#this isnt to all Elriels btw

[theloveliestfawn]

The tables will turn when it turns out to be Elriel as the unconvential ship and they're the true crack ship. Sarah won't write them because they won't sell. It will be boring

A Mate Rejection wouldn't work out in standalone books (even if they're interconnected since each standalone promises the couple a HEA and each get one book as confirmed by Sarah in her interviews)

How are you expecting the author to write a compelling rejection story for something that wasn't even explored much? Just ask Elain to say the word "No" and that's it? It's a waste of a storyline. It's not interesting. There are no stakes.

Again, the book won't sell. Sarah won't write it Elain and Lucien however offer an "arranged marriage" kind of dynamic since we never had a mated pair who knew they were mates before they were in love

They will have tension and the clash of desires and reluctance between them. Reluctant love can be so good. So what if they're at odds now, it's not like Sarah haven't wrote couples that didn't start on a great foot before (Rowaelin literally hated the sight of each other)

It seems that this anon is crashing out and venting to other elriels as well but I wanna share my thoughts too <3

TW: YAPPING🥀

How can I expect the author to write a compelling mate rejection story which isnt explored much ???? Idk, maybe we just expect the best from her? The author herself has said in an interview that the mate rejecting thing would be very interesting so I hope she's gonna do her best w it.

Its not wrong for you to prefer Elucien over Elriel. We are all entitled to our preferences. But it doesn't mean that our preference is canon.

I don't want to argue about canon w you rn. I want to talk abt why I prefer Elriel over Elucien. In my opinion, Elucien's story will just be the same as the other SJM couples. Arranged marriage vibes or whatever you name it, it still follows the same formula, same route. "at odds now", "not starting on a great foot"... that sounds a lot like Nessian 😃 And lots of other SJM couples 😃

Btw, talking abt arranged marriage, have u read HOFAS, anon? Cus Sathia Flynn and Tharion Ketos seemed arranged marriage enough for me. If you like that trope, Im sure that the author will write their love story based on that trope especially since we will have CC4 "House of many waters" and Tharion being a freaking mermaid would absolutely get his POV and love story with sathia.

Now for the "reluctant love"...well Idk abt that. Elain is just indifferent towards Lucien. Lemme ask you, have u ever had a guy crushing on you, your classmates ship you two, but you arent comfortable with it cus you just dont like that guy, instead you love another guy from the class? yeah, thats Elain's case. She wants nothing to do with Lucien. She wants Azriel.

Look, its no use to fight over this. I would ship Elain n Lucien if she was neutral or show even slight emotions towards Lucien, like hate. But no, she js dgaf abt him lmao.

As elriels, we swoon over thoughtful gestures both Azriel and Elain had done for each other throughout the books and their freaking buildup man...

In ACOMAF, both are neutral with each other. They started on good terms. They talked to each other very well and Elain was comfortable w Azriel. no feelings for each other yet, just civil.

In ACOWAR, theres so much significant scenes that shows how Azriel cared for Elain, how protective he is towards her, how he sees her ( im getting her back scene, truth teller scene, the cauldron made you a seer scene ) And ofc theres thoughtful gestures like Azriel escorting Elain to see the garden. no feelings for each other yet, but Az feels protective and is caring towards Elain.

In ACOFAS, they grow closer. Az literally listens to Elain talking abt her garden plans till 3 am. And yes, more thoughtful gestures like the potato scene and making everyone wait for Elain taking her seat before eating.

In ACOFAS, Azriel doesn't have feelings for Elain yet. IMO he was still pining for Mor. It was stated that he blushes looking at Mor after she gifted him a towel as solstice present.

Then when did Azriel developed true feelings for Elain and slowly move on from Mor?

After Elain gifted him the headache powder.

And thats why in ACOSF, he felt very intensely abt Elain. He spent a whole year post ACOFAS developing feelings for her, thinking abt her, and it was too much that he avoided being bear Elain. Was it ever too much for Azriel when he pined for Mor? No, he could still be near her, be friends with her. But with Elain? No. He had to stay away bcus Elain is too much for him. But even when he stayed away, he would be the first one to act whenever Elain is in potential danger or in any slightly inconvenient situation. He is very protective towards Elain... shadows gathered around the corner of the room like snakes preparing to strike...."What happened to Elain?" ...Elain shouldnt be exposed to the cauldron's darkness n more.

