Review: A Court of Silver Flames by Sarah J Maas

Following on the heels of a September binge reading session of the first three ACOTAR books, I would be lying if I didn’t say that A Court of Silver Flames made me a little nervous. Knowing that my time with Feyre and Rhysand was over was already a swift punch to the gut – amplified even more so by my now forced proximity with Nesta, a character that I wished would take a long walk off a short cliff on more than one occasion. What convinced me to finally pick this up after a 3-month pause? Our beloved buff bat boy Cassian, obviously!

Whether you are team Nesta or her biggest hater, read on for my mostly spoiler-free review of Nesta and Cassian’s story, where I unpack the triumphs and tribulations of this epic romantasy read.

Plot Summary

A Court of Silver Flames follows Nesta Archeron, Feyre’s eldest sister, on her journey of healing and redemption after being made High Fae by the Cauldron. Nesta finds herself on a self-destructive rampage that is only quelled by drinking, gambling, and taking any Fae male that looks in her general direction to her bed. After a very tense and heated intervention, Nesta is forced to move to the House of Wind to train with Cassian, the Night Court General. Along the way, Nesta begins to develop her sense of purpose, finding friends, inner strength, and emotional healing, eventually culminating in her ability to conquer objects of immense power and confront the Night Court’s newest threat.

Quality of Writing

Rating: 5/5

While Sarah is no master of prose, I feel that this was her best writing of the series so far. After reading about watery bowels one too many times throughout Feyre’s story, I found that A Court of Silver Flames managed to strike a great balance of fluff and plot driven content.

I also deeply appreciate Sarah’s ability to write about emotional complexity and the massive amount of work that it takes to overcome that adversity. I have read plenty of books that end up infantilizing the main character over their emotional trauma, or address it for 5 minutes and never speak of it again – neither of which signify good writing skills or an understanding of the content portrayed. In this case, Sarah strikes a perfect balance, holding Nesta accountable but with a gentle hand.

Plot Development

Rating: 4/5

Overall, I felt that 80% of the plot developed at an appropriate pace and was not overly rushed or sluggish in certain areas. There are a few themes and motifs that become a bit annoyingly repetitive (oh my god enough with the stairs), but the repetition did not majorly detract from the overall plot. I do have some thoughts about the pacing for the ending, but more on that later!

Characters

Rating: 5/5

It’s time to come clean: I am a Nesta convert.

Out of all the ACOTAR characters, Nesta bore herself into my soul and has found a permanent place there. As someone who has also done a lot of work on my mental health journey, I had several emotional connections with Nesta and her story. It’s not often that a character or plot point makes my bottom lip quiver, but having a window finally opened into who Nesta is stirred a lot of self-reflective moments within me.

Cassian has been a favorite character of mine since he was first introduced to the series, but my love for him grew within this story. Cassian is a shining example that loving someone who is deeply hurting is not an easy task, but if it’s the right person, the storm clouds are worth it. After all, flowers don’t grow without a little rain.

While A Court of Silver Flames is a romantasy at its core, I absolutely loved the friendship development between Nesta, Emerie, and Gwyn. The story of this trio’s friendship felt authentic and not at all superficial, something that the inner circle could take a few notes on.

Ease of Reading

Rating: 4/5

As a chronic speed reader, being able to continuously follow a storyline without losing focus is a key part of my reading experience. I found A Court of Silver Flames mostly easy to follow, with a few exceptions toward the end of the book, mainly due to pacing. That being said, I did not have to refer back to an earlier part of the book at any point or google away my confusion.

Ending

Rating: 4/5

Although the lead up for ACOTAR 6 was nicely set up by the end of A Court of Silver Flames, I did feel that the last 20% of the book was quite abrupt and rushed. At this point, two major plotlines converged for seemingly no reason, only to be revealed as interconnected at the last possible moment – hence points off for ease of reading! Despite this, the ending did feel complete (for an incomplete series) and did not leave me confused, frustrated, or on a cliffhanger.

Would I Recommend This Book

I would highly recommend this book to literally anyone that enjoys the romantasy genre, but I do want to note that reading all of the previous ACOTAR books is essential prior to picking up this 5 star read.

Overall Rating

Book Rating: 5/5 (TW: Mention of SA/R*pe)

Spice Rating: 4/5

I did not anticipate that I would be throwing a 5 star rating at this book’s feet, but here we are. In my opinion, A Court of Silver Flames is the best book of the ACOTAR series so far. A beautifully written romantasy chock full of depth, introspection, comedy, and a healthy spice-to-plot ratio.

Curious about how I rate my reads? Check out my Rating System Blog Post for more!

Let’s Talk

What is your personal favorite ACOTAR book, and what made it stand out as the strongest in the series for you? Let me know in the comments below!