Welcome to my small corner where the romances are questionable and the list of books we need to read grow ever longer.
Today I am going to be talking about one of the most popular romantasy series: A Court of Thorns and Roses (ACOTAR) by Sarah J Maas (SJM). I am going to be showing my recommended reading order for her series and my hopes/theories for the new book A Court of Splintered Harmony, coming out on October 27, 2026.
For those of you who don’t know, in some ways all of SJM’s books are interconnected in what the fandom calls the Maasverse. So, don’t do what I did and read all the books backwards because you will get spoiled, and it will lead to a less pleasant reading experience.
SJM’s three main series are A Court of Thorns and Roses, which is incomplete with only five books out; Throne of Glass, which is complete with eight books; and Crescent City, which is incomplete with only three books out.
I read all her books about two years ago.
My Thoughts
My favorite SJM series is Crescent City. I know not as many people have read it or disliked it, but I found it to be a fun time. As I said in a previous post, it is urban high fantasy with a really great found family.
My next favorite is Throne of Glass because of the journey we go on with all the characters since it is such a large series. The first couple of books are slow, but the rest of the series is amazing with its high fantasy world-building and multiple romances.
My least favorite series is A Court of Thorns and Roses. I still love these books; I just like the other series more. This one is a Beauty and the Beast retelling following a girl named Feyre as she gets taken to the fae realm and trapped in a manor full of secrets. The first book is incredibly slow, but the rest of the series gets better. My favorite is the third book!
However, I remember very little of the details the story follows.
I recommend listening to Cari Can Read’s plot summaries of ACOTAR, as she does a good job of summarizing each book, and she is hilarious.
SJM Reading Order
As for reading order, I recommend starting with A Court of Thorns and Roses. As follows,
- A Court of Thorns and Roses
- A Court of Mist and Fury
- A Court of Wings and Ruin
- A Court of Frost and Starlight
Then I recommend reading the first Crescent City book.
- House of Earth and Blood
Then the latest ACOTAR book.
- A Court of Silver Flames
Then the second Crescent City book.
- House of Sky and Breath
Then, for the best reading experience, I recommend reading Throne of Glass in its entirety before reading the latest Crescent City book. Trust the process!
- Throne of Glass
- Crown of Midnight
- Heir of Fire
- The Assassin’s Blade- set of prequel novellas
- Queen of Shadows
- Empire of Storms
- Tower of Dawn- I recommend a tandem read! DON’T SKIP THIS BOOK!
- Kingdom of Ash
- House of Flame and Shadow
Then you are all caught up and can read A Court of Splintered Harmony and A Court of Broken Melodies, which is coming out in January.
You can also start Throne of Glass at any time; I just recommend reading it before the latest Crescent City books for the best experience.
This last bit of the post has spoilers if you haven’t read ACOTAR yet, so skip it if you wish until the end of the post!
My Hopes
As for my wishes for the next book coming out in October, I am really hoping we get an Azriel point of view.
I am in the minority when I say I want Azriel to be with Elain instead of Gwyn. But I would still accept Gwyn and Azriel if we get an Azriel point of view.
I also want to see more of Nesta. I assume we will since the books are titled the Valkyrie Cycle. I am also curious to see how far in the timeline we jump and to see Feyre with her new baby!
I would really love a Throne of Glass crossover since we learned all the worlds are connected! I need to know what happened with Dorian and Manon. And I wonder if any Crescent City character will make a reappearance. I would love for Ruhn to meet Rhysand.
I am so annoyed that the synopsis for the two new books is extremely vague! But also, it is exciting because it will be surprising to see which characters the book follows. I will take the breadcrumbs.
The fandom right now is making all sorts of theories based on the covers and easter eggs from other books. I love being a part of this fandom, and I am so excited to read what comes next.
I hope you gained a better understanding of the reading order of SJM and can share your own hopes for the new books.
For my next post, I am going to be covering everyone’s favorite book boyfriends!