As for Elain, she was never shy towards Azriel pre ACOSF. But in ACOSF, she was shy when she gestured towards Azriel. Why is she suddenly shy towards Azriel? Because she now has feelings for Azriel as well. Az did so many sweet things for Elain and he's hot, ofc she wants him now duh.

And then the grand finale scene for elriel in ACOSF was the charged glance. THERE IS TENSION BETWEEN THEM.

As for the bonus chapter, the "It was a mistake" and "You are to stay away from her" happened. Elain misunderstanding why Az pulled away from the kiss and rhys ordering Az to stay away from Elain RAISED THE TENSION BETWEEN THEM.

Theres too much foundation for Elriel. Can you see how beautiful their relationship progressed? THE TENSION BETWEEN THEM? The author cannot make this buildup just for them to go to waste which she admits that she hates when it happens.

[elainsgirl]

no cause im tired of everything.

I'm sick of people talking about gwyn like shes the most important character ever. like yall don't actually care about her. they only like her cause shes involved with a batboy which is ridiculous. ("pro gwyneth" like be so fr... we barely know anything about her??? Like I like gwyn but stop making stuff up about her and saying shes saving the world.) that girl didn't show any romantic feelings towards him, so stop forcing it. (not to mention they never talk about emerie... interesting)

why is azriel getting shipped with everyone?? "gwyn is azriel's mate!" "no, its eris" "no, its bryce" "no, its mor" "no, its rhys dead sister" I LAUGH SO HARD AT THESE CAUSE WHERE ARE YOU GETTING THIS FROM???? I bet if azriel breathes next to anyone, they will automatically assume its his mate! leave the guy alone, my gosh.

"his shadows hate elain" just shut up. like fr.

"elain can go to the spring court and be with tamlin while az gets with gwyn and lucien gets with vassa" BAHAHAHAHAH. bro i cant even say anything to this because its ridiculous.

"if az finds his real mate, he will leave elain in a hurry" BRO. why do you guys think this man world revolves around wanting a mate so badly???? yall think so low of him its weird. if he wanted a mate oh so badly... he wouldnt go for elain! get that in your dumb heads!

now with the bonus chapter (elain and az part) im iffy about it. its good at the start but rhys and az argument gave me the ick but I understand what he meant either way. I can see why people didnt like azriel here. but to call him entitled is just WILD! he wasnt wrong questioning the cauldron. like why is he having all these mate behaviors towards elain when she has a mate??? I'd question the cauldron, too. feyre was so real when she said "why not make them mates" because they lowk fit no matter what anyone says.

now this was really irks me. "3 brothers and 3 sisters is so cliche" cliche??? bestie- do you see what we are reading??? the answer to the riddle was "love" out of all things. shut up with that dumb excuse. we have never seen 3 brothers and 3 sisters yet- well I havent. im pretty sure most of you havent either. if you read the BOOKS, you will understand that sjm uses the word 3 a lot. this is just common sense, people love to twist stuff.

Now dont get me wrong, I'll go for elucien or elriel. I dont care. but these gwynriels made me dislike az and gwyn together. like I used to go along with it but now they force it so badly "READ THE BONUS CHAPTER" "DID YOU READ THE BONUS CHAPTER" "maKe suRe yOu rEad iT cArEfuLly" "he chuckled with her" "they glance at eachother" "az and gwyn are going to save the world together" "i hope nesta, emerie, gwyn and az leave and make their own court" < (I fr saw someone say something like this) sister... I literally cringe! just please stop.

btw elriels gwyn isnt evil. stop saying that.

im so sorry for this rant. it just had to be said.

lmfao the need to vent is so real. This fandom TESTS your patience at times.

