!
1. It's so damn quotable. There are so many great lines in ACOMAF that really lend to Maas' writing. Either to make you cry, fall in love, or laugh out loud,
A Court of Mist and Fury is undeniably written well. And while I have flagged many quotes as my favorite, this one always pulls on my heartstrings.
2. It explores abusive relationships and trauma. The first third of this book was hard to get through because Feyre was clearly suffering alone. I loved that Maas explored emotional abuse (in the form of 'protecting') and how life-altering a traumatic event could be. I also liked that Feyre wasn't immediately "fixed" by a change of scenery. It took actual work and a good support system to make her feel like herself again. AND HOW AWESOME WAS IT THAT LUCIEN WASN'T MAN ENOUGH TO TAKE FEYRE AWAY WHEN SHE ASKED, BUT MOR DID IT WITHOUT EVEN QUESTIONING IT? Ugh, true friendship.
3. It's a well thought out romance. I said in my review that I expected your typical love triangle, but from a Facebook Q and A session with Maas, it seems that she had Rhys/Feyre planned out from the very beginning. And that is impressive. I didn't hate Tamlin in A Court of Thorns and Roses, I actually thought it was a pretty good romance. I was amazed that Maas could write a tender romance between Feyre and Tamlin then write and even better romance for Feyre and Rhys. Slay Maas, slay.
4. Not everyone gets their HEA the first time. I was very wary of changing romances when I started A Court of Mist and Fury (I think we all were), but it really is an important element in this book. Nowadays, we expect the heroine to meet her partner, defeat the baddie, and have her Happily Ever After. If Feyre did that, she would be settling and would still be in an abusive relationship. Maas gets points for having her characters explore different relationships and compare and contrast different aspects of past relationships.
5. It'll open the market for more New Adult. This is more of a dream on my end, but publishers clearly cannot keep marketing NA titles as YA titles. I saw so many negative reviews for A Cout of Mist and Fury because of the explicit sex scenes, and I get it, I wouldn't expect that in a Young Adult title. I think that A Court of Mist and Fury has successfully demonstrated that there is a market for New Adult titles, and not just as contemporary romances. I want New Adult historical fiction, New Adult fantasy, New Adult science fiction! I know there are plenty of indie authors who have been writing this genre for years, I'm just hoping that the rest of the publishing houses will catch on. We want NA and we want it now!
Are you still rereading A Court of Mist and Fury? What do you appreciate about it? Or on the other hand, if you didn't like it, tell me why!
