Book Review: A Court of Silver Flame by Sarah J Maas

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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.

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I already read this book and reviewed it when it first came out. However, I've been in a bit of a hole lately with my reading and I wanted to read something that would fill me warmth and happiness.

I said many things back in February that I didn't like about this novel: Rhys's behavior, the Az bonus chapter, how it felt like Sarah was intentionally writing Mor out of the story because she didn't want to address the LGBTQ+ representation after all of the flack she's gotten on lack of diversity. Those things are all still true.

But... that doesn't change that this is still my favorite book in the entire ACOTAR series.

Don't get me wrong. I still love Feyre and Rhysand. Their story is iconic and timeless, but there is something about Nesta and Cassian's relationship that's just *chef's kiss*. While I acknowledge the majority of the book was fae smut and not actual plot, I still loved every word of it.

One thing that Sarah has always done well is mental health representation. It doesn't negate her shortcomings in other areas at all. I am so glad that she decided to explore Nesta's journey from both she and Cassian's points of view. I'm so glad that she showed how deep trauma and self-loathing go. I love that the constant message here was "keep reaching out your hand." This is something that I will always, always try to do when the people I care about are struggling. It's important to reach out, but also to realize that sometimes people don't always take that hand.

While this is one of my personal favorites, it's not something that I would tell people OMG you have to read it NOW, unless you've already read the rest of the series. Absolutely explore the first three novels and novella prior to jumping into this one.

I think my favorite thing about the ACOTAR series is that every time I reread it, I discover something new that I absolutely love. The first time I read the series, it was for Feyre's journey. The second time, I actually fell in love with Nesta and Cassian. I mean, the scene in ACOWAR with the line about wishing for more time? Ugh! Break my heart, SJM, just break it!

I can't remember if I wrote this in my original review, but I want to point out one issue that I did have with this.

Nesta's entire narrative is that she didn't have a choice in the things that happened to her. While I adore she and Cassian more than anything, I would have liked for them to not be mated. Because: 1. ACOTAR established that mates were rare, but all three Archeron sisters have them? Nah. And, 2. It would have been so much sweeter because Nesta chose Cassian, and some primal bond didn't make that choice. While she came around to it in the end, I still would have liked to see that not be a thing.

There's nothing I love more than when a character chooses their love interest.

Another thing I'd like to note is that as ACOTAR has gotten more popular, the fanbase has become a little hard to swallow. When the ACOTAR series was announced, a large portion of the fanbase bullied an actress because she followed SJM on social media by saying she wasn't skinny enough to be Feyre (which is a joke, that woman is GORGEOUS!). I'm so concerned that the fanbase is going to ruin the show for everyone. I really hope they cast lesser known actors to play the inner circle, like Netflix did with Shadow & Bone.

I can't wait to see what happens next in the ACOTAR series.

And... my little heart would love to see a redemption arc for Tamlin. Okay byeeee.

Thanks, Abbie

Guns & Smoke Blog Tour: READING STEWARDESS

Please be sure to check out the original post here!

Authors: Lauren Sevier & A. Smith

Series: The Fool’s Adventure Series Book 1

Publication Date: July 10, 2021

Genres: Dystopian Western Romance

Rating: out of

Trigger Warning: This book contains depictions of graphic violence, language, sexual violence, attempted rape, depictions of child abuse, and depictions of human trafficking.

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Buy Links: Amazon | Apple | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Website

In a world where safety is a luxury and honor is found only among outlaws, two people attempt to outrun dangers lurking around each corner and the tragedies that define them. Bonnie is an outlaw on the run. Beautiful but dangerous; her dark past stalks her like the crater beasts that roam the desert. As the notoriously cruel outlaw Jones sends his henchmen to track her down and retrieve the gun she stole from him, Bonnie hopes she can stay one step ahead. Because if he catches her, a fate worse than death awaits. Jesse always dreamed of leaving the farm to explore the ruins of the big cities he’d heard about his whole life. He just never imagined he’d be forced to flee after strange men burned down his rural mountain town and murdered everyone he loved. Responsible for his kid brother and searching for an uncle he’s never met before, he isn’t sure he can navigate the perils of life among con artists and thieves long enough to find him. Their two paths collide as they find themselves thrown together on the adventure of a lifetime. Together, they may just discover that life is about more than just surviving.

I was fortunate enough to be a beta reader first for Guns & Smoke prior to reading it again as an e-arc for the tour. What drew me to this book initially was the description, especially the fact that it is described as being a dystopian western romance. While I had read westerns that were dystopian, even westerns that were romance, I had never read one that combined all three and the fact that this book was combining all three piqued my interest.

From the opening lines as I followed along with Bonnie as she stalked Jesse through Las Vegas, I was hooked. I found myself wanting to know more not only about this brazen female outlaw and the man she’d chosen as a mark, but also about this version of the United States following a catastrophic event that essentially sent the country back to the times of the Old West. As I made my way through the book with the characters on their rather dangerous quest to reach Jesse and his brother’s uncle in hopes of finding answers and safety, I found myself wanting to rush through not only to find all the answers I and the characters were searching for, but also to see Jesse and Bonnie grow ever closer despite their best efforts. Thankfully, I forced myself to take my time with the book and really savor each moment of the story as it unfolded.