I think one of my biggest annoyances with Gwynriel is the fact that Gwyn doesn’t even like Azriel that way. Instead of focusing on how far she’s come, her accomplishments etc everything seems to go back to Azriel. If you ever truly look At gwynriel theories and headcanons the focus is always on Az and Gwyn doesn’t have much of a story by herself, she doesn’t lead a story. She is a follower/tag along. I will always say this again and again: If she was that important to the point of having anything to do with the prisons, trove, TT/Gwydion she would have been introduced earlier on in the series. It’s that simple. She has nothing to do w the prison, Koshei or even the daggers/made objects. Everything about gwynriel is forced - from Gwyn and Az having feelings for each other to their plot. Barely anything of that ship makes sense when you truly start to unravel it.

Az is getting shipped with everyone except who he truly wants and thats just comical. I guarantee you, If Az interacted with any other woman - gwynriel shippers would split so fast and some will start shipping him with the new woman.

“His shadows hate elain” … why were they ready to strike Nesta all because she insulted elain? They also speak so can’t they literally just tell Az “hey man, we dont like elain”. Then part of this claim comes from the fact Elain made his shadows skitter which is something Az does himself.

I so want Elain to go to Spring and mention how she finds it stiffling/claustrophobic. Elain going to spring to live there is ignoring everything about her character and only focusing on the fact she likes flowers and by their own logic, Nesta should go to Day and Feyre to a more artistic court.

If Az soley wanted a mate and was so desperate for one - why on earth is he pining for someone WITH A MATE. It literally defeats the purpose of him getting a mate. Also its such a stilt to his character for him to want a mate and then get one. It doesn’t allow character growth and makes the idea of “mates” seem as a prize instead of this romantic connection. If he wanted a mate so badly, this man would be going after women with no mates. Not one that has a mate. The logic behind this arguement is so stupid,

Azriel’s bonus to me parallels Feyre’s whole scene where she questioned the cauldron because of Azriel. It was Sjms way of bringing it back and reminding us of it. Telling us “look! Another character is doubting elucien’s bond! Why is Az questioning the cauldron” etc. The only part of Azriel’s bonus where I got the ick aside from his and gwyns’ awkward conversation- is when he said Lucien doesn’t deserve Elain. I get where that statement was coming from but he isn’t someone to decide who deserves who. This is what doesn’t make sense: antis call Az entitled for simply WONDERING why Elain was given to Lucien, he hs made no move to break elucien up. He hs not forced anything onto Elain. He doesn’t dictate or control her interactions with Lucien, the fact he hadn’t planned a future for them either all show he is far from acting entitled. But eluciens needed a way to make Az seem bad and lucien better hence why latched onto this argument when it doesn’t make sense given what we know about Azriels character, his thoughts, actions and what he said in the bonus.

“3 sisters and 3 brothers is cliche” whilst reading a romantasy series ( a genre filled with repetitive cliches) by an author who claims to be the queen of cliches. Every single fated mates ending up together? Cliche. Omg the trainer and his trainee fell in love? How unique. Its not like that is also a popular trope. I cannot give you any book/s in which 3 sisters end w 3 brothers, I however can pull out multiple books with the fated mates/warriors/trainerxtrainee tropes.

Too bad. Mass loves the IC - There is no reason why Nesta/valkryies and Az would go to another court. Wait - but the night court is Azriels home. Its where he belongs, unlike Elain who has to leave…but now they want Az to leave too? One thing you can trust antis to do is be consistent with their inconsistencies. Honestly, I was open to the idea of gwynriel but genuinely none of their theories or HCs make sense. In a general sense gwynriel is a good ship sure but you can generally ship any two characters together from the series. It doesn’t mean it’s happening & they’ll be endgame.

Gwyn definitely isn’t evil. However I do think she has the potential to become morally grey which im all here for.

[nikethestatue]

Elucien and gwynriel think the same way elriel thinks when it comes to ships😅 you see their coments and all they said is sjm’s Pinterest is full of elucien and gwynriel and that they have all the canon evidence and similarities with others ship. Elriels think the same way we think we are right and that all the evidence points to us. I mean I have seem multiple elucien saying they can’t wait to see our ship sink. The fandom is so clearly divided and each side thinks they are 100% right. They said we make everything about elain and we said they make everything about gwyn or lucien🤷🏼‍♀️ is literally the same way of thinking just with different characters. Honestly it makes me a little scared to who is really right when it comes to ship because every side is so sure they are right. I honestly just want elain’s book.

