#but seriously... BRING HER BACK SJM

[gwyns]

Briar, she said, her voice raw from screaming. Her name was Briar.

[nestababe]

Nesta and Cassian deserved better than what acosf gave them. So I’ve decided to make a list of what acosf should’ve had.

• Cassian Grovelling( not just Nesta. Seriously bring back the angst of ACOWAR with these two. Sjm failed terribly in that department)

• Both of them saying I love you. ( Not once in the entire book did Cassian say I love you, ik actions speak louder than words but the only action they were doing was getting down and dirty f*cking like bunnies)

• Cassian DEFENDING Nesta from the IC. This is a hill Im prepared to die on(You’d think that if he knew this entire time or even had an inkling that Nesta was his mate that he’d go absolutely feral anytime anyone said something horrible about her. Instead he had to jump on the I hate Nesta train with the IC )

•less sex. ( there I said it. I actually think there was way too much smut in this book it just dragged on for way too long for the most part. but when it came time to the most crucial moment aka their mating bond it didn’t feel as special because it was just another smut scene. Or at least for me that’s what it felt like idk about y’all)

• less of the feysand and the baby plot. ( whole bunch of reasons why that was a horrible plot device and shitty plot to put in this story specifically)

• Nesta keeping her powers. (Another plot device by sjm. Nesta loosing her powers has got to be one of the worst things ever. You gonna give us another goddess of death and then rip that away from us just so she can have babies in a book we’ll all probably loose interest in by the time that comes around dafaq please make it make sense. I get that you can’t have anyone more powerful than mr ratman but come on. Her learning to control her power and gaining back her own autonomy being able to control something for once when everything else has been out of her control for so long then ripping it away from her feels so wrong.)

•more of the Archeron sisters together. ( you know that scene in ACOWAR when they all lay together and hold each other? We deserved more healing moments like that we were getting somewhere and then yet again, the rug was ripped out from under our feet only to have it yet again 2v1 with the archeron sisters.)

•acosf og cover (this is just because I have the old book covers and hate that it doesn’t match. Think It’d be cool if they released a limited edition version with the old cover.)

Overall reading this book was a huge disappointment and made me lowkey hate cassian which sucked because I used to adore him think I’m still a bit bitter about it.

[aho-dapa]

Side note, because I'm watching a video essay that's pretty much saying everything I've been thinking about about,

With sjm's writing, what separates it from a typical romantasy not to take seriously is that post ACOTAR, the author suddenly says to take it seriously.

Feyre's Calanmai Hall scene isn't about Feyre not wanting Tamlin's advances, but that she does, she's just doing the typical romantasy protag thing of rejecting what you really desire. Think about how this contrasts with Rhysand's scenes utm, she doesn't want them and its not given enough detail, but this changes after Feyre and Rhysand get together. For example, the CoN scene. The fucking mid air thing. The telepathy sexting that can happen at anytime without true consequence. Very exhibition. Much voyeur.

This is literally sjm's fantasies played out through Feyre and Rhysand, and even through Feyre and Tamlin.

Despite how much I like Tamlin, he only really became a truly nuanced character in hindsight for me because of sjm's unintentional manipulations of her own narrative. In ACOTAR, he's also built around Feyre the same way most characters are in the first book.

He is built to fit into Feyre, he's meant to parallel her acceptance of her own desires, her own beast through him, because submitting to him is submitting to herself. That's why Feyre's themes get mixed up post ACOTAR, she loses that beast like quality to become a star to suit Rhysand. And sjm brings that back in ACOWAR with the Mirror (although it doesn't hit like it once would have because instead to fitting Rhysand to Feyre, sjm wrote Feyre to fit Rhysand).

The thing that's frustrating is that sjm is the one that is saying these are just not her fantasies on page, she's the one that brought mental health into it, brought up abuse and neglect, and handled it all so poorly.

It's this thing where sjm still wants to have the upturned-nose high ground in her books, she wants to be right, she doesn't want Feyre to be questioned or truly be in the wrong because Feyre is her fantasy. sjm likely writes Tamlin to not like human slavery, not want to be like his father, and with a self sacrificing personality while keeping his beast like qualities for the steamy parts. Because he's written to have that middle ground most people looking for that fantasy can still enjoy while not being too disturbing for our modern sensibilities.

That's why some people not looking for this find Tamlin and Rhysand's actions strange and gross, but people who already indulge in those fantasies were okay with it. And there's even people who think that ACOTAR is too vanilla (me). Anyway.

Basically, ACOTAR is not meant to be taken seriously, its literally another romance book with a fancy (?) cover. Post ACOTAR is not tho, so sjm makes a big deal about taking it seriously because she wants that middle ground with Rhysand when honestly, Rhysand could have been a dark romance ML and no one would have batted an eye. But that wouldn't work for the precedent sjm established with the middle ground, she needs that 'he's feral and sexy and toes the consent line but it's fine because xyz' in her books, and that's why the fandom is so divided. We can't decide whether or not to take it seriously or not because sjm switched up.

Her fault as a writer is that she didn't do this well at all.

I mean, this is also coming from the same woman that briefly had another one of her characters entertain their sovereign right to colonization in goodwill, so. This woman should never have been taken seriously. Unfortunately, she insists upon herself. So in order to actually discuss these books, we have to take her silliness seriously.

(Which is why I stopped because it's an endless cycle of saying sjm wrote something silly and because she's saying it's serious, now we gotta be serious about bat birthing or whatever)

Never forget how I saw a bat get birthed just to actualize how stupid the *gets shot*

[1800naveen]

Someone save me🙏🏾

The ballad of Tam Lin was ruined by Sarah J Maas and sadly, this beautiful love story had to pay the price of falling into the hands of an overrated author.

If you were to look up a video or Tik Tok explaining the ballad, there's a mf going "Acotar?" NO, YOU FUCKING DIP SHIT.

And the women who insult Tamlin's name like are you serious? GROWN WOMEN doing childish things like this. You're not in elementary anymore. You're not in middle school anymore.

You're an adult woman with bills and taxes to pay, a job to go to, a husband to deal with, and probably some bummy kids to drop off or put down for a nap.

But here you are. Sitting on your miserable ass, going online, and making jokes and comments about a FICTIONAL CHARACTER and calling them a menstrual product. And some have the audacity to call themselves a feminist. Are you saying there's something wrong with period cycles? Is that why you're insulting a character by calling them that?

I can't really talk though because I do the same towards the inner circle but I'm only a teen, my life hasn't even officially started. Y'all got more free will than I do and you're going to use it like this? You can do better.

Your opinion is not valid or important if you seriously call Tamlin that. I don't care if you like him or not, it's still a immature thing to call someone.

Put down the phone, go outside, and be one with nature. And perhaps when you're ready, you can come back with your big girl pants on. Hopefully, you're mature enough not to call someone "tampon" anymore but this is the Acotar fandom, maturity is a rare thing to be found in a group filled with halfwitted jackasses. Correction: GROWN halfwitted jackasses. (Coming from someone acts like a dumbass most of the time)

There's no need to do all of this. Just say you hate Tamlin and move on, simple as that. Go back to dick riding that racially ambiguous dictator (high lord that happens to leave the women and children of his two other regions to suffer at the hands of men) you call a "book boyfriend".

I'll be here ranting, criticizing, bitching, and complaining about this series and how sjm brings ruination to anything she touches.

(I don't wish to type in English so enjoy this Arabic rant)

أخذ الله أرواحكم ورزقني الله الصبر. سارة، ما خطبكِ يا سارة، ما خطبكِ أنتِ وإضافة العبودية إلى كل قصصكِ؟ والأيديولوجيات الصهيونية أيضًا مع مزيج من الجنيات الفاشية؟ عزيزتي، أنت ذاهبة في رحلة باتجاه واحد إلى الجحيم.

(Used translate on the Arabic part since I ain't fluent but just put it in Arabic to English, it means the same thing. Kinda. I recommend this link.)

When will she pay for her crimes?

[nobibiname]

Ever wondered why the Elucien arguments pulling out Sarah’s 2016 interview and Facebook comment (yeah that one after ACOMAF came out) are SO annoying? 🙄

Ok so I ended up in a TikTok comment section today (yes I know that was my first mistake) and it occurred to me, we are once again not on the same page about some fundamental ideas on writing. The OP argued Sarah hasn’t changed her mind on the next books &elucien and that she said so in an interview after ACOSF.

