A Court of Mist and Fury (A Court of Thorns and Roses Book 2)

Noha Badawi

I read this 10+ times, and it's still my favorite.

"This book makes my soul sing. I don’t think there will ever be a book in the years to come that will get these feelings out of me. ✨ And every single time, I'd give this book a million star. It's amazing that after all the times I've read it still gets the best of me, provoke the deepest feels and have me fangirling for a good while. I'm a mess of emotions, feelings and things I never thought possible to even feel; until this book came into my life. Where do I even start? What is even life after this book? I’m truly ruined this time. Definitely beat the second book in a series syndrome to hell and back … Emotional, frustrating, intense, steamy, mind screwing and freaking soul shattering. I can write an entire review just describing how GOOD this book is, but it might take me a few days to pull out all the good words from a dictionary. I feel ashamed giving it only five stars; this book deserves the entire GALAXY, it’s officially been nominated as my favorite book of 2016. Sarah J. Maas truly proved to be a goddess, the queen of Fantasy because she doesn’t simply tell a good story. She weaves a tale, she breathe life to new characters and build a world that fits them like a puzzle piece. The way she spines the story and develop it throughout the books in the series is truly outstanding; reading a first book in a series by SJM is nothing like reading the second, the third … she writes about L I F E. A talent to behold; I am utterly grateful for whatever compelled me years ago to pick up her books. ** *** This review is filled with spoilers for both books ACOTAR & ACOMAF, so be careful as I don’t want to spoil you; this book has to be experienced with no background whatsoever. Read then come back. ** In A Court of Thorns and Roses, SJM broadly retold the Beauty and the beast fairytale through Feyre and Tamlin’s story in the Spring Court. But when everything went to hell by the end of the first book, now Aramantha is dead, Feyre is suffering of a bad case of Post-traumatic-disorder – well it’s entitled being the fact that she was tortured, locked up, killed and resurrected as a High Fae – Rhysand is finally back home and Tamlin is haunted by his helplessness. Now in A Court of Mist and Fury, SJM took a surprise turn down the Greek mythology, connected it all to Hades & Persephone’s story. In this sequel, two things stood out most; characters development and world building. D A M N, the way each character developed to a completely different person from the first impression in ACOTAR was amazing. In the Spring Court, Feyre is suffocating from Tamlin’s over protective attitude; it annoyed me to a point that I felt that it was degrading towards Feyre after all what she’s done for him. Both are struggling and swamped with nightmares from Under the Mountain and neither is feeling safe enough to talk to the other about it. Lucien had this resigned attitude, one that gave way too many excuses to Tamlin’s actions and to be honest that’s something I didn’t expect from him. I think – more like wishful thinking – in the sequel Lucien has a reason to fight against Tamlin’s restraints and truly break a few laws; come on Lucien let out the fox, I kept yelling that at the book during his scenes. Tamlin, well he was the BIG BLOW in the face because SJM made a statement with his character; yes you most definitely need to see through the beast, but it’s not always prince charming waiting on the other side. It won’t always be your other half and you shouldn’t yield to what’s available. You should fight for what you deserve. Swamped by nightmares and utterly terrified of Rhys and Feyre’s bargain, Tamlin truly