I disagree with this because i think there is a big difference between wishful thinking and canon evidence.

I am sorry, but Gwynriel is just whack. From purely evidentiary POV, if you are not an obsessed fan who spent 3 years looking at the 2nd part of the bonus chapter and thinking you got something, Gwynriel doesn't exist. Like ask ANY casual reader, who isn't influenced by anything (btw, when ACOSF just came out, I was a fan of ACOTAR but I wasn't a crazed Elriel. I was still mostly into Feysand and Nessian, and I wasn't dealing with Elriel, because that was coming later. So I was technically that casual reader) if they think Gwynriel is an actual thing, 99% of them will say no. And look at you like you just fell out of a tree. Literally, yesterday, someone asked their mom about their opinion, since they are reading ACOSF, and the mom was like 'what? Azriel and that teenager?" It's not US. It's reality. There is no Gwynriel. Sorry.

Elucien have a bond. But haven't the last 4 books shown that the bond and the lack of attraction between Elain and Lucien are kind of sus? Again, SJM throwing in a ton of 'what if the Cauldron was wrong? why not make them mates?" isnt there for shits and giggles. Could, extremely hypothetically, Elucien happen? I'd say, yes, it has more chances than Gwynriel, but it's not saying much. Also, Lucien was literally given a girlfriend! Why they keep bitching about Vassa, I have no idea. It's a fantasy. They can all be immortal, it's okay.

But seriously, I cannot CANNOT compare Gwynriel, which is just a combo of headcanons, what ifs, random wants and delirious TikTokers, with what is actually in the books for Elriel.

Seriously, what are we even comparing here? Huge scenes like the Hybern rescue, the TT exchange, the murder of the King, and I want to eat Elain out, to what, exactly?

I wanna cut the ribbon! Go ahead. Cut it.

Or

absolutely NO Elucien scenes. Name ONE Elucien scene? Other than him having a long ass monologue in his head? NONE exit.

So, I am gonna be honest, and will put on my 'Crazed Elriel' hat and say one is definitely not like the other two.

[stargirlie25]

Ive come to the conclusion that Gwynriels are probably the most healthiest side of the ship war.

Its just my opinion MIND IT!

Like most elriels are sometimes anti gwyn or lucien and have a very strong ego which i wont talk much about. They can also be anti nessian (i dont mind) but also anti Nesta and most likely pro feysand.They have honestly crossed multiple boundaries with the fandom

-threats 2 sjm's family including her son-r@pe dms-shaming real people for not including something or simply saying something-

They shamed author Elena Armas for saying she leaned toward Gwynriel more so much she put it on her story

Shamed an author recently for saying sjm's outfit gave Gwyn vibes

ETC,ETC,ETC

Eluciens in terms of real life are very healthy and are honestly the smaller portion of the ship wars. However as much as it is so fun to ship elain and lucien, many eluciens hold the stance such as ''anti feysand, anti nessian, anti inner circle,anti Azriel'' There isnt anything wrong with that ofc!

Gwynriels have been involved with a bit of both. There have been real life toxic versions of them (imo not as bad as elriels) and they sometimes hate on Elain but that's pretty much it. Gwynriels are most likely eluciens so they love Gwyn,Elain,Lucien,Azriel,inner circle,valkyries,feysand,nessian and the normal. (some dont)

I feel like it we are going to continue the series, its more peaceful to just not hate the characters because honestly you might just have to find a different series because Sarah loves a lot that yall hate.

Just from my personal experience and what i have seen in like my four-ish years in this fandom. Not as long as some of you but around the time the ship wars started haha

I used to be an Elriel too because like most elriels i thought the 3sis x 3bros was perfect. Its not and im not going to talk about it here. Just saying, during those times i was disturbed by some elriels comments and how cocky and mean they could be. It was not even confidence just flat out insults,jabs and comments i hate such as ''ours is canon theirs is fanon'' ''delusional'' ''did you even read the same book'' Keep in mind the fandom was NOT the reason i switched to gwynriel/elucien so don't even try to bombarde me with all the elucien/gwynriel comments and hell yeah i know they exist.

