A Court of Frost and Starlight

….2 stars. One for each gift Nesta got.

This one was better. I like seeing post war rebuild attempts and I don’t mind “Christmas” specials. What I do mind is the treatment of someone who wants to be left alone, clearly didn’t get paid what she is owed, someone with PTSD and depression being put down, and the absolute hatred of someone that SAVED a beloved member of the IC once and willingly risked her life UNTRAINED to defend him and fight against the King of Hybern. Oh yeah and Rhysand and Feyre and others being upset about giving Nesta money…you mean…THE MONEY YOU OWE HER FOR DOING HER PART IN THE WAR. THE MONEY THAT WAS PROMISED?! Yeah, I highly doubt she blew through all her earnings so fast.

Again, Rhysand continues show more to give me the ick as do all of the IC males.

I ended up having to listen to the audiobook just to get myself to not put it off for over a month. I just want better…I want something more. I want females to be treated better in this series. I’m tired of females who whole thing is based on men…surrounded by men…given power because of men. It’s EXHAUSTING
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This felt like pure filler, and not the kind that adds any emotional depth or plot setup. It’s just a long, sparkly cozy holiday read. I listened to this on my birthday, a holiday, while the city was blanketed in snow, which should have been the perfect atmospheric pairing (okay, it could have been the winter solstice, but my birthday is set). And yet… nothing. Nothing happened. There’s a bit of spice, but mostly it’s shopping, gift-giving, wine, declarations of love, and chosen-family coziness. It made me miss the war. It feels like this was written to be a seasonal palate cleanser, and I can see how some readers would melt into it. After the scale and drama of the last book, this felt disappointingly inconsequential. I show more maintain that the series could have ended with Wings and Ruin, and I wouldn’t have felt like anything was missing. Obviously, I will read the next one, but my momentum has slowed. This was fluff. If you’re reading for plot, meaning, or stakes you can probably skip this one. It feels like the barest confirmation of things already assumed at the end of the last. show less

I really liked this domestic little novella; it was exactly what I needed this weekend. The Night Court celebrating solstice and all the characters I've come to love figuring out what to buy for each other (Feyre's present to Rhysand was very predictable) was so charming, and it's the perfect recipe for some character development after three books of worldbuilding, political intrigue, and war.

Maas' depiction of trauma, specifically in Nesta and Elain, is so perfect. Nesta is...not doing well after the war and seeing her father murdered, so while her new habits are not ideal, they're understandable given her situation. I think Maas writes her emptiness incredibly well. Elain's issues are more subtle, but her heartbreak is clear, and show more being implicitly expected to eventually be with someone she doesn't care for evidently weighs on her. I suspect she's being set up for an endgame with Azriel, as he requested that everyone waited to eat until Elain arrived, and she was the only one who noticed his headaches. If they end up together, that does beg the question...what happens to Lucien? Lucien/Tamlin endgame? No, I jest...unless?

Mostly unrelated stuff: Feyre and Rhysand continue their way up the relationship escalator, armed with nothing but sarcasm and sex. They do have some sweet moments, but I have to admit I laughed so hard at the description of Rhys getting too horny while flying Feyre to Velaris (shh, don't think too hard about how that would even work). I also find it interesting when authors who clearly know nothing about archery try to write about archery. There are many types of bows, and while I'm assuming an Illyrian bow is meant to be analogous to an English longbow, anyone who's reasonably athletic and well-fed can draw one, not just super-strong Illyrian males. show less

There's not a lot of forward movement of the plot in this one, but I think that's partly why I loved it so much. It takes time away from the action to let the characters be the characters, to explore their interactions with one another, and I love that. Sure, I think it's also setting up some tensions for whatever's coming next and I appreciate that, too, but it was great to see the characters coming to terms with what happened in the last book, and also just doing day to day things, having a dinner together, ruminating over what presents to get each other for the holiday,... It was a cozy sort of entry in the series and a bit of a breather from the intensity, and I loved it.