ruined everything between him and Feyre. I can’t believe that he went far enough to lock her up, knowing that she’s beyond terrified from confined places, feeling like a prisoner and weak. And oh my god, him working with the king was the final straw to whatever sympathy I had for him. And that Ianthe – what was her name? I don’t even care to remember it – I freaking hated her from the first time she appeared. Totally saw through her mask, I knew the bitch wasn’t nice and friendly at all; Rhys’s story about her, thankfully confirmed what I had in mind. I want her D E A D ! I loved the strong woman Feyre became in this book. She went through every possible phase to truly accept what she is now, adapt to the powers she inherited from the 7 High lords and realize the path she’s supposed to go through. Feyre is definitely on my list of badass, strong favorite female characters, I cannot wait to see how badass she’ll be in the 3rd book. Now, *deep dramatic breath*, let’s talk about the High Lord of the Night court shall we? Rhysand’s character is a true crescendo, always revealing more depth and feel to him, always touching a more passionate note to your soul. It kept building up, up and up like this beautiful piece of music until the moment where it all explodes and all you see is passion, love and utter beauty. In A Court of Thorns and Roses we met this High Lord of the Night court; cunning, devilish person. We saw him as Aramantha’s man, bowing to her whims and wishes, yet at the end we kind of saw a glimpse to the person trapped inside by years of sacrifices and slavery. In A Court of Mist and Fury, we see a man, a rightful ruler, an honest, loyal friend and extremely passionate person. His passion is for life, peace and love. The thing that made him truly perfect is that he is in fact very imperfect; never hiding his cruel side, never denying who he truly is, what he truly is. He’s very loyal to the people he loves yet he’ll tear down the entire world for them, burn it to the ground until justice is served. The Night Court squad was absolute perfection; Mor, Azriel, Amren and Cassian. And Feyre’s sister’s development was something I wished for and got to witness; though what happened in the end brought me to tears. In A Court of Mist and Fury, we go to the Night Court, the Court of Nightmares, Velaris; and oh my stars they are all so utterly B E A U T I F U L. SJM did an outstanding job describing them all, weaving them around and around like waves of feelings to fit with Rhysand’s character and that was absolute perfection. We go to another court as well; The Summer Court and I loved it. I cannot wait to see the rest of the courts. War is knocking on the door and danger is spiraling from every corner. I’m so scared to even think how they’re going to clean this mess in the next book. And finally, let me say that the romance in this book is fascinating and heart wrenching – in a wonderful way. I loved how Feyre and Rhysand’s relationship developed from not friends, to friends, to best friends, to possible couples with all the flirting and tension – that by the way had my heart jumping out of chest at times – to mates. The fact that Rhys is giving her space to grow and be her own person, make her own choices and standing by her no matter what has earned him a few more thousand points on my scale. And she the other way around, never shielding her true self from him, lashing at him when he needs someone to get some sense in him and always there to shoulder his burdens. Their conversations, mind-talks, banter, flirting, and oh my, everything else was PERFECT and I need more and more and more and it’s never EVER going to be enough. I loved this book, loved it. Did I already say that? I don’t care, I FREAKING LOVED IT. ["

