ACOTAR 6 & 7: Reveal

Episode Title: ACOTAR 6 & 7 REACTIONS: New Covers, Koschei, Stygian Spiders & What Was Broken Will Be Remade?! Description: Sarah J. Maas really said, “Here, take TWO books,” and the Romantasy Roundtable immediately stopped its vacation plans to scream about it! Rick, Amanda, and Kim are back for an emergency ACOTAR bonus—sorry, FILLER—episode after SJM dropped the titles, covers, page counts, and blurbs for A Court of Splintered Harmony and A Court of Forgotten Melody! ACOTAR 6 is 352 pages, ACOTAR 7 is a MASSIVE 896 pages, and we are officially entering the Valkyrie Cycle with movements one, two, and three... plus a mysterious fourth book still to come?! We break down what this new era of ACOTAR might look like and why the wildly different page counts have us wondering exactly how these books are structured. Then we go FULL conspiracy board on those covers. The first gives us bones, fire, fangs, destruction, renewal, and approximately one million questions. Meanwhile, the second has Rick spiraling because if that is a STYGIAN SPIDER, everyone can get... well, you know. We also dissect Koschei the Deathless, the Night Court's “recent betrayals and revealed truths,” and the former alliances they need to resurrect. Naturally, Rick immediately decides this means TAMLIN REDEMPTION ARC, BABY. Amanda and Kim are... less convinced. And then there's the MUSIC. Splintered Harmony. Forgotten Melody. The Valkyrie Cycle. Movements. The Harp. The Dread Trove. Rick starts connecting musical language and recurring art themes throughout the Maasverse—and admits he has a bigger theory he isn't quite ready to share yet. Plus, we debate whether ACOTAR is about to go full Throne of Glass with an ensemble cast, who the romances of the Valkyrie Cycle might be, whether Rick is ever going to stop complaining about the Valkyrie plot being “too convenient,” and why apparently the money's in the smut, baby. Key Topics Discussed: • ACOTAR 6 & 7 Are Official: Our immediate reactions to the titles, covers, blurbs, and SJM casually dropping two books on us. • The INSANE Page Counts: Why 352 pages for A Court of Splintered Harmony and 896 pages for A Court of Forgotten Melody have us questioning how this story is structured. • Welcome to the Valkyrie Cycle: What do “movements” mean, why is there a mysterious fourth book, and how does A Court of Silver Flames bridge us into this new era? • Koschei the Deathless: Rick refreshes Amanda and Kim on the ancient being, his connection to the Bone Carver and the Weaver, and Vassa's curse. • Bones, Fire & Fangs: Our wildly speculative breakdown of the ACOTAR 6 cover and whether its imagery connects to destruction, renewal, or ancient beings. • THE STYGIAN SPIDER THEORY: Is the A Court of Forgotten Melody cover teasing creatures from another world?! Rick is NOT emotionally prepared. • Harmony, Melody & the Harp: We connect the musical titles and Valkyrie “movements” to the Harp, the Dread Trove, and recurring art themes across the Maasverse. • Tamlin's Redemption Arc?!: Rick hears “betrayals,” “former alliances,” and “find a way back to each other” and somehow concludes that TAMLIN IS BACK. • Who Is This Story About?: Is this a Night Court ensemble story with perspectives scattered everywhere? And most importantly... WHO ARE THE COUPLES?! • The Valkyrie Debate: Rick loves A Court of Silver Flames but still thinks becoming Valkyries happened a little too conveniently. Amanda strongly disagrees. • Gwynriel, Mor + Emerie & Redemption: We discuss ships, possible pairings, and why SJM has proven she can completely change our minds about characters. • Bonus Episode or Filler Episode?: Rick refuses to call this bonus content because apparently we're doing Dragon Ball Z comparisons now. Closing/Call-to-Action: What do YOU think the new ACOTAR covers mean? Is that a Stygian spider? Is Tamlin getting a redemption arc, or is Rick completely delusional? And WHO ARE THE COUPLES?! Drop your theories in the comments below! Don't forget to like, subscribe on YouTube, and follow us on Goodreads and StoryGraph. Got book recommendations, ACOTAR theories, or a Dragon Ball Z membership application for Rick's very lonely Venn diagram? Email us at [email protected]! See you next time for more completely legitimate “filler” content!