I will forever be an elucien and love elain and lucien together and divided although some of them can be immature and they lack some understanding.

Literally all of this could apply to Gwynriel however being apart of the Gwynriel side is easiest for me!

Can any of yall agree?

Please be nice btw!

[areptvclown]

Why are people so obsessed with Gwynriel/ Elriel and always argue over it?? I mean I guess I would prefer Az with Gwyn but I also think that SJM would write a great plot for Elriel? Everyone has a preference but some fans are heavily exaggerating and I just don't get why.

Ohhh nonnie. This whole thing is yes blown out of proportion 100%

Let me start off with this, at the very basis of it, each side defends their preferred ship. And there is nothing wrong that. We all have different ideals of romance. Different tropes that we favor. Again there's nothing wrong that. You ship what appeals to you. Shipping is something that should be done for fun. It's one of the things we love about being in fandoms. However, just like your favorite characters, shows, hobbies, etc. You defend your ship. Sometimes it can get ugly, especially when the creator sinks it. As in the case of Gwynriel vs Elriel.

Why is this ship war in particular so out of hand?

Simply put the Elriels because their ship is sinking so they turned to lashing out.

Elriels, like many shippers are defensive of their ship. And rightfully so. The problem is many of them are just...how do I put this... rudely defensive. The problem isn't protecting your ship. It's how you do it. There's a right way and wrong way. Right way is stating why you love the ship, headcanons, fics, art, edits, suppprting your ship in healthy debates and being respectful of other ships that include part of your own. Meaning to be decent towards Eluciens and Gwynriels.

Many have not. I have seen quite a few mutuals being ridiculed via anon due to who they ship. Not only that, they have gone to extremes that rival anti Reylos. That's insane. They have bullied fan artists who do not draw Elriel or have decided to not draw them anymore. They have attacked people on social media across the board. Have said something about SJM's son (i don't remember what it was. This was on Twitter which I'm not on.) Speaking of Twitter many have SS Gwynriel and Elucien posts from tumblr and made fun of us. They went on Wikipedia and literally changed it to suit Elriel, altering Gwyn's story. They cant even make theories with out unnecessarily dragging characters or villainizing them. They look like clowns atm.

Now the Gwynriels have been shipping the right way. At least for the most part. I said for the most part because to my knowledge, there has been one nasty Gwynriel shipper on tiktok and this side of the fandom collectively started standing up and saying they do not condone that. I'm sure there's other nasty gwynriels out there but I don't associate with them. Unlike Elriels. I have yet to see other Elriels stand up and say yeah I ship it but I don't agree with this. (If some of you are, then I'm happy you're out there.)

What happens when your ship is being attacked again and again? What happens when Gwyn is being dragged down and you have anons telling you, you deserve death or belittle you all because a fictional ship? You fight back. The good Gwynriels are frankly tired of it and fought back. They pushed, the elriels pushed back harder and on and on. This is why it's exaggerated.

Yes of course if SJM wanted Elriel she could write it. But she draws a very deep contrast between the two where it would be quite a challenge to win fans over. Especially after his POV where she as the writer put in blatant sexual thoughts of Elain and nothing else. There were no romantic inclinations in Az's view of Elain. That scene is also meant to be in the middle of acosf. From that point on there are no interactions between the two. Hardly any mention of Elain. It's all Gwyn. So I highly doubt she will write Elriel, when Nesta pointed out that Az is Gwyn's next challenge.

I understand the anger and frustration of a ship you truly thought would be canon and its not. But take it in stride. So what if its not canon. You can still draw it, make edits, write fics, etc. No one is stopping you. They're being aggressive and problematic making this ship war ugly for no reason. Honestly if they chilled tf out this wouldn't be as crazy as it is.

I'm hoping once she announces the next book and officially declares the next ship people will chill.

