when people understand azrielâs self loathing will exist with anyone he wants to pursue a relationship with and it will not suddenly go away because of a character that just showed up.
like u realize his self loathing has been there for hundreds of years right? and the reason it was showed with elain is because he feels something for her but he still thinks he doesnât deserve her. he wouldnât have expressed these self loathing issues with elain if he didnât feel something for her because why the hell would it matter? if he didnât feel anything for her why would he even think about not being good enough for her.. letâs use our brains here shall we.
itâs literally one of the most popular tropes in books yâall.. itâs also something sjm loves to write. and no itâs definitely not toxic, if u get uncomfortable by that i think u shouldnât read a book with azriel at all because i promise u it will have ton of self loathing regardless of who he ends up with.
people called feysand unhealthy, people called nessian unhealthy and now people are calling elriel unhealthy iâm noticing a pattern
(This post will include all the visions elain had in acowar)
Idk a lot about seer abilities but based on what we saw of elainâs powers, it shows that:
Theyâre able to see the future: âTwin ravens are coming, one white and one black.â
Theyâre able to see the unknown (something that already happened): âI saw a box of black stone. I saw a feather of fire land on snow and melt it.â
All the visions elain talked about might help predict next bookâs plot (or just small mentions that might take place)
I will add some of my thoughts with each vision (my thoughts are not always right cuz apparently some people donât get it)
Vision 1: The sea & heartbeats
âI can see so very far now. All the way to the sea.â
âI can hear your heartbeatâif I listen carefully. I can hear her heartbeat, too.â
Now elain said this while looking at the âsea beyond Sidraâ so you might think sheâs just trying her fae abilities but feyre knew that was not the case in the next line:
âI can hear the sea. Even at night. Even in my dreams. The crashing seaâand the screams of a bird made of fire.â
âWill I hear the earthworms writhing through the soil? Or the stretching of roots? Will the bird of fire come to sit in the trees and watch me?â
We all thought she went mad but well..it was just her seer abilities and that led the IC to find vassa.
Now with elain having visions about vassa and hearing her heartbeats...are they connected somehow? Because yes vassa helped in the war but I donât think that was the only reason for the visions.
Vision 2: Through the stone
The very uncomfortable conversation between Lucien and elain led to some visions about a possible journey
While reading the quotes below i want you to notice how when elain is facing Lucien, she talks normally about things that already happened, like how he betrayed them, or how she remembers him from feyreâs stories (in case anyone wants to read it: itâs acowar chapter 24 may god be with you)
But when she faces the windows again she starts talking about all the stuff that doesnât make sense.
âShe looked awayâtoward the windows. âI can hear your heart,â she said quietly.â
âWhen I sleep,â she murmured, âI can hear your heart beating through the stone.â She angled her head, as if the city view held some answer. âCan you hear mine?â
I donât think she was talking to lucien, especially since in the previous chapters she was talking about heatbeats.
Some elucien stans use the quotes above to support their ship, but knowing that previously elain heard vassaâs heartbeat....plus even lucien doubted elain was addressing him:
âHe wasnât sure if she truly meant to address him, but he said, âNo, lady. I cannot.â
She just stared somewhere far through the window and mentioned how she could hear heartbeats through the stone, which reminds me of ACOSF when nesta was in the prison:
âShe stared into the darkness above. âI think they used it to ⌠to trap their enemies and their enemiesâ children into the stone itself.â
Again she isnât trying her new fae abilities, she saw something no one can, and we now know that some people are trapped in stone (honestly i was waiting for nesta to free them but i guess sjm is saving it for later)
Vision 3: He saw me
âNo one ever does. No one ever lookedânot really.â A bramble of words. Her voice strained to a whisper. âHe did. He saw me. He will not now.â
Whenever i read this Iâm like elain, honeyâyou mean to tell me the man who rejected you? the man who didnât accept your new self? Something you couldnât control.....He saw you? How in the living hel-
But then i read this post and it made sense, especially since no one guessed the suriel was talking about a different highlord, so why are we sure that elain was talking about graysen?
Considering elain is a seer, she either saw the future or the unknown. Now who is the only character who saw her?
âIt made sense, I supposed, that Azriel alone had listened to her. The male who heard things others could not ⌠Perhaps he, too, had suffered as Elain had before he understood what gift he possessed.â
This makes me think elain was shown the future, and saw herself with someone who understood her, but something happened he disappeared / died and he no longer sees her.
