Book Review – A Court of Wings and Ruin

Hello everyone. I know I have been gone for an awfully long time, but I have now finished my PhD and started a proper job, and I work a lot, and I’ve just had no time for anything. But I finally refused to work on the weekend, and snuggled up with ACOWAR.

I will keep this review spoiler free with regards to this book, and try as hard as I can not to give anything major from the previous two books away.

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My reviews of the previous two books:

A Court of Thorns and Roses

A Court of Mist and Fury

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For the most part, I was in love with this book, but by the end I was really disappointed. The big major battle at the end was what let this down for me. This story deserved so much more than what it got. I expected more of Feyre, but she spent the whole end of this book as a spectator. There are several battles in this book, and she sits a couple out, letting her friends fight and nearly die while she watches. At the time I was okay with this because I thought she was being saved so she could be unleashed at the end in the final battle, and it wouldn’t be repetitive. But that payoff never came. Her power was never used… so there was no point in this plot line of the power she had obtained and had been hiding for a book and a half! I just keep waiting… for something that never came…I’m not angry with you Feyre, I’m just disappointed. All the hype up about Nesta and what she ‘took’ fell pretty flat too.

There were awesome things though. We finally got the see Cassian and Azriel in battle, which was awesome. But I don’t think the ladies really got to show their skills. Amren, Rhys’ second, and super-powerful who-knows-what, plays much of a spectator role as well. We see Mor in one battle. But it was a little underwhelming, and I was REALLY excited to finally see The Morrigan fight. Where were all the bad ass ladies at?

There were also a lot of threads of story that just didn’t come together in the end. Pieces that I was waiting to see be placed perfectly that made everything make sense… and those didn’t happen. Everything was left open. Everything. I have never finished a book before with so many unanswered questions. And this, I believe is the end of the series. Bargains were made but not fulfilled, and characters just sort of popped in to save the day with no reason to be there. All the high lords pretty much turned out to be completely different than previously described. There were so many ‘I’ll tell you the story of that later’, or ‘we will deal with that later’, but NOPE. There were just zero twists, zero big reveals that made me go ‘ooooohhhh!!!’. It felt messy and lazy.

But this book was still a wonderful read, because the characters are just such darlings and I love them.  Their relationships and friendships and banter were what saved it. That was what made this book so lovable. And so even with all its faults (of which there are countless…. countless faults… and SO. MANY. QUESTIONS.) I still really enjoyed it. It just could have been so much better than it was. So so much.

I rate it 4/5 stars

(even though it probably doesn’t deserve it. My heart just loves it…)

Tea pairing: Mi Lan Xiang Dan Cong. Ethereal, floral and honey-touched. 

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Where to get it:

The Book Depository. Amazon. Kobo.

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