A Court of Wings and Ruin

Introduction

A Court of Wings and Ruin is the follow-up to Sarah J. Maas’ A Court of Mist and Fury. This book was published by Bloomsbury Publishing company on May 2nd, 2017, 364 days after its predecessor and is the third of the series. I think this book was better than the first but not quite as good as the second. Regardless, it is an enjoyable read for me, and I do look forward to it whenever I reread the series. For those who haven’t read this installment yet, the Plot and Spoiler-Free Thoughts sections will remain spoiler-free for this book and future installments. Those looking for a deeper insight into my opinions can continue on into the Thoughts section.

If you want to stay updated with Sarah J. Maas and her work, you can visit her website at https://sarahjmaas.com/ and follow her on social media @therealsjmaas.

Plot

War has been brought to Prythian, and with the King of Hybern wielding the Cauldron against them, all seven courts must find a way to work together in order to get through it alive.

Spoiler-Free Thoughts

I can’t call the pacing of this book consistent. With war being upon Prythian, there are battles followed by recovery, planning, and researching. This leaves the action coming and going in waves, but I don’t dislike it. It suits the story of this installment better than a slow burn would, as seen in the last book. I will say that this is the spiciest book so far, but there were moments of it that didn’t feel necessary. The timing sometimes felt poor, and that tended to remove me from the story a bit, which I wasn’t a huge fan of. There was a lot going on in the background of this book, so even when the book ends, there are plenty of loose ends for the next installments to follow up with. The ones I was most interested in were those regarding character relationships.

Feyre keeps her promise from the end of the last book in this one, and it is beyond satisfying to see. As the story goes on, I like that we get to see her develop her role within the Night Court while balancing the familial relationships with her court ones. Her dynamic with Rhysand in this book only cements them as the right pair in that they work well with one another and exhibit a solid power balance within the court.

To me, the most interesting character in this book is Rhysand. He is incredibly clever, but not without fault. He does make the wrong calls sometimes, but his instincts are usually spot-on, and he isn’t afraid to own up to his own mistakes and apologize. Like Feyre, he needs to balance the familial and court relationships, and he does well with it, but there are always difficult decisions to be made, especially in war. His core character trait is his selflessness, and it’s also his greatest downfall. He struggles to delegate, which is dangerous in a war, and he is willing to give everything of himself to save his family and his people.

The characters in this book are - for the most part - well-rounded, and the microdynamics between them are incredibly interesting. It’s something I want to see explored more in future installments. The plot of this book was interesting, and the pacing suits the story, but there were moments that felt out-of-place. Personally, I prefer A Court of Mist and Fury to this book, but I do think it was better than A Court of Thorns and Roses, so I have to give this one an 8.5/10.

Thoughts

I’m always happy when books surrounding war or rebellion are able to keep me engaged. The plotting and strategizing between each character is good, and it’s interesting to see everyone’s plans come together at the end, especially the secret ones. Even before that though, watching Feyre slowly dismantle the Spring Court - while troublesome for them later on - was incredibly satisfying in the moment. Her being able to show the rest of the Court exactly who Tamlin and Ianthe are was brilliant, and it further shows how clever she is. I do think that it was a deserved revenge, but it also seemed that Maas is priming Tamlin for a redemption arc. I’m honestly not sure if this is or isn’t something I want to see, but I do want Tamlin to find some sort of peace, especially with the war being over and bringing Rhysand back at the end. While on that thought, I know some would have wished that either Rhys or Amren stay gone at the end to make the ending less clean-cut, but I am a sucker for a happy ending. While I do think it would have made for a more compelling story to leave one of them dead, I wasn’t upset by it.

Of the side plots, the three that struck me were the relationships between Eris and Mor, Azriel and Elain, and Cassian and Nesta. There is absolutely more between Eris and Mor than what we know, and I am almost more intrigued by the possibility of his redemption than I am of Tamlin’s. As for Azriel and Elain, I found it interesting that Maas seems to be pushing the idea that the mating bond can choose wrong, and that maybe Elain needs Azriel instead of Lucien. Honestly, I don’t like Elain. While I like the idea of the grumpy-sunshine style trope, Elain was so dull and annoyingly naive up until she stabbed the King of Hybern that I want Azriel with someone more vibrant. Finally, with Cassian and Nesta, that is a pair I want to see continued, and I’m hopeful that with the way this book ended, their relationship holds promise and gets developed in the future installments.

I will never forget how it felt to read the end of this book, and it rivals that of its predecessor. First it seemed that Amren was betraying them, only to come out of the cauldron and sacrifice her Fae body to save them all. When Rhysand died, I was not ready for it, and I began frantically reading to make sure he came back. I know that his return was controversial, especially when Amren’s return as High Fae occurred right after, but I was relieved. I still look forward to reading that ending every time I pick up the book.