February 26, 2025<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Written by: Jaylin Emond-Hardin | Entertainment Editor<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Content warning: <\/strong>This article contains spoilers for \u201cA Court of Thorns and Roses,\u201d \u201cCrescent City\u201d and \u201cThrone of Glass\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Spanning 16 books across three different series, Sarah J. Maas\u2019 works have been translated into 38 languages and have sold over 12 million copies across the globe. All three of the series fit into different niches of their genre \u2014 romantasy, urban fantasy and high fantasy \u2014 but when diving into Maas\u2019 works for the first time, most readers don\u2019t realize that they are connected in one universe. After all, I didn\u2019t and I\u2019m 12 books deep. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Unless one has read all three series, this isn\u2019t as obvious. Most of the connections between the three only become clear in \u201cHouse of Sky and Breath\u201d and \u201cHouse of Flame and Shadow,\u201d the second and third books of the series \u201cCrescent City.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The most glaring is when Bryce Quinlan, the series\u2019 main heroine, discovers that the Asteri \u2014 the godlike beings that rule their world \u2014 have been feeding off the people to fuel their immortality. Across centuries and millennia, the Asteri have traveled across worlds inter-dimensionally to feed off the people that live there. <\/p>\n\n\n\n When Rigelus, the Asteri\u2019s leader, begins to pursue her, Bryce uses her abilities to open a portal and cross into Prythian, the continent where \u201cA Court of Thorns and Roses\u201d takes place. There, under the watchful eye of Nesta and Azriel, Bryce discovers that her ancestor, Theia, was originally from Prythian. This information suggests that Theia is the ancestor of Rhysand, as one of her daughters returned to Prythian from Lunation, and it is currently the most popular fan theory. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The connection between these two series and \u201cThrone of Glass,\u201d however, is not as obvious. It isn\u2019t until \u201cKingdom of Ash\u201d that we even see glimpses of Prythian or Lunathion. <\/p>\n\n\n\n When Aelin burns out and uses an immense amount of her powers, she begins to fall between worlds. During this fall, she observes what fans believe to be Lunathion and she is eventually slowed by none other than Rhysand, the High Lord of the Night Court. <\/p>\n\n\n\n These examples alone show how interconnected Maas\u2019 series are. Whether she began writing her series to connect them or not, having them exist in the same multiverse opens up an entirely new door of possibilities. <\/p>\n\n\n\n For example, in the bonus chapter of \u201cHouse of Flame and Shadow,\u201d Bryce returns to Prythian and brings her mother, Ember, with her. There, Ember and Bryce interact with all of the Inner Circle, Rhysand\u2019s group of friends and advisors in \u201cA Court of Thorns and Roses,\u201d and suggests that Bryce\u2019s ability to cross over the worlds can be used for a much larger purpose \u2014 perhaps even bringing an army to Lunation or Prythian to help defeat the next world-ending threat. <\/p>\n\n\n\n However, fans have noticed other commonalities between the three series long before Maas connected them explicitly. Most connect \u201cCrescent City\u201d to \u201cThrone of Glass\u201d and \u201cA Court of Thorns and Roses\u201d rather than vice versa. What this means isn\u2019t certain, though it likely sets up a \u201cpast, present and future\u201d scenario between the three: \u201cA Court of Thorns and Roses\u201d as the past, \u201cThrone of Glass\u201d as the present and \u201cCrescent City\u201d as the future. <\/p>\n\n\n\n This \u201cpast, present and future\u201d theory arises from the fact that out of the three series, only one has gods that have remained in their world: \u201cCrescent City.\u201d In \u201cA Court of Thorns and Roses,\u201d the gods have been long gone, now nameless and forgotten, while in \u201cThrone of Glass,\u201d both the gods and magic have been gone for eight years. This also supports the theory that the Asteri also once were in Prythian and Erilea \u2014 where \u201cThrone of Glass\u201d takes place \u2014 but were forced to leave at some point. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Out of all of the connections across the books, my favorite is the connection between Aelin Galathynius, the protagonist of \u201cThrone of Glass,\u201d and Lidia Cervos, a minor, antihero-type character in \u201cCrescent City.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The similarities between these women are glaring and go much deeper than just their appearances. Of course, both are described to look very similar \u2014 golden blonde hair, pale skin and eyes that are somehow both gold and blue \u2014 but even Lidia and Aelin\u2019s ability to wield fire is nearly identical. Stags are the symbol of Aelin\u2019s kingdom, Terrasen, and Lidia is one of the most powerful Stag shifters of her long lineage. Even one of Lidia\u2019s sons is named Brannon, who was the first fire-wielding king of Terrasen and Aelin\u2019s ancestor. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The Autumn Kings of \u201cCrescent City\u201d and \u201cA Court of Thorns and Roses\u201d are also theorized to be related to the line of Terrasen or even just plain connected to one another.