Ok, but there’s a huge GLARING problem with that.

Basically, a writer makes promises in the text. I’m paraphrasing Sanderson here (I watch his lectures for fun, even tho I don’t write cuz I’m a dork) so he was talking about the first chapter and prologue of a book, or movie… but if you’re writing a multi-book epic, then you’re probably going to make promises about plots and characters of your future books, right?

So what are these promises? Basically what kind of book it is, plot&trope hints, the tone, goals, journeys and obstacles.

Ok back to SJM: why is the argument that “she said Elucien and hasn’t changed her mind infuriating? Because she made different promises in the books. And that is what Elriels mean when we say “set up”.

I mean just from the amount of interactions, Elriel have more than Elucien.. not to mention the warmth, positivity and thoughtfulness she put into their interactions over seriously 4 books. The promises are crystal clear: there is a romance that started as friendship==plot, but she has a bond w/someone else==obstacle, and Rhys forbade it in a moment resulting in her thinking he rejected her, but he didn’t == twist.

These promises need to be addressed, resolved, fulfilled. Is there something even CLOSE to this kind of story promise existing for Elucien?

I have seriously seen people claim that Elucien are both “friends to lovers” AND “enemies to lovers”…. These cannot both be true, like come on… you’re not even sure what kind of story they promise to be? You’re not sure what kinds of promises Sarah made about Elucien?

Why are you not sure? Because it’s not in the text. My personal view is that Elucien is neither… if they happen it’s kind of worse than either trope, they’re certainly not friends, they are at best indifferent to each other and at worst resentful. Mmmm … delicious “indifferent to lovers” 🫠

On a serious note, I don’t “hate” Elucien, but SJM hasn’t made a single promise in the text that I can quote in here that would make me excited about them. He gave her gifts that she didn’t throw away…. ?? Really?… she made a half step toward him… once… no, just no! And that’s how I feel, regardless if “Lulu deserves love”… sure he does, then write a love interest that brings out flirty firey fox boy from book1 and I’m on board 🫡 ….and don’t try to convince me after 4 books of a tepid nothing that all along it was Elain. Because. I. Don’t. Buy. It.

And my last point (I swear!) why did I get my panties all up in a twist… basically this: a writer makes promises IN THE TEXT, and if what you are saying in interviews directly CONTRADICTS your actual text, then you kinda have a problem. … at that point either you’re a bad writer, or you can’t blindly trust an interview from 7 years ago, it’s outdated!

The great GRRM himself said how often his “gardening style” of writing led to character arcs and romantic pairings changing… so why don’t we start treating Sarah as an adult author, and trust the text, and not an old interview?

It also comes down to trust. You don’t wanna be left feeling like “hmmm this doesn’t feel real, I don’t buy it” it takes you out of the text, and it happens when an author messes up promise-delivery . When an author foreshadows well, and sets up the story with their promises, still manages to surprise us while keeping the promises… well I trust THAT PERSON to tell me the most satisfying story.

[acourtofthought]

Regarding Elain

"The quiet dreamer and she's got a different sort of strength than Nesta and Feyre"

D-I-F-F-E-R-E-N-T

Not only does the author address it in a interview but since book 1, SJM has made it extremely obvious that Elain is not like Feyre and Nesta.

She had looked at that cottage with hope; I had looked at it with nothing but hatred. And I knew which one of us had been stronger. (and we know the way Nesta viewed the cabin was much more in line with the way Feyre viewed it)

Two in the morning, and yet the party was showing no signs of slowing. My father held court with several other merchants and aristo men to whom I had been introduced but whose names I’d instantly forgotten. Elain was laughing among a circle of beautiful friends, flushed and brilliant. Nesta had silently left at midnight, and I didn’t bother to say good-bye as I finally slipped upstairs (Elain is living her best life while both Feyre and Nesta were over the ball, they barely tolerated it from the start).

She was a rose bloom in a mud field. Filled with galloping horses. “Don’t be afraid of them,” Nesta said beneath lowered brows. If Elain was a blooming flower in this army camp, then Nesta … she was a freshly forged sword, waiting to draw blood. (Feyre belongs in the NC among the warriors. Of the remaining sisters, who also is foreshadowed to fit in?)

Nesta and I climbed inside one of the supply caravan’s covered wagons to change into Illyrian fighting leathers. When we emerged, Nesta even buckled a knife at her side. / Elain … She’d taken one look at us in the swaying grasses outside that wagon, the legs and assets on display, and turned crimson. / She refused the knife Cassian handed her, though. Went white as death at the sight of it. / “I—I don’t know how to use it—” “I’ll make sure you don’t have to,” I said, grass crunching as I stepped closer. Elain weighed my words … and slowly closed her fingers around the blade. / But Elain had given it back—had pressed it into Azriel’s hands after the battle, just as he had pressed it into hers before. And then walked away without looking back. (SJM could not be any more direct with how different Elain approached the war compared to her sisters especially when you add in how Elain stabbed the King then backed away while Nesta marched on over and cut his head off, how Nesta takes credit for killing the King and Elain downplays her part).

Nesta had only stared at me in that unblinking, cold way. Elain had blushed, muttering about the impropriety of such things.

I laid my hand flat on the table. “I can eat, drink, fuck, and fight just as well as I did before. Better, even.” / “Fucking strangers?” Elain flinched again, her face coloring. Nesta snorted. “You’re living amongst beings who have none of our human primness, you know.”

“No, I don’t. Elain is Elain,” he repeated. “Nesta is … she’s Illyrian. I mean that as a compliment, but she’s an Illyrian at heart. (NESTA IS ILLYRIAN AT HEART AND ELAIN IS NOT, I mean seriously, that tells us all we need to know. End of story, Nesta belongs in the NC and Elain does not).

Where the hell was Elain?

Elain in black was ridiculous.

And he knew the cruelty of the Hewn City troubled her.

but wearing black, no matter how much she claimed to be part of this court … It sucked the life from her. Nesta in Night Court black threatened to bring him to his knees.

Elain wasn't part of IC business in ACOWAR or Silver Flames yet Nesta and Feyre were. Feyre and Nesta were present for meeting Bryce and Elain was not. Nesta embraced the Illyrian leathers and a weapon in ACOWAR even though in ACOWAR she claimed to have no interest in being a warrior. That last one was 100% foreshadowing people!

SJM is not laying these clues to make Elain the sole peacemaker and gentle nurturer of the IC. She's laying these clues to show us that Elain is different than her sisters and belongs with people who are more like-minded. How sad would it be for Elain to remain in the IC, always the odd man out? The different one?

It is absurd for someone who claims to like Elain to look back over the series and think she's valued in the NC as anything more than a cook and gardener. Those hobbies are all well and good but not FMC energy and not anything the members of the IC really care much about aside from a pat on Elain's head for the things that keep her busy. That fact that she doesn't belong is so clear, it's glass and SF was Feyre trying to bridge the gap with the sister who pushes her away while coming right out and admitting the sister who is willing to have a relationship with her is someone she only considers a pleasant companion.

It's fine that Feyre and Nesta don't connect on a certain level with Elain or view her differently than they view one another, relationships shouldn't be forced and not all siblings are going to be extremely close (though they can still get along). With that said, Elain deserves to find a group of people who see her as a valuable, contributing member. Who don't see her as a last resort and who regularly include her in important Court business. People claim Elain was pushed to the side for Nesta and that's why she was absent in SF but Az got to do important things in SF as a side character. SJM always leaves room for side characters to play an important role in things even if it's not time for their own book.

Elain also deserves to find people who don't choose violence as a means to an end (no shade on the IC for their methods but that's not who Elain is).

Quiet dreamers don't wear daggers that they returned "and didn't look back" strapped to their legs. Quiet dreamers don't wear black when it sucks the life from them. Quiet dreamers don't sneak around in the shadows when they prefer the light.

There's already two sisters and Valkyrie who live that kind of life in this series and when the author tells us Elain is DIFFERENT, I'm not sure why people try to copy and paste Feyre / Nesta / Gwyn / Emerie over her personality.