[emmitaaa4]

Anon (and @elainsgirl), I feel this in my SOUL.

rant incoming :)

Honestly, I like Elucien, or rather what they could be. I respect the OTP eluciens that like & love Elain (and tbh I feel for them, I see anti-Elain content in the Elain tag from GAs so I cant imagine what it's like in their tags), I love that they see her potential and recognize her importance, and I 10000% support them in thinking that Elucien would take precedence over Gwynriel. Because it is the real, objective truth. Ik ik, opinions and all that, but let's be so for real. You might not "feel" like Elain is developed enough, or think Gwyn being mentioned a bajillion times in SF means she'll have a PoV next, or that her return to the library (gasp) and eventual exit is a pressing issue, or say SJM "made you" fall in love with Gwynriel because 1) you love their hypothetical relationship, 2) they have such great fanfics so they make sense, 3) OMG BUT THE BONUS AND SPARKEDY SPARKS AND THE SHADOW (SINGULAR) TANGO-ED WITH GWYN'S BREATH... you can think all those things, but so what?

Hope, vibes, & prayers to the mating-bond gods dont dismiss the urgency of Elain's story to the narrative: her powers & choice in regards to the mating bond cannot be dragged for another decade, let alone have her romantic arc resolved/decided by Azriel's choice. A decade is generous, because remember: it's ACOTAR 5, then mysterious book (ToG i beg), then maybe CC4 or ACOTAR 6 or the ACOTAR novella. They don't even pretend to make sense: "Elain's PoV last because an Archeron needs to close the series"... says who? The people who think the series is NOT about the Archerons? Dont make me laugh.

"OMG all the ships (Elriel and ig Bryceriels?) attack us poke holes in our arguments and we dont like it, they must be so threatened we feel threatened." Like no babes, your ship simply does not make sense in the larger picture and people are point that out. Anyways, it's been YEARS of Gwynriels basing their ship in anti-Elain/Elriel rhetoric, and we've responded to every single one of their challenges to our takes and moved on. Gwynriels? "Ugh Elriels are so annoying with how they keep quoting the books, and they're so aggressive (they say after being under pro Elain/Elriel content spewing their nonsense). All of this, yet us saying that we don't think Gwyn will have a PoV is hate? Not thinking that she's Azriel's mate is hate? Stating that she isnt directly nor uniquely tied to the overarching plot is hate, whilst they insist on how it'll be an "Azriel book with heavy Nesta action as they explore their Dusk connections... oh btw Gwyn is the LI/sidekick"? We're literally saying the same thing: they know a Gwyn PoV is dependent on her being Azriel's endgame, we just dont pretend gwynriel is anywhere near as likely/relevant as they want them to be.

Also lol, Bryceriels tend to fight Gwynriels because they're arguing over the same thing: who Azriel's mate is. Elriels? We believe Az & El will be endgame whether they end up being mates/chosen mates or not. THAT's the difference, and it's telling: we follow where the narrative is bringing us. They can mock us all they want, it doesn't change that the author chose to question the origin of bonds and whether there are different types, chose to leave that open ended while questioning elucien's bond in regards to the Cauldron and connecting Elriel to the Mother, chose to bring up how interesting she finds the concept of rejected mates in her biggest interview.

Anyways.

The fact that they're now (apparently) butting heads with eluciens about whose book is next, just confirms what we all knew about the ship wars: it was always exacerbated by how a certain side of the fandom regards Elain's character. Doesn't help that Gwynriels live in their little bubble, made out of the last 3 pages of one bonus chapter & the last 20% of SF and strengthened by baseless "canon" claims propagated in their spaces, so now they've lost sight of the plot.

I genuinely don’t understand how some Gwynriels interpret any criticism of them as people being “threatened” by their ship. Maybe they should consider that it’s less about the ship itself and more about their behaviour. It’s that no one has ever been able to join this fandom without being immediately cornered about whether or not they’ve read "the" bonus chapter, or being subjected to some patronizing lecture about how you’re supposed to read it correctly.

