it’s always summer v winter bitches fighting for their life, where are the spring/autumn girlies, the moderate temperatures crowd, the transition period aficionados, the ‘sun is shining but the wind’s cold’ connoisseurs, the ‘decay and rebirth of nature’ devotees
The King of Hybern is. The cauldron is. Being kidnapped (twice) is. Being tied up/chained is. Being drowned is. Seeing her fathers dead body is. Burying her father is. Being turned into the thing she hated the most is. Losing her fiancé is. Losing her mortality is.
Things that probably stresses Elain out more than Lucien’s occasional visits: constantly needing to insist she is a part of a court where no one views her as an equal, being fought over by her sisters, being coddled, people speaking for her and going against her direct wishes(looking at you Azriel).
Elains trauma does not start or end with Lucien Vanserra. Do I think she’s resistant to the bond because of her trauma? Yes. Do I think it’s personal to Lucien? No.
Her trauma isn’t only valid when Lucien is around and people like to scream that he’s the reason (which is wrong what they are insinuating). Her trauma is constantly valid. The same trauma the Inner Circle (and most of this fandom) forgets exist any other time.
ELAIN IS NOT DOING WELL AT ALL. mark my words.
If you think her arc will only consist of rejecting the bond, gaining Rhys’s approval to be with Azriel, and falling in love with the person who speaks against her wishes, you are sadly mistaken. Stop being a hypocrite.
I personally think Lucien knows Elain is not doing well. A mate knows when something is amiss. She doesn’t want him to know she’s not doing well. Because she’s trying to convince herself she’s ok.
No one asked for this, but this is my blog, so I do what I want. I just wanted to share some of my predictions going into the new books, because I'm starved for content and want to bond/analyze with anyone about anything. Crumbs, if you may. I fear we as a fandom have nothing left to talk about but predictions.
Some of these may contradict each other, but I'm not the author, so I don't need to be consistent. Some of these rely on head canons. I also am just not going to even touch ships. I don't need that energy.
And it's a shame that I even have to preface this, but if I catch you coming on here and harassing/bullying me or anyone else, you will be strung up in the town square and publicly shamed.
Now, without further ado:
Gwyn will find and wield Narben. Perhaps it's in a swamp/lake (based on part of the Target collab teaser that included similar imagery).
Emerie will become more prominent in the Illyrian ranks, perhaps motivating more Illyrian females to train and beginning the shift of the culture surrounding female warriors. There will definitely be pushback against recognizing her as Carynthian, but I suspect a portion of the population respects the Blood Rite too much to completely disregard her completion.
We know Nesta's story is not complete, and there's something more to do with her and Gwydion. But for the life of me, I have no clue. My prediction for her is that we figure it out :)
Listen, I understand the popularity of the theory that Nesta will resurrect the Dusk Court and become its High Lady. I understand where it comes from and where it could work out. But. I sincerely don't think Cassian would leave the Night Court. He may not feel the most connected to the Illyrians, but his family is the Inner Circle. And we know up and down how loyal he is to a fault. I sense some tension there. I sense some compromises, at the very least. I just don't know how they would work out her ruling an entirely different court while he won't leave Night. Again, not entirely ruling the possibility out. I just feel like people forget that they are Together.
I don't think Nesta is getting pregnant any time soon. This isn't to say I think she's against the idea, because she did prepare her anatomy for the possibility of being pregnant with Cassian's baby, but I think she has a fair bit more personal journey to tackle before that step. Maybe by the end they're ready, but not soon.
Helion is sick. His pegasi are also sick, but his sickness is something entirely apart. Perhaps this factors into A Mission, searching for a cure or whatnot. This is straying into delulu territory, but one of the teasers did include vials of something that can be assumed to be potions. Healing potions?
Bouncing off of this, the mission may fail. He may die. If he dies, Lucien is right there. Does Lucien know that Helion is his father? A majority think no, but I... think yes. I think, if not specifically, he at least knows that he's not Beron's. If this is the case, he wouldn't have told anyone out of knowledge of what Beron would do for that knowledge being shared. The guy is willing to murder Jesminda for being a lesser fae, who knows what he's willing to do for the knowledge being spread that his wife had an affair. I think a deep, intrinsic fear of Beron's reaction is a big motivation for most of everything Lucien does. He easily could be bullshitting everyone so as not to link them to the knowledge. We know he's fantastic at Bullshit. Ken's job is Beach, Lucien's job is Bullshit.
High Lord Eris, come save us.
He will kill Beron and take over the Autumn Court, swoop in, and fix everything. Not really, but I like to think a lot of problems will immediately be righted when he finally has proper ruling power. I believe Autumn soldiers already give him more authority than Beron. I sincerely don't think the transition will be too difficult.
