What broke my heart the most was when Nesta explains that the sound of the fire and the wood reminded her of her father’s neck breaking and Cassian realizing how many times he pushed the fires on her. Omg 😭💔
This is honestly the BEST character development I’ve ever read!!! I was just so proud of Nesta and I loved how Sarah had her like backtrack in her progress a little bit when Elain went to visit Nesta for the first time at the house. It showed a lot about how it’s okay to have setbacks because it’s natural. I cried so much reading this I never thought there’d be a book in this series that could top ACOMAF but this one definitely did
The small motives in this book that kind of wove in and out of the story....the 10,000 stairs, the hand reaching out, the ribbon, the music. Amazing. (I read the last page and immediately watched your video.)
I loved Nesta the moment I read A Court of Frost and Starlight because youc ould see how lost and broken she was. I've felt like her in my darkest moments and I just wanted to give her a hug
This book left me in ruins. Some parts literally spoke to my soul and it was all so beautiful. I LOVED the part when it was described how the mating bond was formed. Like walls of Nesta's mind letting out golden rays of light and them intervining with Cassian's... I don't know why, but it is one of my favourite scenes. And all of the Valkyrie ofc.
Yea I think so too but I really think Lucien deserves better at this point cause it’s been two years and shes had enough time to either reject or accept the mate bond, I just feel like she’s leading him on
anyone else wondering if potentially ... elain and TAMLIN will be a thing??? and like i don't think so, but also, nesta kept talking about how elain would love the spring court, and she does love gardening... it has me suspicious lmfaoooo
In the kingdome of ash aelin is falling through the worlds she is like a falling star and during the winter solstice party she sees Rhysand and he slows her down.
My favourite part in this book had to have been the moment Rhys kneeled down to Nesta after she saves Feyre and Nyx and Rhys and she just went in for that hug. that was everything for me. I also love how Feyre revealed that she was pregnant and everyone lost their shit and Nesta kinda just looks at her and was like "of course I'll help". I also read both of the bonus chapters and Azriel's POV got me good. I ship him and Gywn!!! ALSO ALSO will be calling it an Egg IPod from now on.
I absolutely loved the House, and the Gwyn, Nesta, Emirie friendship was everything to me. This whole book was so tragic and beautiful. I was waiting for so long for ur review, I screamed when I saw ur instagram post and it's finally here 😍
DONT FORGET THE TINY OVERLAP OF ACOTAR IN KINGDOM OF ASH. **SPOILERS FOR KINGDOM OF ASH AHEAD, proceed with caution** When Aelin falls through worlds after she sends the gods away in KoA Rhys SAVES HER! She sees a bunch of flashes of worlds as she falls through them and idk one of them might be crescent city (like this bit rings a bell but I’m not sure: “She passed through a world where a great city had been built along the curve of a river, the buildings impossibly tall and glimmering with lights”) but theres definitely a wholeeee bit with Rhys and Feyre looking at the stars and then Rhys slowing her down so that she doesn’t miss her world and it made me all hysterical when I read it. Anyways this is the passage with Rhys and Feyre from Kingdom of Ash. Enjoy!! “She passed through a world of snowcapped mountains under shining stars. Passed over one of those mountains, where a winged male stood beside a heavily pregnant female, gazing at those very stars. Fae. They were Fae, but this was not her world. She flung out a hand, as if she might signal them, as if they might somehow help her when she was nothing but an invisible speck of power- The winged male, beautiful beyond reason, snapped his head toward her as she arced across his starry sky. He lifted a hand, as if in greeting. A blast of dark power, like a gentle summer night, slammed into her. Not to attack-but to slow her down. A wall, a shield, that she tore and plunged through. But it slowed her. That winged male’s power slowed her, just enough. Aelin vanished from his world without a whisper.”
Oh my God this gave me goosebumps eeeeek. I've read the ACOTAR series but haven't finished ToG from Queen Of Shadows onwards. Reading this made me want to pick ToG back up so bad.
YES!!!! I was waiting for someone to bring it up... I think she's the weird star they mention seeing, that EVERYONE thinks is a bad omen except for Rhysand, who knows she was a person bc he read her mind
I always felt this way also.. I have not read this book yet.. I'm worried because I hear Rhys turned into Tamlin in being controlling.. And his and Freye relationship is so valuable to me.. I can't handle it if it goes to poo.. But I always felt Eris wasn't what he seemed having known what Rhys did..
I will fucking kill myself before I call Rhys Reese lmao. His name is pronounced like the food and that's all I will accept. I'd argue that point with SJMaas herself. I guess that's my hill to die on lol.
I feel like the next book is going to follow Az, Gwyn and Elain so maybe Sarah was hinting about something. I don't know if you've read the extra Az chapter but I think Az and Gwyn are endgame, and if Gwyn's a light singer and Az a shadow singer then that's pretty epic
@@minnasayehban23 I did read the bonus! That’s funny bc I thought it confirmed gwyn as a lightsinger and that the next book was about elain and az lol I hope gwyn gets a book later on though!! Her lightsinger abilities would be so fun to explore!
@@oliviapappas3648 Haha I was so focused on the love drama that I didn't pay much attention to the light singer part. Yeah, me too! I'm so excited to see where this goes
I really loved this book too! I feel like I’m probably alone on this but Nesta was already one of my favorite characters before reading this book 😅 I was very happy with how she grew as a person in this book and I did end up rereading it right after finishing it
LOL your reaction to the smut is everything!! I’ve definitely read worse but was not expecting it from a former YA series. Remember when I texted you... this book is filthy ahahahahah
Nesta complaining about getting tired of going down the steps and I am just thinking about all the steps she has to go up when she returns to the house. The most steps I have gone up at once are 444. And I am dead every time I go up those stairs. Imagine 10,000.
Nesta is now my ALL time favorite character I just love her so so so much and this book was simply PHENOMENAL. also this booktalk on poit with the feelings christine
I feel like the aspect of them not knowing that the baby would have wings to warn Feyre even before any of this was because when the Bone Carver showed Feyre their son and she let Rhys into her mind and showed him too, they both just assumed that everything would be fine and he wouldn't have wings. But I also think them having sex while flying was potentially a reason the baby was born with wings.
So I'm pretty sure for some reason Eris is Mor's mate and Rhys knows and that's why they went. But I'm not sure exactly, but like it could be and would explain stuff.
@@angelapiccolo275 no she’s bi. She said she likes both but females are *more* her preference in acowar. So Eris *could* potentially have a chance if he catches feelings
Also the part where she has a mini fantasy about being with Cassian AND Azriel at the same time and I was like “NESTA!!! Stoppppp no girl you read too many books”
I liked your review! i'm still neutral about nesta, but I absolutely loved gwyn and emerie and I personally hope the next book is about gwyn and azriel's love journey!
I know this is two years later but I would honestly love some actual morally grey character development with Rhys and Feyre. Like their pride gets the best of them and they have to be taken down a notch, or they have marital problems. They’re too perfect!
I’m sad that they didn’t talk about Rhysand slowing Aelin down at the starfall. They talked about a unique red star but I wish they would’ve mentioned Rhys reaching out like he did in Kingdom of Ash
I loved Acosf, and the friendships, but I actually felt more of a connection to Feyre than Nesta, and I like Rhys more, like Cassian is great and everything, you're right he's just like Emmett, but I don't really feel like romantic feelings for him he's kind of like a brother figure. Rhys is more my Type with his looks and personality.
Right??? In my head they were outside the whole time and then towards the end of the book it was explained a little different and I was like wait a minute wait a minute wait a minute....
2:05 You're so right about Red White and Royal Blue! Ever since I read it the first time I've just been slowly rereading it over Audible, when I'm running/driving/doing chores. It's on a constant loop haha but it takes me like a month to get through it every time. Such a good casual read
I absolutely LOVED this book!!!! I liked all the rest of this series but this was my favorite. One of the best scenes in my opinion was when Cassian just kinda got up after Nesta killed them cause she thought he had died. AMAZING! It was so so so so so so so so GOOD!!!
