S6 : Ep 6 - ACOSF : Revisited - PART 3

Summary

Flights of Fantasy – S6: Ep 6 - ACOSF : Revisited - PART 3

Date: February 24, 2026
Hosts: Christina, Anna, and Kim
Book Discussed: A Court of Silver Flames by Sarah J. Maas

Episode Overview

In this episode, the Flights of Fantasy trio continues their in-depth reread and discussion of A Court of Silver Flames (ACOSF), part of their ongoing "ACOTAR Revisited" series. This segment focuses on Nesta’s mental health journey, the evolving sister dynamics, critical magical lore moments, found family, foreshadowing for the series’ future, and a key action-packed event at the Bog of Oorid. The hosts balance heart, humor, and critical insight in their discussion, celebrating characters’ growth arcs, iconic quotes, and emotional milestones, while integrating fan-favorite theories and callbacks to earlier books.

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Nesta’s Mental Health & Growth (04:25–11:35)

• Mental Health Check-In: The hosts highlight Nesta’s progression from isolation and self-loathing to opening up and showing vulnerability—especially through her inviting priestesses to train with her.

  • Quote:

    "We are finally getting into a better place... She's willing to be vulnerable for the first time in a long time."
    — Christina [04:33]

• Persistence in Leadership: Nesta is discouraged when priestesses don’t sign up to train, but is encouraged by Cassian’s advice to “keep reaching out a hand,” echoing Amren’s prior guidance.

  • Notable Interaction:

    "It’s almost like a teacher calling in a parent. And the parent’s like, well, but is she still getting her work done?"
    — Kim [06:10]

• Strategy & Empathy: Nesta orchestrates a demonstration in the library with Cassian to show the priestesses that training will be safe and respectful.

  • Quote:

    "She did all of this to get him to come into the Library so that the priestesses could see... he was respectful."
    — Christina [07:07]

• Parallel to Feyre and Wolf Imagery:

  • Discussing Nesta as a wolf who never learned to be a wolf—a recurring metaphor signifying Nesta’s internal battle and search for belonging.
  • Quote:

    “Nesta is a wolf who has been locked in a cage her whole life. ... she was a wolf who never learned how to be a wolf. Thanks to that cage humans called propriety in society."
    — Feyre, quoted by Christina [10:12]

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2. Lore Drop: Realms, Daglan, and the Dread Trove (11:35–16:56)

• Multiple Worlds/Realms:

  • Meryl’s research hints at alternate realms stacking atop each other—a foreshadow of possible multi-realm crossovers in future books.
  • Quote:

    "Some philosophers believe there are 11 worlds like that. Interesting. And some believe there are as many as 26, the last one being time itself. And what has 26 strings, my friends?... The harp."
    — Kim [12:36]

• History of the Daglan and the Trove:

  • Kim summarizes key lore: the Daglan’s tyranny, their defeat, the rise of the High Lords, and the magical objects of the Dread Trove (Mask, Harp, Crown, plus a mysterious fourth item).
  • Notable facts:
    • No one has ever wielded all three known Trove items and lived—until Nesta.

• Speculation: Meryl’s Heritage & Future Plotlines:

  • Meryl’s claim of descent from Rabbath, Lord of the Western Wind, is noted as possibly significant for future storylines.

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3. Rhysand, the High King Debate & Power Dynamics (16:56–20:10)

• Examining discussions on centralization of political power, the historical precedent of a High King, and why Rhysand resists the notion.
  • Quote:

    "The most reluctant leaders make the best leaders, right?... it just feels in character for Rhysand to say, no, I do not want to be conqueror."
    — Christina [16:57]

• Hosts speculate on whether ACOTAR 6 may revisit the concept of a High King, and possible internal conflicts within the Inner Circle.

