I received this book for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
Series: A Court of Thorns and Roses #1
Published by Bloomsbury Children's on May 5, 2015
Pages: 432
Format: ARC
Source: the publisher
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A thrilling, seductive new series from New York Times bestselling author Sarah J. Maas, blending Beauty and the Beast with faerie lore.

When nineteen-year-old huntress Feyre kills a wolf in the woods, a beast-like creature arrives to demand retribution for it. Dragged to a treacherous magical land she only knows about from legends, Feyre discovers that her captor is not an animal, but Tamlin—one of the lethal, immortal faeries who once ruled their world.

As she dwells on his estate, her feelings for Tamlin transform from icy hostility into a fiery passion that burns through every lie and warning she's been told about the beautiful, dangerous world of the Fae. But an ancient, wicked shadow grows over the faerie lands, and Feyre must find a way to stop it . . . or doom Tamlin—and his world—forever.

Perfect for fans of Kristin Cashore and George R. R. Martin, this first book in a sexy and action-packed new series is impossible to put down!

A Court of Thorns and Roses had my name written all over it from the very beginning. A Sarah J. Maas book? Yes, please! A Sarah J. Maas book that blends Beauty and the Beast with faerie lore? HELLZ YES, PLEASE! After binging Throne of Glass, Crown of Midnight, Heir of Fire AND The Assassin’s Blade all in September, I was dying to get my hands on this beautiful book and it didn’t dissapoint! If anything, it exceeded my expectations and made me DESPERATE for book two – which is a loooonnngggg ways off! *Sobs*

In typical Maas fashion, the main character, Feyre, was a strong, independent, capable heroine. She has two sisters who really don’t care about her (though one does more than the other) and a father who tries, but fails, to support his family and understand his daughters. Thanks to a death-bed promise, Feyre feels responsible for her family’s welfare, though it often means sacrificing her happiness. Basically, Feyre is self-sufficient, willing to do whatever she has to in order to survive. And the twist at the end? Epic, epic, epic! I can’t wait to see what it means for Feyre in the next book!

Also in typical Maas fashion? A Court of Thorns and Roses had a TON of swoony boys! I was swooning over Tamlin before we were even officially introduced to him! He was incredibly scary and mysterious in the beginning, but as we got to know him, I fell hard for him. As the “Beast,” he tried so hard to be romantic with Feyre and just failed! He sort of reminded me of Dorian from the Throne of Glass series. In my review of Throne of Glass, I said Dorian was, “a bit stereotypical, in that he was intimidating, as the crown prince, yet also laid back in his demeanor and not as scary as he seemed. As is typical of YA lit, he also despised his father and the things his father stood for.” And that really describes Tamlin pretty well, honestly. The only difference is Dorian was a bit better at flirting than Tamlin! Tamlin’s attempts at flirting had me laughing so hard!

And then there was Lucien… Oooohhhhh, Lucien! Psst, don’t tell Morpheus, but Lucien won my heart! He was hilarious, sarcastic and so, so full of himself – but in a playful, adorable way. To put it into the same context as I did with Tamlin, Lucien reminded me of Chaol! He was strong and proud, a fighter. He was so serious and cold in the beginning and I completely understand why, but it was nice to see him thaw out as the story went on. I loved the tension between him and Feyre, especially in the beginning. The progression of their friendship felt very real and believable, as did the progression of the relationship between Feyre and Tamlin.

And then there was Rhys.. Whoa… I should NOT like Rhys, but OMG, I do! *Fans self* He’s dark, sarcastic, cocky, dangerous… And yet I love him. I ship him with Feyre. I can’t wait to see his character development in book two!!! And I want to know what happened at the end, dammit! Why did he… Well, I won’t spoil it! But, wow, that ending!!!!!

I love, love, love the world Maas created in A Court of Thorns and Roses. The world-building, the mythology, how perfectly Maas blended Beauty and the Beast into a story about faeries, the faerie lore she created… It’s just all amazing. Maas is a gorgeous writer and a beautiful story-teller. She has this way with words and characters that just pulls you in to the story and refuses to let you go. Honestly, as much as I loved the Throne of Glass books, I’m pretty sure I loved A Court of Thorns and Roses even more! I LOVE retellings and I LOVE faeries and I LOVE Sarah J. Maas and her books, so A Court of Thorns and Roses basically combined everything I love into one book. I read this in December 2014 and I originally wrote this review in January; now that it’s May, I can officially say that ACOTAR is definitely my favorite book of 2015!

Overall, if you couldn’t tell from my super fangirly review, I loved A Court of Thorns and Roses beyond words!! ALL THE STARS! ALL THE HEARTS!! ALL THE FEELS!!! Seriously, if this isn’t on your TBR, it NEEDS TO BE! If I could give this book ten million billion x infinity stars, I would! Loved doesn’t even begin to describe my feels right now. Maas is on my Auto-Buy Author List, now and forever. I can’t wait to read Queen of Shadows (Throne of Glass #4) and A Court of Thorns and Roses #2 and everything else she ever writes, ever. Period. End of discussion.