3.9 / 5

listen. i KNOW, I KNOW - how could i rate this slice-of-life, fluffy, plotless, fanciful book above the one where a literal WAR takes place. it’s shorter, it’s completely void of action, and it arguably has zero to offer to the series over all. BUT!! i felt like the background we get on these characters makes up for it shortcomings as a book.

let’s start with feyre - the baddest bitch in town. i love feyre, and in fact i think she is the one of the only reasons this series is as well received and beloved as it is. feyre kicks ass - she’s emotionally vulnerable, passionate, interesting, sassy, thoughtful - she basically runs shit. i’ve always wanted to see more from her powers, but honestly everything else about her show more character is so *chef’s kiss* that i can’t complain. comes from a hard knock life, earns everything at every step, climbs the ladder of success and stability… you really love to see a bad bitch winning. i loved the way we see feyre painting and happy.

which brings me to my point about this book: we NEVER get to see our favorite characters win in high stakes fantasy novels. there’s always gotta be something going on. the world’s in danger, the bad guy is doing bad stuff - we never get to see characters just having a lot of DIALOGUE. just reaaally getting into a good chat. normally, i would hate a book like this, but i think i’ve become so fond of the characters at this point that this book fulfills that deep need in me to see them happy.

you will NOT like this at all if you haven’t read the previous three books. even if you have read the past books, you might find this one disappointing. but i’m taking it for what it is: a slice-of-life novella full of fan service and warm fuzzies. it’s not meant to be a plot-furthering installment - it’s meant to be a glimpse into a happy time, showing us more of the characters’ dynamics, giving us chemistry and low stakes banter.

better than the second one? no chance. better than the third one?? I DONT KNOW I JUST MAYBE LIKED IT A TEENSIE BIT BETTER. also? getting to see tamlin utterly destroyed and worthless? yeaahh that slayed. show less

I gave this a solid 10 stars because it gave me exactly what I needed after everything that went down in the last book. This one isn’t about huge battles or major twists, it’s slower, softer, and honestly feels like a warm hug from the Inner Circle. It’s all about healing, rebuilding, and reconnecting, and I loved getting to just breathe with these characters for a bit.

What made this book so special for me is how it dives into the little moments. The holidays, the banter, the quiet reflections… it’s like a love letter to the characters and everything they’ve been through. It gave me major comfort-read vibes, and I was smiling the whole time. Plus, getting little glimpses into different POVs made me even more obsessed with show more the whole squad. show less

I’m honestly not sure why I thought it was a good idea to read this book. I didn’t have high expectations for it. I used to enjoy Sarah J Maas’s novels but then at some point around the release of Tower of Dawn I began to grow irritated by her and them and began to loathe them. Maybe I was hoping to recapture my love or try to be reminded of why I enjoyed them, but failed miserably.

Here are my problems with it:
-Pretty much no plot. But given that it is a novella I didn’t expect too much of one to begin with. I guess I just hoped SOMETHING interesting to happen with 200 pages. It made the pacing so slow the entire time.
-“Mate”, “Male” and “Female”. Dear lord I hate these phrases SO much. They are so extremely over show more used. And the worst offender has to be this quote: “‘I hate to interrupt your night, gentleman,’ Gentlemales, I supposed.” WHY THE F*CK WOULD YOU THINK IT NEEDED TO BE CHANGED TO GENTLEMALES?? THAT LITERALLY MAKES NO SENSE. GENTLEMEN SUFFICES. IT JUST MAKES IT SOUND WEIRD AND CREEPY.
-The smut. There is just soooo many references to smut in this book. It’s unnecessary!! This is a problem I have had with all of her later books. The early TOG didn’t have anything close to the sex scenes we now have. If anything sexual happened it was simply implied. It wasn’t until the release of ACOTAR that all of her books began having so many detailed sex scenes and I am just not here for it. It disrupts the story and annoys the hell out of me.

The few things I did like and which makes me want to give it 1.5 stars instead of just 1:
-Rhysand, Cassian and Azriel’s snowball fight. That one part actually got a smile out of me because it was so damn cute. It was the one highlight of this book.
-Elaine and Azriel. I ship them. I just can’t help it.

Overall: I did not find it worth reading. I was bored most of the time. Thankfully it was really short. show less