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4. Trauma, Family Dynamics, and Nonlinear Healing (20:11–29:36)

• Nesta’s Nightmares and Rhysand’s Revelation (20:11–22:50):

  • After attempting to scry, Nesta’s powers spiral; Rhysand, upon entering Nesta's mind, is shaken by the depth of her trauma.
  • Quote:

    “Her power being, 'death, pure death.'”
    — Anna [21:49]

  • Notable: This direct access to Nesta's pain prompts greater empathy for her struggle—from characters and readers alike.

• Sisterly Strains: Nesta & Elain Fall-Out (22:50–30:17):

  • The hosts dissect the long-standing dynamic between Nesta, Elain, and Feyre, showing how entrenched trauma perpetuates cycles of resentment and guilt.

  • Quote:

    “No one can push your buttons like family can because your family built those buttons.”
    — Christina [25:02]

  • The hosts praise subtle moments of growth, like Nesta pausing before snapping at Cassian—showing increased self-control.

  • Notable: The biting sibling banter over Elain’s “claws” becomes a stand-out, meta moment for fans who critique Elain’s passivity.

    "Look who decided to grow claws after all. Maybe you’ll become interesting at last."
    — Nesta (as quoted), [29:24]

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5. Found Family & Valkyrie Sisterhood (33:46–42:35)

• Chosen Family’s Role in Healing:

  • The podcast underlines how Gwen, Emerie, and Nesta build a support system absent in Nesta’s blood family—“they just want her to show up.”

  • Quote:

    "Our stories are worth telling."
    — Gwen (as quoted), [36:49]

  • Notable: Scenes of shared trauma, healing, supportive friendship, and lighthearted moments (the iconic sleepover, smutty books, and friendship bracelets) are celebrated.

• Valkyrie Training & Agency:

  • The Valkyrie arc is explored as a reclamation of bodily autonomy and agency, not just combat prowess. The group celebrates the tradition (meditation, “cutting the ribbon”) and the equality among sisters forged through training.

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6. Feyre’s Pregnancy and Rhysand’s Controversial Secret (43:00–54:44)

• Pregnancy Reveal Joys & Heartbreak:
  • Cassian, Azriel, and others' elation at the news is contrasted with Nesta's outsider status—a visual echo of Nesta “looking through a window” at others’ intimacy.
• Rhysand’s Withholding of Information:

  • The hosts critique the narrative decision for Rhys to conceal the pregnancy's dangers from Feyre:

    • Sacrificing character consistency for plot tension; the lack of Feyre or Rhysand POV exacerbates the issue.
    • Debate over whether Feyre ever truly had agency in the situation.

  • Quote:

    “...it makes me sad that I feel like Rhys’s character was sacrificed for that plot moment.”
    — Kim [49:35]

  • Ultimately, they stress the importance of forgiveness arcs, both for Nesta and for Rhysand, with pointed humor about “forgiving your husband.”

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7. The Bog of Oorid: Horror and Power (54:51–61:31)

• Kelpie Attack – Body Horror & Reclamation:

  • The harrowing scene of Nesta’s assault by the Kelpie is dissected with both horror and humor.

    • Quote:

      “Lips and teeth collided with her mouth and she screamed as the kelpie kissed her. His black tongue shoved into her mouth, tasting of foul meat.”
      — Kim [56:37]

  • Nesta's turning point: No longer the victim, she dons the Mask, commands the dead, and takes violent agency—mirroring her triumph over Hybern.

    • The visual of Nesta emerging from the water “holding the Kelpie’s head” is cited as both iconic and deeply cathartic.

  • Cassian and Azriel instinctively bow before Nesta’s "death’s beautiful face," underlining the magnitude of her power embraced.

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8. Helion's Guest Appearance & Day Court Charm (60:20–61:31)

• Arrival on a Pegasus (due to being forbidden from using a golden chariot by Rhysand) is met with collective delight.

  • “Helion, High Lord of the Day Court, arrived at the Hun city the next afternoon on a flying horse. He’d wanted to enter the Dark City in a golden chariot led by four snow white horses with manes of gold and fire...”
    — Anna [60:20]

• The hosts reiterate their fervent wish for Lucien to learn his true parentage in future books.

