27 October is set to be a big day for romantasy fans everywhere, as Sarah J Maas launches the sixth book in her best-selling series, A Court of Thorns and Roses.
Titled A Court of Splintered Harmony, the latest instalment follows on from A Court of Silver Flames, which centres around Nesta, sister to ACOTAR protagonist Feyre, and her own story arc as she becomes a Valkyrie and solidifies her relationship with Illyrian warrior Cassian.
As we’ve come to expect of Maas, there’s plenty of existing lore throughout books one to five, which has essentially laid the foundation for ACOSH. So, whether you’ve read all 16 Maasverse books in order, or you’ve stayed loyal to the world of Prythian, you’ll likely want to be clued up on everything that’s gone down so far – and that’s what I’m here for.
I’ve read (and reread, several times) the ACOTAR series, so I’m going to run you through all the intricate details you’ll want to recap on before diving back into all things Velaris, bat boys and ‘vulgar gestures’. Let’s get into it.
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ACOTAR series plot summary
The tyrannical king of Hybern has been defeated, and the great war is over, but a fragile peace hangs in the balance as an ancient death-god Koschei stirs on the Continent (the landmass east of Prythian), threatening to conquer human territories and enslave the Fae courts.
The characters
- Feyre and Rhysand: The main focus of ACOTAR books one to three, Feyre (Archeron) and Rhys are now raising their baby Nyx in Velaris after Nesta saved both mother and babe during a perilous childbirth. Together they are ruling the Night Court and, since ACOWAR, are subject to a magical, unbreakable bargain of their own making: if one of them dies, they both die.
- Nesta and Cassian: Central to book five, ACOSF, Nesta and Cassian have now accepted their mating bond and permanently reside in the House of Wind. Since completing the blood rite, Nesta has become de facto leader for the revived Valkyries (together with Emerie and Gwyn) and runs a training programme for any priestesses of the Night Court who wish to join. After retrieving three out of four ‘dread trove’ items – ancient, all-powerful magical artefacts – Nesta has hidden these reality-bending objects away in the Night Court. She hunted down the artefacts to stop Koschei in his tracks (more on this below), even briefly lending the mask (one of the artefacts) to Crescent City’s Bryce Quinlan during a multiverse crossover. Because Nesta possesses unique, Cauldron-gifted abilities (from ACOMAF), she remains the only person who can summon and wield these items without being destroyed by their dark power.
- Elain and Lucien: Feyre’s second sister Elain is bound to Lucien (from the autumn court) by a magical mating bond that she has quietly rejected. Elain lives in Velaris, learning to master her cauldron-given prophecy-telling abilities.
- Azriel: Alongside Cassian, Azriel – as Rhys’ brother in every sense other than blood – continues his work as the Night Court’s spymaster who controls shadows to gather global intelligence. We left him in ACOSF caught between a centuries-long unrequited love for Mor and a forbidden attraction to Elain.
- Mor: We left Mor –Rhys’ cousin and a general who can instinctively sense lies – as she was staying away on remote diplomatic missions to navigate her secret personal life and avoid Azriel's centuries-long unrequited love. But the tide is perhaps about to turn because Autumn Court heirs Eris and Lucien secretly know a hidden truth about her past, hinting that Eris actually protected her secrets the night her family left her for dead.
- Tamlin: Feyre’s former lover and high lord of the Spring Court, now a broken and tragic figure. Left isolated in his ruined estate after past betrayals cost him his court, he spends his days stuck in a wild beast form, deeply depressed.
- Amren: Amren, who’s an ancient, cross-dimensional entity trapped in the physical form of a sharp-witted woman, gave up her god-like powers to save the world in ACOWAR, but remains part of Rhys’ inner circle as second-in-command.
The ongoing threats
- Koschei the deathless: An ancient, immortal death-god of pure darkness who re-emerged during the Hybern war after thousands of years of containment. He is currently magically bound to a remote lake on the Continent, but manipulates others from afar by sending dark shadow-whispers and offering desperate bargains to bitter mortal queens and corrupt fae lords. By promising them youth and power in exchange for their loyalty, he is secretly using them to hunt down the dread trove artefacts so he can escape his lake prison and execute his global conquest.
- Queen Vassa: A mortal queen cursed by Koschei during the events of ACOMAF after her rival human queens betrayed and sold her to him for defying their alliance. She was bound to his remote lake for months as a complete prisoner – forced to live as a firebird by day and a human by night – until Feyre, Nesta and Elain’s late father made a secret, desperate deal with the death-god to temporarily free her for the war. Now that their father is dead, Koschei is demanding Vassa's return to his lake, leaving a massive, dangerous debt hanging directly over the Archeron sisters.
- The autumn court and the mortal queens: The remaining human queens, bitter over losing their promised shot at Cauldron-given immortality in ACOMAF, are actively conspiring with Beron, the cruel high lord of the Autumn Court, and Koschei. Together, this alliance is gathering armies on the Continent, planning to launch an invasion to reclaim human lands, overthrow the other high lords and expand Beron's territory, in turn shattering Prythian’s peace.
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Where to buy the first five A Court of Thorns and Roses books
'A Court of Thorns and Roses' by Sarah J Maas, published by Bloomsbury
Book one of the epic series follows protagonist Feyre Archeron as she embarks on a life-altering journey from the human to fae realms.
Buy now £4.98, Amazon.co.uk
'A Court of Mist and Fury' by Sarah J Maas, published by Bloomsbury
Book two of Maas’ ACOTAR series sees Feyre return to the spring court after her time under the mountain, only to discover that her heart remains in the clutches of a different high lord.
Buy now £5.5, Amazon.co.uk
'A Court of Wings and Ruin' by Sarah J Maas, published by Bloomsbury
The battle against Hybern rages as part one of Maas’ Prythian arc draws to a close.
Buy now £6, Amazon.co.uk
'A Court of Frost and Starlight' by Sarah J Maas, published by Bloomsbury
A novella of sorts, ACOFAS takes places at Christmastime – or the winter solstice, as the characters call it – and is a welcome departure from the page-turning war of book three.
Buy now £5.5, Amazon.co.uk
'A Court of Silver Flames' by Sarah J Maas, published by Bloomsbury
The latest instalment from Maas as of right now (until tomorrow, that is), ACOSF takes things in a different direction with Nesta as our narrator as she navigates life as a fae amid ongoing conflict with Feyre and the night court.
Buy now £6, Amazon.co.uk
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