Worth the hype! It was a whirlwind of emotion that had me fangirling like a teenager for the last 200 pages.
Summary:
If Feyre and Tamlin thought they would live happily ever after, they were wrong. The events Under the Mountain have taken their toll on the both of them in different ways. Not to mention, Feyre's bargain with the High Lord of Night Court, Rhysand, is called in, meaning she must spend one week of every month in his domain. But when what was once a fairytale romance turns more and more toxic and war with the vicious king of Hybern is on the horizon, Feyre finds herself more and more drawn to the darker court. Will it be enough to prevent a war and heal old wounds?
Verdict: 9/10
I was not sure I was going to like this book. Initially I was so hesitant of disregarding the original love interest and moving on to a new romantic interest in the very next book. I very begrudgingly picked up this sequel and wanted to fight back against the he-doesn't-understand-me tropes and the love triangles. I felt like the author was trying to create more drama... and I hate that it worked. Once I was further into the book, everything fell into place.
Maas uses the stereotypes of the genre to her advantage. We see the typical plot of the white knight teaming up with an ancient enemy to destroy a new enemy - but in this story, the reader sides with the "villain." The white knight is wrong. The “new enemy” is actually the morally right option but has disguised themselves too well as an antagonist so that their reputation now works against them. But as Feyre said: “the villain is usually the person who locks up the maiden and throws away the key… he was the one who let me out” (pg. 427).
Maas skillfully showed how trauma shaped the characters and their relationships, adding realistic psychology into fantasy and creating new opportunities in the story line and character development. In this installment, the reader sees how the previous ending morphed the initial pitfalls or plot holes within Tamlin and Feyre's relationship into full-blown red flags. I was not expecting this dynamic of a storyline in what would otherwise be a SMUT romance.
The author fleshed out some surprisingly serious elements in this series, like the various effects of and responses to trauma or sexual harassment in regards to both genders. It really added an interesting contrast between true romances vs flirtations and abuse.
Also apart from the main characters, the side characters are just as compelling. I'm already invested in shipping Feyre's friends and sisters (no spoilers).
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