Vision 4: cassian dying
âHe snapped your wings, broke your bones.â âItâll take more than that to kill me,â âElain only said to Cassian, âNo, it will not.â
âNot twenty feet away, Cassian was on the ground. Wingsâsnapped in spots. Blood leaking from them. Bone jutted from his thigh. His Siphons were dull. Empty.â
Looking back, elainâs vision came true. That mightâve been the scene she saw and as a result she saved the day by killing the king.
But i added this just in case it wasnât the scene she was talking about.....and to give you more anxiety :)
Vision 5: koschei
âThey sold herâto ⌠to some darkness, to some ⌠sorcerer-lord âŚâ She shook her head. âI can never see him. What he is. There is an onyx box that he possesses, more vital than anything ⌠save for them. The girls. He keeps other girlsâothers so like herâbut she ⌠By day, she is one form, by night, human again.â
âMor leaned forward. âDo you know why the other queens cursed herâsold her to him?â
âElain studied the table. âNo. Noâthat is all mist and shadow.â
Well, there are many theories about koschei (donât know how you guys do it) and Iâm not going to come up with more theories about my dude, but based on my quick research that onyx box contains his soul (or not? Please heâs so complicated) and the fact that elain saw it...
Here are also few questions:
Why was vassa sold and cursed? What did the queens gain from that? And why was this truth unknown to elain?
Vision 6: Vassa and Lucien
Right when Lucien said that heâll bring vassa back, this happened:
âElain now watched Lucien warily. Blinking every now and then. She revealed no hint of whatever she might be seeingâsensing. None.â
Elain saw something, and it wasnât him dying because he came back unharmed. So what did she see?
This whole scene screams âgoodbyeâ to me, because after this scene Lucien found his band of exiles. This was their last chance, and elain saw it all.
Even feyreâour baddest bishâsaw it:
âA bird of flame ⌠and a lord of fire. I wondered if theyâd found each other yet.â
A bonus vlucien moment cuz why not (this scene was the last Lucien scene in acowar):
âVassa still remained inside, chatting with Lucien animatedly. I supposed that if she only had until dawn before turning back into that firebird, she wanted to make every minute count. Lucien, surprisingly, was chuckling, his shoulders loose and his head angled while he listened.â
Also how did papa Archeron convince koschei to free vassa (temporary)?
Anyway like miss Morrigan said âThere is a reason why Elain is seeing these things.â
Since Azrielâs POV was released, Iâve seen numerous posts centering around Azrielâs feelings of unworthiness and seen individuals label this as âtoxic behaviorâ whilst arguing that he and Elain wonât end up together because of these feelings hat he exhibits while around her.
So, I put together some quotes from all of Sarahâs series (TOG + ACOTAR + CC) where this trait is displayed quite often in various characters in various ways !
âď¸I WILL BE PUTTING SPOILER WARNINGS BEFORE DISCUSSING TOG + CCâď¸
Now, onto the post ! I hope you all enjoy it ! :) đđ
âI supposed Iâd been granted that gift onceâand had used it up and fought for it and broken it. And I supposed that Rhysand, for all he had sacrificed and done ⌠He deserved it as much as Cresseida. Even if ⌠even if for a moment, I wanted it. I wanted to feel like that again. And ⌠I was lonely. I had been lonely, I realized, for a very, very long time.â (ACOMAF - Chapter 33)
At this point in ACOMAF, Feyre was still struggling with the guilt and other feelings that arose when she decided to put her well-being first and free herself from Tamlinâs clutches once and for all.
Itâs stated that Feyre feels as though sheâs already âusedâ and âbrokenâ her chance at love. Though she wishes for the same happiness and partnership that she bestows upon Rhys and Cressida in this scene, she feels as though she doesnât deserve it herself / wonât have a chance to acquire that partnership again in the future.
âMate. Myâmate. This beautiful, strong, selfless male ⌠Who had sacrificed and wrecked himself for his family, his people, and didnât feel it was enough, that he wasnât enough for anyone ⌠Azriel thought he didnât deserve someone like Mor. And I wondered if Rhys ⌠if he somehow felt the same about me. I stepped aside, holding the door open for him. I could have sworn I felt a pulse of knee-wobbling relief through the bond.â (ACOMAF - Chapter 54)
Feyre questions if Azrielâs feelings of being undeserving of Mor are similar to Rhysâ feelings for her.