I’ve been living in a complete mandela effect thinking you had uploaded weeks ago and searched for it once i finished the book and was like where has it gone??!!
Hearing you call Cassian Emmett just blew my mind. Just been thinking about the parallels. Rhys is Edward, Cassian is Emmett and Azriel is Jasper. They have so many similarities.
Except Rhys is less… whatever Edward was. If we’re talking about twilight that is. I honestly find Rhys a lot less disturbing than Edward, he was just so… weird to me. It’s like Sarah took all the potential Edward had and could’ve been and put it in Rhys
What about Elain? If she does end up with Azriel, she will have a problem giving birth to a baby with wings too. Did Nesta alter Elain's female parts as well, and we find that out in the next book? Or is this a prediction that Elain will end up with Lucien?
The scene when Nesta and Gwyn are learning how to improve their mental health just like Valquiries used to do and their kinda like meditating or stuff. I loved it so much, specially because I feel that I can relate to Nesta sm when it comes to have a very messy and noisy mind and finding this method truly therapeutic and relaxing was something truly special for me
I know we’re gonna probably figure out who Elaine is ending up with and I swear Eris is going to be endgame for someone but I want to know what’s under the Illyrian mountain. She talked about the castle under the night Court mountain and the castle Aramantha had under the mountain and I want to know if Sarah just mentioned it or if we really get to see what’s there?
There’s so many little things that I loved about this book! -I liked the humor surrounding the force field around Feyre and the guys’ reactions to it. -I loved the scene where Cassian tells Nesta about how Rhys, Az, and he would be sent to climb the stairs as punishment when they were boys and would end up puking all over each other lol. -I also adored the whole part about Nesta’s mindfulness practice, I relate to that in regards to mental health. -I loved the running gag that the House loved smutty romances as much as Nesta and would tease her by constantly sending her smutty novels -For some reason the scene where Cassian’s wine disappears as soon as she walks in the room makes me laugh. Did they think there was a chance she’d tackle him for any drop of alcohol? -I loved how Elain found a bit more of herself in this book, even if it was minimal. It finally felt like she was an established character who was capable of standing up for herself and I love that.
THIS BOOK WAS EVERYTHING. I completely agree with you, Christine. I was way more attached to Nesta than Feyre, which was completely unexpected. I hated Nesta (as I'm sure we all did) going into this book, and now she is one of my all-time favourite Sarah J Maas characters. She really grew on me. She must be protected at all costs. I love her ❤
Reliving the feelings I had while reading this book through this review was amazing 😭💕💕💕 You know a book is great when even the acknowledgments make you cry 😂💕😭 Spoilers: * * * * * First of all, the themes it touched were so perfectly included that I can't even process it. The mental health journey Nesta had to go through; the self-hate, the friendships, the love, the family. The sexism of the illyrians, the sexual assault, violence and rape that these characters had to work through. I can't begin to explain how important and impactful I found this read. Along with that, Nesta's character development in this was insane. I could be frustrated with her at times but by the end of it, I understood it all. I could not imagine going through what she went through. Now knowing the anger she felt, the guilt, the demons she battled, I truly understand how strong she is. Her relationship with Cassian always had my emotions at a high; whether it be in frustration or pure joy, their scenes made my heart race. The plot of the story was so engaging as well. I am still shocked at the Dread Trove and everything to do with Queen Briallyn. Koschei is still a huge threat along with Beron and I can't wait to see how that unfolds. Most of all, I can't wait to learn more about Mor and Eris; we still have that conversation pending, and I am sure there is more to it. The aspect of friendship in this was also a HUGE favorite part of mine. Gwyn, Emerie and Nesta's relationship brought me to tears. When they had that moment in the blood rite where they shared everything about themselves and still chose to stand by eachother, I couldn't help the tears that fell. Feyre and Rhys finally having a baby (Nyx) and them being happy and healthy was also another one of my favorite parts. I am a cliché for happy endings, so that really made my heart happy. I do have to say that Amren really frustrated me because she made Nesta fall back so many times by not even attempting to see her change. But I am glad they worked it out in the end. The scene in the mountains, with Nesta and Cassian (before their heart-to-heart conversation) was a little too long for my taste and took sooo long for me to read but at by the end I think it was worth it. There is so much more to this book like Azriel as a whole (his growing relationship with Nesta, his possible feelings for Elain), Rhys almost dying (and there still being the problem of his bargain with Feyre), the scene where Nesta raised the dead, the cavin scene and Nesta going back to it, the sword's name (Ataraxia), Tamlin as a whole, Nesta and Cassian being mates, and so, so much more! But this is already a lot for a comment, lol 😂💕
Have you seen azriel's bonus chapter? What do you think about it? *spoiler alert* It filled me with such rage how callously Rhysand treated Azriel and relegated Elaine to Lucien's possession, all because of a mating bond that Rhysand himself noted, isn't foolproof.
Haven’t read the book, but I have all the previous ones. Wouldn’t rhysand be one of the first to be all “yeah you’re bonded, but that doesn’t mean you fit well together”? He himself said his parents were mates but were never right for each other. The concept of just not accepting the bond shouldn’t be so weird for him considering he prepared to accept it for himself if feyre wasn’t feeling it
@@miavika1074 Exactly. So, if he doesn't recognize the bond, and lucien and Elaine are bonded, shouldn't that rather mean that Elaine didn't have to be with Lucien at all costs. If she wanted to, she could be with Azriel. And, even if Rhysand thought it wasn't a good idea for them to be together, he could have said so without demeaning what Azriel felt for Elaine and making it about just sex.
I've loved Nesta since book 1 and I was so happy that this book came out bc nesta is such a relatable character to many people out there. There's barely any female characters written that specific way and to finally be able to fully see yourself in a character is honestly one of the best feelings in the world. Her POV was everything.
I'm so glad you said Cassian reminds you of Emmett, I've been saying that Cassian and Nesta have big Emmett and Rosalie energy since finishing the book!
We totally need to be friends! I love your enthusiasm! Your reactions and just hearing you talk about these books it’s like looking into a mirror at what I was like telling my friends about these books.
ahh i hope you read the bonus Azriel chapter eventually because tbh the acotar fandom went up in flames because of it hhhh but i loved acosf so much!! really enjoyed hearing your thoughts ☺️
My fav parts by far were the friendship moments and the house. I cry for the house k. Like i was rly not even there for the romance as usual but the girl power and the house ruled me. I'm also deeply interested in the whole Eris Mor thing and also Lucien meeting his dad is like so important for me now. I can't even k.
omg i've been waiting for your booktalk for weeks and its finally here!!!! love all the things you discussed and you really put my thoughts into words! after reading this book, everything felt so real to me, like the world and the characters because it all became so much clearer like you said! i dont think ive ever read a fantasy world that feels as real to me as this one, and this book really solidifies that.
I think they never thought of Nyx having wings didn't go through their thoughts because he'd be more high fae then Illyrian just like Gwyn not really showing much of her river nymph heritage so they probably thought he was gonna look like a regular fae and when The Bone Carver appeared as Feysand's son he didn't have wings
That's what I thought too, but Feyre conceived in Illyrian form so DUH. But yeah, the whole thing about not being able to shapeshift her own body is stupid.