[thecatsaesthetics]

The magic language bean in CC3 is another reason why I cannot take the pregnancy arc seriously.

In SJMs universe you have a magically solution for literally everything.

Cassian’s guts hanging out - magically pop them back in

Shredded wings- magically make them grow again

Lights - fae magically lite lights

Death - get all the high lords together and they can bring you back

Don’t speak the language - take this bean and it will be google translate but magic

So when SJM introduces a plot line where Feyre cannot be saved through any of the magic they have it’s just laughable. Especially over something like a c-section, the fae came up with a magic language bean but never in the thousands of years needed to preform a c-section?

It’s laughable. It also proves how much of that storyline wasn’t about Feyre, Rhys, or conversations about bodily autonomy. It was a plot device, SJM used it to ensure Nesta got to her lowest (after she told Feyre) and to “redeem” her (saving Feyre). And that’s what’s so frustrating about this storyline. Feyre being in the dark isn’t a criticism or an indictment on the IC, it’s to just further Nesta’s storyline along.

And every other problem in SJMs world… well we get magically solutions for them.

[open-at-the-close]

Initial thoughts after reading HOFAS

There is a shit ton of information in this book and I had a lot of feelings and I'm sure I forgot plenty of things throughout the 800+ pages, but here's a start.

SPOILERS AHEAD.

First things first: all hail motherfucking Ruhn. Ruhn is hands down, without a doubt, my favorite character ever written by sjm. Honestly, he's my favorite character ever written by anyone at this point. He is the absolute best, kindest, best brother and friend anyone could ever ask for. There were moments that I feared for his life. I thought I was going to throw up when Baxian bit off his fucking hand, and when the prince of hel said he was selected as the one to die I vowed to never read another sjm book if he didn't make it. Phew, glad we dodged that one guys because I don't know if I could have upheld that claim. But seriously, this book only made me love him more and I'm thrilled at his happy ending.

On that note, basically everyone made it through this book. I mean yeah, Cormac sacrificed himself and that was sad, and jessiba traded her life, but I mean she had 15 thousand years. Everyone I care about and their friends and family made it. I am shocked. I fully expected Tharion, Baxian, maybe Ithan, or either Flynn or Declan to die. And I was bracing myself for the heartache, but they literally all survived.

Speaking of Ithan...what the hell even was that? His storyline is so strange and roundabout to me. I already thought it was weird and unnecessary that they through him loving Bryce into CC2, then he gets offered a spot as alpha, doesn't want it.. saves the mystic wolf, fucking kills her.. tried to bring her back, turns her into a reaper.. still tries to get people to follow her, even though he doesn't want the Fendrys to lead anymore and basically everyone is hinting for him to just do it himself, but no, he doesn't want to lead...and then poof he's not just an alpha he's the fucking prime. Okay pup. I like his character, sort of, but that storyline is weird.

Where the hell was the dragon the whole book? I assume Tharion's book will be the next one and we'll get some answers on that.

Speaking of my poor little Mer. His life is depressing as hell in this book. I fully didn't expect him to make it because, man he just kept taking losses. Here's to hoping he gets a better story in the next one.

I wanted more from the world merging. I loved Az and Nesta being Az and Nesta, and I loved this book, but I was annoyed with Bryce for her entire trip there and she kept making stupid decisions that led to her being on terrible terms with them and I didn't like that. I do appreciate that her and nesta ended on better terms though.

I feel like they just casually glossed over the fact that Rhysand and Bryce are basically distant cousins. He is a descendant of one sister and Bryce is a descendant of another, and that wasn't addressed at all. Neither was the fact that Ruhn looks just like Rhysand. Maybe I'm being greedy about the world collision, but I just wanted moreee.

Speaking of world colliding if we don't get a TOG spin off out of this she is just being cruel. The shifter world. Urd = wyrd. The drawings in the caves. Lidia's son is literally named after Brannon! I mean come on. Give me the unfinished stories of TOG.

I'm sure there is more I want to say, but that's all that is coming to me at the moment. Also, in case it wasn't clear, I really really loved this book.

[checkoutmybookshelf]

Its 10 p.m. Do You Know Where Your Terrasen Heir Is?

Celaena Sardothian has succeeded; she won the assassins' competition and is now working as the King's Champion. Well. On face value, she is, anyway. Dorian is beginning to understand that being heir to his father's throne is going to require him finding and using his backbone, and Chaol...is having like six different morality and loyalty crises and is smart enough to put puzzle peices together but not secure enough in himself to make good choices. Basically, our three POV characters in this book are starting to lose the comfort of their facades and positions and are going to have to figure out where they stand in a world of shifting geopolitics and magic that was supposed to have disappeared ten years ago. Let's talk Crown of Midnight.

This is you SPOILER WARNING. Below the break there will be SPOILERS. Be warned.

So there were things I absolutely adored about this book, and a couple of things I fully yelled down the internet to friends about because WTAF??? And I continue to be absolutely floored that SJM moved FROM the Throne of Glass Series TO A Court of Thorns and Roses, because TOG shows competence and an understanding of how to effectively meld character and geopolitics to move the plot along and ACOTAR...has the specialist Bat Boy ever. But this post isn't to slam ACOTAR, it's to hype Crown of Midnight.

Possibly my favorite early reveal in this book is that Celaena has been staging the deaths of everyone the King sends her to kill before getting them out of Adarlan and pulling appropriate-ish heads and other body parts from charnel houses to "prove" her kills. The amount I adore "Professional Assassin Refuses to Kill on Demand" is high, and Celaena taking what should be her blood money for murdering people on demand but is actually her reward to herself for not killing people and going ham on pretty clothes, shoes, books, and jewelry is just A+. The layers there are just incredible. Celaena is positively reinforcing her hella risky but morally right choice with stuff that makes her happy. But from the King's perspective or anyone who doesn't know she's not killing willy nilly, it just reinforces the murder Barbie aesthetic; she looks hella competent at the murder but sufficiently airheaded in other areas and nobody suspects her of being smart enough to be pulling a subterfuge. I adore this, and I also adore that Celaena can be, as Jake Peralta says, two things. She's allowed to be HELLA scary competent in the assassin business but she can also like pretty dresses and sparkly shoes. Murder Barbies are wonderful, is what I'm saying.

This gets a little complicated when Celaena tries to bring the sister of her heart and the man she loves into her little personal rebellion against the King's Champion role. Chaol is absolutely horrified because by the time she tells him, he's head over heels in love and his nightmare is the King ordering him to kill Celaena. Nehemia interprets this as Celaena being rebellion-curious, which for a seriously good-sized chunk of this book she is vehemently not. Nehemia calls her selfish and a coward, and this really does a number on their friendship, especially after rumors that the lost heir of Terrasen, Aelin Galathynius, is making waves and setting up a rebellion.

On top of ALL THAT is Celaena's next target: Archer Finn. She knows Archer from back in her days as Adarlan's Assassin, and from minute goddamn one, this man is more trouble than he's worth. He is WHINY, he wants his MONEY, he wants more TIME...Honestly by the second time he's bitching and moaning about the conditions under which Celaena is willing to smuggle him out rather than straight up murder him, I was ROOTING for her to kill him. Once it turns out he was actually tied up with the rebels and was responsible for Chaol's kidnapping and Nehemia's death (put a pin in that, we're going to come back to it), I was extremely ready for her to stick a knife in his squishy spots.

Chaol also managed to slide down my list of favorite characters this book, because the man is HOPELESSLY tangled in duty, suspicion, love, and a total inability to recognize that some things cannot be rationalized away into being ok. He's been falling for Celaena since book 1, but it seriously does not take long after they finally do sleep together for their relative positions as Captain of the Royal Guard and King's Champions (officially) and lapsed heir of Anielle and missing heir of Terrasen (unofficially) absolutely fuck up their entire relationship. The fall is helped along by Archer kidnapping Chaol to orchestrate Nehemia's death, but then Chaol goes full-on Captain on Celaena afterwards and has been keeping secrets from her in the meantime, so the trust they had is well and truly shattered. Although that doesn't actually stop Celaena from handing Chaol the information he needs to put it together that she is Aelin Galathynius, so apparently she still trusts him that far.

