Book · 2015
A Court of Thorns and Roses
by Sarah J. Maas
Feyre kills a wolf in the woods, gets dragged into the faerie lands as payment, and spends five books choosing a court.
What does Reddit think of A Court of Thorns and Roses?
Ask three subreddits about A Court of Thorns and Roses and you get three different arguments, not one verdict. r/RomanceBooks pushes back on using Sarah J. Maas as a target for "blatant xenophobia" complaints, calling that specific reaction "a bit ridiculous" (↑1012), a live defense, not blanket praise. r/Fantasy's take runs closer to anthropological: one comment coins "adult young adult" to explain a genre most of that sub had never heard of before ACOTAR and ACOMAF needed defining as acronyms (↑2073). Another admits the label "immature prose with sex in it" fits roughly 90% of what gets called Romantasy, this series included (↑677). r/suggestmeabook contains both directions at once: one reader unironically loved the first four books alongside 50 Shades (↑767), another was "dragging through the last book" and calling it "so, so, so fucking bad" (↑572). Even the spice-rating jokes (↑2660) treat the series as more meme than text at this point.
Community feedback & reader fit
Themes
- · Faerie court politics and a human protagonist
- · Romantasy as a contested genre label
- · Sarah J. Maas fandom versus backlash
- · Sexual content driving both readership and mockery
Common praise
- + One r/suggestmeabook reader admits unironically enjoying the first four books despite calling their own taste into question (↑767).
- + r/RomanceBooks defends the series against blanket xenophobia framing as an overreaction to specific author choices, not the books themselves (↑1012).
- + Functions as the reference point that explains an entire subgenre; "adult young adult" gets coined specifically to describe what this series and Fourth Wing are doing (↑1378).
Common criticism
- − A reader in r/suggestmeabook describes dragging through the final book, calling it "so, so, so fucking bad" (↑572).
- − r/Fantasy's own defenders concede that roughly 90% of Romantasy, this series included, reads as immature prose with sex scenes attached (↑677).
- − r/suggestmeabook sentiment runs more critical than either r/Fantasy or r/RomanceBooks in this corpus.
- − The spice-level meme (↑2660) treats the books as a punchline about readers' own taste more than a text worth discussing on its merits.
Who it's for
If Fourth Wing already worked for you, this is the same trade: faerie-court politics standing in for dragon-rider politics, sex scenes doing a lot of the narrative weight-lifting. r/Fantasy's own self-described romantasy fans will tell you not to expect prestige prose going in; that's the deal, not a hidden flaw. Coming from straight fantasy and allergic to romance subplots? The commenters who call themselves "Serious Fantasy Readers" admit they didn't get the appeal either, until someone explained the genre directly. Anyone measuring the series by its final installment should know that even fans in this data found book five a slog.
Mentions over time
Top subreddits
Which Reddit comments matter for A Court of Thorns and Roses?
The most relevant excerpts across the subreddits where this book is mentioned — opinionated, argued takes first, then top-upvoted mentions. Click through to read the full thread.
“When people rate Fourth Wing/ACOTAR/etc as 5/5 spicy level, i’m like… are you wrong or am i just a degenerate 😅😅
“Look, I love trashy romance novels. Genuinely. I don't care what that says about me as a person. I unironically enjoyed all three 50 Shades books and the first four ACOTAR books. What I'm trying to say is that I have the capacity to enjoy really bad writing. I am the intended audience for almost eve…
“I am a proud member of fantasy romance community but what I've learnt is I adore fantasy WITH romance but 90% of Romantasy is, as you said, immature prose with sex in it. I won't say YA prose because a lot of YA is CONSIDERABLY more mature than a lot of Romantasy is. I now use ACOTAR and Fourth Win…
“A Court of Thorns and Roses. I'm literally dragging through the last book in the series because a friend bought the series for me. God it's so, so, so f****** bad.
“Yeah Fourth Wing and ACOTAR are new adult, which is just young adult tropes and styles but with sex scenes.
“Probably ACOTAR. It was so hyped up on TikTok, and I ended up hating it
“This is a masterpiece! It reminds me of that one (sadly, much shorter) GR review of ACOTAR that opens with the line “An illiterate 19 year old straight up kills a guy and is outraged when there are consequences.” The reviewer goes on to observe that “…Feyre ends up in the Tri-Wizard Tournament from …
“Full disclosure: I did not like acotar or forth wing, but loved divine rivals. So I've been on both sides. I think it's a mix of a few reasons: - because they're popular, the chances of a reader not liking it increases (just a numbers thing) - popular books get hyped up, so people go into them wit…
“Sarah j mass fandom. I enjoyed acotar but i would never defend it to the extent some do.
“I tried my damndest to give ACOTAR a shot and all I came away with was "ellipses, the novel" It's just Twilight with faeries instead of vampires; i.e. for other people
“I think acotar doesn't have enough meet on it's bones for a series, anyways. Making a movie series out of it would probably be a better choice.
“A Court of Thorns and Roses I tried, but couldn't get into it. Ended going on my DNF shelf
“as a SJM fan who loves throne of glass and ACOTAR, i can confirm her writing is not very good but her books are like reality TV to me
“ACOTAR. I’m sorry, I tried So Hard. I read the first two and got through them ok, but by the third one I just couldn’t anymore. I put it down about a third the way through and just couldn’t pick it back up again.
“ACOTAR isn't my jam but I have several friends who haven't read in a decade, but the series got them started again. I think that's pretty rad.
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Readers also mention
All books like A Court of Thorns and Roses →Books that share discussion threads with A Court of Thorns and Roses — counted from the comments, not curated.
Guides featuring A Court of Thorns and Roses
Ranked best-of lists and editorial guides where this book's tracked mentions place it.
A Court of Thorns and Roses — frequently asked
Is A Court of Thorns and Roses actually well-written?+
Depends who's answering. r/Fantasy's own defenders concede that roughly 90% of Romantasy — A Court of Thorns and Roses included — reads as "immature prose with sex in it" (↑677). r/suggestmeabook has readers on both sides: one unironically loved the first four books (↑767), another called the final one "so, so, so fucking bad" (↑572). The prose isn't the draw for most of this data.
Is A Court of Thorns and Roses just Young Adult with sex scenes added?+
That's roughly r/Fantasy's own framing. One comment (↑560) calls it "new adult, which is just young adult tropes and styles but with sex scenes," and another coins "adult young adult" for the same phenomenon (↑1378). Neither is written as a compliment, but neither reads as a dismissal either; it's a genre classification more than a review.
Why do people get so upset discussing A Court of Thorns and Roses on Reddit?+
Not for the reasons you'd guess. The most substantive r/RomanceBooks defense (↑1012) is aimed at critics using "blatant xenophobia" complaints against Sarah J. Maas as pop-culture shorthand, calling that specific reaction overblown, not defending the books from all criticism, just that one angle.
Should I read A Court of Thorns and Roses if I don't normally read romance?+
One self-described "Serious Fantasy Reader" on r/Fantasy (↑1378) says they didn't understand the appeal until someone explained the genre's actual audience and marketing to them directly. If you're fantasy-first and romance-skeptical, that's the honest expectation-setting here; this isn't targeting you by default, per that same thread.