Not going to lie, I had a different opinion of this book. I obviously loooooove SJM but this book wasn’t it for me for a few reasons. MASSIVE SPOILERS BELOW (read at your own risk lol) 1.)Rhys's character transformation. Honestly this is the biggest reason that this book has a sour taste in my mouth. Rhys represented such a stark contrast to Tamlin in ACOMAF. Rhys respects Feyre's as his equal and knows that she's strong enough to handle herself in any situation vs Tamlin who would “protect” Feyre for “for her own good”. That's what makes Rhys such an attractive male lead. But in this book, Sarah does a complete 180. We don’t know if he out-right lied, but we know that it was a lie by omission which is such a Tamlin move. I was almost in a state of shock when I read Rhys's scenes because it was so unlike the character we knew from the original series (especially ACOMAF). ADDITIONALLY, what made me the angriest is how everyone reacted to Nesta telling Feyre about the problems. Nesta was the ONLY one to treat Feyre like an ADULT and tell her that her and her baby's lives were in danger. Nesta is tired of Rhys belittling her and her sister and she (understandably) gets mad. And somehow Nesta is the villain? Rhys goes FULL Tamlin and threatens to kill his mate's sister when he finds out that she actually had the nerve to treat Feyre with competence. Rhys's transformation is such a negative one that it feels like an entirely different character. 2.)The whole pregnancy plot as a whole. Ok Sarah, we get it, you breaking dawn. This was a complete copy paste of breaking dawn and it kind of blew my mind how similar these plots were. Pregnant mother's body can't physically adapt to the foreign anatomy which means that the birth will surely kill the mother? Come on a Sarah. When I found out Feyre was going to be pregnant I was initially so excited. I thought that this would bs the chance in a YA/New adult series to show that women don’t just have to be the “badass warrior” to be strong. I was excited to see how SJM would frame motherhood as equally badass, but in ACOSF the entire plot line was a joke. 3.) Nesta giving up her powers. Ok Sarah, we get it, you wrote kingdom of ash. A magical fae sacrifices her ostensibly limitless power to save the lives of others, but some god-like entity lets her keep a fraction of what she once had? I don’t know if it's better or worse than copying and pasting from Breaking Dawn since she's literally copying and pasting from herself. Another reason that this was so lame is because, unlike Aelin, we never really got to see Nesta fully use her power. Aelin had her powers for multiple books and we got to see her develop her skills. Nesta had barely started showing how awesome her powers were before they got zoinked away. I thought that this was not only lazy writing, but that it was disappointing writing too. 4.)Too much smut. I literally never thought I would say this, especially in a SJM novel but there are way to many sex scenes in this book. I started getting bored with them and would skip these scenes just to get back to the plot. I like a good ~fuuuuun~ scene as much as the next person, but i don’t want a smut scene for the sake of it. If a scene doesn’t reveal more about the characters, the plot, the world, etc. then I don’t want it in the book. This is what ACOMF did so well in my opinion. We all LIVE for chapter 55, but it's not just in there so that we get a hot scene. It shows Rhys and Feyre's mating bond. It shows Feyre forgiving herself and Rhys forgiving himself. It also explains the mating bond and expands the ACOTAR world. Sure it was fun, but it was also meaningful. There’s some of that in ACOSF, but there’s also pointless/boring sex scenes that I just don’t care about. These are just the biggest reasons that I was disappointed with this book, but I have so many more. This doesn’t mean I think it's a bad book. I love Nesta's growth and the relationships that she forms to heal herself. I like the expansion of the world and I'm excited to see the trilogy unfold. I think something that was especially disappointing was that I was so excited for this book. ACOMAF is one of my all time favorite books and is damn near perfect. This book is trying to be ACOMAF but completely misses the mark. I think the biggest thing that needed to happen with this book is editing. Nearly all of my problems with this book could have been completely cut out and wouldn’t affect the overarching story at all. Cutting out the scenes would have cleaned up the story and made this book less unsavory in my opinion. I LOVE SJM, but this book got a thumbs down for me.
Exactly. (*SPOILERS AHEAD) I felt like this book was trying too hard to be ACOMAF. Feyre’s journey was basically copy and pasted into Nesta’s, from finding powerful objects, going to the jail, finding out about her mate and sulking about it for days...I just couldn’t enjoy it, because it felt like I’d already gone on this journey. I also don’t understand how everyone loves Nesta’s character arc. What arc? She was rude to her sisters the entire time, unnecessarily jealous, rude to Cassian, and so wishy washy in her feelings. She never took a single active step to apologize to the people she knew she’d done wrong until way over 3/4 of the way through the book...and decided that she should punish herself by distancing herself from everyone (again rudely), as if that’s going to atone for her actions. And all the while she’s dealing with major depression about losing her father, whom she hated, resented, and never showed him an ounce of respect in any of the first three books. Why is she haunted by his death? And why do Gwyn and Emery say she has nothing to apologize for??? To round it out, we waited so long for Nesta to give in to Cassian...their snarky banter was utterly perfect in the second and third books, and Sarah ruined it in this book. The magic between them was lost. The long awaited mating reveal was just meh, because she didn’t take the time to cultivate that nearly tangible desire between them. It was just smut, regret, smut, doubt, smut, doubt, smut, repeat...where’s the fun in that?
@@whinniebloom yeah I think you’re totally right. This story is basically a compilation of older ideas (the recovery from ACOMAF, the power sacrifice from KOA, the pregnancy from breaking dawn, etc.). Again, it's so shocking because this is a SJM book and I expect better of her at this point. I do like many individual aspects of Nesta's recovery (the mind-stilling motif in particular) but I agree with you that she feels different at best and like a completely alien character at worst. Nesta reads as a worse version of Feyre in this story which sucks because I was looking forward to seeing how Sarah would shift Nesta's unlikeable qualities for the better (which was kind of hinted at in ACOWAR). Instead we got a retelling of ACOMAF with less intrigue and more smut.
I was SO excited about this book, like I've always kinda crushed on Cassian and I really love how Nesta was like ABSOLUTELY FUCKING NOT to literally all these powers that Feyre just... accepts? Like, yeah Feyre has a lot of PTSD and such and it's all like, emotional and such, but she never really goes 'nah i dont want powers'. whereas Nesta literally fights her power and pushes it down. And then on top that she's basically a courtier and she's lost her playing field before we even get to where the book begins, and then she has all of this shit thrust on her and she just goes NOPE. NOT TODAY. And cos she's older, she finds older ways of dealing with it - she sleeps around and drinks and listens to music. (Seriously I wonder how much better she would have coped with an ipod???) idk like, I've grown up with SJM, I was like 15 when I discovered TOG and i'm 25 now, and it was really refreshing being able to see a character have a normal reaction to far too much change in a short amount of time. like... she picks the shittiest apartments in town in case it all gets taken away from her, so she doesnt lose anything else. she pushes everyone away bc she doesnt want to get attached again, bc she doesnt think shes worth their time yaknow? she has 4 locks on the door because shes scared that something is going to get her, like.. thats SO human yaknow? idk like, i related hard to her, it was refreshing seeing a character be nasty becuase she can be or because she coulnt stop the habit. like... i'm a bitch when i want to be and i've just got out of a long relationship that wasnt great, and i could chose to say nasty things that would hurt him or i could leave it be. i may not hate myself like nesta, but i sure as hell felt guilty for like... everything. (i mean tbh i still feel guilty even tho its for the best etc) idk these books are like taylor swift albums for me; they're the answer to me feeling some type of way. Folklore dropped when i realised it was over, I couldnt listen to it for months. i saved a court of silver flames for after i dumped him bc i knew i needed to patch myself up and it would be a safe place to feel those feelings, i just didnt expect to feel so seen?
in my opinion in this book, sjm kinda tamlin’d rhysand. he was basically doing what timtam was doing at the beginning of book 2 - keeping feyre in the dark in order to protect her or keeping her from making the choice of whether or not she knew that she was going to die, and the baby was gonna die, AND that rhys was going to die.
I realized they were going to do the blood rite when she started training and I went back to read the dedication of the book, "climb the mountain." I had a mental break down then.
I just love your booktalks and this one was no exception! Rhys and Amren not telling Feyre about her the danger of her giving birth really made me mad. And I LOVE the House and its love for romance novels hahaha and Cassian is just so precious!