âHis brows furrowed. Then he buried his face in my shoulder. âHow could I scold you for defending my people? I want to throttle you, yes, for not going back to the town house, but ⌠You chose to fight for them. For Velaris.â He kissed my neck. âI donât deserve you.â My heart strained. He meant itâtruly felt that way.â (ACOMAF - Chapter 60)
Here we see above that Rhys actually admits that he feels that he doesnât deserve Feyre - Feyre acknowledges that heâs being truthful.
âButâbut he loves her. How can he sit idly by?â âHe thinks sheâs happier without him.â His eyes shone with the memoryâof his own choice to sit back. âHe thinks heâs unworthy of her.â âIt seems like an Illyrian trait.â Rhys snorted, returning to the stars.â (ACOWAR - Chapter 47)
Feyre - once again - acknowledges that Azrielâs feelings of unworthiness are similar to the ones that Rhys had and displayed in ACOMAF (and at this point in the series the two of them are a happily mated couple, so I guess that unworthiness / undeserving belief wasnât too impactful on their relationship).
Before we move on to the ACOSF portion of this post and discuss Nestaâs feelings, I would like to include this little tidbit from one of Sarahâs pre-ACOSF lives where she references Nesta and Azriel having some similarities:
So, some of Sarahâs statements to keep in mind while reading the following quotes from ACOSF:
âOver the course of the book they [Nesta & Azriel] recognize a lot of similar things...â
âShe [Nesta] and Az haveâ ... âthereâs just like a mutual respect and understandingâ
Based off of Sarahâs statements, it can be inferred that Nesta and Azriel share some similarities on some level.
Perhaps itâs in the way that they internalize their trauma and believe themselves to be undeserving / unworthy of the people that they care about ?
Or, perhaps itâs even about their feelings for Elain and how they both care for her and want to protect her ? (as displayed below)
âFeyre said, âWe wonât allow any harm to come to Elain. Rhys warded her this morning, and we have eyes on her at all times.â âEyes can be blinded,â Nesta said. âNot the ones under my command,â Azriel said with soft menace. Nesta met his stare, knowing he was the only one aside from Feyre who could truly understand her hesitation. Heâd gone with Feyre into the heart of Hybernâs camp to save Elainâhe knew the risk. âWe wonât make the same mistake twice.â She believed him.â (ACOSF - Chapter 31)
No matter what the reasoning is, I believe that itâs important to keep Sarahâs words about their similarities in mind while reading the quotes below.
âNesta said hoarsely, âYou are good, Cassian. And you are brave, and brilliant, and kind. I could kill anyone who has ever made you feel less than thatâless than what you are. And I know Iâm a part of that group, and I hate it.â Her eyes burned, but she fought past it. âYou are everything I have never been, and will never be good enough for. Your friends know it, and I have carried it around with me all this timeâthat I do not deserve you.â The fury slid from his face. Nesta didnât stop the tears that flowed, or the words that tumbled out. âI didnât deserve you before the war, or afterward, and I certainly donât now.â She let out a low, broken laugh. âWhy do you think I shoved you away? Why do you think I wouldnât speak to you?â She put a hand on her aching chest. âAfter my father died, after I failed in so many waysâdenying myself of you âŚâ She sobbed. âIt was my punishment. Donât you understand that?â She could barely see him through her tears. âFrom the moment I met you, I wanted you more than reason. From the moment I saw you in my house, you were all I could think about. And it terrified me. No one had ever held such power over me. And I am still terrified that if I let myself have you ⌠it will be taken away. Someone will take it away, and if youâre dead âŚâ She buried her face in her hands. âIt doesnât matter,â she whispered. âI do not deserve you, and I never, ever will.â (ACOSF - Chapter 58)
âAs long as she had Cassian at her side, her friends with her, she could do it. Face it. They wouldnât let her fall back into that pit. Cassian would never let her fall again. But if she did fall ⌠heâd be waiting for her at the top again. Hand outstretched. She didnât deserve it, but sheâd endeavor to be worthy of him.â (ACOSF - Chapter 62)
âNesta didnât fight as he hauled her to her feet. Held the knife against her throat. Pleading shone in his eyes. Pleading and fear andâand love. Love she did not deserve, had never once deserved, but there it was. Just as it had been there from the instant theyâd met. What was the value of the world, compared to him? To this?â (ACOSF Chapter 74)
âNesta had loved Cassian since sheâd first laid eyes on him. Had loved him even when she did not want to, even when she had been swallowed by despair and fear and hatred. Had loved him and destroyed herself because she didnât believe she deserved him, because he was all that was good, and brave, and kind, and she loved him, she loved him, she loved himââ (ACOSF - Chapter 74)
In the examples above, Nesta states that she believes that she does not deserve Cassianâs love or affection in various ways.
