Dalia Luque, left, has her face painted by Amber Lovold, one of the organizers of a midnight coming out party at Politics and Prose in Washington, DC. They celebrate the publication of A court of broken harmony, the latest installment in Sarah J. Maas’ popular romance series.
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The latest book by Sarah J. Maas A court of thorns and roses (known as ACOTAR by his fans) The series was released on Tuesday, October 27. The day before its release, thousands of fans flooded big box stores and independent bookstores for midnight release parties across the country.
At the Politics and Prose show in Washington, D.C., dozens of fans browsed the racks in skin-tight leather suits, pointy fairy ears, and sparkling tiaras, waiting to get their hands on A court of broken harmony.
Dalia Luque is one of the enthusiastic readers who attended the event. A Monday night might not seem like the right time for a 10 p.m. to midnight party — after all, she could have pre-ordered the book online — but Luque said she wanted to experience the moment with other fans.
“I just want to have fun with the community and share with my friends while reading,” Luque said.
Fans waiting to get their hands on the new book passed the time playing quizzes, making friendship bracelets, doing their makeup and enjoying champagne.
A court of broken harmony is the sixth part of the A Yard of Thornes Roses series.
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Luque ended up in the makeup line, where employee Amber Lovold painted green bushes on her face. The design is meant to represent the Summer Court, one of the seven territories that make up the ACOTAR world. Each Court is ruled by a High Lord and has a signature color palette and mood, allowing fans to self-select which Courts they would be a part of in a manner similar to identifying with a specific star sign or faction in Veronica Roth. Divergent series.
Hot guys are a mainstay ACOTAR, which is one of the most popular genres in the genre known as Romantasy, a mix of romance and fantasy. The series follows a series of attractive fairies and humans as they engage in battles, embark on quests, and, of course, fall in love.
“I always liked entering a new reality or a different version of reality,” Luque said. “And so I think these books create a whole new world, and that’s pretty exciting.”
THE ACOTAR the saga has been on hiatus for almost five years. The first book in the series was released in 2015, and new installments from author Sarah J. Maas were released fairly regularly until she took a break from the series in 2021.
Ivana Wong’s black dress adorned with sequinned stars, a silver headpiece and a sheer, flowing cape won the evening’s costume competition.
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Five years later, Ivana Wong is more than excited about the new book. She wore a black dress adorned with sequined stars, a silver headpiece, and a transparent, flowing cape. Her ensemble won the evening’s costume competition.
“I’ve been waiting for this since the very first book came out,” Wong said.
She said she was taking a few days off to read.
Chastity Mayhaus recently moved to Washington, DC, and she attended the midnight release party to meet like-minded fans.
“I hope to make some friends, just talk to a few people,” Mayhaus said. “I’m looking around to see some good book clubs in the area, so maybe I can discover some new ones.”
Politics and Prose event organizer Nicole Davidow said Monday’s event was the first midnight release party she has hosted for the bookstore. The event was attended by around 70 fans.
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A large part of the ACOTAR The fanbase was built on social media on places like BookTok, a corner of TikTok dedicated to books. But readers like Mayhaus, Wong and Luque are hungry to find themselves in real life.
“I think the online community wants to be in one room,” said Nicole Davidow, organizer of the Politics and Prose event. “In general, we find that with all of our events, people crave community.”
Monday’s event was the first midnight launch party she has hosted for the bookstore in her five years there. Davidow originally planned to sell just 50 tickets, but she ended up filling the venue with about 70 people.
Once midnight struck, fans rushed to the cash register to collect their copies. With the pink and yellow hardcover in hand, readers emerged from Politics and Prose, no doubt to get lost in the book’s pages.
