ACOTAR Series Reread: A Court of Thorns and Roses Wrap-Up (+ Giveaway)

If you've been reading my blog for a while, then you'll know that I'm a Sarah J. Maas fan! After chatting with two of my fellow SJM fangirls - Cristina from Girl in the Pages and Kristin from Super Space Chick - we realized we all really wanted to reread the series prior to the next installment coming out in May. If you want more details on the reread, check out the introduction post.

Now, I'll level with you, friends. I did not expect the three weeks we spent rereading A Court of Thorns and Roses to fly by so quickly! But they did, and so here we are, officially wrapping up this really casual reread of the first book in the series. One thing that I truly love about rereading books is that you get a chance to catch details you might have missed the first time around. Another thing I adore is the way that the reader may find that there are different moments or quotes that catch the attention the second (or third) time around. Both of these things happened for me when I reread A Court of Thorns and Roses this time around, and I sincerely hope that if you've been reading along, it's been the same for you!

Each of the hosts came up with a specific question for the wrap-up, and so, I'll be sharing all the questions and my answers to them below. Please feel free to write a wrap-up post of your own, or to simply share your thoughts in the comments section or on social media. I would simply ask that you try to be as spoiler-free as possible, and if you can't avoid that, then make sure to warn people who might check out your post.

Alexa's Question: 

What parallels can you draw between "A Court of Thorns and Roses" and "Beauty and the Beast"?

Here's another fact for you all: I'm still in 'Beauty and the Beast' fangirl mode, especially after seeing the film again recently with my sister. I've always loved reading novels that were inspired by this story (and hope to someday write one of my own), so it's no surprise that I went for a question that tackled two things I loved with my question. 

I thought it might be simplest to list the things that I feel the two tales have in common:

• impoverished circumstances for the main character and her family
• the concept of "an eye for an eye", where one character must offer reparation for a wrong
• the mysterious home of the "beast", which is grand, magical and filled with inexplicable things
• a curse that turns one into a "beast" that can only be broken by specific circumstances
• the development of a mutual understanding between the main characters of the story

There are more specific details that I could point out that reminded me of the original fairytale when I was reading this novel, but in the interest of remaining spoiler-free for those who have yet to experience the magic for themselves, I won't mention them here.

Cristina's Question:

What aspect(s) of the world-building in A Court of Thorns and Roses is your favorite? What world-building elements do you hope to see expanded upon in A Court of Wings and Ruin that have not been explored yet?

I'm certain that this will be a common answer, but I loved the way that Prythian was divided into different courts. It was fascinating to read about the variety of appearances, magic and locales that made up the courts, and we learn a little bit about them in this first novel. While I certainly think we are given the opportunity to learn even more in the sequel, I feel like there is still more we have yet to see - and I would love to see that in the third book. I'd also love to learn more about fae magic and its basic tenets so I can make even more sense of the things that happen.

Kristin's Question:

What were the differences between your first and second experiences reading A Court of Thorns and Roses?

I mentioned a little bit about this earlier! The first time I read A Court of Thorns and Roses, I was dying to read another novel from Sarah J. Maas so I flew through the pages without delay. I craved the knowledge of what exactly would happen to Feyre, so I focused specifically on her and her story as the first time I read it. The second time I read this novel, I picked up more details regarding the world and the secondary characters. I also noted the little details sprinkled all throughout that alluded to a few things that happen later on in Feyre's story, and it was brilliant to see how Sarah really crafted this story to set up things for the future of it. I also digested it a little bit better on my second read, just because I wasn't speeding through the pages, but savoring them a little more.

Before we get to the giveaway, I wanted to remind everyone of the reading schedule for A Court of Mist and Fury! I haven't reread the book since I read it last year (in Europe, which was a fun way to do it), so I'm really looking forward to diving into it. Please see the schedule below for reference:

A Court of Mist and Fury

April 3-9: Part One: The House of Beasts

April 10-20: Part Two: The House of Wind

April 21-May 1: Part Three: The House of Mist

May 2: A Court of Mist and Fury Wrap-up Post + Giveaway

Again, while we're mostly doing this because the three of us really want to do a reread in preparation for A Court of Wings and Ruin, we also hope that more people will join us so we can talk all about this series (and all our feelings together). Happy rereading!

And now, for the giveaway! We're going to be giving away one (1) "Rainbow of Velaris" candle from Novelly Yours. This giveaway is US only, and you can enter via the Rafflecopter form below. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway