Kay Nielsen's 1914 illustration for East of the Sun and West of the Moon, one of the three tales Sarah J. Maas says A Court of Thorns and Roses began as a retelling of. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons. No free image of the book's own cover art, or of Maas, exists.
A Court of Thorns and Roses
What it took directly
- statedA Court of Thorns and Roses (2015) took from three tales at once: Beauty and the Beast, East of the Sun and West of the Moon, and Tam Lin"started off as a retelling of Beauty and the Beast, East of the Sun and West of the Moon and Tam Lin." Sarah J. Maas to USA Today's Happy Ever After, October 24, 2014
- statedA Court of Thorns and Roses (2015) comes from a first draft Maas wrote in about five weeks in spring 2009, which sat on her computer until it sold in spring 2013"I began writing ACOTAR in spring of 2009 and wrote the first draft in about 5 weeks (in an absolute FRENZY OF INSPIRATIONNN, I might add). Then I let it sit on my computer for 4 years, until we sold it in spring of 2013." Sarah J. Maas, on her own blog, October 24, 2014
- statedA Court of Mist and Fury (the second book) took from the myth of Hades and Persephone"In terms of other inspiration beyond Hades and Persephone… I’d say this book was 90% original stuff." Sarah J. Maas to Kelly Gallucci, Bookish, June 27, 2016
- statedThe Weaver, in A Court of Mist and Fury (the second book) took from Hansel and Gretel"The Weaver, for example, was loosely inspired by “Hansel & Gretel”" Sarah J. Maas to Kelly Gallucci, Bookish, June 27, 2016
- statedThe ancient history of Miryam and Drakon, in A Court of Mist and Fury (the second book) took from the story of Exodus"Then some of the ancient history with Miryam and Drakon was inspired by the story of Exodus" Sarah J. Maas to Kelly Gallucci, Bookish, June 27, 2016
What it learned to do
- statedA Court of Thorns and Roses (2015) learned from years of returning to the manuscript, until a retelling became an original fantasy that still nods to its sources"These days, it's more of an original fantasy novel, but there are still plenty of nods to my initial source of inspiration." Sarah J. Maas to USA Today's Happy Ever After, October 24, 2014
The tradition it sits in
- documentedA Court of Thorns and Roses (2015) comes from faerie lore, blended with romance and adventure"blends romance, adventure, and faerie lore" Bloomsbury, its publisher, on the book's page
- documentedA Court of Thorns and Roses (2015) comes from romantasy, the romance-fantasy blend it stands among the most successful examples of"Some of the most successful include series like A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas" Moises Mendez II, TIME, November 7, 2023
- inferredTamlin, Feyre's captor comes from the ballad Tam Lin, whose name he carries"Feyre must find a way to stop it, or doom Tamlin-and his world-forever." inferred — Maas says the book began partly as a retelling of Tam Lin, and the publisher's page names the character Tamlin; Maas is not quoted on the name itself
Where the whole form comes from
- statedA Court of Thorns and Roses (2015) comes from Maas's lifelong love of fairy tales"I wrote it for fun, to pass the time, to indulge my lifelong love of fairy tales" Sarah J. Maas to USA Today's Happy Ever After, October 24, 2014
- documentedEast of the Sun and West of the Moon, one of its three sources comes from the old tales of Norway collected by Peter Christen Asbjørnsen and Jørgen Moe"East of the Sun and West of the Moon: Old Tales from the North" Project Gutenberg catalog record for Asbjørnsen and Moe's East of the Sun and West of the Moon: Old Tales from the North, illustrated by Kay Nielsen
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