#starshinereads2016

[brittanystarshine]

I have absolutely LOVED this series! With only 225 pages to go, it's coming to an end too soon, but I'm very glad that I picked up this series! I highly recommend the Daughter of Smoke & Bone series to everyone!! Maybe I'll do a book review when I'm done... #daughterofsmokeandbone #daysofbloodandstarlight #dreamsofgodsandmonsters #lainitaylor #bookstagram #bookish #bookworm #books #starshinereads2016 #smilestarshine

[brittanystarshine]

A Tale As Old As Time with a Fae Twist: A Court of Thorns & Roses

I recently finished reading A Court of Thorns & Roses by Sarah J. Maas. Following is my review of the book with minor spoilers. I won't spoil the ending. Fae-based fantasy novels have always been my favorite, ever since I was introduced to the fae world by Holly Black. Since that fateful day in high school when I picked up Valiant at the school library, I haven’t been able to get enough of fae lore. When I looked up this book on Goodreads, there was a blurb that mentioned this book combining Beauty & the Beast with fae lore; I knew that second that this would soon be my favorite book. Not only do I absolutely love the world of faeries, but my favorite movie is Beauty & the Beast. I knew that if this book truly combined the two, there was no way I wouldn’t love it. And I was right. Sarah J. Maas took the old Stockholm-syndrome story line and twisted it. She wove in her own version of the fae to create something so beautiful & enticing that I couldn’t put this book down. The characters she created were a delicious mix of scary & beautiful, as any true faerie should be. The picture she painted of the world – both worlds: human & fae – was breathtaking; I wanted to wander through the Spring Court’s gardens; swim in the pool of pure starlight. Her plot was captivating, keeping me on the edge of my seat & constantly craving more. Her language and her word choice restored my faith in modern writers (a faith that, sadly, several authors have taken great pains to obliterate as of late). Overall, A Court of Thorns and Roses was a brilliant book. The characters in this novel were both human & faerie. The faerie were split into two groups: faeries and High Fae. The faeries are the typical, everyday creatures. Some have animalistic features, such as wings or tails. Some have skin like tree bark. Some look like death incarnate. Then, there’s the High Fae. These faeries look more human, but not quite. If their ethereal beauty wasn’t enough to give them away, there were the elongated limbs & fingers, the too-bright eyes, and the ears. And the powers, don’t dare to forget their deadly powers. Though faeries have powers & are deadly enough to any human, the High Fae were a whole other level of menacing magical abilities that could frighten to death any of the most dreadful faeries. For example, all of the High Lords could shape shift. Some could control your body, read your thoughts. Some could heal your wounds. All of them could kill you without breaking a sweat. The main character of this story, however, was human. Feyre was your average, poverty-stricken girl living with her father & sisters, hunting for food & just struggling to survive. One thing that slightly irked me was her name. (And by slightly, I mean that gnat that flew by your face once & then disappeared completely.) To me, “Feyre” is just too much like “faerie” and didn’t seem like the most creative or original name. But actually getting into the story & falling in love with the characters soon made me forget all about that small nuisance. Feyre, unlike many heroines of today’s Young Adult fiction, was a character whom I could actually like. She had her moments, sure, who doesn’t? But she had a sharp tongue, a fearlessness bordering on recklessness, and was relatable with her flaws. She wasn’t too perfect, but she wasn’t too flawed; she was just right. Also, I loved that fact that she was illiterate. Well, I don’t love illiteracy, but I loved the idea. As readers, we obviously love to read. We love getting lost in a good book. We love big words & deep thoughts. And, in most YA novels, the heroine has similar interests. I’ve noticed in recent years that every heroine is well read, always has a book with her, loves to read. It was a nice change to have a heroine who had other passions – painting, for Feyre – and who not only didn’t love reading, but could barely form letters. It was a nice change. Another thing I enjoyed about Feyre’s character was that her transition from “fae-hating human taking care of her family” to “simple girl falling in love with a High Lord” seemed natural. It wasn’t too forced, it didn’t happen too quickly. It was entirely believable. Tamlin, perhaps, was a little less believable. As High Fae & ruler of the Spring Court, Tamlin was a character I very much liked. He was kind & caring, yet tough & powerful. Though you could tell that his love for Feyre was real, it didn’t ring quite as true as hers. Probably because the story was told from Feyre’s point of view, I just don’t feel like I saw his transition from “desperate to have the curse broken” to “truly, madly, deeply in love with this human” as naturally as I saw hers. Don’t get me wrong, I still ship these two. And I appreciate everything that Tamlin has done for his court, for his people, and