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April 12, 2026 Verified Purchase

Tracy @ Cornerfolds

Where A Court of Thorns and Roses was a love story about a girl risking all to save her ...

"A Court of Thorns and Roses was one of my top books of 2015 - possibly even my number one. I have been (not-so-patiently) waiting on A Court of Mist and Fury literally since book one ended and obviously preordered a copy as soon as I could! Upon receiving it in the mail, I quickly started reading but didn't want to read it too quickly. This is one of those books you also want to savor! Especially knowing that I'll have to wait an entire year for the final book in the series. Before I jump into this review, let me say that I do not think Sarah J. Maas can do no wrong. I read the first two books in her Throne of Glass series before giving up on that one. But THIS series... In this series she can do no wrong because every single word of this book was perfection. This book picks up where the first left off, with Feyre, Tamlin, and Lucien back at the Spring Court working on getting the Court back to its former glory. With all that she has been through, Feyre has been left a shell of her former self. Unfortunately, everyone seems to be more worried about keeping up appearances than making sure their Cursebreaker has what she needs to heal and live with her actions. Where A Court of Thorns and Roses was a love story about a girl risking all to save her Love, A Court of Mist and Fury is a story about a girl learning to respect herself, finding out who she really is after a huge trauma, with a love story weaved in. Feyre's character growth in this novel was incredible. I said in my review of ACOTAR that she was an unlikable character who I came to really love. Now I can honestly say that Feyre is an amazing, strong female character and the kind of role model I wish teens could read more about (as opposed to the weak female characters who allow a man to define them). As I'm sure you have probably gathered, in this book Rhysand gives Tamlin a run for his money. As the synopsis says, Rhys has not forgotten the bargain he made with Feyre under the mountain and he plans to make good on it. While I did like Tamlin in the first book, I have made it abundantly clear over the last year that I did not know enough about Rhys to choose a "team" and would have to wait until the next book was released to decide. I can now say I am firmly #TeamRhysand at this point and I don't see that changing. Rest assured, there is no love triangle in this book whatsoever, which is a huge relief considering that's what most YA fiction gravitates towards. I actually loved almost every character in this book, whether I loved them because they were so perfectly wonderful or horrible. The villains are just as terrible as they should be (although Amarantha is going to be damn hard to beat) and the new characters that Feyre aligns herself with grew on me as the story progressed. Surprisingly, I came to like Nesta much more than Elain, which is the exact opposite of how I felt about them in A Court of Thorns and Roses. One of my favorite things about A Court of Mist and Fury (and honestly, there are so many) was the world building. In book one, we only got to see the Spring Court, Under the Mountain, and the human realm. This time we I got to travel with Feyre all over Prythian and, obviously, my favorite was the Night Court, which was anything but what I expected! Sarah J. Maas' beautiful writing style contributes so much to the love I have for this gorgeous world. I think a lot of other authors would have a really hard time making me care as much as I care about every single location Feyre visits. I'll admit, I usually skim when I get to descriptions of cities and such, but here I took my time to take in every single word on the page. And then there's the story. Oh, the incredible, beautiful, heart-wrenching story. I loved every single agonizing minute of it. As I've already said, this book is about Feyre discovering who she is after Under the Mountain and she is stronger than anyone realized. There are multiple conflicts for her to deal with - mentally, in her personal relationships, and with a potential war brewing. The journey this book takes over 600+ pages is brutal and extraordinary and heart breaking and I adored it. I was actually a little worried that over 600 pages would be too much, that the story would get bogged down or that it would lag, but it didn't. There wasn't non-stop action, but everything that happened was relevant and I couldn't name anything that served only as filler. Something to definitely keep in mind is that this book has significantly more sexual content than the first, but I'm totally okay with that. As a 28 year old lover of YA, I was thrilled for the authenticity this little bit of extra explicitness brought to this story. I mean, when characters are talking about marriage and are fighting wars, it's not out of the question that they're probably going to be having more adult relationships. But I do think it's important to point out for those readers who perhaps don't want to read steamier scenes. (I'm sure you could easily skip past them.) As you can probably tell, I loved this book. I don't have a single bad thing to say about it, which is unusual for me, even when I rate a book five stars. I loved Feyre, I loved Rhysand, and I loved their constant bantering back and forth. I loved that Feyre learned to respect herself. I loved the gorgeous writing and world building and storytelling. I honestly cannot go on without becoming a total fangirl so instead I'll leave you with what I have dubbed Rhysand's theme song (you're welcome): [...] ["

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May 16, 2016 Verified Purchase

ARKntheCats

At turns epic and heartbreaking (in the BEST way)