Going further than just unworthiness in terms of feeling undeserving of your romantic partner, Sarah even displays this element with Nestaâs familial bonds:
âNesta blocked out the memory of Tamlin in his beast form, how she had wanted to rip him limb from limb. She was no better than him, in the end. âFeyre doesnât love me.â She didnât deserve Feyreâs love. Just as Tamlin hadnât.â (ACOSF - Chapter 46)
âPlease,â she said. Her first word in five days. He stilled. âPlease what?â She leaned from him. âDonât touch me. Donâtâdonât be kind to me.â The words were a sobbing, rippling jumble. âWhy?â The list of reasons surged, fighting to get out, to voice themselves, and she let them decide. Let them flow through her, as she whispered, âI let him die.â He went quiet. Through her hands on her face, she continued to whisper. âHe came to save me, and fought for me, and I let him die with hate in my heart. Hate for him. He died because I didnât stop it.â Her voice broke, and she wept harder. âAnd I was so horrid to him, until the very end. I was so, so horrid to him all my lifeâand still he somehow loved me. I didnât deserve it, but he did. And I let him die.â She bowed over her knees, saying into her palms, âI canât undo it. I canât fix it. I canât fix that he is dead, I canât fix what I said to Feyre, I canât fix any of the horrible things Iâve done. I canât fix me.â (ACOSF - Chapter 50)
âThat is all I hearâthe snapping of his neck. His last words to me. That he loved me.â She whispered, âI didnât deserve that love. I deserve nothing.â (ACOSF - Chapter 50)
âStroking Feyreâs cold hand, Nesta spoke into the timeless, frozen room, âYou loved me when no one else would. You never stopped. Even when I didnât deserve it, you loved me, and fought for me, and âŚâ Nesta looked at Feyreâs face, Death a breath away from claiming it. She didnât stop the tears that ran down her cheeks as she squeezed Feyreâs slender hand tighter. âI love you, Feyre.â (ACOSF - Chapter 77)
âHer father had died for her, with love in his heart, and though she might not have deserved it then ⌠She would do all she could now to earn it. To deserve not just his love, but that of those around her. Of Cassian.â (ACOSF - Chapter 80)
âď¸TOG SERIES SPOILERS AHEADâď¸
I wonât be discussing these scenes / analyzing them because if youâve read these series then you should know how these scenes and stories with these couples play out !
âRowan was still staring at the girl, who smiled at a passing woman, aglow with some inner light. âI didnât deserve her,â Rowan said quietly. Aelin swallowed hard. There were wounds in both of them that had yet to heal, but this one ⌠Truth. As always, she could offer him one truth in exchange for another. âI didnât deserve Sam.â (QoS - Chapter 34)
âHe froze as she stopped directly before him, tipping back her head to study his face as her scent twined around him, awakening him. Gods, that scent. From the moment heâd bitten her neck in Wendlyn, the moment heâd tasted her blood and loathed the beckoning wildfire that crackled in it, heâd been unable to get it out of his system. âAelin, you deserve better than thisâthan me.â Heâd wanted to say it for a while now. She didnât so much as flinch. âDonât tell me what I do and donât deserve. Donât tell me about tomorrow, or the future, or any of it.â (QoS - Chapter 65)
âHeâd marked herâricher than the scent that had clung to her before. Marked her deep and true, and there was no undoing it, no washing it away. Sheâd claimed him, and heâd claimed her, and he knew she was well aware of what that claiming meantâjust as he knew ⌠He knew it had been a choice on her part. A final decision regarding the matter of who would be in her royal bed. He would try to live up to that honorâtry to find some way to prove he deserved it. That she hadnât bet on the wrong horse. Somehow. Heâd earn it. Even with so little to offer beyond his own magic and heart.â (EoS - Chapter 39)
âYrene was quiet enough that he turned from the garden doors. She had snuggled deep into his bed, her attention fixed wholly on him. âWhat about you? What do you deserve?â âNothing. I deserve nothing.â Yrene studied him. âI donât agree at all,â she murmured, eyelids drooping.â (ToD - Chapter 28)