I am so curious about Eris. I think he is a little bit like Rhys and are playing a game. I've got this crazy theory about Eris being Mor's mate and that he left her at the border to give her a chance of a happy life instead of being a prisoner in autumn court. ...I also have a theory that he might be a female in disguise, with a glammor put upon him by his mom since childhood. (Also, google says Eris was the name of a godess in Greek mythology) 🤔
I absolutely loved this book, i can relate to Nesta so much. It was a really therapeutic read for me. Sisterhood between Nesta Gwyn and Emerie is everything to me 🥹 Love the video, love your energy, and you look absolutely stunning, may i add ❤️
I am so excited you posted this because I’ve been checking back probably every two or three days looking forward to this video! I should probably wait till I watch it just say thank you but I’m going to assume it’s going to be entertaining and hilarious as always. Yay!!!
i went into the book already loving Nesta; she was one of my favourite characters along with Cass (which is very convenient). I've always felt that the court was being unfair to her. When Feyre was going through her trauma, everyone was so patient and kind to her. The thing is, trauma and mental illness don't always manifest in a "convenient" way so the fact that they were so mean to Nesta when she was clearly struggling and she needed help pissed me off so much. It was legit like "Oh yeah i'm here for you as long as your trauma manifests in the way *i* like." Rhys was the biggest offender in my opinion he was literally so annoying the whole book and when he knelt before Nesta in the end i was like AS YOU SHOULDDD
Tapping into Jenna Marbles and I love it. Never usually get people to gossip about books like they gossip about the Kardashians and I'm living for it. Keep going, never quit!!
Sarah confirmed that the red falling star was Aelin!! And with the Harp they can travel between universes I think??? (It’s also taken me way too long to read this book oops)
*some potential Crescent City and Throne of Glass spoilers below (and ACOTAR)* Sarah is definitely leading to a big world-crossover event. I keep getting hung up on all the similarities between the Norse mythology words used in Crescent City and how we are introduced to Valhallan (more norse mythology) in ACOSF. AND we know the Book of Breathings (the book feyre yeetd into the void in ACOWAR) and the Walking Dead (from ToG) were in the library at Bryce's work in CC. So there is total potential for a cross-over. Another theory is that the Prison is where the Dusk Court was. I forget who said it but there was mention in ACOSF that they thought the Prison may have been an eighth court and the only solar court not represented currently in Prythian is the Dusk Court (like we have Night and Dawn but no Dusk?) and maybe the Harp attacked the people of the Dusk Court. And I wouldn't be mad if Elain was the next villain. I want her to do a full 180 and just go from flowers and sunshine to evil :D
You should find a way to read the bonus chapter, you have to!! It shows that the next book is gonna be Azriel’s story and also hints at who his mate might be and it’s NOT Elain.
I love how all over the place this booktalk is because it sums up how I, too, feel about this book 😂🤩🤩 like I've already read it twice and I'm still not okay
Omgggg I didn’t even realize that all the series have portal objects to get to other worlds I have to reread and pick up any clues. Nests killing the queen would’ve definitely shook through other dimensions!!
Wow everything that you were saying was how I was feeling, I love you're booktalks, and I also didn't expect the level of smut in this book, or the amount. I agree with the writing of smut, I wouldn't be able to write it, I don't know how authors do it, and how they look their family members in the eye afterwards, like I tried writing a semi smutty twilight fanfiction once, and I had to delete it for fear my family or teachers or someone would read it 😂
I don't know if you go back and read comments from old videos but I just finished this book so I watched your book talk and if you are still confused about the baby thing...My understanding is that typically the Illyrians do not conceive outside their race and Rhys is not full Illyrian. I think you are right that the baby was conceived in the air and at that time, Feyre morphed herself into and Illyrian to have wings which made the baby full Illyrian...which now just sounds crazy typing it out 😂
When Cassian and Azriel are sparring and Nesta is checking them out and then Nesta starts fantasizing about both of them! 🙊 that's when I knew this book was spicy 🔥 lol.
What broke my heart the most was when Nesta explains that the sound of the fire and the wood reminded her of her father’s neck breaking and Cassian realizing how many times he pushed the fires on her. Omg 😭💔
CASSIAN'S POLLEN ALLERGY 😌😭
I totally agree that Feyre should have known about her own body! Rhys and Amren really got on my nerves during this book! Loved this video!!
Amren especially
100%!
ua-cam.com/video/0Yk0fF5V3Zg/v-deo.html
@@thereaderofelfhame
Never liked her anyways but
WOW I HATED HER SM IN THIS BOOK
The whole “this is your choice” thing just caved
This is honestly the BEST character development I’ve ever read!!! I was just so proud of Nesta and I loved how Sarah had her like backtrack in her progress a little bit when Elain went to visit Nesta for the first time at the house. It showed a lot about how it’s okay to have setbacks because it’s natural. I cried so much reading this I never thought there’d be a book in this series that could top ACOMAF but this one definitely did
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Read more
“They're in a house, I'm not sure which one it is“
“We don't care about Eris“
Christine you just vocalized my exact thoughts out loud
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My favourite scene was when Rhys went on knees in front of Nesta after she saved Feyre's life ❤️ and she hugged him and called him her brother 😭
i guess i have my spoiler😀i kinda deserve it for scrolling through the comments before starting the book🤡
@@suhani2022 😂😂😂
@@naunidhkaur523 D":
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Christine: no one went into this book with Nesta being their favorite character
Me: ......she was always my favorite 🥺
SAME. Loved Nesta since book 1 ❤️❤️❤️
Saaaaaame
Same the sass and I feel like she's the only smart one
Relatable ❤️
Mine too!!!
Nesta and Cassian have always been my fave couple
The small motives in this book that kind of wove in and out of the story....the 10,000 stairs, the hand reaching out, the ribbon, the music. Amazing. (I read the last page and immediately watched your video.)
Sarah J Maas is going to have an Avengers level book series one day with all of her characters (pure speculation) and I am here for it.
oh my lord. that. would. be. so. fucking. epic. omg.....
Loll that's exactly the impression I'm having with those tidbit hints. I'm waiting for the day Sarah create an event that calls for a crossover.
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I would literally pay a stupid amount of money to read this.
YESSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!!
The rant about Nesta not bringing a bag for the harp and the size of the harp- I am dying 🤣
I’ve never been so excited for a BOOKTALK!!! Thank you for being my springboard when I read this!! I love this book so much!! New favorite!!
❤❤❤❤
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I loved Nesta the moment I read A Court of Frost and Starlight because youc ould see how lost and broken she was. I've felt like her in my darkest moments and I just wanted to give her a hug
This book left me in ruins. Some parts literally spoke to my soul and it was all so beautiful.
I LOVED the part when it was described how the mating bond was formed. Like walls of Nesta's mind letting out golden rays of light and them intervining with Cassian's... I don't know why, but it is one of my favourite scenes. And all of the Valkyrie ofc.
Me as well!! I thought it was so beautiful and intimate, so much more meaningful than Rhys and Feyre’s in my opinion
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Anyone else feel like Emirie and Mor will be a thing and then Gwen and Az will be a thing? Elaine and Lucien are still so up in the air for me though
yup
Yea I think so too but I really think Lucien deserves better at this point cause it’s been two years and shes had enough time to either reject or accept the mate bond, I just feel like she’s leading him on
I don’t think Elain and Az will be a thing because SJM didn’t have nesta change her reproductive stuff too. So it would be a repeat plot point
anyone else wondering if potentially ... elain and TAMLIN will be a thing??? and like i don't think so, but also, nesta kept talking about how elain would love the spring court, and she does love gardening... it has me suspicious lmfaoooo
@@aloneinmidnight I think she will end up with Tamlin...and Lucia will than kill Tamlin and Elain will become High Lady of the spring court
In the kingdome of ash aelin is falling through the worlds she is like a falling star and during the winter solstice party she sees Rhysand and he slows her down.
