Dark Hygge

by Sarah J Maas, reviewed by Lauren Kay

Going into this one, I wasn’t really sure what to expect. All I knew was that I was happy that Feyre lived and got cool powers and she got to go home with Tamlin. I was hoping to see her settle into her new life as Fae, learning how to control her awesome magic and dealing with whatever the next big problem was like the badass she is. We typically expect that of fantasy heroines to be able to jump into the next adventure, with just as much gusto as before.

This book starts smaller than that. The events of the last book have caught up with her. She can’t escape the trauma of it in the minutiae of her everyday life, which turns out to be significantly less exciting than we would have expected. She’s planning a wedding and it’s supposed to be wonderful for her and the reader, but the vibe is just not there. It’s a settling dread that this is not her happily ever after. Tamlin, just as traumatized, and likely humiliated, is not emotionally available to support her. They no longer understand each other. Just as this reaches a dramatic head, Rhysand shows up and decides to call in on his bargain, bringing some excitement back to the story (and to Feyre of course).

What follows is the most well-executed slow-burn enemies to lovers I’ve ever read (granted I haven’t read a ton haha). Inserting a plot twist in the romance was so exciting. It immersed us in that forbidden fruit feeling we all love. Romance is not really a genre to make me cry but hearing Rhysand confess the bigger picture made me tear up, it completely changed how I saw the events of book one. It removed rose-tinted glasses on Tamlin that I didn’t even realize were there. At the same time this beautiful love story is happening, the pieces of the larger plot are gracefully moving into place. New life is breathed into Prythian as we get to know Velaris and the incredibly vivid and lovable members of the inner circle.

Feyre slowly gains her inner light back as Rhysand constantly puts her in situations to empower her and enmesh her in his court in way she wouldn’t have been in the spring court. The first book without doubt happened -to- Feyre, while this book starts to give her some of her autonomy back. It’s her healing story.

It finishes with a nail-biting cliffhanger and the potential that this beautiful thing we witnessed between Rhysand and Feyre might be broken. Her sisters have been brought into the fold (which made for a fascinating look into their dynamic together post-Feyre’s departure). The stakes are seemingly at an all-time high and leaves you gnawing on the book, wishing you could read the next one immediately (which I did).

5/5, one of my all-time favorite books.