âPart of him didnât want it to end, even as his body began to scream to rest. Yet when the battle was done, what would remain? Nothing. Elide had made that clear enough. She loved him, but she hated herself for it. He hadnât deserved her anyway. She deserved a life of peace, of happiness. He didnât know such things. Had thought heâd glimpsed them during the months theyâd traveled together, before everything went to hell, but now he knew he was not meant for anything like it.â (KoA - Chapter 58)
âThen Elide untangled their hands and rose. âI should return to help Yrene.â Lorcan caught her hand again. âStay.â She arched a dark brow. âIâm only going to the Great Hall.â Lorcan caressed his thumb over the back of her hand once more. âStay,â he breathed. For a heartbeat, he thought sheâd say no, and was prepared to be fine with it, to accept these last few minutes as more of a gift than heâd deserved. But then Elide sat on the edge of his cot, right beside his shoulder, and ran a hand through his hair. Lorcan closed his eyes, leaning into the touch, unable to stop the deep purr that rolled through his chest.â (KoA - Chapter 64)
âď¸CRESCENT CITY SPOILERS AHEAD âď¸
âDo you wish to know what I see in your future, Orion Athalar?â He recoiled at the sound of his birth name like heâd been punched in the gut. âNo one has spoken that name in two hundred years,â he whispered. âThe name your mother gave you.â âYes,â he ground out, his gut twisting at the memory of his motherâs face, the love that had always shone in her eyes for him. Utterly undeserved, that loveâespecially when he had not been there to protect her.â (HOEAB - Chapter 33)
âShe made it to the gates without running into anyone else. Had almost made it onto the street when Ithan caught up to her, Hunt a step behind. Ithan said, âYou never deserved him.â He might as well have drawn the knife she knew was hidden in his boot and plunged it into her chest. âI know,â she rasped.â (HOEAB - Chapter 43)
âBryce extended a piece of paper toward Sandriel, though the malakh didnât take it. Even from a few feet behind the Archangel, Huntâs sharp eyesight could make out the writing. Proof of funds. A check from the bank, made out to Sandriel. For nearly a hundred million marks. A check from Jesiba Roga. Horror sluiced through him, rendering him speechless. How many years had Bryce added to her debt? He didnât deserve it. Didnât deserve her. Not for a heartbeat. Not in a thousand years ââ (HOEAB - Chapter 71)
âHe hadnât cared that an entire city was looking on: heâd wanted to kiss her when the light of her power had faded, when Hunt had lowered his wings to find her in his arms, looking up at him like he was worth something. Like he was all she needed. End of story. No one had ever looked at him like that.â (HOEAB - Chapter 95)
i am really confused on who to ship (gwynriel or elriel), thereâre valid points on both couple. Iâm slightly leaning more towards elain and azriel but gwynriel doesnât seem bad as you all think, and you guys are so sure elainâs book is next when sarah clearly hinted itâs azriels (in her live indirectly). and before you say she mentioned in an interview about elains book (i know about it) but it doesnât mean itâs next.
First of all if sjm suddenly announces a gwynriel book next, I wouldnât mind, and Iâm not saying that to sound mature but I honestly think if sarah takes that road Iâd be fine. The idea of gwyn and az isnât bad at all.
BUT Iâd be setting myself for disappointment if I started shipping them, because every gwynriel moment that seem like a foreshadowing to you is proven wrong by textual evidence, and a lot of people choose not to see it.
Some examples:
His shadows hide from elain because theyâre scared. why were present with koschei i wonder?
Azrielâs shadows sang in answer to gwyn, it must mean something. Nestaâs powers grumbled in answer for gwyn too. Nesta gwyn endgame?
Azriel only wants elain in his bed. cassian sniffed nestaâs neck on their second meeting, but apparently we donât talk about that.
Azriel got a bonus chapter so itâs his book next. Didnât cassian get a bonus chapter too, was it his book? Or was he the love interest of the main character?