Between the interpersonal stuff, Celaena is still working on figuring out wyrdmarks and the tomb below the palace. She gets bare minimum help from Elena and Mort (everyone's favorite magic doorknocker with an attitude problem), but eventually she does sort them out enough to be able to open portals and work spells, with absolutely terrifying results. It also reveals to both Dorian and Chaol that Celaena is at least part fae, but she cannot take her fae form in Adarlan thanks to the King's use of wyrdkeys to muffle all magic except his own...and Dorian's.

Poor Dorian has just the worst time in this book. He finds out he has hella powerful, extremely uncontrolled magic, and spends the whole rest of the book panicking because nobody can teach him how to either control or hide it, and he is convinced (rightly so) that his father will murder him if it becomes known that he has magic. Luckily, Celaena is on his side there, and murders Baba Yellowlegs (*deep sigh* put a pin in this one too, we'll come back to it) to prevent the secret from being sold to the highest bidder.

Overall, the messiness of the interpersonal relationships in this book is absolutely delightful. People make mistakes, mistakes have consequences, and emotions are messy and complex in ways that affect both the characters and the geopolitical plot aspects of the book. It was also just REALLY fun to read through and watch everything go to hell in a handbasket in a way that felt motivated and deeply connected to the worldbuilding.

That said, this book was not flawless, and there were two key things that I really had problems with: Baba Yellowlegs and Nehemia's death. Baba Yellowlegs is objectively the first instance in the Maas-verse of what becomes a habit for this author that drives me up the goddamn wall. I have no issue with allusion to the mythology of our world in fantasy novels. And Baba Yellowlegs, in defense of this allusion, is built into the worldbuilding of TOG far more effectively than the Seraphim and Myrmidons of ACOTAR. But there seems to be a pattern of Slavic mythology being used only for evil characters that I don't love, especially when Slavic mythology tends to be significantly deeply nuanced and multifaceted. I do not love that all of that nuance and complexity and the sense of ambiguity in general is collapsed in favor of "evil witch in the woods with bigass yellow chicken legs." And this is pretty consistent in the Maas-verse, so while I might have been willing to let this slide on its own, it's representative of a pattern I'm not a fan of in SJM books in general. Also...THE LEGS WERE ON THE COTTAGE. Something about "Baba Yellowlegs" was just viscerally irritating to me and I hate it.

The other issue I took with this book is that it full-on fridged the single female POC character. And frankly it's not even subtle. Nehemia full-on asks Elena about it, and makes the decision to die specifically to galvanize Celaena into action. I genuinely hate that Nehemia self-fridges here. Fridging is, as Red from OSP says, "such a Fuck You to a character." Like, I was here for the Celaena and Nehemia start a rebellion show, but noooooooooooo, apparently that was less interesting than Celaena adding ANOTHER dead friend to her heart. This also full-on killed the racial diversity in the book, so we're back to an all-white cast, and that just adds a bad taste to an already bad trope. That said, I'm objectively less mad about this than I was at the fridging in Battle Ground, even if it does take the ONE female friendship that I was so enjoying and wreck it.

Oh, and I can't forget to mention Fleetfoot, the goodest girl ever. I absolutely adore that Celaena has a pupper, and Fleetfoot just adds a lovely human element to Celaena. There didn't have to be a dog, but I adore that there is one. And not gonna lie, I had basically the same reaction to Chaol leaping through the bigass demon portal that I did when my sister yote herself off our deck to stop our dog from trying to make friends with a moose: A combination of "WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK ARE YOU THINKING????" and "Obviously we save the dog, it's family".

So overall, I am thoroughly enjoying the Throne of Glass series, and I shall be continuing my SJM reads.

[shi-daisy]

Chapter 13 and 14 have me reeling omg ma'am! 😭 The fluff 💗 the twists😱 the smut 🥵 We been blessed! I love how Tamlin is finally getting his healing arc/found family/Lucien romance because the way you write our boy is so cuteeeee!!! The flashbacks were adorable, Lucien is so handsome and adorable and I need both of them to be happy and cherished forever. Goodbye SJM canon this is what's canon for me now!

Few questions tho, given that you've named all the other 'nameless' characters like the Vanserra family, Tamlin's family, and other secondary characters is there are a reason why you haven't named Rhysand's family? Like is it because you're looking for a fitting name or a story reason?

Also, given that the new Dusk Court is seemingly a mix of Greece and Japan do you have headcannons for the other courts? What would Spring, Autumn or Winter be?

Finally I can't wait to see more of the Njght Court rebellion. After the whole Dusk reveal I'm excited to see their reactions and maybe backstory, and them with the Valkyries because Gwyn and Lunara would be such a cute friendship. Also Grim is best boy I love this man he's had one scene and now I need a prequel we stan himbo dad warrior in this house! He's what Cassian should've been!

Speaking of, Nesta needs to come back and read everyone for filth! Book 2 might be all about her but she so fun to read here too, especially as Tam's sister (they'd be cute as a ship too but platonic siblings Nestlin is life)

Anyway so sorry for the long message, I love your fic and I'm cheering you on! 💗

Aaaaaaaaa!!!! Anon c'mere and let me hug you! You're so sweet! Thank you so much!!! 🥰🥰🥰 it's been a joy to write this fic and while I already loved Tamlin and Lucien both as individuals and as a ship before, thanks to the fic they've gone up to otp status in my heart. I'm so excited to keep bringing you my boys and their adventures be it sweet and fluffy or high stakes.

Okay so to answer your questions, the reason I haven't named Rhysand's family (or the other bat boys family) is less interesting that twist a or story and has more to do with spite. I am spiteful AF when it comes to the page hogging bats and I refuse to give them any once of development or thought other than antagosnist. So I have zero intention of naming any of those characters because I know SJM would grant them names before the Acheron parents or the Vanserras or any other more important character. So no, I'm just a petty spiteful slug in that case. Sorry to disappoint.

Glad to hear you cought the Greece/Japan mix invented for Dusk. Given that Night seems to be based on Greece along with Middle East at least from what little world building we were shown I thought it would be cool to have them have Greek influence due to Night's colonization but also retain the Japanese inspired culture and aesthetic that was theirs before their fall. I have some ideas for the other courts but these are just headcanons.

Spring- Scottland, France

Summer- Kingdom of Hawaii, Polynesian, Caribbean

Autumn- Spain, Ireland

Winter- Russia, Norway, Korea

Day- Madagascar, Kenya, Roman Empire

Dawn- India, China, Vietnam

Dusk- Japan, Greece, England (Gothic period)

Night- Greece, Middle East

You shall get more Night Court rebellion content soon, I love this group and trust me you haven't met them all yet, lots of peeps want Rhys gone. Gwyn and Lunara will be good pals don't you worry, priestess stick together and I really want more Gwyn she is a delight. Seriously considering a prequel with them at some point.

Funny you mention Grim, he's the favorite so far out of the Rebellion oc's and while I love this precious edgy himbo he is not of my creation @maplesamurai made him as an NPC for one of our D&D campaigns and I've been obsessed with him since then (that version of him and of D&D Lunara are also a couple, mates in every universe baby!) So thank him for the best boy and best himbo. Cassian's got nothing on the best dilf!

Nesta too will get more page time, I'm just keeping from adding too much before her own book, while her healing is mostly happening offscreen and she will be stable by the time of book 2 girlie will have stuff to deal with later that I need to put off for now, but do expect her to get a good moment along with the rest of the squad. Also yes platonic Nestlin for life! They'd be an awesome ship, but as siblings they're a winning combo. Eris look out Nesta now has an older brother to keep an eye on ya once you're official!

Don't ever worry about long questions anon, I live for comments and asks and any attention so I'm absolutely delighted that you sent me this and so grateful you love my silly fix it fic! Thanks so much and I hope I've answered your question! 💙

[sarahnotjmaas]

Kingdom of Ash

Struggling to get into this one

Awww Rowan and aelins babies

This book feels like all my sweet babies are grown up 😭

Omfg is Yrene pregnant?? Is this the book they all have babies? Idk if I’m gonna like that

Dorian is gonna learn how to shift!! Wait last fall? This all happened so fast! 8 books of drama in like two years?? Jesus

I’m 100 pages in and needing more!! The last two books ended with so much action to be had it feels like nothing is happening!

