A Court of Frost and Starlight 4⭐️/5
A Court of Frost & Starlight by Sarah J. Maas (A Court of Thorns and Roses #3.1)
4⭐️/5
I was #influenced to read this series and I don’t want it to end 😩
⚠️SPOILERS! BEWARE!!⚠️
This novella was short and sweet and had Christmas Special vibes written all over it. Honestly, it was the breath of fresh air I needed after ACOWAR. We’d all been to war (yes, I’m including myself) and needed a little break.
There weren’t enough of these everyday, swoon-worthy moments (especially between Rhys and Feyre) in ACOWAR, so this felt like an attempt to give us back some of those moments that yielded to serve a larger narrative in the last book
If you love the inner-circle, are itching to spend time walking the dreamy streets of Velaris, and want more banter and a little whimsy, this is for you. This series is a trilogy with a Christmas Episode, and you either loved it or you didn’t. Overall, it felt like a love letter to her fans, her dedication acknowledges as much (swipe 👉)
I can see the critique that it borders on fan-fiction, but it definitely feels much more grounded than fan-fiction. These characters are still wholly who they are, making choices true to who they’ve always been, they just don’t have *quite* as much to do as the other installments.
I think what she did with the multiple POV was incredibly effective. This is how I wish ACOWAR had been written (as I mentioned in detail in that book’s review), but I think this was the perfect place to play with character perspective, I hope this continues!
Was it necessary? No.
Did it move the plot? Also no.
Was it enjoyable for fans of the series? Probably yes!
I know I have the longest installment left, so The Big Sad isn’t here just yet, but WOW am I going to miss Feyre and Rhys’ story. If this little novella told us anything though, it’s that there isn’t any more of their story to tell without inventing conflict between the two of them (a la every reboot ever). I love how she used this book to both close their chapter (in some ways, there’s still plenty of story ahead) and start a new one with Cassian and Nesta!