Besides all the foreshadowing and textual evidence, if weâre going to talk about whoâs book is next Iâll give you exactly what sjm said.
Yes sarah j.mass indirectly confirmed that elainâs book will be next.
During ACOWAR | sjm announcing acotar spinoffs and novellas:
Some of them will take place after ACOWAR, some of them will take place before. I know what the first two will be about.
During ACOFAS | sjm interview at the end of acofas:
I do know that the Cassian and Nesta book is next. And I know what I want to write for the second spinoff novel, but I'm keeping the door open after that.
So some of these books might be sequels, but I've got an idea for a prequel that takes place a long time before the events of Thorns and Roses.
Elain is a gardener, and everything I did during those weeks became research for her book. I'm not even joking Elain's now going to have dreams about ripping ivy out and the ivy creeping in through the windows to stranggle her at night
February ACOSF tour:
Because i know this is where i wanted things to go, it allowed me to plant things for nestaâs journey and even elainâs journey early on.
So thereâs a lot of planning involved, i alway try to keep one eye on the horizon when Iâm writing. In the book Iâm working on i can set up for things later on, so thereâs actually lots of little secrets in silver flames.....thatâs set up for elainâs book.
SJM LIVE when asked about azrielâs book:
At the end of acosf I think youâd know who the next book is about.
Azrielâs journey is one Iâm so excited to write about.
Yes she confirmed elainâs book but how do you know itâs next?
She planned nestaâs and elainâs journey early on and she knows what the first 2 novels are about (and still wasnât sure about the third one). Thatâs literally it. I donât think i need to explain more.
And if you agree that elainâs book is next...isnât it obvious what she said about azrielâs journey?
This is not me trying to twist her words, itâs simply logic :)
⢠elain noticed that azriel finds any excuse to hold her hand/ escort her places and when she tried making fun of him saying âyou do realize i can walk?â he started carrying her instead for a while
⢠whenever elain is in one of her moods azriel calls her âlittle nightmareâ and it makes her more angry at first but she secretly loves it (and it ends up instantly improving her mood but out of spite she tries to hide that from him)
⢠whenever azriel is in a bad mood elain takes him to her favorite quiet corner in one of the parks in velaris and plays with his hair until he feels comfortable enough to say whatâs been bothering him
⢠when mor noticed that azriel started easily agreeing to go dancing when elain said sheâd go, mor started to go straight to elain whenever she wants to go out as a group
⢠azriel has bullied other inner circle members when they try taking his spot next to elain at the dinner table. throughout dinner he likes holding her hand under the table or putting his arm over the back of her chair or tucking her hair behind her ear.
⢠elain has azriel taste test her pastries but doesnât let him actually stay in the kitchen when she bakes because âhe distracts herâ (heâs smeared icing on her nose... and other places)
⢠mor jokes about how she always thought feyre and rhysand were insufferable mates but that was before elain and az got together.
Okay, after this post by @offtorivendell, Gwynri*l's have been growing crazy attacking us because of what was mentioned in said post. So Ima sum a few things up
Sarah J Maas is VERY unclear and not very consistent with fae age
But one thing she said explicitly clear was that Gwyn was a girl to Cassian, which also means that Gwyn is a child to Azriel. Which makes me uncomfortable with Gwynr*el actually sailing. It's fine for people to ship it, but Sarah has to continue her inconsistencies and completely change the age of maturity, for me to be okay with it actually happening.
However, is it really that incosistent?
Fae females get their first period at 17. Thats like 11-14 for humans.
And while Mor was 17 when she got sold off to Eris and Rhy's mother was 18 when she mated Rhys dad, Mor's family were sadists and Rhys himself was uncomfortable with how young his mother was. They were probably young to make the acts more horrid.
28 is around when Illyrians are eligible for the blood rite, so it's like getting your drivers license.
But more deadly.
And regarding that scene in Acofas where Rhys realizes how young Feyre is, that's in literal terms. Feyre had been alive for only 21 years. Yeah, thats small, but it doesn't mean Feyre and her sister's are children in fae years. All three Archeron sister's hit maturity before they were turned. So in fae term's they would be at least a century.