"This review *could* be spoiler-y if you read between the lines. I am not a Maas fangirl who just gives 5 stars to everything she does. In fact, I don't like the Throne of Glass series (gasp, I know). I never made it through the first book of that one. But this series is just amazing. Full Disclosure: I was Team Rhysand already in book one. Before we knew his motives. Before we know everything we find out in ACMAF. And now? Now that we know his heart? Yeah, I’m hook, line and sinker over this character. Unless Maas does something insane in book three with him Rhysand may end up securing a place in my top five favorite male characters in fiction. He’s currently holding a spot there after finishing ACMAF (and that’s not said lightly, I’ve got guys like Gilbert Blythe in my top 5). Tamlin … eh, I was never a huge fan of his. I did try to like him for Feyre’s sake during parts of book one (even though he’s moody and close lipped and using her for most of the book), but after the cowardice he displayed Under the Mountain. When he was not willing to risk himself for Feyre after she had risked all for him? No. I wanted nothing to do with him after that. People are complaining about the “huge” change in Tamlin’s personality that we see in book two but I’d argue that what we see in book two was ALWAYS who Tamlin was. Tamlin only knows how to rule others (not actually love them) and that works itself into all his relationships (did no one else bristle at how he treats his “friends"? Like Lucien? Poor Lucien is treated like a rug.). It feels like such a jolt because we’re experiencing everything through Feyre’s eyes and in book one (which are rose-colored to the extreme when it comes to Tam). After all she’s faced in her life I’d argue that Feyre didn’t even understand what real, true love is until after Under the Mountain. Tamlin took care of her needs. She had shelter and someone looking after her and giving her time to explore things she enjoyed like painting for the first time in her life so she equated that to being in love (instead of being treated like any normal person should be). Now that she’s had time to know Tamlin more, find out his past and motives, see what makes him tick and discover who he is outside of the curse she can actually decide if they fit or not. I actually love that Maas did all this. I would wager to bet that ALL of us have found ourselves falling hard for someone at one point in our lives only to look back later and think: What the actual HECK was I thinking? Had known what I know now I would have never been with him/her! Anyway, now that we’re past that… I loved this book. So often in fiction we see characters in the midst of stress and trauma—see their thoughts and emotions while they go through something difficult—but not much is done (or at least not done well) to show the total soul implosion and pain someone experiences and has to muddle through AFTER trauma is over. Maas bravely showed the messy, worst bits of Feyre, Rhys and Tamlin as each character deals with their own version of PTSD. For some it makes them harder, some more tender, and others break completely. I applaud Maas for depicting all these things realistically while still giving us an engaging plotline and a boon of character growth at the same time (because in the same vein, ain’t nobody got time for 600 pages of people being depressed if that’s all there was). Beyond the theme of a woman finding herself and discovering her own strength (which is an important thing) there’s another beautiful thread that weaves its way into every part of this story: Who you surround yourself with is vitally linked to who you become. Feyre’s journey demonstrates the importance of seeking out friends who encourage you, challenge you, who ask hard questions and love you despite the answer you give, people who understand that you need time to heal but who will also not allow you to close yourself off from life forever. She could have chosen to stay where she was never questioned, never challenged, never pushed or encouraged. Stay where she could mope and be safe forever, but she didn’t and she healed because of that. As to people griping about a love triangle … perhaps they don’t know the definition of a love triangle? Because by definition a love triangle requires that one person has two viable options for love. That the person feels torn between loving both people and can’t make up their mind which person they’re in love with. Rest assured ACMAF is NEVER a love triangle. Not even close. Anyone claiming this story has one is delusional. Feyre is never even close to being torn between loving two different men. The book is at turns epic and heartbreaking. The second half especially is packed with breath-holding action as Feyre and her new friends tackle adventure after adventure. All these moments are evenly paced with both sweet and comedic interactions between characters. I adore the new friends we met in this book and am both excited and terrified for what they’ll face together in the next one. I don’t know if I’ve ever loved side characters as much as I do the inner circle of the Night Court. They’re just all so different, deep and delightful. Avidly awaiting being able to press preorder for the next one. Can. Not. Wait. ["

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May 9, 2016 Verified Purchase