As much as I love the overall story, I found that I especially loved the writing style and how descriptive and seamless it was. The author’s did such a wonderful job bringing the story to life that I found I was able to picture each scene in my mind as though I was watching a movie. The story is so well crafted that I found myself laughing right along with the characters, as well as cringing and crying out at the more harrowing and unsettling scenes. It’s because of the images that flew through my head while reading that I couldn’t help but create my own mood board (pictured above) for the story.

The other aspect of the story that I really enjoyed was how the authors took their time with the story, both with the revelations about Jesse and Bonnie and their pasts, as well as the rather hilarious slow build of their relationship. In terms of the revelations, the sprinkling of information throughout made it so that when the mind blowing revelation towards the end of the book came, it not only was one I didn’t see coming but upon reflection it helped to explain and solidify so much of the things which occurred earlier in the book. As for their relationship, the slow build up and constant fighting not only with each other, but internally with themselves was needed as they each had walls that they need to break down and trust on both sides that needed to be gained. The constant interruptions from other characters further helped to make it that when Jesse and Bonnie finally have sex they’ve managed to overcome all their hang-ups and cautions and build on that trust to the point that I was wholly satisfied as a reader with how everything came together.

As this is the first in a series, I cannot wait for the next book to come out after that rip my heart out cliff hanger ending. While so many of my questions were answered in this book, I have so many new ones that need to be answered, and I really want to know more about the past events that occurred prior to the book starting, such as the events that led up to The Culling and the fact that they’re having not only a long lasting but an even farther reaching effect than anyone could ever imagine.

If you’re looking for a wonderful action-packed adventure story that takes place in a future Old West setting with romance, comedy, a kick-butt heroine who is perfectly capable of saving herself, and a sexy leading man who is able to break down the heroine’s walls, then you need to pick up a copy of this book for yourself.

Book Trailer

https://www.youtube.com/embed/kC821NrfFGs?version=3&rel=1&showsearch=0&showinfo=1&iv_load_policy=1&fs=1&hl=en&autohide=2&wmode=transparent

Lauren Sevier & A. Smith are long time friends and co-authors from southern Louisiana. Guns & Smoke, their first joint publication, began as a “short” story after having too much wine on girl’s night. Nine years later it is now the first novel in a Dystopian/Western Romance series. The duo has plans to publish several series together in the future. A. Smith spends her time with her two rescue dogs and rescue cat surrounding herself with books and Labyrinth paraphernalia. Lauren Sevier collects antique tea cups and tries to stay sane, though as the mother of a toddler she fails brilliantly most days. She also has a growing collection of crowns and tiaras and likes to act silly on Tiktok. Look for more thrilling novels from The Fools Adventure series in the future!

Who am I? A Re-Introduction

Hey yall! I've had some changes in followers, so I wanted to be sure you know what you're getting when you follow me!

My name is Abbie Smith. I am a thirty-something-year-old author who was born, raised, and lives in southern Louisiana. Ever since I was young, I knew I wanted to be a writer. For me, there was nothing I loved more than sitting down with a pen and notepad and writing stories. I never thought that I was good enough to come up with original ideas, though.

So when I started high school and discovered an AOL chat room for one of my favorite TV shows where people were writing as though they were the characters... I was hooked.

I spent a lot of years doing text based roleplay and making online friends. What started in AOL chat rooms eventually morphed into forum/message boards. At some point, I guess as I got older, the role playing wasn't as popular with my friends. I tried so hard to keep it going, but they weren't as interested--which happens, no shade at all.

Right after my co-author, Lauren, and I graduated high school, she hit me up on AIM (y'all, I know I'm aging myself, but whatever) to see what I was doing. I was mortified. How could someone in my real life ever understand what I spent hours of my time doing?

Instead of making fun of me, Lauren wanted to join in.

From there, we found that when writing together, we created interesting and fun plotlines. All of it was Harry Potter based roleplay. We created characters and even if others thought we were over the top, I got sucked into the stories, into the characters, in the worlds we created.

Throughout college, I would go through phases where I went back to roleplaying. After college, I decided that I wanted to give writing a good try. I still lacked the confidence in myself that I could write something original.

Writing has always been such a deep part of me. When I'm writing or working on my novel stuff, it never feels like work.

When I'm writing, nothing else matters. When I'm writing, I'm happy. When I'm writing, I'm whole.

Guns & Smoke is my first published novel, but I have so many in the works. Between my co-authored projects with Lauren, and my solo projects, I have enough ideas to fill many, many books and series. Sometimes, I wish I could go back and tell the younger me that you have plenty of ideas for good stories--you just need to believe in yourself enough to write them.

If you're a writer, it's normally because there's something inside of you that calls to you to do it. That's how it's always been for me. That's how it always will be.

Thanks for reading!

Abbie