for Feyre. Two of my favorite characters were actually supporting characters. Lucien is the type of character to which I’m always drawn. He’s playful, snarky, quick-witted, and caring underneath it all. I loved his banter with other characters & I loved the way he gradually fell for Feyre too. Not the fall of love, but falling for her as a person & caring about her well-being outside of the curse being broken. The fall of friendship. Another character with a quick wit & a playful banter was Rhysand. Though we, as readers, were meant to see him as evil, at least at first, I absolutely loved him. He reminded me of Petyr “Littlefinger” Baelish from Game of Thrones. He always acts out of self-preservation, does everything with his best interests at heart, but despite appearances, he does have a soft-spot underneath his evil mask and he truly cares, not just for himself, but for his court & for Feyre. I am actually quite worried about him. The last time we saw him, something was wrong, and it’s driving me crazy not knowing what. I can’t wait to get my hands on the next book to check on him. The humans in this story – aside from Feyre – are of much less consequence. Feyre family, her father and two sisters, Nesta & Elain, don’t play a huge part in the story, but I must mention them for a few reasons. First, Feyre’s father was one of my least favorite characters. Though perhaps he does have some small measure of love in his heart for his daughters, it isn’t seen. He seems to me to be a pathetic, worthless father and I didn’t think much of him. Not standing up for his youngest daughter, not helping her in any way, not protecting his family – he was by no means a shining example of parenting. Elain was okay; she was sweet & innocent perhaps had some sense in her head; I didn’t really feel one way or another about her. Nesta, I originally hated. After Feyre returns, however, I couldn’t help but change my opinion of her. Perhaps she’s not a character whom I actually like, but I at least trust her now. Finally, I have to address Amarantha. She’s the type of villain who is perhaps scariest of all: she’s horrible and vicious, but she’s also relatable. As readers, we can probably all say, “I’d never be so cruel & evil,” but we can empathize with Amarantha being so heartbroken over what happened to her sister. Who of us wouldn’t be devastated by a loved one’s death? Who among us wouldn’t at least entertain the idea of revenge? Most of us wouldn’t actually do anything, but we can see where she’s coming from. And that’s what makes her so scary. She’s pure evil, no kindness left in her, but we can relate. That shows us that there may be darkness hiding in us too, a darkness we try very hard to deny. But understanding Amarantha, fearing her so highly, proves that the darkness is there. And fearing ourselves by fearing the villain of this story gives it a deeper meaning than what’s seen in the plot. The plot of this story is one I’ve seen a hundred times, but it’s one I love every time. Feyre & Tamlin, brought together under circumstances which neither of them enjoyed, start out hating each other, but, given time & getting to know one another, they fall in love. It’s a tale as old as time. Though I’ve seen in in many incarnations – from the Disney movie I love so well to the Beastly version – this is one of my favorite adaptations, if only for one reason: the fae. Fae lore absolutely fascinates me. I love how Maas took the basics of fae lore & changed it to suit her world. She took the two most basic rules of fae (don’t eat or drink anything from a faerie & faeries can’t lie) and integrated them seamlessly. She took the “fae can’t lie” rule & revoked it as an old wives tale. While at first this shocked me, it really makes sense as I think about it. In our own world, we have old wives tales & urban myths which have little or no basis in reality. That’s what the “no lies” myth is like in this story. The other basic fae fact is that eating/drinking anything from a faerie can be dangerous for humans. While this didn’t apply to all food in the story, it certainly rang true for the faerie wine. I appreciated the way that Maas handled both of these & they helped make the story feel more authentic. I don’t want to give away too much of the ending for those of you who haven’t read it, but suffice it to say that it’s new ending to the tale as old as time that surprised me and gave me full satisfaction. I’m very pleased with the turn of events. A final point that I’d like to make is that Sarah Maas’ writing style really drew me in. In today’s literary world, almost anybody can get a book published, but not every author can write in such a way that is original, witty, and intelligent. Maas captured all three of these qualities in her writing. She wasn’t repetitive in her word usages, she made intelligent word choices, and she made her writing flow naturally. This book was easy to get through, but not so easy that it felt childish. I truly appreciated the writing style, language and flow of this book. Overall, I’d give this book a five out of five stars. The characters, setting, plot, and writing style all came together beautifully in this fresh take on a classic story. I highly recommend this book and I will certainly continue the series as soon as the next installment is available.