Now, I really hope this is not the case, but a girl has to think of all worst-case scenarios. What if Eris kills Beron for killing LoA? Why would Beron kill her? The fucker doesn't need a reason. This man is so cartoonishly evil and has yet to be given a single redeemable quality. And we know SJM loves her cartoonishly evil villains.
Furthermore, I almost wrote a one-shot where this exact situation happened, and when the deed was done and the adrenaline wore off, Eris broke down in tears. Not out of particular sadness for the body before him, but out of realization that he just killed his father for killing his mother.
Potentially hot take: I think Eris may be the POV that surprised her. I have zero evidence to back this up, only my own delusions. I just find him so freaking interesting, and I definitely think she set up a greater involvement with him at the end of ACOSF. The jury is still out on whether or not he and Lucien will reconcile in 6/7 - maybe in the finale. Now, enough about Eris.
We'll see Elain's visions from her POV, which will be trippy. I'm just so interested to see how they actually work, if they disturb her sleep and/or social abilities, what she's already seen, etc. I think SJM could use them as a major foreshadowing tool, similar to how we get flashes of the war/the Shire burning as the ring is tempting Frodo. I'm just generally so excited to see Elain's POV. Her being a Seer is, without exaggeration, one of the cooler plot twists thus far, and I don't think people like to admit that. It's not cool with the same weight of, say, "If you want to save your mate" or whatever, but just the implications. And it was so wise to make the pacifist character useful in a way that doesn't involve fighting. Thank you for coming to my TED Talk.
About Gwyn's father: I don't actually think he's as important as we think he is. And- sike! Just when you thought I was done talking about Eris. He is one of the contenders, along with Tamlin. For a long while, I believed it to be Tamlin (for a myriad of evidence that I don't feel like explaining, and because it would be messy lol). But upon further reflection, I don't think we'll actually touch that. SJM so often includes little comments that appear to mean so much, and then they never get touched ever again (cough cough, "Didn't your mother ever tell you about us?") With what evidence we actually have in the context of the time, he could be Literally Anyone. His name could be Lionel. Lionel could be dead.
I think there will be a plot twist reveal about Azriel. I don't particularly believe him to be a Prince of Hel, but perhaps he was created by them in the same way Hunt was. I fear a lot of people misunderstood Bryce being dropped off at his feet when she requested to be brought to Hel/Aidas. She had Gwydion, and it was attracted to its twin, Truth Teller. That's it. And now Nesta has Gwydion. But I do suspect there may be more to Azriel's parentage/backstory in and of itself.
Down the same vein but not really, I do have a theory that Rhys and Ruhn are related... but not in the way you may think. I don't believe Ruhn to be his nephew through whatever nonsense of his sister surviving and going through a portal to Midgard or whatever. I think they just have a common ancestor. My theory is simply that there were siblings at the time of the rift opening to Midgard. One went through, one stayed in Prythian, and they both just descended down to Rhys and Ruhn (on his mom's side), respectively. SJM made it a point to tell us that Rhys and Ruhn look similar enough to be confused for each other. Imagine how similar someone would have to look to your sibling for you to confuse them. She may forget about that detail, but I don't think she included it for no reason.
Amren is suspicious. Listen, she's my third favorite character, but goddamn, she was getting suspicious as fuck in ACOSF. Why was she pressuring Rhys so hard to pursue becoming High King? Why do you want so much to be the second in command to the High King? I guess my thing partially is that she's been so useless after the war. SJM, if you're going to resurrect someone, at least keep them relevant. Even through a betrayal, her relevance would return. I champion MARA - Make Amren Relevant Again, 2026!
Okay, that's it for now. Thanks for reading my yap.
Elriel fans love to say that if Elain ends up with Lucien, it's just the bond speaking louder and her giving in.
So Nesta and Feyre don't love Cassian and Rhysand? Is it just the bond speaking louder too?
"No, their case is different, we saw this love blossom."
Then, DAMN IT! Wait for the next books to arrive to see the same thing happen with Elain and Lucien, for goodness sake.
"But Elain doesn't love Lucien."
Feyre didn't love Rhysand either, she just thought he was handsome. Nesta didn't love Cassian before. And Elain doesn't love Lucien, but in SJM's own words in "Call Your Daddy," she knows Lucien is hot, just like Feyre knew Rhysand was too.
SJM loves to incorporate music and "Spark" into her couples, she did with Rowan and Aelin, Bryce and Hunt, Feyre and Rhysand, Nesta and Cassian... Gwynriel has all of these elements, Elucien had the quote about music, in addition to the various references to Elorcan throughout the saga. Elriel simply has NONE of these, nor anything related to music or the Spark that SJM said is essential in her couples.
If Elain stays with Lucien, it's because SHE wanted to and made that decision, regardless of whether there's a mate bond or not. If Lucien were the monster you all want everyone to believe (as if that would change anything in the story, considering SJM has already said he's one of her favorite characters and that the next two books are ALREADY finished), he would have forced her to accept the bond, but he didn't and never will. It hurts you to acknowledge that Lucien is the mate who most respected his mate's space and decisions, doesn't it?