My favourite part in this book had to have been the moment Rhys kneeled down to Nesta after she saves Feyre and Nyx and Rhys and she just went in for that hug. that was everything for me. I also love how Feyre revealed that she was pregnant and everyone lost their shit and Nesta kinda just looks at her and was like "of course I'll help".
I also read both of the bonus chapters and Azriel's POV got me good. I ship him and Gywn!!!
ALSO ALSO will be calling it an Egg IPod from now on.
I absolutely loved the House, and the Gwyn, Nesta, Emirie friendship was everything to me. This whole book was so tragic and beautiful. I was waiting for so long for ur review, I screamed when I saw ur instagram post and it's finally here 😍
DONT FORGET THE TINY OVERLAP OF ACOTAR IN KINGDOM OF ASH.
**SPOILERS FOR KINGDOM OF ASH AHEAD, proceed with caution**
When Aelin falls through worlds after she sends the gods away in KoA Rhys SAVES HER! She sees a bunch of flashes of worlds as she falls through them and idk one of them might be crescent city (like this bit rings a bell but I’m not sure: “She passed through a world where a great city had been built along the curve of a river, the buildings impossibly tall and glimmering with lights”) but theres definitely a wholeeee bit with Rhys and Feyre looking at the stars and then Rhys slowing her down so that she doesn’t miss her world and it made me all hysterical when I read it.
Anyways this is the passage with Rhys and Feyre from Kingdom of Ash. Enjoy!!
“She passed through a world of snowcapped mountains under shining stars. Passed over one of those mountains, where a winged male stood beside a heavily pregnant female, gazing at those very stars. Fae.
They were Fae, but this was not her world.
She flung out a hand, as if she might signal them, as if they might somehow help her when she was nothing but an invisible speck of power-
The winged male, beautiful beyond reason, snapped his head toward her as she arced across his starry sky.
He lifted a hand, as if in greeting.
A blast of dark power, like a gentle summer night, slammed into her.
Not to attack-but to slow her down.
A wall, a shield, that she tore and plunged through.
But it slowed her. That winged male’s power slowed her, just enough.
Aelin vanished from his world without a whisper.”
Oh my God this gave me goosebumps eeeeek. I've read the ACOTAR series but haven't finished ToG from Queen Of Shadows onwards. Reading this made me want to pick ToG back up so bad.
Actually you're right about the Crescent City one too. SJM confirmed that in one of her Instagram lives.
YES!!!! I was waiting for someone to bring it up... I think she's the weird star they mention seeing, that EVERYONE thinks is a bad omen except for Rhysand, who knows she was a person bc he read her mind
I was screaming when I got to this part lol
@@goldielocks9092 queen of shadows is when it really starts getting good! You def have to keep going! 😊
I am actually really curious about Eris. I think he might be similar to Rhysand- pretending to be bad but working for good behind the scenes.
I always felt this way also.. I have not read this book yet.. I'm worried because I hear Rhys turned into Tamlin in being controlling.. And his and Freye relationship is so valuable to me.. I can't handle it if it goes to poo.. But I always felt Eris wasn't what he seemed having known what Rhys did..
@@ghouling1111 Have you read “A court of Fire and Starlight “ in AO3? It’s good enough to be canon. But you will have to read ACOSF before.
Pronunciations from the audiobook
Rhys- “Reese”
Briallyn- “Bree-Allen”
Scrying- “S-crying”
Ataraxia- “Ata-racks-ee-ah”
Koschei- “Kos-Chay”
👑
Noone's gonna stop me from pronouncing Rhys and Rhize😩
Thank you!!! I’ve been trying to pronounce her sword as Atara-xia and I just couldn’t get my mouth to say it right lol
I will fucking kill myself before I call Rhys Reese lmao. His name is pronounced like the food and that's all I will accept. I'd argue that point with SJMaas herself. I guess that's my hill to die on lol.
Did anyone else think it was weird how gwyn’s singing was described as a summoning ray of light and that lightsingers are brought up in this book? 👀
I feel like the next book is going to follow Az, Gwyn and Elain so maybe Sarah was hinting about something. I don't know if you've read the extra Az chapter but I think Az and Gwyn are endgame, and if Gwyn's a light singer and Az a shadow singer then that's pretty epic
@@minnasayehban23 I did read the bonus! That’s funny bc I thought it confirmed gwyn as a lightsinger and that the next book was about elain and az lol I hope gwyn gets a book later on though!! Her lightsinger abilities would be so fun to explore!
@@minnasayehban23 I love you for bringing this to my attention.
Also. Don’t forget the uterus fact that Gwynn is half wraith. I think so her uterus is more adaptable for wings. Elaine uterus doesn’t work that way.
@@oliviapappas3648 Haha I was so focused on the love drama that I didn't pay much attention to the light singer part. Yeah, me too! I'm so excited to see where this goes
I really loved this book too! I feel like I’m probably alone on this but Nesta was already one of my favorite characters before reading this book 😅 I was very happy with how she grew as a person in this book and I did end up rereading it right after finishing it
Same! Nesta has been my favorite since the beginning!
i also loved nesta you're not alone!!
Sammmeee I loved her cold demeanor lol
LOL your reaction to the smut is everything!! I’ve definitely read worse but was not expecting it from a former YA series. Remember when I texted you... this book is filthy ahahahahah
Christine... PLEASE READ AZRIEL’S BONUS CHAPTER!!!! It explains so much about the potential for the next book!!!
@Melissa Jayne There’s a bonus chapter in a special edition with Azriel’s POV and it hints at what’s coming next
I want to read the bonus chapter bit I don't know how to read it without buying the special edition? Any ideas?
@@aelinnoorda1090 Someone put it up on Twitter!
@@minafinnoen5280 I’ve even seen some people posting it on Instagram
Nesta complaining about getting tired of going down the steps and I am just thinking about all the steps she has to go up when she returns to the house.
The most steps I have gone up at once are 444. And I am dead every time I go up those stairs. Imagine 10,000.
I loved Nesta before reading ACOSF and i ended up adoring her with ALL my soul ❤️❤️❤️
Nesta is now my ALL time favorite character I just love her so so so much and this book was simply PHENOMENAL.
also this booktalk on poit with the feelings christine
I feel like the aspect of them not knowing that the baby would have wings to warn Feyre even before any of this was because when the Bone Carver showed Feyre their son and she let Rhys into her mind and showed him too, they both just assumed that everything would be fine and he wouldn't have wings. But I also think them having sex while flying was potentially a reason the baby was born with wings.
So I'm pretty sure for some reason Eris is Mor's mate and Rhys knows and that's why they went. But I'm not sure exactly, but like it could be and would explain stuff.
Well Mor is gay so that's never ever going to happen. The most that will happen is she'll forgive him.
@@angelapiccolo275 no she’s bi. She said she likes both but females are *more* her preference in acowar. So Eris *could* potentially have a chance if he catches feelings
I know christine was passionate about the book because I have never heard her swear so much in a booktalk😂
Also the part where she has a mini fantasy about being with Cassian AND Azriel at the same time and I was like “NESTA!!! Stoppppp no girl you read too many books”
When I got to that part, I was like gurllllll 😂 but UNDERSTANDABLE
I liked your review!
i'm still neutral about nesta, but I absolutely loved gwyn and emerie and I personally hope the next book is about gwyn and azriel's love journey!
Best booktalk ever pal! You are so right, the friendships made in this book were so special. I cried and cheered when Gwyn cut the ribbon.
"we went on a journey with a fucking ribbon" 😂😂 too true though I was not expecting to be so emotional about that
I am nervous about Rhys potentially being High King with Feyre being High Queen
I know this is two years later but I would honestly love some actual morally grey character development with Rhys and Feyre. Like their pride gets the best of them and they have to be taken down a notch, or they have marital problems. They’re too perfect!