Gwyn was born fae, she has fae heritage, she grows at the same pace as fae. Gwyn is a teenager in fae terms, the Archeron's are the loophole. Why? Because they were human.
y'all saw Azriel express his worry at the idea of Elain going after the dread trove once and started going wild with these takes talking about how he's "toxic" like he's going to lock her up in a tower somewhere and never let her do anything
stop twisting and exaggerating his words when it comes to Elain
In that scene Cassian did not want Nesta to scry yet the fandom compares Az to Tamlin for simply expressing concern when it comes to putting Elain in danger.besties, SJM loves to write the males protective and possessive over their love interests, oops guess Az does not show that level of caring toward their favorite.
I was rereading Empire of Storms the other day and I found a ton of similarities between Aelin and Rowan with Elriel. The Elriel fandom has always thought that the couple in TOG that had more similarities with Elriel was Elorcan, as Elide is similar to Elain in so many aspects. I know there have been posts about those similarities before so I wonât go into much detail. This post wonât contain spoilers for TOG besides that quote from EOS. It discuses the potential connection between shadows and divination/seers:
jessdraw.s blesses us yet again. Click the link and go show her all the love because we are so blessed with her art and willingness to share it with us all â¤
Disclaimer: these are my own interpretations, and obviously not canon - though I do think that the text supports Elain and Azriel ending up together.
This might be a stretch, I know - or maybe it's already been discussed - but SJM tends to choose her words carefully, and I can't remember Rhys or Cassian ever being described as "human;" only Azriel. That, to me, is significant.
In ACOFAS, Feyre clashes with Elain after Elain, once again, is uncomfortable around a visiting Lucien and flees the room to make tea - tea seems to be important in Elain's story, too, but more on that in another post.
Her mouth tightened, the only sign of anger in her graceful countenance. âI donât want a mate. I donât want a male.â She wanted a human man.
- Feyre, ACOFAS, chapter 18
We know Azriel is obviously not a human man - he is, in fact, a male who may or may not be her true mate, we'll have to wait and see - and it's very unlikely that SJM would have him and Elain turn human as part of their story (not least because I cannot think of how it would progress the plot), but he did live in almost constant darkness for his first 11 years, so seeing/experiencing sunlight must be a huge deal, and a comfort for him... so much so that his shadows don't feel the need to keep him company at these times.
Azriel led me toward the lake edge. In the blinding sun off the turquoise water, his shadows were gone, his face stark and clear. More ⌠human than I had ever seen him.
âThereâs no chance that Iâll be able to fly in the legions, is there?â I asked, kneeling beside him as he tended to my skinned palms with expert care and gentleness. The sun was brutal against his scars, hiding not one twisted, rippling splotch.
- Feyre, ACOWAR, chapter 29
Feyre conflated Az looking human with the following terms:
Stark - severe or bare in appearance or outline.
Clear - easy to understand, interpret, or perceive OR transparent, unclouded.
Elain is frequently described as the sun, or glowing etc., and Az's scars are symbolic of the cruelty and abuse that he experienced at the hands of his fae family as a child. Applied to a potential Elriel relationship, the above passages could indicate that Elain (the sun) Sees all of Azriel - he is laid bare, understandable, transparent to her. We know from Azriel's bonus chapter in ACOSF that he and Elain don't seem to need words to understand each other. It sounds like someone who Sees him for who he truly is could help bring him out of the dark.
Interpreting Azriel's shadows and their behaviour in this way - that they disappear when he is feeling comfortable, secure and/or happy - suggests that not only will Elain bring him out of himself, but that she also makes him happy. The only other person we have seen his shadows vanish around is Mor, with whom he was previously in (unrequited) love, but he's slowly been moving past that, ever since he met Elain.
Azriel arrived first, no shadows to be seen, my sister a pale, golden mass in his arms. He, too, wore his Illyrian armor, Elainâs golden- brown hair snagging in some of the black scales across his chest and shoulders. He set her down gently on the foyer carpet, having carried her in through the front door.
But Elain did not balk from him, did not shy away as she noddedâjust once. Azriel, graceful as any courtier, offered her an arm. I couldnât tell if she was looking at his blue Siphon or at his scarred skin beneath as she breathed, âBeautiful.â
- Feyre, ACOWAR, chapter 24
The shadows haven't felt the need to keep Az company around Elain from the start, he carried her in through the front door of the townhouse, and she called his scars beautiful? We are being told something - and someone will be gifted the townhouse.
