Review: A Court of Wings and Ruin, Sarah J. Maas

We review A Court of Wings and Ruin, the highly anticipated third novel in Sarah J. Maas’ best-selling A Court of Thorns and Roses series.

A Court of Wings and Ruin is the third novel in Sarah J. Maas’ best-selling A Court of Thorns and Roses series. You may be more familiar with Maas’ work from her other epic fantasy series, Throne of Glass, but let me tell you that this one is just as exciting, emotional and compelling. Albeit in considerably different ways.

As the novel opens, war looms in the kingdom of Prythian. An invading army threatens, led by a mad king. And following the massive betrayal at the end of A Court of Mist and Fury, Feyre returns to the Spring Court. Determined to gather information on Tamlin’s maneuverings, she must engage in a complicated game of deceit, and work to save her kingdom from the darkness ahead.

A Court of Wings and Ruin is a massive read, clocking in at roughly 700 pages. And I would have happily blazed through several hundred more, simply because Maas’ prose is so engaging. Her characters are compelling, to be sure, but it’s their relationships with each other that will keep you in various stages of emotional collapse over the course of this novel. One of the greatest strengths of Maas’ work has always been her ability to write her characters like real people. And to give everyone relationships with weight, beyond the novel’s central romance. The characters of ACOTAR all feel like they share connections with one another that matter, and that they share relationships that exist beyond and apart from the one they all have with Feyre.

If you’re emotionally invested in the ACOTAR series or a fan of Maas’ writing, you’ll be happy. A Court of Wings and Ruin is generally wonderful, and a strong conclusion to Feyre’s story.

The World Building Expands Significantly

Since A Court of Wings and Ruin means to serve as the end of a trilogy – or at least the stopping point for this section of the ACOTAR story – it makes sense that its scope becomes much larger. We’re building to the final battle. So there’s not only a lot going on, it’s all happening in multiple places. Several of which we’ve never seen before. And the novel’s cast of characters also expands rapidly – well beyond Feyre and her inner circle, with whom we previously spent most of our time.

In this novel, we actually spend comparatively little time at the Night Court, instead traveling back and forth to other courts around Prythian or spending time on various battlefields. This is a little unfortunate, in that Velaris is an amazing setting, but it’s also fun to finally get to see the other courts around Prythian, and what their people are like. And there are so many small, satisfying moments of connection that tie specific people and groups to one another. (Some may come as surprises. Some less so.)

We even learn the tiniest bit about the worlds beyond Prythian. Yes, we finally get some actual information about what creatures like Amren, the Bone Carver and the Weaver of the Wood really are, where they came from, and how they ended up in this world. The story implies there are other creatures like these out there, and I can only hope that some of them will show up in one of Maas’ future ACOTAR novels.

The Characters Remain the Best Part

The strongest part of the ACOTAR series remains the characters within it. Feyre is a brave, fascinating heroine with plenty of dreams and flaws and failings. Her relationship with Rhysand remains complicated, interesting and heartrendingly romantic. But these two are in no way the entirety of the story here, and ACOWAR is all the better for it.

Don’t get me wrong – Feyre remains our primary heroine, and certainly gets the chance to grow – as a person, as a warrior, as a High Lady in her own right – but does everyone else. We spend more time with her Inner Circle, and Azriel, Cassian, Mor and even Amren all have their own emotional arcs to deal with in this novel. The addition of Feyre’s sisters Nesta and Elain add another layer of complexity to the story, as well as several appealing new potential romantic pairings to flail over. Previously tertiary characters – looking at you, Lucien – step into much larger roles. And if that’s not enough, we finally get to know some of the other High Lords and their companions. (Helion of the Day Court is a personal favorite there.)

Whew. For a story that started focused on one girl, we’ve certainly come a long way. Even if only in terms of sheer character volume. But Maas somehow makes you care about all these people, their relationships and their futures. No matter how many different plot threads are going on at the same time.

 But Where Do We Go From Here?

The ending of A Court of Wings and Ruin, when it comes, is explosive. There’s so much that happens. Battles rage on multiple fronts, several different characters get the chance to shine at key moments, and their actions remind us all exactly why we care so much about each of them. (Even the ones we’ve only just met.) The revelation that more books are coming is a relief, kind of. If only because it means we don’t have to say goodbye to this world just yet.

But, on the other hand, the ending of ACOWAR also feels kind of … finished. And it’s a good ending. It feels largely complete and the place we leave most of our major characters feels satisfactory. Sure, there are a handful of dangling plot threads about various High Lords or members of their immediate retinues. A couple of romantic relationships don’t get explicit closure and/or aren’t tied up in a neat bow. But it also feels as though you know where they’re going, even if we haven’t seen it yet.

Now, am I going to say no to another novel set in Prythian? Of course not. These characters are incredibly fleshed out and interesting. And by now we’re fully invested in all their stories. Over the course of ACOWAR, I found myself in tears at several completely random moments. Certain scenes were just that cathartic. It’s really hard not to love this world.

I’m just not sure where a fourth book goes after this, even if future novels in the series are meant to be spinoffs that don’t necessarily touch the main narrative of this particular story again. And I’m not sure that I want to risk future novels disturbing the fragile equilibrium that exists at the end of this one. For both good and ill, this book ends in a place that feels satisfying, appropriate, and meaningful.  But, then again, Sarah Maas’ writing has never let me down before. I doubt it’ll start now. But I’m gonna be kind of nervous about it for the next year. (And excited as heck, too.)

Next: Review: Walkaway, Cory Doctorow

The next book in the A Court of Thorns and Roses series is due out in 2018.