Feyre is a young girl who must hunt for her family to put food on the table, because neither her crippled father nor older sisters will help. One day while hunting in forbidden woods, she kills a wolf. Unfortunately, it was not a wolf she killed but a faerie in disguise. Since this is a crime, a faerie named Tamlin comes to take her away to live in his world.
A Crown of Thorn and Roses, Sarah J. Maas’ newest book tells a tale of a world divided between man and faeries. A truce ending a war between the two erected a wall to separate them. a wall which humans were not allowed to pass. Now Feyre has been taken across that wall against her will to live among the faeries. When she arrives, she finds they are none too welcoming to her, because she has killed their friend. Lucien is especially mean to her. Feyre is very unhappy, until she finds that her feelings toward her captor Tamlin, the faeries in general, and even Lucien begin to change. In fact, she may be falling in love.
A Crown of Thorn and Roses reminded me greatly of “Beauty and the Beast”. In fact, Maas draws heavily on the tale.The only real difference is that Feyre is a strong, independent woman, who even in captivity, tries to help her family, at a possible cost to her own life. The relationships and enchantments also vary enough to keep the reader entertained. In spite of the similarities, A Crown of Thorn and Roses is a well-written young adult novel, which fans of Maas’ other books are sure to enjoy.