Okay Manon is looking for a way to connect with the Cochran and her great grandma literally told her ‘we got our fire cuz Brannon GALATHYNIYS gave it to our queen your great great great great great grandma’ and you’re literally allied with Aelin Galathynius….. I read that and said ‘whoop there it is’

Yay Aelin is back!! Taking her scars is FUCCKKKED

I have been slacking on note taking but I’m like 400 pages in now and Aelin and Yrene finally met!!!!! I’m so ready for Aelin to start kicking ass again!

Oh and I hope Lysandra is okay….

So many story lines finally coming together!

Queen of witches🥹

Okay I’m getting sick of Aelin not using her power!! People are DYING Aelin! Get it together miss ma’am

When is it gonna be revealed that Elide had dope powers? I know it’s gonna happen

Okay Elide your man just got cut down, now would be the time to be a powerful badass

What a stupid reason for Aelin to not be using her powers. You’re literally at war lol

Manon and Dorian always get me!!! Ugh she loves him and just wants him to stay and not sacrifice himself!! Me toooooo!!

Forget any bad thing I’ve ever said about Elide and Lorcan, they’re precious 😭😭😭

Why doesn’t Yrene use the tower to cure all the valg

Don’t ask me why I go over huge plot points and don’t feel the need to document my emotions but Lorcan gives Elide a foot rub and I’m 😯🤭📝✍️ But seriously me too girl, a man giving you a foot rub is sensual as hell iykyk lol

The way that could’ve been so hot and SJM just blue balls the shit out of the reader. It’s fine I’m fine. She just got my heart racing just to go into one of Aelin’s fucked up nightmares 👍🏻 cool cool cool

Aelin and Dorian have all 3 word keys…

No one has died yet and I don’t want anyone to!!! I’m so scared I have 250 pages left, I know what feelings are coming for me I just don’t know why yet wait did Dorian learn how to use portals from Maeve!?!? Could he transport the army. My boy is the most powerful mf in the books

Not Abraxos. Bitch I’ll throw this book out the window. PETRAH!!!!! Bitch that was So badass fuck Iskra

Wtf!!!!! The entire 13!?!? No I fucking can’t wtf!!! Seriously what the fuck

Waaaahh😭Dorian and Chaol

They’re not wasting time on a vote… really?

I’m hyperventilating reading this unfold. Please don’t kill Dorian or Aelin for this stupid gate

‘My name is Aelin Ashryver Galathynius and I will not be afraid’ WAAAAAAHH 😭

The king saving Dorian and telling Aelin her parents are proud 🥲 I’m not ok

Snow capped mountains under shining stars. Where A winged Fae male stood beside a heavily pregnant female, gazing at those very stars. 👀👀👀👀

Wow Rhys saved her

Chapter 100 wow I’m so proud of myself

So quick recap: Stones are gone no longer in play and gate is shut meaning erawan can’t ever return to his brothers of bring them to him. BUT he and maeve are still strong scary muthafuckas who have like 100k soldiers a bunch of witches and 6 spider fuckers cool 👍🏻

Oh no Murtaugh

It’s about time Lysandra and Aedion! You’ve literally lived eachother for like 4 books now

Aelin has missed her entire war. It’s literally her war on her land and she’s been absent for like all of it.. I’m glad she saved Anielle but her own home needed her weeks ago

Darrow naming Evangeline his heir got me all teary eyed and shit

Omfg Gavriel!!!! No no no why do I even read SJM books they just hurt me

All the battle scenes are so bleak, they’re getting smeared in this war!! I don’t see how they’re going to pull through tbh I’m waiting for a big Aelin scheme but idk if I can take another 100+ pages of them getting they butts whooped

Ugh ‘And she will not be afraid’ that’s gonna stick with me forever

I’m so close! They did it! Chaols reading a letter from his mom and his wife literally saved the world 😭

I’m unwell.

[shadowsingcalore]

Not sure how this ended up on my dashboard, but I'll give you a genuine answer.

Because their plot lines don't overlap, given Elain’s ties to Koschei, his lake, Vassa, Lucien, and the Autumn Court and Day Court by extension.

Azriel is tied to Ramiel, Illyria, the history of Enalius, Truth-Teller, the Prison via Nesta, and the Valkyries as well.

And because trying to squish both their development into one book while resolving all those plot lines sounds shitty. One of them would inevitably take a back seat. It makes sense that, like Nessian, one character in the pairing has done further healing and growth to help be an anchor for the other character. Cassian did have growth, but not as much as Nesta, so he was able to be her anchor. Elain and Azriel both need anchors, and they can not be that for one another. At least, not without making me shut the book and just read a summary.

I don't want a back seat for either of them. I want their full stories notably separate from one another and thus, without one outshining the other.

Enter...Lucien and Gwyn! Both tied to the individual plot divides, and with their own character growth progress notably different than Elain and Azriel’s.

What the real debate is how much CC3 will change the path forward. If Koschei remains the big bad, then it thematically makes sense for him to be the last issue to deal with, and be Elain’s villian, how Amarantha was to Feyre and Briallyn was to Nesta. And I've seen people mention it could be fitting for the series to start and end with an Archeron sister, and I'm inclined to agree. Thus, leaving Gwynriel as the penultimate book.

If Koschei does not remain the big bad, and instead it becomes the Asteri, it makes sense to eliminate the threat on Prythian first, then go out to inter-world travel and deal with the Asteri before they can descend on Prythian again. Enter Azriel, the Valkyries, probably Merril and Rhys for the final book, and Elucien for the penultimate.

And don't bring up Vassa or Vassien. There's no scenario where I will take Vassien seriously as anything other than a convenient way to get Lucien removed from the equation. You can tell me he's laughed or blushed with her and lives with her all you want, but all that shows to me is that Nezriel should be a more popular ship, since they meet all that romance criteria Vassien does, and would be a "forbidden romance", too. You can tell me the lord of fire and the firebird all you want, but the Clever Fox Stares Down Winged Death didn't make Rhyscien endgame. You can bring up the Swan Lake retelling, but there's an Eastern European retelling of the Death of Koschei the Deathless where Ivan's three sisters marry three kings of the sun, moon, and the wind, a potentially clear parallel to Lucien, Rhys, and Cassian. Especially if Cassian becomes High Lord of Dusk alongside Nesta, and that ends up being a throughline to "Prince of Bastards" becoming the High Lord of Dusk, and the symmetry of all three sisters becoming the High Ladies of Night, Dusk, and Day.

TL;DR: An Elriel book sounds short-sighted for a relationship we believe to be shallow, undermining both world-building around mates as well as the clear divide in current issues to tackle, (similar to Empire of Storms and Tower of Dawn, the division of those necessary plot points requiring two full novels) which would lead to rushed and poor plot progression, which we think SJM can do better than.

There's your answer. ✌🏻

So if I'm understanding this correctly...

Gwynriels are making post after post insisting that Azriel will be the next MMC because he got the BC POV, and his recent cameo in HOFAS

Eluciens are making post after post insisting that Elain will be the next FMC because she's the last Archeron sister and she has more development than Gwyn so far....

And yet, when Elriels say "congrats, y'all are both right! It's Elain AND Azriel's book"

Suddenly... that is something that has "zero evidence and is delusional"?

How is it delusional if y'all are insisting both Azriel and Elain have enough development and groundwork to be setup as the next MMC and FMC??

[nikethestatue]

Finally finished HOSAB last night

SPOILERS Below 

Things I liked and disliked:

Almost utter lack of otters

Why? They were the stars of CC1

Way less Syrinx as well, and why? Everyone loves him.

I have a hard time with the Bryce and Fury/Juniper so-called ‘friendship’. It gives Bryce nothing. They pretty much abandoned her after Danika’s death. They usually just get pissed off at her or ignore her, and this ain’t friendship. To me, Juniper is especially annoying with her passive aggressiveness. Anyway, that relationship is crap.

Compare it to the AUX, and how Flynn and Dec and Ruhn deal with each other, always have each other’s backs, crack jokes, and support one another. They even accept others into their circle. They put each other in danger, knowing that their friends need them.

Quinlar fizzled. 

