This isn't my first SJM book. I read a few from her TOG series a loooong time ago and I don't remember anything (eventually I'll reread and continue tThis isn't my first SJM book. I read a few from her TOG series a loooong time ago and I don't remember anything (eventually I'll reread and continue that series too). So of course I wanted to give this one a try for three billion years.
And that's where Twitter comes in.
A group of around 30 people, give or take, all got added to a group chat by a fabulous person whose idea it was to do an ACOTAR re-read/read for both old and new readers.
At the time we had over two months left to go until our start date, but the excitement never died down. Then finally, on the 19th of January it began.
Me being me, I started a few days later than expected and binged all the chapters we decided on until that point and I didn't want to stop. But I did, because you're not supposed to read every single book in a day.
For the last, what, five years, I've been hearing mixed things about ACOTAR. I've seen people get shamed for liking it and praised for bashing it. Either way I was pretty sure I'd like it, thanks to my spidey senses, and I was right.
I like that, even if I had read this book five years ago I would've loved it just as much as I do now. Me being older (and actually closer to Feyre's age) only helped me see that.
I love Feyre. There was only one time that I was annoyed with her, the rest was relatable. She's not trying to be someone she's not. She survives, plain and simple.
I have no idea what's going to happen with Tamlin, but...I like him. For now. We'll see what the big mystery is.
I just...the "red flags" about his claws/temper for example. That reads like any book that has werewolves/wolf shifters. Yup, they can be hot headed and their claws just short of coming out to rip something apart. What's unique about that? But again, I have no idea so I'm looking forward to seeing why people keep mentioning that.
Rhysand...eh? I don't see it still. Did he help? Sure. Did that redeem him a little? A tiny bit. But there's something that really irks me about his behaviour. Maybe it's his powers. (view spoiler)[ All the frigging mind control. The wine and making her dance and sit in his lap in basically nothing. Yes, I know why he did it, but she didn't want him to do it. Feyre was being tortured enough. (hide spoiler)]
Lucien is by far the best character. He's essentially what I expected Rhysand to be. Everything from his first words to Feyre was perfect. He's like a little deviant cupcake. I love him. I can't wait to see what he's going to be up to next.
The pacing was good. A few people in the group said they felt it was slow in the beginning, but I didn't get that impression at all. Maybe it's because I read so many chapters at once? I think it was pretty steady throughout.
The plot was kind of simple. Girl lives in a run down shack with uncaring family. Girl kills wolf during a hunting trip. Wolf turns out to be a fairy. Girl gets swept away to fairy-land to give her life in exchange of the one she took. Girl falls for her captor but there's evil forces stopping them from having their happily ever after.
AND YOU KNOW WHAT? I loved every second of it. The world building was beyond what I expected and then some. SJM's writing style (if we ignore the growling) is quite fetch. It's not hard to get into, but it's all interesting.
The ending made me cry, definitely not ashamed to say it. It's a partial cliffhanger. Do I mind? No.
I'm so happy I finally read this and that I don't have to wait forever for the next book, I can just start it tomorrow....more
I heard a lot of people say this book is better than the first. To me they're both equally amazing.
Feyre does a lot of growing in this one and I meanI heard a lot of people say this book is better than the first. To me they're both equally amazing.
Feyre does a lot of growing in this one and I mean A LOT. She goes from depressed love to healing to finding her true mate and (pretty much) mastering her powers. She finally finds a place where she belongs. This series has a bit of the found family trope sprinkled in.
The world building continues to be amazing and the plot builds up to a war, but things are actually happening meanwhile so it doesn't feel like a filler book before the big showdown.
Now, Rhys and Feyre. Are they cute together? Sure, they have their moments. Do I like Rhys on his own? *crickets*
It's not that I don't like him (he made me cry and smile), it's more like a "I know how it's going to end so might as well accept it" kind of thing.
He's better for her, I can acknowledge that and I see the love he has for her. I still think that *deep breath* Rhysand was given an unfair advantage over Tamlin, mating bond or not. That said, do I want her to go back to him truly? Nah, that ship sailed and sank.
If they weren't mates though...TARQUIN. He's officially my second favourite character after Lucien.
Lucien was disappointing in the few scenes he was in. I don't love him any less for it. Not sure how I feel about his own revelation at the end, I don't see the sparks.
The ending is great, it had me half fooled. Can't wait to see how it all turns out. Hopefully I'll start the next book on time :')
Honourable mention: The dreams. I love that concept, I really do. Also the splatter....more
Usually when people say a book sucks, I end up liking it, but occasionally when they say it sucks...it really does suck. Such is the case with SorceryUsually when people say a book sucks, I end up liking it, but occasionally when they say it sucks...it really does suck. Such is the case with Sorcery of Thorns.
I didn't think I'd love it, or that it would be a favourite, but I figured it would at least reach 4 stars. Sadly, it was not meant to be.
It has a gorgeous cover that drew me to it in the first place, and the premise isn't bad. It was the execution that lacked.
This was just boring all around, boring characters, boring storyline, boring dialogues and descriptions...it just never gripped me, I wanted it to be more fleshed out.
There was a point where it picked up for a bit (when she was travelling with Silas and Nathaniel) and then went right back to its slow pace afterwards.
So, I didn't hate this, but there was nothing about it that made me like it either. I think it would suit someone younger a lot better, maybe even on a middle grade level.
