So first thing you should know is that my boyfriend, Tom, doesn't read much. He prefers to spend his free time gaming. So this summer I gave him a challenge: he had to read a book I recommended to him. A Court of Thorns and Roses (ACOTAR) isn't necessarily my favourite book; I don't tend to have a favourite anything. In fact, the more I talk about ACOTAR with the book community, the more problems I recognise in it. I think I actually look so fondly on the series because of the second book: A Court of Mist and Fury, which may be up there competing for one of my favourite books.
So my main reason for picking this series is because I wanted to pick one he had a high chance of liking. He likes fantasy, and it gave him the option to continue the series if he chose to.
I've been wondering for a while how to write this blog post, and I thought I'd share the top 10 things he said/wrote down in reaction to the first book that made me laugh or sparked a thought. (Warning: Spoilers ahead)
1. He repeatedly called Nesta 'Nastier' because he didn't like her character.
2. His first reaction to Lucien was that he was a ****, but in the end I would say he became quite obsessed. I made him guess who the spin-off series would follow and he so desperately wanted it to be Lucien.
3. He really struggled with pronouncing Feyre's name. Every time he picked the book up, we'd start by having the same 5 minute discussion about possible ways to pronounce it. His reaction to her becoming High Fae at the end was: "Now her name is gonna be even harder to say: High Fae Feyre!"
4. He actually messaged me when reading every sex scene (I forgot how many of them there are, especially when he continued the series and got to book 3).
5. He said he was jealous of their molten chocolate: "mortals mustn't be strong enough to handle chocolate in its true form".
6. "HOLY MOLY PLOT TWIST. She's messed things up for all of them. Good job girl." He didn't actually pick up on it being a Beauty and the Beast retelling until more towards the end, which made me think back as to whether I ever knew, and I think it's one of those things you recognise after finishing the book, not so much during the book. I definitely would have appreciated some more stark contrasts and references to the fairy tale.
7. He pointed out that Lucien can teleport but it isn't used in a key way to the plot, even though it's such an important skill. I never actually picked up on this but it's definitely a minor plot hole, same way Harry Potter forgets he has an invisibility cloak in Chamber of Secrets so spends months making a polyjuice potion.
8. HE EVEN NOTICED AN INCONSISTENCY = Amarantha suddenly has black hair instead of red in one of her final scenes. I was so surprised he noticed this, because I definitely hadn't.
So he did continue the series. In fact, he finished the small story that introduces the spin off series the other day. I think he definitely enjoyed the first one more than I thought he would. I don't know whether it's me looking back on it but I'd even go as far as to say he likes the first book more than I do.
We both agree on the sequel though: the second is a far superior book. The newly introduced characters are more interesting and the plot overall follows a better pace.
So in return, I have agreed to read a book of his choice: Ender's Game. You'll see my blog post on that once I read it (I had a few more books to read than he did first).
What were your thoughts on ACOTAR?