It's about the exhaustion of being bombarded with the same handful of cherry-picked lines, completely removed from context. It's about the glaring double standard in how characters are treated. Azriel gets turned into something unrecognizable to serve a narrative. Both Elain and Lucien, who have been integral since the first book and are central to ongoing plotlines, are dismissed as underdeveloped, while outrage erupts if anyone dares suggest Gwyn, a new side character, might not be the next protagonist. Gwyn’s healing journey, which was so clearly focused on regaining the lively and competitive personality that was repressed by her trauma, is misrepresented as romance. It’s just… bizarre.

Some Gwynriels insist Elriel was never romantic (despite the actual text), while others say it ended definitively in a bonus chapter (despite the ridiculousness of that idea). They moralize lust and rewrite moments depending on who’s involved, and they completely ignore clearly romantic scenes if they involve characters they don't like. It creates this alternate reality version of the story that’s bizarre to witness from the outside. And people tend to want to talk about things that are bizarre.

People don’t keep bringing up Gwynriel because they’re threatened. They do it because Gwynriel has turned into a spectacle. And it is not about shipping preferences. The spectacle of Gwynriel is the insistence that actual canon narratives do not exist, and that sweeping canon-defying extrapolations are confirmations of a complete change in direction of the whole story. And that people should just accept this as true when it is just categorically bizarre.

It's not about being threatened. It's about the exhaustion of having someone down your throat for four years while they demand you respect them. It's about being suffocated to the point that you kind of just have to talk about it. In a "what the hell is going on"? kind of way. I remember mutuals who left already in 2021-22, who had been in the fandom for years, because they felt so suffocated and exhausted by this behaviour. And four years later, I'm still here and that is still going on. The fandom was not sunshine and rainbows before Gwynriels, but it was nothing at all like this.

im sorry - they think we’re “threatened” by their fanon ship? LMFAO. Threatened by what. Despite spending time in the ring with his “mate” who would Az think off every night? Elain Archeron. His mate was in danger, went through something so traumatic- what did Azriel do? Leave her with Mor to carry on with his job. Two years. He didnt visit for two entire years, he didnt check up on her. Ask about her. I could go on but you get the gist - no one is threatened by gwy/riel. There is nothing tying these two together. Az could leave training and thats it. He wouldn’t see Gwyn most of the time. Elucien at least have a bond, gwnriel dont even have that. But ofc they’d twist us critiquing them and their behaviour- not only to us but to their own eluciens as us being “threatened”.

The bonus chapter is the only thing that they think gives them some standing, it doesn’t. The same bonus that isn’t reprinted in the special editions, the bonus that over half of the fandom do not know about - but you know whats rlly embarrassing for them? Not a single part of the “gwynriel” bonus was mentioned in acosf. Not the late night training. Not the singing shadows. Not Az and Gwyn becoming closer. Not the necklace. That is how irrelevant it all was, so damn unimportant that in the 300pgs you had left after solstice - Mass didn’t bother to mention any of it once. But ofc they don’t care cause they cant think outside of “spark!” “Glow!”. They can’t enetertain any other possibility or narrative that doesn’t fit what they set for themselves. God forbid, you challenge their takes. At first they’ll try to debate but once they realise they’ve gone through their 5 repeated points, want to know what happens next?

“elriels are like sooooo mean!” “Elriels are just so so toxic.” “Elriels are bullies!” “Elriels always use canon!” Elriels are this, elriels are that.

oh and no one can say anything about precious Gwyn. Nope, she is perfect. She is exactly what they want her to be. Lucien and Elain are irrelevant, Az is toxic, incel and disgusting but ONLY towards Elain - these issues don’t exist with Gwyn, Elain is too undeveloped for a book but perfect, flawless Gwyn has the right amount of development so she will obviously be next. Lucien? He’s irrelevant too, Gwyn is linked to autumn and thats more important then Luciens messed up family. Gwyn will deal with the troves, the prison and koshei - Lucien and Elain need to sail off on a lake somewhere. Etc etc. Gwyn is currently THE most important person everyone else is just there to remain sitting little ducks until Gwyns fabulous story is over.

