A Court of Frost and Starlight (A Court of Thorns and Roses #3.1) [Review]

RELEASE DATE: May 1st, 2018
AUTHOR:  Sarah J. Maas
GENRE: New-Adult, Fantasy, Fae, Romance. 
PUBLISHER: Bloomsbury 
SUMMARY:
The Winter Solstice. In a week. I was still new enough to being High Lady that I had no idea what my formal role was to be. If we’d have a High Priestess do some odious ceremony, as lanthe had done the year before A year. Gods, nearly a year since Rhys had called in his bargain, desperate to get me away from the poison of the Spring Court to save me from my despair. Had he been only a minute later, the Mother knew what would have happened. Where I’d now be. Snow swirled and eddied in the garden, catching in the brown fibers of the burlap covering the shrubs My mate who had worked so hard and so selflessly, all without hope that I would ever be with him We had both fought for that love, bled for it. Rhys had died for it.

“To the blessed darkness from which we are born, and to which we return.” 

ACOFAS is one of my most anticipating books of 2018. After the events in ACOWAR, I was pretty desperate for anything the author throws my way even if it’s a short novella. There’s been a lot of mixed reviews about this book which made me a bit nervous before getting into it. Well, let me tell you guys, It wasn’t really that bad. I actually had fun reading it. It’s kinda like Christmas themed fun novella with your favorite characters from the series. As many people complained there’s really not much plot in this book, it’s a bridge between the gap of the first three books and its spin off. Honestly, nothing exciting happens in this book. It’s just a fun relief for the ACOWAR readers who’re still suffering from the book hangover so even if you skip this book you won’t be missing anything important.

The story takes place several months after the war. Feyre, Rhysand and the inner circle are preparing for the winter Solstice, a time for fun, joy, gifting, and family reunion. The war has left so many people with deep scars and everyone is suffering in their own way. Feyre almost lost her mate Rhysand and she feels lucky that they had survived. Okay, the whole book is about celebrating Winter Solstice with your loved ones and recovering after a traumatic event. There’s no killing and no violence just fun. If you want a fun read then pick this up but if you want something exciting with a plot then skip this book.

  I love Feyre and Rhysand but I think I had enough of their romance and their dirty talk. I’m seriously happy for them but can they stop acting like horny teenagers all the time because they’re making me cringe. Even through their mate bond all they think about is jumping each other’s bones. Anyways, as for my new favorite couple Cassian and Nesta, I’m shipping them hard. I can’t wait to know how their relationship develops further in the next book. Even after turning from immortal to mortal state, Amren is still the same deadly bitch and I love her. Mor is totally fun but she’s also fighting her past and we get to see a vulnerable side of her. Azriel, the shadowsinger is still a mystery.  He plays as the spy for the inner circle. He’s still mooning over Mor and I feel bad for him. The truth gonna break his heart. I don’t want to say anything about Elain, Lucien, and Azriel but I can definitely see a triangle coming.

The pacing of this book was pretty slow but surprisingly I wasn’t really bored. I finished it in two sittings. I enjoyed exploring the Valeris and watching the inner circle picking gifts for each other and also not to forget the fun banters between them. MOR was quite bad at choosing gifts. This book was mostly told in Feyre’s and Rhysand’s POV but we also get Cassian, Mor, and Nesta’s perspective. I’m pretty disappointed that it doesn’t have Azriel ‘s POV. This guy is a mystery from the start and I really wanted to know his backstory.

Overall, I enjoyed this novella! It’s a quick fun read. It contains a sneak peak of the next book at the end, and after reading it, I’m even more excited for it. 

Recommend it?

If you’re looking for a fun novella without any serious plot then definitely pick this up.

NOW IT’S SHIPPING TIME
[SPOILERS BEWARE]

Rhysand And Feyre: My favorite couple in this series and I’m glad they had their happily ever after  but I had enough of their smutty romance because they’re starting to make me cringe. It’s finally time for them to step down and give the spotlight to other characters. I’m glad they finally decided to have a family. I can’t wait for mini Rhysands.

Cassian And Nesta: They’re my second favorite OTP in this series and I’m so glad that the next book is about them. Things became awkward between them after the events in ACOWAR. I’m not surprised to see Nesta turning into a drunken mess and closed off to others. I’m not fan of her yet but I hope she changes my mind in the spin off. I loved the sneak peak and I’m very curious about how much cauldron’s deadly power is inside Nesta’s body. With this new  mission at Illyrian mountains, I can pretty much see a lot of things happening between Cassian and Nesta. I can’t wait to read it!

Mor And ???: Her past is horrifying and I absolutely hate Eris. I hope she finds her destined mate soon. I’ll ship her with whomever she chooses.

Azriel And Elain: Some people are shipping Elain with Lucien but I feel Azriel and Elain  are perfect for each other. Elain doesn’t want Lucien and it hurts me to see her ignoring him every time he wants to talk to her. I don’t blame her because you can’t force love. It looks like Elain has a crush on Azriel. I think they would make a cute couple.

Lucien And Vassa:  There is a probability of these two ending up together. Lucien rescues Vassa, one of the human queen from a sorcerer, It’s too bad that Sarah didn’t described their adventurous journey in ACOWAR. They’ve become good friends, I think he might be the one who helps break her curse. I would love to read a swan lake retelling with these two.   I was a little bit disappointed that we didn’t get a glimpse of Lucien, Vassa and Jurien’s life in ACOFAS. They call themselves band of Exiles, that’s so cool.  Lucien is still not aware that his father is Helion. I would love to see his reaction when the truth gets revealed.

Amren and Varian: I don’t know why this couple doesn’t get much attention. I would love to know more about them.

Tamlin And ???: If anyone deserves a second chance this guy is definitely the one. I agree that he was horrible towards Feyre but he finally realizes that what he did was wrong. He was pretty obsessed with Feyre because he lived a lonely life for a long time and he didn’t want to lose her. I feel sad that he’s turned into such a mess. He’s living a sad and miserable life. He has lost pretty much everything including his best friend Lucien.  I was a bit angry with Rhysand when he gloated over his misery. Hurting a wounded wolf Is a low thing to do. I hope Tamlin gets a redemption story because he deserves a happily ever after too. 

MY RATING:[4/5 Stars]

So, What do you think of this book? Do you Plan to read it?
If you’ve read the book, what are your expectations for the spin off?
Please feel free to comment below!

See You In The Next Post and Have a Great Day! 🙂