Azriel's bonus chapter in ACOSF, the most recent book - and thus the most current indication we have of SJM's intent - also has a passage that describes the necklace that he bought for Elain in such a way that it appears that the necklace is representative of him.
The golden necklace seemed ordinary - its chain unremarkable, the amulet tiny enough that it could be dismissed as an everyday charm. It was a small, flat rose fashioned of stained glass, designed so that when held to the light, the true depth of the colors would become visible. A thing of secret, lovely beauty.
"It's beautiful," she whispered, lifting it from the box. The golden faelight shone through the little glass facets, setting the charm glowing with hues of red and pink and white. Azriel let his shadows whisk away the box as she said softly, "Put it on me?"
His head went quiet. But he took the necklace, opening the clasp as she exposed her back, sweeping her hair up in one hand to bare her long, creamy neck.
- Azriel, ACOSF, Azrielâs bonus chapter
Once again, we have something whose "true depth" will be exposed by the light, and the vulnerability required for that is then mirrored in the way that Elain bared her neck to him. Mate behaviour? Of course not. đ
If this is the correct interpretation, then Az is symbolically giving himself to Elain. Not only that, but the colours mentioned in the rose are absolutely significant:
Red - passionate affection, love
Pink - admiration, joy
White - purity, loyalty, innocence, new beginnings, hope, a shared secret
Red and pink - says "I love you."
Red and white - unity
Azriel's confrontation with Rhys after his almost kiss with Elain set up a situation where he and Elain will have to see each other in secret, if they decide to proceed, and the colours in the necklace perfectly foreshadow this eventuality. I am intentionally not discussing the third part of Azriel's bonus chapter and what happened with the necklace, as I truly believe it was a misdirection to generate interest for the next book (and very well played).
Furthermore, Cassian even thought the following about Mor, in ACOSF.
She never stopped appreciating the sunshine. Even five hundred years after leaving that veritable prison sheâd called home and the monsters who claimed her as kin, his friendâhis sister, honestlyâstill savored every moment in the sun. As if the first seventeen years of her life, spent in the darkness of the Hewn City, still lurked around her like Azâs shadows.
- Cassian, ACOSF, chapter 4
SJM has Cassian mention Mor's upbringing in terms that are equally applicable to Azriel's own childhood, call her his sister for the first time (Az is his brother in much the same way, obviously minus that), and then brings it all back around to Az once more with a direct comparison of the darkness of the Hewn City to Azriel's shadows.
It's not subtle at all, and it appears to be telling us that Azriel both needs and wants to be free of the darkness - not the darkness that represents the Night Court, but rather the darkness that his past has left with him.
Due to his childhood trauma, and how his mother was treated, Azriel is not fond of Illyria - at least not so far in the series - and Rhys has mentioned that he is different. Perhaps Elain, sun personified, will not need a human man, but a male who values her humanity. I wonder if it will help Azriel on his journey, much like I assume - risky, I know! - that Azriel (and Nuala and Cerridwen!) will help Elain discover herself and come into her own as part of her own story (but that's another post).
Azriel chuckled, shadows skittering. âDid you listen at all last night?â
I donât typically do book reviews on here but I figured why not. My most recent read is an ARC of Bright Ruined Things by Samantha Cohoe and this is what I thought.
Bright and Ruined Things is a retelling of Shakespeareâs âThe Tempestâ that is set in the 1920s. Youâve got enchanted galas, youâve magic islands, youâve got rich families with secrets, and most importantly youâve got a heroine who clawing her way up from the servants quarters. The world building was done beautifully. Something I particularly liked about this book was the pacing.
I found Mae frustrating at first when reading this book simply due to how she let people walk all over her. However I loved her development and arc as she became less naive and more outspoken.
In terms of the main relationship, if you could even call it that... I wish I could say I liked Mae and Miles but with me it just fell flat. I honestly didnât really find myself rooting for them and it felt as though he was using her a lot of the time. I was fine with the result of their relationship because honestly it made the most sense and it was best for Mae.
In terms of Ivo, to me, he felt like the most compelling character in the book. However, something that felt weird to me was the fact that it was hinted that he had romantic feelings for Mae, when heâs 7 years older than her and she was just turning 18. Personally this reminded me a lot of Thomas and June from Legend by Marie Lu.
Iâm kind of conflicted on how to rate this book because while the plot and world building was great, the characters were really disappointing and I didnât feel as though I connected with any of them.