Gwynriels guide on how to read the bonus correctly: whilst reading the elriel part, keep on chanting “Azriel is toxic” “Azriel is disgrunting” “elain is boring” “elain is manipulative” etc then whilst you finally get to Gwyns’ part - highlight everything. Az chuckled with Gwyn, aww he has NEVER done that before - highlight it. Now.

THIS. Its the fact gwynriels cherry pick what suits them and what doesn’t. They need to”evidence” from all 3 series just to make sense…and yet their arguments are still so terribly illogical. That was one of my biggest turn offs from Gwynriel actually, them acting as tho throughout acosf, Gwyn was crushing on Az which was not the case at all and is such a disservice to her character.

Gwynriels 🤝 contradicting statements which is why it’s hard to take them seriously. Lmfao, like Elain making Az laugh so joyously means nothing to them and isn’t romantic but Gwyn making Az chuckle and snort - is the beginning of a gwynriel romance. Its hypocritical.

Say it louder anon, literally no one is threatened by a ship where the two characters dont even have any romantic interest towards each other - but gwynriel and gwynriels have become something to witness with how desperate they’ve become to convince everyone including themselves their ship is just as much as a possibility like elriel or even elucien. Its like when a kid in your class gets an answer so wrong you just have to put your pen down and wonder how tf they reached that conclusion.

gwynriels have definitely affected the fandom, im sure some are nice but majority are disrespectful, condescending, stubborn etc. They come into elriel spaces and talk about their ship and how they’re right, they’re constantly mocking elriels - Im sure the fandom wasn’t lovely before but gwynriels have turned it more hostile. I dont blame anyone that left this fandom because of them - it’s exhausting trying to see reason with people who believe a bonus holds more weight then the previous 4 books. That a new character we’ve just met is suddenly the most interesting and important then any of the OG cast - Someone said it before, but gwynriels argue with their own version of canon mixed with opinions and biased interpretations- you just can’t logically argue with that.

And if a gwynriel genuinely listened and understood how little a bonus affects the books - they’d see reason.

[nikethestatue]

Hello, Nike!

I'm always wondering why Elain doesn't have a single POV in the whole series. At this point, I think she's even more mysterious than Amren (who doesn't have a POV as well). I want to know your thoughts on this!

And btw, I hope you're doing good! You're one of the cornerstones of elriel here on tumblr. Your presence is a GRACE

First of all, thank you so much! this is so sweet and kind of you to say.

I personally think that SJM wanted to leave herself some flexibility with the story--and instead of the powers driving the story, it's the story that's going to drive the powers.

Here is what I mean--with Nesta, she's been talking about 'Pure Death' and "Silver Flame' and blah, blah--and then...boom. NOT realized. No Death, no pure death, and silver flames were but a whisper. Because I think SJM had a slightly different story in her head before she started writing ACOSF, these powers didn't quite 'fit'. We got a bit of a whimper, instead of a bang, which is unfortunate.

So with Elain, i think she wants to write the majority of the story first, or at least draft it, and then assign powers accordingly. We know that her being a Seer isnt going to be the only power she has. I keep leaning towards 'Life' vs Nesta's 'death', so maybe healing? bringing people back from death? We have a lot of themes with mortality/immortality going on right now--Koschei, his immortality, Vassa, her mortality, immortal Fae vs mortals vs immortal Death God. I think all of that will be taken into consideration in regards to how Elain's power will manifest.

We also have Mor, for example, whose power are a complete and total mystery. We know she is Rhys's 3rd, that she can take on Amren, but we know absolutely nothing other than that Mor can winnow, heal, and so some basic Fae stuff. I think we still have many people whose powers we know nothing about--Azriel too. He can erect a shield of such strength that High Lords can't break it? He can almost kill a High Lord's son, and Eris can't do anything about it? His shadows conceal and tell him things, and hand him stuff, and allow him to winnow and do whatever else that we arent even aware of. Eris set an ice sheet on fire, yet he couldn't do anything about Azriel? What's Lucien's power? What's Gwyn's?

I think a lot of these things will be answered going forward.