David Maldonado

Fifty Shades of Feyre and Rhys

"A Court of Mist and Fury is the sequel to A Court of Thorns and Roses. I don't even know how to function as I write this review. Sarah J Maas has literally just written her best book yet. And that's saying something because her Throne of Glass series books are phenomenal. Feyre has completely transformed in this book. We last seen her made into a Fae, after Amarantha had killed her Under the Mountain in book one. All 7 High Lords from each court used a spark of their power to revive Feyre, and make her into a Fae. What they didn't know was that they would make her into something beyond their power. When they gave her their spark, they also gave her powers from each court. Throughout the book we see her train and practice her new found powers, and she definitely comes into her own. Her relationship with Tamlin becomes very strenuous because like Feyre, he was broken in more ways than one Under the Mountain. We see him become a very dark and tortured soul, holding Feyre as a captive. He does not include her in the going-ons of the court, and he insists on locking her up and having her guarded at all costs. Most would see this as an act of love, someone who literal saw the person he loves die, while he was forced to watch idly. However, Feyre feels stifled. And while she's broken too, she can't forgive him for not fighting against Amarantha as she destroyed her. And who can blame her. When Rhys, High Lord of the Night Court even tried fighting to save her, and at the time he was perceived as the enemy in Feyre's eyes. Rhysand--- I don't even know where to begin. Never in a million years would I have guessed that a love to rival all loves would blossom between Feyre and Rhys. Due to their bargain, Feyre was forced to go to the Night Court once a month. Whisked away by the fiercely dark and handsome Rhys, Tamlin was forced to see his Fiancé taken by his enemy. At first, Feyre hates him, until she truly sees the driving force behind Rhys' actions. He is dark and powerful, but he is loyal to those he loves, and would do anything to protect them, which winds up including Feyre. I won't give too much away, but the love that builds between them was so intriguing to read. Sarah J Maas made a very interesting choice to write this book with an older audience in mind. There were lots of intense sex scenes with not so quite kid-friendly language. At first, this threw me off because I know this is a Young Adult book. I didn't see how well it would mesh together. But as the book progressed, Sarah's risk totally blossomed into something magnificent. Feyre's and Rhys' relationship was primal, animalistic, and intense. It showed us what we become when we let our base desires completely take over. It was a thrill-seeking ride, that often left me feeling hot and bothered---if you know what I mean. Besides the development of these two characters, we also got to meet some new characters, those from the Night Court. Mor, the beautiful and powerful third in command, and also Rhys' cousin. She instantly befriended Feyre, and they had plenty of much needed girl-bonding time. Cassian, one of two of Illyrian's top fighters. An enigmatic, hot-tempered, yet playful character that is protective of both Mor and Azriel. Azriel, the one of a kind Shadowsinger. He encases himself in shadows, and the shadows speak to him. Rhys uses him as his spymaster, because he's a master at stealth and getting information out of people.He's also the other Illyrian that's the strongest fighter, along with Cassian. Also, he's completely in love with Mor. Lastly, my personal favorite, Amren. She's said to be an ancient creature. A creature that slipped into this universe when the world was created. While it's said that there might be others like her, she's also one of a kind. Her power is ancient , and Rhys said that its contained within the body she's using. However he lets us know that if she was ever released, the world would be in huge trouble. Amren is also Rhys' second in command. The world building was absolutely mind-blowing in this book. Maas' descriptions of the city of Velaris, the city that Rhys has protected from the outside world, was so utterly beautiful. The landscape was breath taking, and the fact that it hasn't been influenced by outside forces and was able to prosper in peace was so beautiful to read about. It was like a hidden Utopia. Rhys has taken the brunt of negative opinions towards his court and him, in order to keep Velaris safe and untainted. He would rather be viewed as a sadistic killer, who's shrouded in darkness and can turn your mind to mush, rather than let his hidden gem Velaris be tarnished. The plot was easy to follow and allowed us readers to see some of the history of the world within the book. The King of Hybern is the main villain in this book. He is using a Cauldron, the object that is believed to be what created all life, and holds unimaginable power, so he can wage a war on any who oppose him. He also wants to bring down the ancient wall that prevents the Fae from entering the land where humans reside. Only one object can counter and nullify the Cauldron, and it is the book of Breathings. However, it was torn in two and carded off to two places. One is in the Summer Court, and the other is in the land where the human's are, protected by the Mortal Queens. This happened as a peace treaty back in the last war that Mor was very much apart of. She helped create the treaty between the mortal queens of that time and the Fae. Amren as ancient as she is, knows of the book and is the only person that can read it's language. And ironically, Feyre is the only one who can actually use it because she was once a mortal, and now is a Fae. Overall, Sarah J Maas has written her best book yet. A Court of Mist and Fury is deeply primitive in its showing of our base desires. Love, sex, and bonding are taken to new heights in Feyre's and Rhys' relationship, and readers will often find themselves completely turned on. Readers will also lose their breath as they dive into Maas' many beautiful descriptions of her world. And will become engrossed in the history of the world she's created, and watch transfixed, as each character navigates within it and progresses the plot until it's nail-biting climax. The ending will have you pulling out your hair. If you haven't read A Court of Thorns and Roses book one of the series, please go out and do so. And then dive into this spectacular book. ["

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May 14, 2016 Verified Purchase

Mary Stieg

A Powerful Shift That Redefines the Series

"A Court of Mist and Fury is the book that completely changes the direction of the ACOTAR series, and for the most part, it does s"

December 18, 2025 Verified Purchase