I think SJM wanted to bring back the Rowan and Aelin vibes--with Bryce being similar to Aelin, and oh-just-so-smart, with great strategic planning abilities and just innate understanding of very complex situations. Hunt, it seems, was supposed to have been similar to Rowan--a warm, supportive presence behind Bryce.

A few problems with that--Bryce isnt Aelin! Bryce couldn’t even read her bestest friend in the whole world, with whom she spent day and night, and yet had absolutely no idea what the Hel Danika was up to--the most important things in Danika’s life were kept away from Bryce and Bryce didn’t suspect anything. (This, frankly, is a weird relationship too, which I can’t wrap my mind around, because it’s based on so many lies and deceptions), but I absolutely cannot, CAN-NOT seriously consider that Bryce would be able to strategically plan anything, have any insight into complex situations, and have a winning strategy.

The majority of the book is just Bryce saying ‘no’ or ‘we are doing it’ and amazingly, everyone just .... does it?

Usually with disastrous consequences.

Bryce is a 23 year old party girl, with little experience in anything--you are telling me she can become this mastermind? based on WHAT? That was the most unbelievably ridiculous part of the book.

Aelin was trained as an assassin since she was 11, she planned complex operations, she was in a concentration camp by the time she was 18. Bryce snorted a lot of coke, and was something like an admin assistant at an art gallery. 

Yeah, SJM really got into her own head there...

Which brings me to Hunt. Hunt literally did NOTHING the entire book. He walked and talked, but a 500 year old guy can’t influence a 23 year old? Just goes with whatever she says? It was just ridiculous. He is supposed to be this general, who led armies, and I don’t think he can plan a trip to the grocery store. I dont know. He was terribly disappointing.

Ithan was interesting and I liked his part in the book. 

I liked most of the newly introduced characters--Baxtian, Cormac, Day, etc. They added depth. 

Tharion died in a watery grave of a non-story. Also, his ‘defection’ storyline is just...not good. It maze zero sense.

Day/Night and Ruhn is general carried the book. Theirs was the most interesting relationship. 

Also, shadow boy and a deer? Come on. Elriel heart is happy.

Their intimate scene was the hottest in the book.

Finally, enough with the whole ‘ everyone is so attracted to Bryce!!’. It’s seems like SJM is trying to convince herself, rather than the readers. Less sweaty smelly thong scenes--maybe it will be easier to convince us then. 

I don’t know, it just wasn’t very believable that all these men would be so into Bryce. You could just be a good friend and a fascinating woman, without every male dry humping your leg. 

Anyway--these are just first thoughts about the book. Also, Emile and Danika storylines--oh gods. 

[highfaelucien]

While on the topic of wishing sjm had done something different for her characters, I really wanted something more for cassian. For example, cassian’s wings going from being completely ruined in the end of acomaf to being 100% healed in acowar made no sense to me. I think it would’ve been an opportunity for the growth of cassian’s character to see him go through the loss of losing the ability to fly and instead retrain himself to be a warrior in other ways and find other things about himself that prove his own worth to himself. Given the fact that cassian’s confidence is aligned with his ability to protect and serve others, it just would have been sooo good to see him overcome his grief and become even stronger of a character. And how wings, in general, are a sense of male pride among illyrians. I think this would’ve been the perfect way to write cassian and have him break away from his own idea of masculinity. He could have redefined what it meant for him to be a Man ™. Ugh, it just could have been so GOOD, imagine the character we could have gotten from him.

Listen, after ACOMAF, when this happened, EVERYONE was buzzing about this. Most people thought he wouldn't outright lose his wings permanently, but there would be a LOT required.

And then ACOWAR came and approximately nothing happened whatsoever. Oh he had to be healed. the healer had to rebuild his wings. he had to do strength training every day. But fundamentally: not a sausage.

Personally? I think Maas chickend out. I think she was unable to commit to taking Cassian's wings, or figuring out how to write him as anything other than what she's established him as: fun jock man who likes to hit things real hard and make dick jokes sometimes.

Having to see Cassian vulnerable? Having to see him broken, and struggling, and having to reevaluate his entire life and self-esteem and sense of masculinity would have been an incredible option for a character arc.

Most of the theorising/Nessian fics involved Nesta helping him. The two of them being broken/fundamentally altered by their experiences in Hybern - she being killed and Made with a dark power, Cassian losing his wings.

There was expected bonding over that, peeling away the masks they both wear to discover the softness underneath. The two of them being able to reach one another, because of their bond, in a way the others could not. It produced some pretty epic stuff, honestly.

And how badly I wanted that I didn't FULLY realise until the disappointment of ACOSF, when it hit fully.

Because instead of stripping Cassian back and seeing the tactician, the strategist, forcing him to put his other skills to use, to develop those skills, rather than 'smash with sword and ask questions later'. This man is a General. All the combat training in the world doesn't let you be good at this job if you can't command, if you can't use tactics, if you can't strategise.

And THIS is where I wanted to see Nesta. Nesta, the woman who calculated how many ships would be needed to save the humans of Prythian. The woman who looked at Greysen's manor and assessed its capabilities and saw a prison. The woman who devours history novels, who has a tactical, cunning mind. Who has never been a warrior or a creature of brute strength or physical abilities.

THIS is how I wanted to see Nesta evolve. This was how I wanted to see her develop. I didn't want her taken out of lady's dresses. I didn't want her forced into fighting leathers, to basically become another copy of her sister, and follow down that path.

I wanted her to take her own. I wanted her to finally be in a place where she could learn, and strategise, and contribute. And I wanted her to work with Cassian on this - who was grounded because of his wings, who couldn't command on the frontlines anymore, or even fight. Who had to stay back, and see how he handled this. How he maintained his authority. How he maintained his sanity without his wings.

We could have had so fucking much. Such a powerful narrative about survival. I wanted her in the library, with the other survivors, (and with fucking MORRIGAN - not sidelined, not dismissed, not being bitchy and catty for the sake of it. But someone who visits the library frequently, who interacts with the women there, and sometimes just is a woman there herself, because there are still hard days.)

But no. No instead of something nuanced, and original, and actually tailored to Nesta's strengths as a character, we got Yet Another Weapon's Trainng Montage.

We got the narrative that the only way to heal from abuse is to be able to beat the shit out of your abusers. Because that's #GirlPower, right?

It makes me so furious I almost want to just. Just fucking rewrite the whole damn fucking thing myself the way it SHOULD have gone.

And I know you talked about Cassian and not Nesta, so I do apologise, but they were tied together. But I agree.

We all wanted Cassian to evolve from that 'Lord of Bloodshed' / "savage brute" because reading between the lines and forcing some nuance from these books, which is the only way to survive: Cassian has a lot of layers. There's a lot of trauma there. A lot of insecurity. A lot of angst. A lot of heart. A lot of fucking INTELLIGENCE. (I'll fight on that point, I really will. Cassian is not a dumb himbo who can barely add 1 and 1).

But sjm was too busy writing him having a hard on for Nesta to explore....anything about himself. Or his relationship with Azriel, and Rhys, and Mor, and everyone else.

The removal (even temporarily) of his wings would have allowed for a LOT of that exploration.

Firstly, the fact that he injured them by CHOICE, saving Azriel's life. That would have been such a deep connection and bond between them. The guilt that Az would feel - but the potential for Cassian to step in, even with his wings gone, and say that he'd do it again.

Because Azriel is his brother. He loves him. And it was worth it. It would be worth it a hundred times over to save him. Because he's worth saving. And he's worth sacrificing for. And what that would have done for Az as a character, too. Who always offers himself up first for dangerous missions, puts himself in peril to protect the others.

And having Cassian join Feyre and Az's flying lessons? Because Cass having to relearn how to fly once (if) his wings healed to that extent, means letting Azriel train him. Because those old instincts aren't enough. And he has to learn how to strengthen them, and train with them. And how this affects his perception of himself and his masculinity, as he said. But also deepening his understanding for Az, and the bond the two of them share, in having this experience together.

Bonding with Rhys, who FINALLY fucking opens up to someone and has some nuanced therapy-like conversations about what happened with Amarantha. The sacrifces they've made for their people. How they'd do it again but it still hurts, and changes them, and how they have to learn and grow and move on from that and heal together.

