A Court of Silver Flames by Sarah J. Mass (Spoiler-Free Book Review)

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Synopsis

*This book includes a lot of mature content – do not read if you’re not comfortable with foul language and sexual content*

A Court of Silver Flames (ACOSF) is the fifth installment of the A Court of Thorns and Roses series by Sarah J. Mass.

While A Court of Thorns and Roses followed Feyres P.O.V, this book follows her eldest sisters, Nestas.

According to Goodreads the synopsis is as followed;

“Nesta Archeron has always been prickly-proud, swift to anger, and slow to forgive. And ever since being forced into the Cauldron and becoming High Fae against her will, she’s struggled to find a place for herself within the strange, deadly world she inhabits.

Worse, she can’t seem to move past the horrors of the war with Hybern and all she lost in it.

The one person who ignites her temper more than any other is Cassian, the battle-scarred warrior whose position in Rhysand and Feyre’s Night Court keeps him constantly in Nesta’s orbit.

But her temper isn’t the only thing Cassian ignites. The fire between them is undeniable, and only burns hotter as they are forced into close quarters with each other.

Meanwhile, the treacherous human queens who returned to the Continent during the last war have forged a dangerous new alliance, threatening the fragile peace that has settled over the realms.

And the key to halting them might very well rely on Cassian and Nesta facing their haunting pasts.

Against the sweeping backdrop of a world seared by war and plagued with uncertainty, Nesta and Cassian battle monsters from within and without as they search for acceptance-and healing-in each other’s arms”

via GIPHY

Personal thoughts

This book was one of my favorites this year by far!

I absolutely loved the chemistry between Nesta and Cassian. I also adored the in-depth look we got into Nesta’s head.

She’s one of the few characters where I felt like her character arc was insane. She went from this miserable person to someone who genuinely embraced her emotions.

One of my favorite parts of this book compared to A Court of Thorns and Roses was that we got some of Cassians POV as well.

In the previous books, we only had Feyres point of view- so I was estatic to see the two sides of the relationship between Cassian and Nesta.

via GIPHY

Nesta with Cassian 90% of the time

The book definitely summed everything up very well, I’m not sure if there will be a follow-up to Nestas point of view. If there isn’t, I understand why and truth be told there really isn’t any need for one.

I felt like it was interesting throughout the novel to see Nesta as this cold and dark person vs. reading as Feyre who seemed more light-hearted.

In all honesty, I actually felt myself siding with Nesta many times and couldn’t understand the several times the inner circle betrayed her.

At the end of the day, here is how I reviewed the book;

Overall: 9/10

Characters: 10/10

Plot: 7/10

Writing style: 10/10

World building: 9/10

Spice level: VERY 🌶 🌶

Review breakdown

Let’s get into why I rated each section that specific number out of 10!

Characters – 10/10

It’s no surprise that I rated characters 10/10.

I mean Nesta..and Cassian were just *chefs kiss*

But, I rated it 10/10 because of the friendship that develops between Nesta, Gwyn and Emery as well as her relationship between the other priestesses.

I promise I won’t spoil anything about how they meet or who they are exactly, but trust me when I say their relationship alone is worth the trek through this long book

757 pages *phew*

There were also sides of characters I had not seen before and now understand why they may be disliked. *Cough* Amren and Rhys.

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Nesta, Gwyn and Emery behind the scenes.

Plot – 7/10

Alright, here’s the only meh part of the book – the plot.

I admit I wasn’t a huge fan of the Queens plotting a revenge of some kind. I felt like it wasn’t that interesting.

It would of been cool if Amarantha came back?? She was the equivilance of a snarling rabid dog. I loved her personality and the fear she brought in the first book.

The elements that lead up to the plot were interesting, especially how Nestas powers from the cauldron came to play. But I wasn’t too impressed with the whole return of the Queens part.

Writing style – 10/10

Let’s talk writing style! It’s no surprised I love Sarah J. Mass’s incredibly descriptive writing.

She could write about toast and I’d probably gobble down every bite of that book.

I feel like her writing style encompasses you into the story completely. The way she describes Velaris and the characters makes you feel like YOU’RE part of the inner circle.

So, if you don’t feel comfortable with that type of content – this book may not be for you!

World-building – 10/10

As always, Velaris is the place I would like to be buried when I die.

SJM continues to do an incredible job of describing the people of Velaris and the city they love. In addition, the other courts in which the High Fae live take on a different meaning as we see new characters emerge.

One of the parts I loved about the world-building in this series is the look into the lives of the priestesses.

Spice Level

I threw this small part of the review in to tell you this is one of the spiciest books I’ve read so far.

Spicy meaning full of mature content both verbal and sexual. It had a lot going on, and I’m not complaining.

Not to mention this is her SPICIEST book yet. So, let us just say SJM has a way with words in the bedroom and outside of it in the ACOTAR world.

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No comment needed.

Quotes from the book

This A Court of Silver Flames review wouldn’t be complete without some of my favorite quotes. Don’t worry I redacted the names of who said them, so there are no spoilers!

“I cannot survive without reading.”

“Your power is a song, and one I’ve waited a very, very long time to hear, (Name)”

“(Name) leaned to whisper in her ear, “The first time I saw that look on your face, you were still human. Still human, and I nearly went to my knees before you.”

“The cold of the gaps between stars, the cold of a world before light.”

Similar books to read

1. The Cruel Prince (The Folk of the Air series) – Holly Black
2. Shadow and Bone (The Shadow and Bone trilogy) – Leigh Bardugo
3. Crescent City – Sarah J. Mass
4. Throne of Glass – Sarah J. Mass

F.A.Q

Can you read this book without reading A Court of Thorns and Roses?

You can, but it will be very difficult to follow. It’s important to understand Rhys and Feyres story before jumping into Nestas.

In addition the antagonist in ACOSF, the Queens, are connected to the antagonist from ACOTAR.

I would recommend reading the books in this order:

1. A Court of Thorns and Roses

2. A Court of Mist and Fury

3. A Court of Wings and Ruin

4. A Court of Frost and Starlight (Novella)

5 . A Court of Silver Flames

You can purchase the entire set on Amazon or they have individual book options as well!

Is Feyre the main character in ACOSF?

Nope! Nesta is. Nesta is Feyres eldest sister in the series itself.

Compared to Feyre, Nesta is more closed off and vocal about how she feels about things.

She’s the colder sister to the much warmer, Feyre. Though, it’s important to note they’re both completely different people – and I adore each of them equally.

Will ACOSF have a sequel?

I doubt it, I believe Sarah J Mass made A Court of Thorns and Roses a trilogy only. I think she mentioned that every book in companion to the series will be standalones, but I could be wrong!

What is the rating of this book? Can teens under 16 read it?

This book is rated M for Mature Content. There is a LOT of graphic and sexual talk throughout the book.

I would NOT reccomend reading this book if you are under the age of 16 without a parents permission.

A Court of Silver Flames was one of the few books I had been looking forward to reading for months.

The book definitely set my expectations high for the next book in the ACOTAR overall series.

Is it bad to say I may like Nesta and Cassian more than Rhys and Feyre? Anyways! I hope you enjoyed this super in-depth book review of A Court of Silver Flames.

If you’re looking for additional book reviews I had written you can check out Fable by Adrienne Young and Kingdom of the Wicked by Kerri Maniscalco.