I’m sad that they didn’t talk about Rhysand slowing Aelin down at the starfall. They talked about a unique red star but I wish they would’ve mentioned Rhys reaching out like he did in Kingdom of Ash
I loved Acosf, and the friendships, but I actually felt more of a connection to Feyre than Nesta, and I like Rhys more, like Cassian is great and everything, you're right he's just like Emmett, but I don't really feel like romantic feelings for him he's kind of like a brother figure. Rhys is more my Type with his looks and personality.
Who else imagined the stairs like the ones from kung fu panda?? Apparently they're inside 😂
Right??? In my head they were outside the whole time and then towards the end of the book it was explained a little different and I was like wait a minute wait a minute wait a minute....
literally how I pictured it!! Over here thinking "why not just... toboggan down the stairs" but its an indoor spiral staircase tf.
THEY’RE INSIDE?!!! I’ve been picturing them like the side of a cliff
2:05 You're so right about Red White and Royal Blue! Ever since I read it the first time I've just been slowly rereading it over Audible, when I'm running/driving/doing chores. It's on a constant loop haha but it takes me like a month to get through it every time. Such a good casual read
I absolutely LOVED this book!!!! I liked all the rest of this series but this was my favorite. One of the best scenes in my opinion was when Cassian just kinda got up after Nesta killed them cause she thought he had died. AMAZING! It was so so so so so so so so GOOD!!!
I’ve been living in a complete mandela effect thinking you had uploaded weeks ago and searched for it once i finished the book and was like where has it gone??!!
Omg i had the same feeling 😂 she just was filming and editing it for literary ages haha
My girlfriend doesn’t read these books but even she looks forward to your booktalks hahahah
We’ve had a blast re watching your throne of glass videos
Hearing you call Cassian Emmett just blew my mind. Just been thinking about the parallels. Rhys is Edward, Cassian is Emmett and Azriel is Jasper. They have so many similarities.
Except Rhys is less… whatever Edward was. If we’re talking about twilight that is. I honestly find Rhys a lot less disturbing than Edward, he was just so… weird to me. It’s like Sarah took all the potential Edward had and could’ve been and put it in Rhys
What about Elain? If she does end up with Azriel, she will have a problem giving birth to a baby with wings too. Did Nesta alter Elain's female parts as well, and we find that out in the next book? Or is this a prediction that Elain will end up with Lucien?
The scene when Nesta and Gwyn are learning how to improve their mental health just like Valquiries used to do and their kinda like meditating or stuff. I loved it so much, specially because I feel that I can relate to Nesta sm when it comes to have a very messy and noisy mind and finding this method truly therapeutic and relaxing was something truly special for me
In crescent city bryce refers to the book of breathings and it being in the library she works at. i’m pretty sure that’s the book from acotar
It is! Nice catch lol
I just reread HOEAB and didn’t catch this holy fuck. Sarah’s MIND
I know we’re gonna probably figure out who Elaine is ending up with and I swear Eris is going to be endgame for someone but I want to know what’s under the Illyrian mountain. She talked about the castle under the night Court mountain and the castle Aramantha had under the mountain and I want to know if Sarah just mentioned it or if we really get to see what’s there?
As soon as I finished the book, I started checking UA-cam everyday for this video. I’ve been dying to hear your thoughts lol
There’s so many little things that I loved about this book!
-I liked the humor surrounding the force field around Feyre and the guys’ reactions to it.
-I loved the scene where Cassian tells Nesta about how Rhys, Az, and he would be sent to climb the stairs as punishment when they were boys and would end up puking all over each other lol.
-I also adored the whole part about Nesta’s mindfulness practice, I relate to that in regards to mental health.
-I loved the running gag that the House loved smutty romances as much as Nesta and would tease her by constantly sending her smutty novels
-For some reason the scene where Cassian’s wine disappears as soon as she walks in the room makes me laugh. Did they think there was a chance she’d tackle him for any drop of alcohol?
-I loved how Elain found a bit more of herself in this book, even if it was minimal. It finally felt like she was an established character who was capable of standing up for herself and I love that.
THIS BOOK WAS EVERYTHING. I completely agree with you, Christine. I was way more attached to Nesta than Feyre, which was completely unexpected. I hated Nesta (as I'm sure we all did) going into this book, and now she is one of my all-time favourite Sarah J Maas characters. She really grew on me. She must be protected at all costs. I love her ❤
Reliving the feelings I had while reading this book through this review was amazing 😭💕💕💕 You know a book is great when even the acknowledgments make you cry 😂💕😭
Spoilers:
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First of all, the themes it touched were so perfectly included that I can't even process it. The mental health journey Nesta had to go through; the self-hate, the friendships, the love, the family. The sexism of the illyrians, the sexual assault, violence and rape that these characters had to work through. I can't begin to explain how important and impactful I found this read. Along with that, Nesta's character development in this was insane. I could be frustrated with her at times but by the end of it, I understood it all. I could not imagine going through what she went through. Now knowing the anger she felt, the guilt, the demons she battled, I truly understand how strong she is. Her relationship with Cassian always had my emotions at a high; whether it be in frustration or pure joy, their scenes made my heart race.
The plot of the story was so engaging as well. I am still shocked at the Dread Trove and everything to do with Queen Briallyn. Koschei is still a huge threat along with Beron and I can't wait to see how that unfolds. Most of all, I can't wait to learn more about Mor and Eris; we still have that conversation pending, and I am sure there is more to it.
The aspect of friendship in this was also a HUGE favorite part of mine. Gwyn, Emerie and Nesta's relationship brought me to tears. When they had that moment in the blood rite where they shared everything about themselves and still chose to stand by eachother, I couldn't help the tears that fell.
Feyre and Rhys finally having a baby (Nyx) and them being happy and healthy was also another one of my favorite parts. I am a cliché for happy endings, so that really made my heart happy.
I do have to say that Amren really frustrated me because she made Nesta fall back so many times by not even attempting to see her change. But I am glad they worked it out in the end. The scene in the mountains, with Nesta and Cassian (before their heart-to-heart conversation) was a little too long for my taste and took sooo long for me to read but at by the end I think it was worth it.
There is so much more to this book like Azriel as a whole (his growing relationship with Nesta, his possible feelings for Elain), Rhys almost dying (and there still being the problem of his bargain with Feyre), the scene where Nesta raised the dead, the cavin scene and Nesta going back to it, the sword's name (Ataraxia), Tamlin as a whole, Nesta and Cassian being mates, and so, so much more! But this is already a lot for a comment, lol 😂💕
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Have you seen azriel's bonus chapter?
What do you think about it?
*spoiler alert*
It filled me with such rage how callously Rhysand treated Azriel and relegated Elaine to Lucien's possession, all because of a mating bond that Rhysand himself noted, isn't foolproof.
Haven’t read the book, but I have all the previous ones. Wouldn’t rhysand be one of the first to be all “yeah you’re bonded, but that doesn’t mean you fit well together”? He himself said his parents were mates but were never right for each other. The concept of just not accepting the bond shouldn’t be so weird for him considering he prepared to accept it for himself if feyre wasn’t feeling it
@@miavika1074 Exactly. So, if he doesn't recognize the bond, and lucien and Elaine are bonded, shouldn't that rather mean that Elaine didn't have to be with Lucien at all costs. If she wanted to, she could be with Azriel.
And, even if Rhysand thought it wasn't a good idea for them to be together, he could have said so without demeaning what Azriel felt for Elaine and making it about just sex.
I was not expecting to love this book so much. I did not like Nesta in the previous books but I fell for her hard in this one.
I've loved Nesta since book 1 and I was so happy that this book came out bc nesta is such a relatable character to many people out there. There's barely any female characters written that specific way and to finally be able to fully see yourself in a character is honestly one of the best feelings in the world. Her POV was everything.
I'm so glad you said Cassian reminds you of Emmett, I've been saying that Cassian and Nesta have big Emmett and Rosalie energy since finishing the book!
We totally need to be friends! I love your enthusiasm! Your reactions and just hearing you talk about these books it’s like looking into a mirror at what I was like telling my friends about these books.
I really enjoyed Nesta's journey too!
I can't wait to read Elain's book next!!! :)
ahh i hope you read the bonus Azriel chapter eventually because tbh the acotar fandom went up in flames because of it hhhh but i loved acosf so much!! really enjoyed hearing your thoughts ☺️
If you ever want to talk about feeling like you are invading on private moments this book definitely got you covered
So excited for this!!
Edit : I’m really glad that you like acosf!!!
Me too!
My fav parts by far were the friendship moments and the house. I cry for the house k. Like i was rly not even there for the romance as usual but the girl power and the house ruled me. I'm also deeply interested in the whole Eris Mor thing and also Lucien meeting his dad is like so important for me now. I can't even k.
Baby theory.... we are the house. Watching and sharing a love of smutty books.
I LOVED your enthusiasm!! I loved Nesta from the first book (against all odds) and her JOURNEY and STRUGGLES, meant so much to me.
omg i've been waiting for your booktalk for weeks and its finally here!!!! love all the things you discussed and you really put my thoughts into words! after reading this book, everything felt so real to me, like the world and the characters because it all became so much clearer like you said! i dont think ive ever read a fantasy world that feels as real to me as this one, and this book really solidifies that.
I think they never thought of Nyx having wings didn't go through their thoughts because he'd be more high fae then Illyrian just like Gwyn not really showing much of her river nymph heritage so they probably thought he was gonna look like a regular fae and when The Bone Carver appeared as Feysand's son he didn't have wings
That's what I thought too, but Feyre conceived in Illyrian form so DUH. But yeah, the whole thing about not being able to shapeshift her own body is stupid.
@@angelapiccolo275 Yeah but I guess powers have to have limitations no matter how wierd
Not going to lie, I had a different opinion of this book. I obviously loooooove SJM but this book wasn’t it for me for a few reasons.
MASSIVE SPOILERS BELOW (read at your own risk lol)
1.)Rhys's character transformation. Honestly this is the biggest reason that this book has a sour taste in my mouth. Rhys represented such a stark contrast to Tamlin in ACOMAF. Rhys respects Feyre's as his equal and knows that she's strong enough to handle herself in any situation vs Tamlin who would “protect” Feyre for “for her own good”. That's what makes Rhys such an attractive male lead. But in this book, Sarah does a complete 180. We don’t know if he out-right lied, but we know that it was a lie by omission which is such a Tamlin move. I was almost in a state of shock when I read Rhys's scenes because it was so unlike the character we knew from the original series (especially ACOMAF). ADDITIONALLY, what made me the angriest is how everyone reacted to Nesta telling Feyre about the problems. Nesta was the ONLY one to treat Feyre like an ADULT and tell her that her and her baby's lives were in danger. Nesta is tired of Rhys belittling her and her sister and she (understandably) gets mad. And somehow Nesta is the villain? Rhys goes FULL Tamlin and threatens to kill his mate's sister when he finds out that she actually had the nerve to treat Feyre with competence. Rhys's transformation is such a negative one that it feels like an entirely different character.
2.)The whole pregnancy plot as a whole. Ok Sarah, we get it, you breaking dawn. This was a complete copy paste of breaking dawn and it kind of blew my mind how similar these plots were. Pregnant mother's body can't physically adapt to the foreign anatomy which means that the birth will surely kill the mother? Come on a Sarah. When I found out Feyre was going to be pregnant I was initially so excited. I thought that this would bs the chance in a YA/New adult series to show that women don’t just have to be the “badass warrior” to be strong. I was excited to see how SJM would frame motherhood as equally badass, but in ACOSF the entire plot line was a joke.
3.) Nesta giving up her powers. Ok Sarah, we get it, you wrote kingdom of ash. A magical fae sacrifices her ostensibly limitless power to save the lives of others, but some god-like entity lets her keep a fraction of what she once had? I don’t know if it's better or worse than copying and pasting from Breaking Dawn since she's literally copying and pasting from herself. Another reason that this was so lame is because, unlike Aelin, we never really got to see Nesta fully use her power. Aelin had her powers for multiple books and we got to see her develop her skills. Nesta had barely started showing how awesome her powers were before they got zoinked away. I thought that this was not only lazy writing, but that it was disappointing writing too.
4.)Too much smut. I literally never thought I would say this, especially in a SJM novel but there are way to many sex scenes in this book. I started getting bored with them and would skip these scenes just to get back to the plot. I like a good ~fuuuuun~ scene as much as the next person, but i don’t want a smut scene for the sake of it. If a scene doesn’t reveal more about the characters, the plot, the world, etc. then I don’t want it in the book. This is what ACOMF did so well in my opinion. We all LIVE for chapter 55, but it's not just in there so that we get a hot scene. It shows Rhys and Feyre's mating bond. It shows Feyre forgiving herself and Rhys forgiving himself. It also explains the mating bond and expands the ACOTAR world. Sure it was fun, but it was also meaningful. There’s some of that in ACOSF, but there’s also pointless/boring sex scenes that I just don’t care about.
These are just the biggest reasons that I was disappointed with this book, but I have so many more. This doesn’t mean I think it's a bad book. I love Nesta's growth and the relationships that she forms to heal herself. I like the expansion of the world and I'm excited to see the trilogy unfold. I think something that was especially disappointing was that I was so excited for this book. ACOMAF is one of my all time favorite books and is damn near perfect. This book is trying to be ACOMAF but completely misses the mark. I think the biggest thing that needed to happen with this book is editing. Nearly all of my problems with this book could have been completely cut out and wouldn’t affect the overarching story at all. Cutting out the scenes would have cleaned up the story and made this book less unsavory in my opinion. I LOVE SJM, but this book got a thumbs down for me.
Exactly. (*SPOILERS AHEAD) I felt like this book was trying too hard to be ACOMAF. Feyre’s journey was basically copy and pasted into Nesta’s, from finding powerful objects, going to the jail, finding out about her mate and sulking about it for days...I just couldn’t enjoy it, because it felt like I’d already gone on this journey. I also don’t understand how everyone loves Nesta’s character arc. What arc? She was rude to her sisters the entire time, unnecessarily jealous, rude to Cassian, and so wishy washy in her feelings. She never took a single active step to apologize to the people she knew she’d done wrong until way over 3/4 of the way through the book...and decided that she should punish herself by distancing herself from everyone (again rudely), as if that’s going to atone for her actions. And all the while she’s dealing with major depression about losing her father, whom she hated, resented, and never showed him an ounce of respect in any of the first three books. Why is she haunted by his death? And why do Gwyn and Emery say she has nothing to apologize for??? To round it out, we waited so long for Nesta to give in to Cassian...their snarky banter was utterly perfect in the second and third books, and Sarah ruined it in this book. The magic between them was lost. The long awaited mating reveal was just meh, because she didn’t take the time to cultivate that nearly tangible desire between them. It was just smut, regret, smut, doubt, smut, doubt, smut, repeat...where’s the fun in that?
@@whinniebloom yeah I think you’re totally right. This story is basically a compilation of older ideas (the recovery from ACOMAF, the power sacrifice from KOA, the pregnancy from breaking dawn, etc.). Again, it's so shocking because this is a SJM book and I expect better of her at this point. I do like many individual aspects of Nesta's recovery (the mind-stilling motif in particular) but I agree with you that she feels different at best and like a completely alien character at worst. Nesta reads as a worse version of Feyre in this story which sucks because I was looking forward to seeing how Sarah would shift Nesta's unlikeable qualities for the better (which was kind of hinted at in ACOWAR). Instead we got a retelling of ACOMAF with less intrigue and more smut.
Thank you. I couldn't even finish it. DNF for me.