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Yes, that\u2019s right. Two separate kings who rule over two separate courts in two separate series with the same name? It might just seem like a coincidence, but it’s in more than just their names. <\/p>\n\n\n\n While Einar rules over the Valbaran Fae in Lunathion and Beron rules over the Autumn Court, they both have wine-red hair and tanned skin and are described as power-hungry, cold Fae men. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Not convinced yet? Well, their strange gold and blue eyes and fire powers are what wrap this package up with a neat little bow. It\u2019s also these attributes that lead fans to theorize the connection between the Autumn Kings and the line of Terrasen. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Another important minor detail is the style of tattoos throughout the three series, especially between those of Feyre Archeron and Rowan Whitethorn, and Bryce Quinlan and Nesta Archeron. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Between Feyre and Rowan, there is no shortage of swirling black lines, most notably on their arms \u2014 Rowan\u2019s tattoo travels up from his arm onto his neck and face \u2014 while Bryce and Nesta both have an eight-pointed star, Bryce\u2019s in the middle of her chest and Nesta\u2019s in the middle of her back. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Though it\u2019s not exactly clear why these characters have such similar tattoos \u2014 the only tattoo we have explanations for is Bryce\u2019s \u2014 it shows a deeper connection between the three fae cultures across three different continents and even series. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Of course, I might just be reading into all of these similarities too much. After all, it is common for authors to use recurring themes in their series, but with Maas connecting her stories in very explicit ways, it appears to be more than just coincidence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Maas has yet to announce when the next books in \u201cCrescent City\u201d and \u201cA Court of Thorns and Roses\u201d will be released, but with 16 books worth of information, there is plenty to devour and theorize on what exactly the author will be up to next.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Contact the author at howlentertainment@wou.edu<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" February 26, 2025 Written by: Jaylin Emond-Hardin | Entertainment Editor Content warning: This article contains spoilers for \u201cA Court of Thorns and Roses,\u201d \u201cCrescent City\u201d and \u201cThrone of Glass\u201d Spanning 16 books across three different series, Sarah J. Maas\u2019 works have been translated into 38 languages and have sold over 12 million copies across the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","_et_pb_use_builder":"off","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[6220,6221,6211,3141,6227,3147,6213,6217,6226,2050,4231,3154,6218,6225,2051,6214,2934,6223,5246,6212,6232,6231,6233,6235,6215,3772,6222,6230,6219,6228,6229,1584,3525,4230,6237,6239,6238,3145,6216,6234,6236,6224],"class_list":["post-22396","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-entertainment","tag-a-court-of-frost-and-starlight","tag-a-court-of-mist-and-fury","tag-a-court-of-silver-flames","tag-a-court-of-thorns-and-roses","tag-a-court-of-wrath-and-ruin","tag-acotar","tag-aelin-galathynius","tag-assassins-blade","tag-autumn-king","tag-booktok","tag-bryce-quinlan","tag-crescent-city","tag-crown-of-midnight","tag-empire-of-storms","tag-fantasy","tag-feyre-archeron","tag-fire","tag-heir-of-fire","tag-high-fantasy","tag-house-of-earth-and-blood","tag-house-of-flame-and-shadow","tag-house-of-sky-and-breath","tag-kingdom-of-ash","tag-lunation","tag-maas","tag-multiverse","tag-nesta-archeron","tag-night-court","tag-prythian","tag-queen-of-shadows","tag-rhysand","tag-romance","tag-romantasy","tag-sarah-j-maas","tag-stag","tag-terrasen","tag-theories","tag-throne-of-glass","tag-tower-of-dawn","tag-universe","tag-urban-fantasy","tag-valbarin-fae"],"modified_by":null,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wou.edu\/westernhowl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22396","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wou.edu\/westernhowl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wou.edu\/westernhowl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wou.edu\/westernhowl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wou.edu\/westernhowl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22396"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/wou.edu\/westernhowl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22396\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":22399,"href":"https:\/\/wou.edu\/westernhowl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22396\/revisions\/22399"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wou.edu\/westernhowl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22396"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wou.edu\/westernhowl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22396"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wou.edu\/westernhowl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22396"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}