Review: A ​Court of Silver Flames

A ​Court of Silver Flames by Sarah J. Maas
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Well I'll be honest. By rights, this isn't a four star book. A 3.5 really, and if not for the fact that Nesta and Cassian are fast becoming major comfort characters for me, it'd really just be a straight 3. But to see that this is where Maas is taking the world of ACOTAR next - in addition to her freshly announced TV adaptation with the team behind Outlander - with a fresh new trilogy focused on Nesta and Cassian? I'm absolutely down. 

Once again, though, Maas makes it a big old 700-page brick of Fae drama and shenanigans, and a lot of erotica content too besides. I think this time, with the publishers now finally realizing that this series' NA roots make it way too mature to go in any YA section in good conscience (right down to the revamped cover art style, not trying too hard to imitate the style of Throne of Glass anymore), Maas took that as her cue to pack the story full of some of the most ludicrously long sex scenes in literary history. Australia's own Steffy Jay warned me of this, and it was still not enough to prepare me for how much I really shouldn't have been reading this on my breaks at work. Lol. 

But in between all the usual Fae porn and (unfortunately carrying on as a problem from previous books in the series too) gossamer-thin plot at times, Maas delves into deep character studies of Nesta and Cassian, the super relatable sister in blood and brother in soul to Feyre and Rhys. A young woman not as high up in the world of Fae to which she wasn't born, and yet still thrown into the deep end of this whole new world. A young man who's never truly belonged, except with the ridiculously overly hot High Lord who cares about him in ways he can't fully express when he's still stuck in his stereotypical hetero male ways to some extent. (Which means I'm Cassian and my best bro Koda is Rhys, I guess.)

The drama gets into some pretty sinister depths too, but also some truly unexpected twists as well. Let's just say that thanks to one twist in particular, I'm glad I rewrote one angel-demon hybrid boy from my own stories - originally with batlike demon wings - to have feathery angel wings instead. After you read this book, you'll understand EXACTLY why - and I'm sure Piéra Forde appreciates this nod to the potential biology of angels and Fae, should they actually exist someday, somewhere...

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