Rhys working with Cassian on his other talents, using him as the skilled strategist and tactician he MUST be. Helping him to develop that, keeping his brother from losing his mind while he can't fight or use his physicality to solve problems, as he usually does.

Mor personally healing and tending to Cassian. Mor being there at his bedside every day while he was bed bound. Mor becoming as possessive and overprotective of both him and Az as any mate ever has been.

Mor speaking to him about her own rehabilitation after what her family did to her, the physical toll that took on her. Mor's heart breaking because she nearly lost both him and Az and she couldn't handle that at all. Mor reiterating how much she fucking loves him, and how she needs him.

Mor helping him through the darker days of his depression because she's been there. And she knows what it is to put on a front. To always be laughing, and joking, without the seriousness of life -leave that to the others. But sometimes it's too much and he needs to break down. And be angry. And furious. And hopeless. And scared. And that's what she's there for. Because she understands.

Mor winnowing him to his favourite spots that he can't fly to anymore, just so he can be there. The two of them spending time, and bonding, and developing that relationship we got in ACOMAF beyond 'we bicker constantly and drink together and make sexual innuendos'.

Even Amren showing up and doing her part. Snapping at him to stop brooding so much. But also bringing him some of her puzzles. Some of her favourite military history books (which she has anotated and edited to highlight the bits that have been incorrectly reported). Spending time with him to stop him going mad. Exhausting herself those first few days personally attending to Cassian's wings, and snarling at anyone who tried to interfere.

IT COULD HAVE BEEN SO MUCH.

IT COULD HAVE DEVELOPED SO MUCH WITH THE INNER CIRCLE. AND CASSIAN. AND NESSIAN. AND JUST. EVERYTHING WOULD HAVE BEEN BETTER BUT NAW. IT WAS BASIC ASS AND BORING AND I'M GONNA DIE MAD ABOUT IT.

[glossamerfaerie]

*waves awkwardly* I was the one who wrote this comment on Reddit a few weeks back on the Gwynriel Shipping Post. Pro-tip: do not hang out on Reddit because they will downvote you viciously. Even with a net count of 10 upvotes, this particular comment has like a 100 downvotes last time I checked. 🫠 One would think that the Gwynriel Shipping Post is a safe haven from downvotes, but I digress.

I normally lurk, but I wanted to add more structural reasons why Vassien won’t happen. There are HOFAS spoilers below.

Excluding Elucien mating bond, the biggest barrier to Vassien HEA is Vassa’s mortality. So either 1) Lucien becomes mortal (this is the stupidest theory I’ve ever heard and I refuse to spend energy debunking it) or 2) Vassa becomes immortal (semi-plausible, more interesting claim to debunk). E/riels claim that Vassa gaining immortality isn’t impossible. I acknowledge their point — after all, all three Archeron sisters gained immortality. BUT:

1) First avenue for immortality: Cauldron. Currently guarded in Miryam’s impossible-to-find island. I know that SJM likes repeating plot points, but she’s not bringing the Cauldron back. SJM’s new “magic object” obsession is with the Dread Trove (Mask, Harp, Crown) and Cauldron-made weapons (Ataraxia, Gwydion, Truth-Teller). By the end of HOFAS, these objects are all reunited; we know that Bryce thinks Nesta met her for a reason due to the tattoo. We also know that Azriel’s Truthteller belonged to Enalius and that he hasn’t been properly harnessing its full magic capability. Something special is happening with the Dread Trove and these weapons.

It’s entirely possible that Koschei (trapped in a lake) thinks that the Dread Trove can free him. Think about the Harp, which allows Nesta to winnow anywhere, even the Prison and the warded River House. Freedom is Koschei’s main goal; I’m not SJM, but I think Koschei is going after the Harp next. How exactly is the Cauldron going to help him now?? Great for fighting wars and making weapons, not so much for freedom.

Even assuming that Koschei can scry Cauldron’s current location, who exactly is going to defeat Miryam’s ENTIRE ISLAND NATION and steal the Cauldron? This isn’t like the situation in ACOMAF where the Cauldron spare parts were stupidly stored in temples without adequate protection. It made total sense that Hybern could fight helpless priestesses and minimal guards. But I don’t see this situation repeating itself with Koschei, the Queens, or Beron as the aggressor against Miryam and Drakon. The Cauldron is like a nuclear bomb in terms of magic impact. SJM purposefully stashed it away in ACOWAR’s end so its threat wouldn’t be breathing down our necks.

Is the Cauldron still super relevant? Sure! I think it might come back, especially in discussions of how the Daglan/Asteri used the Cauldron to create the Dread Trove, weapons, and Illyrians. Elain’s book will definitely discuss her relationship with the Cauldron, which seems to like her. But these plot points can happen without physically going to see or tamper the Cauldron. No one wants to fuck with the Cauldron or be in another war battling Cauldron magic.

1) Second avenue for immortality: Gift of Seven High Lords bringing someone back from the dead (see Feyre and Rhys). Okay, I will take this theory seriously because SJM really enjoys reviving protagonists from the dead across all her series. 🤣 But this is not going to happen with Vassa. Let’s assume that Beron is dead and Eris is the new High Lord for this hypothetical (we all agree Beron would refuse to save Vassa). Let’s also assume that the other High Lords (including Tamlin or whatever successor to Spring Court) feel bad about Vassa dying and Lucien’s grief. Would they all grant immortality to this cursed human Queen?

To be blunt: no. When the High Lords agreed to revive Feyre, 1) they did not know they were giving their power to Feyre and 2) Feyre had just saved from them from 50 years of imprisonment. They owed a very clear debt — but had the High Lords known about her future magic abilities, several of them would’ve balked. Feyre got super lucky about their ignorance.

Flash forward to Rhys. He was their fellow High Lord, a “colleague” so to speak, who sacrificed himself to win the war. And most importantly: reviving Rhys didn’t give him magic from the other courts. SJM doesn’t explain this much, but I think it was Feyre’s ascent to immortality that caused all 7 kernels to manifest magic in her. Rhys was already immortal and in possession of great magic; the 7 drops brought him back to life, but his immortality status didn’t change. The High Lords didn’t know what would happen, but they were probably extremely relieved that Rhys didn’t get magic from the other six courts.

Now think about Vassa, a human like Feyre. The High Lords know exactly what will happen if they grant Vassa immortality. Even assuming that Vassa performs a great service like Feyre and sacrifices herself, the High Lords WILL NOT save Vassa. The High Lords are egotistical and protective of their magic; they were incredibly resentful that they lost a kernel of their power to Feyre. Now you’re telling me they’ll do it again willingly for a mortal they barely know? No way in hell.

The High Lords will grieve Vassa and feel terrible for Lucien in this nonexistent book. But at the end of the day, she’s human. Humans die. You cannot save every human friend just because you like them. And even if they wanted to, their egos would hold them back. No one wants to share their magic. The End.

1) Third avenue for immortality: Something Else. Maybe SJM invents another way to become immortal (I don’t think so but let’s say she does for the sake of the argument). Maybe Koschei accidentally wields a spell on Vassa and her curse acts up. I don’t know. Make something ludicrous up in your imagination.

THIS STILL DOESN’T MAKE ANY NARRATIVE SENSE. None. Let me explain: SJM is a deeply flawed writer, but one thing SJM correctly understands is that her heroines have Big Emotions about Change. Changes like… abruptly gaining immortality when their entire life was rooted in mortality. Feyre took two books to fully understand her new magic and immortal body; she had trauma from UTM and felt unanchored in her new body. Nesta took literal YEARS and several books (WAR, FAS, SF) to become happy with her immortality; she finally admits her acceptance to Bryce in HOFAS Walmart Bonus Chapter.

“Do you like it?’ Bryce asked Nesta suddenly. “Being Fae?”

“I didn’t at first,” Nesta said plainly. “But now I do.”

We haven’t had Elain’s POV but I imagine she resents her new body/immortality for taking away Greyson. Like Nesta, Elain will have to learn to appreciate her new life/circumstances in her book.

Vassa is a Human Queen. She prides herself on being mortal and representing her people. It is a core aspect of her identity. If she were to become Fae with new magic, even voluntarily, it would be a momentous life change.

