Nesta Archeron has always been prickly-proud, swift to anger, and slow to forgive. And ever since being forced into the Cauldron and becoming High Fae against her will, she's struggled to find a place for herself within the strange, deadly world she inhabits. Worse, she can't seem to move past the horrors of the war with Hybern and all she lost in it.
The one person who ignites her temper more than any other is Cassian, the battle-scarred warrior whose position in Rhysand and Feyre's Night Court keeps him constantly in Nesta's orbit. But her temper isn't the only thing Cassian ignites. The fire between them is undeniable, and only burns hotter as they are forced into close quarters with each other.
Meanwhile, the treacherous human queens who returned to the Continent during the last war have forged a dangerous new alliance, threatening the fragile peace that has settled over the realms. And the key to halting them might very well rely on Cassian and Nesta facing their haunting pasts.
Against the sweeping backdrop of a world seared by war and plagued with uncertainty, Nesta and Cassian battle monsters from within and without as they search for acceptance-and healing-in each other's arms.
(Goodreads)
Okay, first and foremost, I still don't like Nesta. I understand her, I understand why she is the way she is... But I still don't like her and I don't think I ever will. I feel like the people who didn't connect with Feyre connect more with Nesta, and that isn't me. I may lash out at others when I'm depressed but nowhere near the capacity of pain like Nesta. She's just so goddamn mean.
Now, Nesta's story isn't anything new. Just like Maas's other stories, A Court of Silver Flames is a story of found family and healing. And it's cute, if not a bit overdone. I liked that this book focused so much on the importance of accepting help from others, and channeling that into something productive. In this case, it was physical strength, and wanting to bring back the valkyries. The female empowerment, despite what has happened to each individual was so motivating. And as a victim myself, it was beautiful. The companionship of the girls was so heartwarming and cute! The way the house of winds became of sentient being as well was just so interesting, and how the house doted on Nesta was endearing.
Now let's get to my man Cassian. I WOULD DIE FOR CASSIAN. I hate that so many fans have assigned Cassian into being the classic jock, a typical meathead who's pretty. But Cassian is so much more than the box the fandom has placed him in, and this book did just a good job showcasing that. Cassian is loving and caring, he's smart and kind and witty and sexy. And god I am absolutely in love with him. Unfortunately, the book did not have enough Cassian for me, which is a damn shame. This man deserves to have so much more, and I will die on this soapbox.
Alright to the hard stuff. Even though the book is pretty good, there are still a lot of problems with it. The main one being how she wrote Rhysand and Feyre. Yes, they're involved in the book, and it's very very minimal. They only show up for three main scenes. Anyway, the problem for me with Maas's writing is the fact that she kind of erased everything that made those characters lovable for the sake of the book. Feyre is so fucking passive it's annoying, and Rhys is the worst he's ever been. I know he can be antagonistic, but it's like Sarah purposefully diminished them so that she could create conflict. And I believe it's because she made them too perfect. It's unreal, obviously, it's a book and that's why they get away with it, but now that she plans to create more books it's become a problem. The other issue and these go hand in hand, is that she made Feyre and Rhys too goddamn powerful. All the issues in this book could have been solved by Feyre and Rhys if she weren't pregnant. Legit the conflict felt so vain the main baddie was the one princess who turned into a crone. She was mad at Nesta for "stealing" all the magic of the cauldron and turning her ugly... like? What? That's it! That was essentially the entire conflict in the book and trying to find these ancient weapons that were cauldron made. It was all pretty anti-climatic.
Don't even get me started on the sex. I get it, I am fully aware that Maas wrote an adult book. But goddamn this book was just pure erotica and it was fucking annoying. Where is the plot? The dialogue? Apparently, it's left the building with this book. After Nesta and Cassian come to an "agreement" they have sex EVERY GODDAMN CHAPTER. AND THEY ARE LONG ASS SCENES. I couldn't even skip them because she would put character development in the FUCKING SEX SCENES. THE AUDACITY. I was not prepared for the amount of unnecessary smut in this book. And I'm okay with an occasional sex scene, but when it gets to the point that it's overwhelming? It becomes too much and takes away from the story itself. It was truly disappointing.
And now the ending, the girls are badasses and have been forcibly thrown into the selection thing god I can't remember the actual name anyways they're the winners, it's all cool. And then Feyre goes into labor AND FUCKING DIES. THAT'S RIGHT. SHE FUCKING DIES. Everything we went through in the past three books for her to get offed by her winged baby, all because she and Rhys are kinky shits. Nesta finally bucks up and becomes a good sister and confesses her love to Feyre and tells her how sorry she is she didn't do anything to help her and manages to save Feyre with her cauldron magic and changes her womb into a wing friendly one. She also changed her own anatomy to a wing friendly womb too because of my mans Cassian And thus begins the cutest part of the book, the wedding proposal. Nesta Finally acknowledges the mating bond between herself and Cassian and she asks him to marry with an ultimatum, she wants a big wedding I'm crying. Cassian the little shit he is, asks her cheekily what if he doesn't want a big wedding, and Nesta pulls out a slice of bread and offers it to him. So it's either the slice of bread or the wedding. Cassian honestly wanted a big wedding too and it's legit the cutest thing ever. The wedding is spectacular, Rhys is back to his old self, and Nesta is so happy with Cassian. And I was genuinely happy for this ending, it's one that they both deserve. They deserve to be the happiest they could possibly be after all the things they've gone through.
Overall, the book was good. And I did like it, not my absolute favorite. But still a good book, I just want to know how she plans to continue the stand alone books with how everything has been left off. Because even the book addressed the issue of Feyre and Rhys's overpowered-ness.
Anyways,
Until next time readers <3