Honorable mention: Scrivener, that was an interesting name choice and I couldn't help but imagine the writing program every time someone said it.
I'm definitely going to give Margaret Rogerson another chance though, I think there's a good possibility I'll like something else she's written....more
I liked We Free the Stars more than I did We Hunt the Flame. The writing is better, the plot more interesting and the characters are actually startingI liked We Free the Stars more than I did We Hunt the Flame. The writing is better, the plot more interesting and the characters are actually starting to resemble a real family. But still, a lot of the book could've been cut out, especially the descriptions.
What I minded was the slowness that stretched almost throughout the whole book, excluding the ending and a few scenes here and there (mostly from the second half onwards). The book took a long while to get going, and that really shouldn't have happened since it's a sequel. Maybe this should've been a trilogy?
The Lion, however, was absolutely glorious. He's undoubtedly still my favourite character in this duology and I'm glad we got to see so much of his PoV. His existence is proof that Hafsah Faizal can write really cool characters, she just needs to figure out the right formula.
Zafira and Nasir...eh? I still don't like them individually, but maybe I warmed up to the idea of them as a couple just a bit.
The final battle was anticlimactic, but the ending itself wasn't bad.
So overall this was an improvement on the first book. A Tempest of Tea will probably be really good, if Faizal continues writing like this.
I've had this book on my "tbr" shelf since before it came out. So, it's been one of my most anticipated reads for a long time. And yet I didn't pick iI've had this book on my "tbr" shelf since before it came out. So, it's been one of my most anticipated reads for a long time. And yet I didn't pick it up in 2019, or in 2020. I decided to wait for the sequel, it came out earlier this year and I still didn't start it. Well, I FINALLY read We Hunt The Flame now. Please clap.
I think this book is both over, and underhyped. How is that possible? I have no idea, but I'll do my best to explain.
One of the main reasons why I wanted to read this so badly was the Twitter hype. For two full years (and then some) I've seen it almost every time I'd log in. A lot of my mutuals loved it and I was so convinced I would too. I'm a little sad I don't.
It was a combination of things, the writing and the descriptions and the characters.
Sometimes the descriptions were lacking and other times there were too many. A reading buddy of mine pointed out that they're a bit repetitive too and I have to agree.
The writing wasn't bad for a debut author, it just wasn't my cup of tea.
And the characters...I'll start with Altair who's one character I've had an attachment to long before I picked up the book.
He's one of the best things about this story. He's charming, funny and would've made a much better love interest than Nasir in every single way.
Benyamin is another favourite, (view spoiler)[who met an unfortunate end (hide spoiler)]. The problem with that spoilery bit there, is that I didn't feel it. (view spoiler)[I wasn't expecting to cry, but I thought I'd feel something seeing as I cared for him...it didn't happen. (hide spoiler)]
Zafira and Nasir I didn't like.
Zafira started off okay-ish and I thought it was a missed opportunity to not pair her up with Yasmine because of some of their scenes, but as the book went on I cared about her less and less. That, and, I didn't like how she treated Deen (I liked Deen) or how goo goo ga ga she went soon after meeting Nasir.
Nasir is *takes a deep breath* my least favourite character in the whole book. There. I said it. Pitchfork away. I didn't like his POV, being in his head, he wasn't a super cool assassin, he was just a whiney kid.
The whiney kid bit would be okay if he was raised as a proper spoiled prince, but he wasn't. HE IS DARKNESS, HE IS THE NIGHT. THEN WHY DOESN'T HE ACT LIKE IT???!!! I'm really mad at him.
I'm mad at the whole romance actually. It began as a slow burn, but was awkward in a lot of scenes that could've been left for the sequel. And no, I'm not talking about the infamous sword-to-throat scene, that one was alright.
You know what would've been a true enemies to lovers pairing? The Lion and Zafira. The Lion is by far my favourite character (he even beat Altair, who'd have thought?), he's what Nasir was supposed to be.
Relating to that, my two favourite chapters are chapter 64 and chapter 66. I felt those on a spiritual level and 400+ pages were worth reading just for those two chapters, I swear.
The third part is the best, it's where the real action starts. I wish the other two parts were as exciting. If they were, my rating would be a lot different.
So that explains the overhyped bit, where's the under one?
Well, even though this won't be going on a special shelf, I think it brings something new to the table. More readers should give it a chance (and fall for Altair). If the sequel continues as fun as this one ended then they have nothing to worry about....more
Cora Dell is just a normal kid. Or she was until she started visiting the Underworld in her sleep. It isn't long before her dreams turn to nightmares Cora Dell is just a normal kid. Or she was until she started visiting the Underworld in her sleep. It isn't long before her dreams turn to nightmares and Cora starts looking for a way out. But will she find one? Or is she doomed to live out her days as the Queen of the Underworld?
The first time I read this, I was around 14 years old, and I am so glad that I loved it just as much now, at 23.
Hades and Persephone retellings are fairly popular nowadays, and I have yet to make my way through them all, but this is one of the best ones in my opinion.
It's so addicting and easy to read. The characters are great (even though I wish Søren didn't exist because he's getting in the way) and it's simply magical.
I didn't have the chance to finish the story back then, but I do now and I'm so excited for it. The ending is a very cruel cliffhanger that has been at the back of my mind for years.