Reading the shower???? How do you-? That's a superpower right there
I went into ACOSF thinking “Ohh yeah Nesta’s my favorite” 😂
I was SO excited about this book, like I've always kinda crushed on Cassian and I really love how Nesta was like ABSOLUTELY FUCKING NOT to literally all these powers that Feyre just... accepts? Like, yeah Feyre has a lot of PTSD and such and it's all like, emotional and such, but she never really goes 'nah i dont want powers'.
whereas Nesta literally fights her power and pushes it down. And then on top that she's basically a courtier and she's lost her playing field before we even get to where the book begins, and then she has all of this shit thrust on her and she just goes NOPE. NOT TODAY. And cos she's older, she finds older ways of dealing with it - she sleeps around and drinks and listens to music. (Seriously I wonder how much better she would have coped with an ipod???)
idk like, I've grown up with SJM, I was like 15 when I discovered TOG and i'm 25 now, and it was really refreshing being able to see a character have a normal reaction to far too much change in a short amount of time. like... she picks the shittiest apartments in town in case it all gets taken away from her, so she doesnt lose anything else. she pushes everyone away bc she doesnt want to get attached again, bc she doesnt think shes worth their time yaknow? she has 4 locks on the door because shes scared that something is going to get her, like.. thats SO human yaknow?
idk like, i related hard to her, it was refreshing seeing a character be nasty becuase she can be or because she coulnt stop the habit. like... i'm a bitch when i want to be and i've just got out of a long relationship that wasnt great, and i could chose to say nasty things that would hurt him or i could leave it be. i may not hate myself like nesta, but i sure as hell felt guilty for like... everything. (i mean tbh i still feel guilty even tho its for the best etc)
idk these books are like taylor swift albums for me; they're the answer to me feeling some type of way. Folklore dropped when i realised it was over, I couldnt listen to it for months. i saved a court of silver flames for after i dumped him bc i knew i needed to patch myself up and it would be a safe place to feel those feelings, i just didnt expect to feel so seen?
in my opinion in this book, sjm kinda tamlin’d rhysand. he was basically doing what timtam was doing at the beginning of book 2 - keeping feyre in the dark in order to protect her or keeping her from making the choice of whether or not she knew that she was going to die, and the baby was gonna die, AND that rhys was going to die.
CHRISTINE U DONT UNDERSTAND HOW EXCITED I AM
I desperately need drawings of all the houses of this series, can’t picture them in my head 😭
I realized they were going to do the blood rite when she started training and I went back to read the dedication of the book, "climb the mountain." I had a mental break down then.
I just love your booktalks and this one was no exception! Rhys and Amren not telling Feyre about her the danger of her giving birth really made me mad. And I LOVE the House and its love for romance novels hahaha and Cassian is just so precious!
I am so curious about Eris. I think he is a little bit like Rhys and are playing a game. I've got this crazy theory about Eris being Mor's mate and that he left her at the border to give her a chance of a happy life instead of being a prisoner in autumn court. ...I also have a theory that he might be a female in disguise, with a glammor put upon him by his mom since childhood. (Also, google says Eris was the name of a godess in Greek mythology) 🤔
I absolutely loved this book, i can relate to Nesta so much. It was a really therapeutic read for me. Sisterhood between Nesta Gwyn and Emerie is everything to me 🥹 Love the video, love your energy, and you look absolutely stunning, may i add ❤️
WOW! I've been waiting to watch this since I started reading ACOTAR! I love you so much I think this is my favourite video I've ever watched! ❤️❤️
I am so excited you posted this because I’ve been checking back probably every two or three days looking forward to this video! I should probably wait till I watch it just say thank you but I’m going to assume it’s going to be entertaining and hilarious as always. Yay!!!
And I want a house friend too!!!
i went into the book already loving Nesta; she was one of my favourite characters along with Cass (which is very convenient). I've always felt that the court was being unfair to her. When Feyre was going through her trauma, everyone was so patient and kind to her. The thing is, trauma and mental illness don't always manifest in a "convenient" way so the fact that they were so mean to Nesta when she was clearly struggling and she needed help pissed me off so much. It was legit like "Oh yeah i'm here for you as long as your trauma manifests in the way *i* like." Rhys was the biggest offender in my opinion he was literally so annoying the whole book and when he knelt before Nesta in the end i was like AS YOU SHOULDDD
I’m so hoping the next book is about Azriel and Gwyn! I need more information about Az. 😭
Just finished the book like 11 minutes ago 🤣 immediately came here to hear you gush about this AMAZING BOOK 😭🖤
Tapping into Jenna Marbles and I love it. Never usually get people to gossip about books like they gossip about the Kardashians and I'm living for it. Keep going, never quit!!
I've been waiting on this video since I finished the book! Thanks christine!
Sarah confirmed that the red falling star was Aelin!! And with the Harp they can travel between universes I think??? (It’s also taken me way too long to read this book oops)
lmao the house IS the mom friend that’s so funny!!! loved the book too!
*some potential Crescent City and Throne of Glass spoilers below (and ACOTAR)*
Sarah is definitely leading to a big world-crossover event. I keep getting hung up on all the similarities between the Norse mythology words used in Crescent City and how we are introduced to Valhallan (more norse mythology) in ACOSF. AND we know the Book of Breathings (the book feyre yeetd into the void in ACOWAR) and the Walking Dead (from ToG) were in the library at Bryce's work in CC. So there is total potential for a cross-over.
Another theory is that the Prison is where the Dusk Court was. I forget who said it but there was mention in ACOSF that they thought the Prison may have been an eighth court and the only solar court not represented currently in Prythian is the Dusk Court (like we have Night and Dawn but no Dusk?) and maybe the Harp attacked the people of the Dusk Court.
And I wouldn't be mad if Elain was the next villain. I want her to do a full 180 and just go from flowers and sunshine to evil :D
I'm excited to come back when I'm done with the book 🤩
You should find a way to read the bonus chapter, you have to!! It shows that the next book is gonna be Azriel’s story and also hints at who his mate might be and it’s NOT Elain.
Where can I read the bonus chapter? I see several people saying this but it wasn’t included in my copy!
@@ShannonLeighMusic i think if you google it, it’ll pop up! it’s also floating around on tumblr
@@ShannonLeighMusic here’s the link if you want to read it : drive.google.com/file/d/1GvQ0sKVxOzhlgbNTp60siX3-KQPQwHjt/view
YAY IT IS HERE 🥳👏🏻 I adored this book- thank you for doing a booktalk!
Thank you for making this book talk! It was amazing and I'm excited for your next book!
I love how all over the place this booktalk is because it sums up how I, too, feel about this book 😂🤩🤩 like I've already read it twice and I'm still not okay
Omgggg I didn’t even realize that all the series have portal objects to get to other worlds I have to reread and pick up any clues. Nests killing the queen would’ve definitely shook through other dimensions!!
Watching this again because i love all the positivity. You're the best.
AHHHHH YAYYY FINALLY BEEN WAITING FOR THIS REVIEWWWW!!
“why didn’t you bring a BAG?!!” HAHAHAHHAHAHAHAH
Wow everything that you were saying was how I was feeling, I love you're booktalks, and I also didn't expect the level of smut in this book, or the amount. I agree with the writing of smut, I wouldn't be able to write it, I don't know how authors do it, and how they look their family members in the eye afterwards, like I tried writing a semi smutty twilight fanfiction once, and I had to delete it for fear my family or teachers or someone would read it 😂
I need more books like this!! I just finished the whole acotar series and I'm dying!!
Same!!!!!
I don't know if you go back and read comments from old videos but I just finished this book so I watched your book talk and if you are still confused about the baby thing...My understanding is that typically the Illyrians do not conceive outside their race and Rhys is not full Illyrian. I think you are right that the baby was conceived in the air and at that time, Feyre morphed herself into and Illyrian to have wings which made the baby full Illyrian...which now just sounds crazy typing it out 😂
When Cassian and Azriel are sparring and Nesta is checking them out and then Nesta starts fantasizing about both of them! 🙊 that's when I knew this book was spicy 🔥 lol.