A Court of Thorns and Roses

Zugegeben, zu Beginn musste ich mich durchbeissen. Aber es hat sich mehr als gelohnt! Der Schreibstil von Sarah J. Maas gefällt mir extrem gut. Sie malt ein Bild wie sonst niemand! Am meisten begeisterte mich aber, wie sehr sie alles durchdacht hat, bis zum allerletzten Detali, sodass mir am Ende die Kinnlade auf den Boden fiel. Ich konnte teilweise kaum glauben was ich hier lese, es hat mich so umgehauen. Niemals hätte ich gedacht, das die Menschen recht hatten als sie mir sagten, es lohnt sich, das Buch zueende zu lesen. Ich wünsche mir jetzt schon, dieses Buch erneut zum ersten mal lesen zu können!

Feyre and her family have lost a lot. And everything just because of those stupid Prythians. If only she could eradicate them...which she gets the chance to, as she shoots a High Fae Lord in form of a wolf. The consequences are harsh - Feyre is separated from her family and dragged into the Spring Court by no other than the High Lord Tamlin himself. It doesn't take long until Feyre gains interest in the mysteries behind a world she's only known from stories. What is with the masks? And what creatures really lurk beyond the beautiful gardens? Protagonist Feyre is stubborn, single-minded, entitled and rude. In the beginning at least. It took me a while to get past her annoying attitude and to really see into the world itself. Maas creates intricate characters, with more flaws than strengths. Which makes interactions more complex and much more interesting. Fey Realms have been explored to the brink - or so I thought. While still keeping the typical Fey qualities, Maas explains the nature of the world without sounding boring and is painting pictures that feel within our grasp. The first volume sets everything in motion for what's to come in the next volumes. And boy, will those hit hard. While the first volume is a little slow, the whole series is an absolute must for every lover of intricate emotional rollercoasters. And High Fantasy.

Intrigued, because Sarah J. Maas’ books continue to be in high demand, I started reading «A Court of Thorns and Roses». Maas’ YA fantasy takes us to Prythian, land of the Fae. Though the story actually starts south of it, in the Mortal Lands, where Feyre has wrestled for several years to keep her empoverished family alive. When she kills a Fae in wolf form, however, she is forcibly taken to the Spring Court. There, it appears, she can finally let down her guards. If only all were as it seemed. I enjoyed Maas’ worldbuilding very much, as well as the details of other well known works in it. It is an easy to read book. It just too long to get interesting, in my opinion. We spend at least half the book at the Spring Court, which mainly consists of only three people and very little plot. In the second half, we finally start to learn more about the challenges that the Fae face, we are introduced to their history and a few more characters, and Feyre has to prove herself. Her love story, on the other hand, wasn’t quite convincing to me (too many animalistic references and her love interest was a bit bland). I thought Rhysand, for instance, was a much more interesting, complex character. Which is why, after all, I contemplate reading the second book. We’ll see.