If I wanted a couple without challenge, development, and where the author simply made them like each other and that's it, without anything interesting to add to the story, then I would be an Elriel stan.
But so many of the most beloved romance tropes are some kind of version of “forced PROXIMITY.”
Fated mates
Marriage of convenience
Fake dating
Best friend’s sibling
Only one bed
Snowed in
Accidental pregnancy
The story is “stick two characters in an inescapable situation together and watch as they fall in love despite and because of it.” The whole POINT of the book is to watch what happens BECAUSE two people had to figure out a way of coexisting.
The set up is not the ending. But the set up is enjoyed by the audience. We like the tension. We like drama. We don’t want “they met, nothing happened, they fell in love, the end.”
Fated mates is just a magical “forced to work on a group project together and they must pass the class.” The love between mates is NEVER forced. It is always the thing that develops because the bond forces them into proximity. Mates always choose each other.
Elain has had the most well-written story buildup out of the sisters but some of y’all aren’t ready for that conversation yet...
See the thing is Elain is not ok... she just hides it better than anyone else. She smiles, gardens, bakes, and says she's fine. But throughout the books we're given hints that she isn't.
With Feyre, her suffering was visible from page 1... she starving, hungry, exhausted, hunting.
With Nesta, her spiral was unavoidable... she was self destructing loudly
Elain has been written differently... she hides her suffering. She's learned that if she smiles, people relax. That being agreeable keeps the peace.
I think its also interesting to note that because she’s so good at pretending, even the people around her start believing she’s okay or at least when they do notice that she's not actually ok they don't push for more cause she doesn’t make it look serious from the outside. She isn’t destructive. She isn’t loud or visibly falling apart. She doesn’t look “concerning” enough. So her pain gets dismissed. Elain survives by keeping herself composed, by making herself quiet and manageable and because of that, no one realizes just how much she’s actually carrying. I've even seen a number of readers who believe that she’s okay. That she doesn’t need a story. That her place is to be “left gardening and baking.” As if having a hobby is a bad thing...
Feyre likes to paint
Nesta likes to dance
Elain likes to garden and bake
What's so wrong about enjoying something that gives you joy and brings you peace?
I don't think Elain lacks depth... I think she lacks the space to be seen for who she is. For who she TRULY is.
The Elain blames Lucien for her change argument is the only thing I keep seeing from that side. She blames Lucien for what happened, when we as readers (apparently not all) know he’s not at fault. The reason she is so “introverted” now is bc of Lucien… but even when he’s not around, giving her space, she’s still not her old human self. That got my thinking, do we think the blame extends? Do we think Elain blames everyone (minus Nesta) for her change? She wouldn’t be in that situation if Feyre didn’t leave the SC to be with Rhys and started an uproar of fae politics. I definitely could see her holding onto that resentment toward her sister.
I don't think Elain wants to blame anyone for what happened but I do think she's struggling with that fact. It's clear she felt guilty for what happened during their time in the cabin, that she feels they failed Feyre, and as a result I think she's afraid to consider the part Feyre may have unintentionally played in the sisters being brought into the world of the fae. It's like "I feel so guilty about failing you and now even though you made choices that led us all here (despite what happening not being your intention) I don't have any right to be mad because I'm still trying to make amends for the past."
That repressed emotion has to come out somewhere though and I think Lucien makes for an easy target. Graysen rejects her? Blame Lucien. She's been turned fae because Feyre told Ianthe about her sisters and then deceived Tamlin and Lucien about Rhys / Velaris making them think she was being tortured which then led to them making the decision to play double agent with Hybern? Blame Lucien. Elain is feeling things that are out of her control even though those same things are out of Lucien's control? Blame Lucien.
I think he is the easiest scapegoat for her to place the blame for everything she's feeling because she didn't know him and she doesn't have past feelings of guilt towards him the way she does her sisters. It's also convenient to push away the person you have the closest connection to. You can't pretend as well with a mate since they're supposed to be a reflection of yourself, the other half of your soul. There is a vulnerability to the connection she has with him and I don't think she wants to face that at this point since that means she needs to confront everything she's feeling and she's definitely hiding from that anger.
I do think we'll see Elain express frustration in her book but it will rightfully move on from the frustration being taken out on Lucien and will be directed at the lies and scheming Feyre participated in that did indirectly lead her to where she's at.
Of course we're meant to root for Feyre's HEA but that doesn't mean she doesn't have things to still apologize for (not only what was mentioned above but of the way she left an entire court of innocent people without true leadership).
Guys do you think BB is gonna reveal a sliver of the covers, like it looks like paper ripping down the middle to reveal a sliver of the center of it, then dip out again until October?
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