So, like… when exactly does this massive life change and identity shift happen? Within the pages of a single Vassien book? When it took the Archeron sisters several books to become happy/confident with their new Fae body and magic? Are we even going to see Vassa in the nonexistent E/riel book? So maybe we have half a book at most for this momentous plot point.

“But if Vassa loves Lucien, she’ll WANT to become immortal to stay with him forever. She wouldn’t have trauma or doubt like the Archeron Sisters, so she doesn’t need several books to adjust.” It is frankly insulting to suggest that Vassa would immediately love being Fae and have zero identity issues. The very little we’ve seen of her (like, ten pages max) suggests keen ambition and intelligence. Yes, Vassa deserves love, but love shouldn’t strip away her admirable goal to lead humans in an increasingly tense world with the Fae. It’s insulting to reduce Vassa to her love life. Even if I accept (and I don’t) that Vassa wants to be immortal for Lucien’s sake, it’s nonsense to think this could all be resolved within a single Vassien book. Not when Feyre, Elain, and Nesta have ALL taken several books and years to come to terms with immortality and their new magic. I have my beef with SJM, but SJM understands that healing and trauma takes longer than a minute. It can linger and fester for years, even when someone is drowning in plain sight (Nesta) or pretending that all is well (Elain). Since SJM is a heroine-centric author (by her own admission), she’s not going to shortchange Vassa by removing her human-centric ambitions or fast-forwarding past a momentous shift to immortality. 🤷🏽‍♀️

***

What’s crazy is that I’ve written so much and it only addresses the question “why won’t Vassa become immortal?” I haven’t even addressed character dynamics or why I think Vassien doesn’t make sense with their established personalities.

But it’s an important question! It explains the MAIN* roadblock to a Lucien-Vassa endgame. If Vassa won’t become immortal/Fae, she can’t have a satisfactory HEA with Lucien.** The End.*** I’m going back to lurk now, just needed to word vomit. 😅

___

* the actual main roadblock is the Elucien mating bond, but I’ve been told that it’s a fake Cauldron bond and that E/riel has a REAL Mother-approved mating bond. Since it’s impossible to logically counter something in people’s imaginations, let’s pretend that the Vassa’s mortality is the main roadblock.

** If only mortal Vassa could fall in love with another mortal. If only she knew a mortal male other than Lucien. If only this other nonexistent male shared similar ambitions in leading and protecting humans. Wait…

** I nearly broke my resolution to not waste energy on “Lucien will choose to become mortal!!” theory. But I will stay strong. It’s truly so ludicrous that it doesn’t deserve debunking.

Found this comment on Reddit. Couldn’t explain it better than this.

“It’s clear from Mist and Fury that the original ships were: Feysand, Nessian, Elucien, and Mor/Azriel. Like it’s so obvious the way she wrote Mor and Azriel; Mor even seems vaguely interested/torn about Az. Looking at interviews, SJM even talks about Elucien as a couple (eg where would they like to travel together, etc).

Flash forward to ACOWAR. For whatever reason (lack of chemistry with Az, wanting more diversity) SJM has Mor say that she prefers women. This time the Az-pining-for-Mor is more desperate/feels like a zero chance of being requited. SJM also introduces Az as a potential love interest for Elain because she loves throwing a wrench. Just because Elucien are mates doesn’t mean they’ll have it easy; SJM’s whole thing is angst. She had to throw in a love triangle to make it uncertain. This is the first couple where mate status is confirmed upon meeting.

But there’s a problem now. If Az and Mor are no longer endgame, who will they end up with? is it not suspicious that the two new characters introduced in SF (Gwyn and Emerie) just HAPPEN to be potentially be good partners for Az and Mor? Like it’s not a coincidence that Emerie looks at Mor and blushes, remarking how pretty she is. It’s not a coincidence that Az and Gwyn have so many interactions in the text. It’s not a coincidence that a “random side character” shows up in a bonus chapter.

When SJM created Gwyn and Emerie, it wasn’t just to give Nesta friends. These characters clearly didn’t exist when she wrote MAF. SJM wanted new characters that would solve her retcon of ending Az/Mor. She wanted to solve the Mor/Az retcon so bad that she created a NEW RETCON of Az going to Sangravah. Like why bother to add that detail if it’s not important.

Also: poor Lucien. His endgame heroine was supposed to be Nesta until SJM realized they would be terrible together and that Nessian had better chemistry. So she gives Elucien the mating bond. Like is she really going to fuck Lucien over TWICE? She loves him as a character and has put him through the wringer. Yes, I agree that SJM can change her mind and maybe is open to mate rejection, but Lucien has already switched love interests from Nesta to Elain! Who else is he going to switch to, considering that Jurian and Vassa are “at each other’s throats?”

Finally, please think about the number of books left. Ignoring novellas (which are probably gonna be fluffy ones like ACOFAS where nothing happens), there are two main books left. Two couples.

Option A:

• ⁠Gwynriel (Valkyrie growth, Illyrian rebellion, exploring Ramiel, Gwyn’s autumn heritage and maybe lightsinger?? powers)

• ⁠Elucien (Helion secret baby, defeating Koschei, freeing Vassa, fixing spring court)

Option B

• ⁠Elriel (mate rejection storyline, potentially some stuff above)

• ⁠?????

Literally WHO is the second book in this equation? Lucien and Vassa?? We barely know Vassa and there’s barely any connection to Night Court. And Lucien’s book is going to be depressing as fuck dealing with mate rejection; does anyone want to read two heavy books of rejection? Jurian and Vassa: again, we barely know them! At least with Tower of Dawn, Chaol had been a main character for a long time with POV. SJM will not do a full-length Emerie/Mor book as much as I would love for one. She’s very cognizant of criticism re: Mor bi rep in the past; she doesn’t want to open a can of worms and be accused of writing bad sapphic rep. If anything, I can see a fluffy Emerie/Mor novella with little angst (or them getting together in the background of other books).

So from a meta structural level, I don’t understand who the second couple will be if Elriel is endgame. Lucien/Vassa is the most plausible answer, but 1) we barely know Vassa, 2) she’s human and Lucien is immortal. So are we going to toss her into the Cauldron to make her immortal? Serious question, and 3) I don’t want TWO books about mate rejection, it’s depressing as hell. I can see one but not two.

But with Gwynriel and Elucien, you have enormous fan and audience interest in ALL FOUR CHARACTERS. They’re directly tied to Night Court and SJM so far has no intention of staying away from the core group.”

[duskcowboy]

Acotar booktok has always been toxic at least in the past few years. After Acosf they were incredibly nasty toward Feyre because they were being upset and being petty af over how Nesta got treated and turned her into their little victim. Bunch of big kids on there who are Acosf lovers that’s why our IC gets shit on so much on there, it’s new Acosf fans who read and stan it for the smut and their mean girl main let’s be real.

Right after I announce booktok as the most toxic platform, acotar tumblr had to bring the dramaaaa today 🤣🤣

But, no, seriously, I’ve come to truly despise booktok lately. Look, I liked acosf but I didn’t love it, and I truly believe that’s because Nesta doesn’t resonate with me. And that’s okay. Do I hate her? Absolutely not. However I do wish she’d gotten better development in acosf, mainly in her relationship with her sisters. By not truly mending that relationship properly, I feel that SJM opened the door for a lot of hate towards Feyre, Elain, and the rest of the IC.

I think also switching from 1st person Feyre POV back to her usual 3rd person POV caused a discrepancy in people’s perspective of different characters. Feyre is in love with Rhys, so of course when we’re in her head, he comes across mainly as charming, etc, but Nesta obviously does not like Rhys (lol) so in her book, he’s an ass. People are arguing which is the “real” Rhys when in actuality, isn’t he both? Isn’t that how the real world works? Not everyone is going to know the real you, they’re gonna have their own perception and, sometimes, misconceptions about you.

In the end, I have a really hard time with Nesta stans. Or at least, the ones who support her, Cass, and the Valkyries but then shit on everyone else. They obviously connect with Nesta on a personal level and I think it’s awesome that they’ve found a character to relate to, but do they ever step back and evaluate how a lot of Nesta’s behavior was not a positive attribute? That SJM was often conveying that it was a trauma response and not healthy? In the nicest terms, yes, Nesta was mean almost through the entire series. Not surprising that her biggest fans also have a tendency to be rude and mean.