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Notable Quotes & Moments (with Timestamps)

• “You said this training would help me with my problems. Perhaps it could help them. At the very least, give them a reason to get outside for a bit.”
  — Nesta (quoted by Christina) [04:42]
• "She was a wolf who had never learned how to be a wolf. Thanks to that cage humans called propriety in society. And like any maltreated animal, she bit anyone who came near. Good thing he liked being bitten, which. Oh, because he does."
  — Feyre and Cassian inner monologue (quoted by Christina) [10:12]
• "She would happen to him."
  — Nesta (on reclaiming agency against the Kelpie, quoted by Kim) [58:37]
• "Our stories are worth telling."
  — Gwen (as quoted during the found family segment) [36:49]
• "Look who decided to grow claws after all. Maybe you’ll become interesting at last."
  — Nesta to Elain (quoted by Christina) [29:24]

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Segment Timestamps

| Segment | Timestamp | |------------------------------------|-----------------| | Nesta’s Mental Health Check-in | 04:25–11:35 | | Lore & Realms, Meryl’s Research | 11:35–16:56 | | High King Debate | 16:56–20:10 | | Trauma, Family, and Healing | 20:11–29:36 | | Found Family, Valkyrie Training | 33:46–42:35 | | Feyre’s Pregnancy & Rhys Drama | 43:00–54:44 | | Bog of Oorid, Kelpie Nightmare | 54:51–61:31 | | Helion’s Day Court Entrance | 60:20–61:31 |

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Tone & Banter Highlights

• The hosts' signature warmth and playful sarcasm persist, even while covering darker material:
  • "She loves to hold a head." — Anna, after Nesta decapitates the Kelpie [59:32]
  • “Come on, Ms. Frizzle. Take us on a little magic school bus.” — Anna, dreading the Bog of Oorid [54:55]
  • Ongoing sibling humor when discussing Nesta, Elain, and Feyre’s dynamic (“I’m going to get my nails done and get a slushie” [29:28])

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Final Thoughts

This episode exemplifies why Flights of Fantasy remains a go-to for fantasy romance fans: engaging breakdowns of psychological arcs, meta-textual commentary, plenty of laughter, and space for both emotional honesty and wild theorizing. As always, the hosts mix critical insight with genuine affection for the source material and each other.

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Next Week:
Stay tuned for Part 4, featuring the fallout from key revelations, “sexy times” between Cassian and Nesta, and their crowd-favorite “Mastermind” theory segment!

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Follow and Join the Book Club:
Find Flights of Fantasy on Instagram and TikTok @flightsoffantasypodcast.
Support via Patreon for early, ad-free episodes, bonus content, and more.

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Happy reading, and remember: “Our stories are worth telling.”

Transcript

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[Kim]

Welcome to Flights of Fantasy, your Romantasy Podcast Book club. I'm Christina, joined by my book besties Kim and Anna, and together we're diving into the characters, theories, lore and magic behind all your favorite fantasy romance books.

[Christina]

Hi book besties. Welcome back to ACOTAR Revisited, our deep dive into the series that started it all. We are so excited to be here discussing A Court of Silver Flames by Sarah J. Maas. And just a reminder, we will be breaking up each book into multiple episodes so we can really take our time with this incredible story. But before we give our official spoiler warning, we have a few announcements.

[Kim]

Christina I surely do so oh my goodness, what a month on Patreon. If you've read this book, you understand the significance of Azriel's bonus chapter and we are covering it detail by detail, line by line over on Patreon. That is a part of our SJM series for Tier two. We're so excited about that. Also for Tier two this month you are getting a cauldron chat from yours truly covering the dust court. Again, if you've read these books, you understand the importance and I will be covering that in in detail for you over on Patreon as well also for tier one. So both tiers will be covering Bridgerton. Hello, Benedict. We are entering season four. We'll be covering part one of season four, all four episodes over on Patreon. And also for our tier one book besties, you'll be getting a book chat from us this month covering the Wild Card by Stephanie Archer. The Vancouver Storm series has consistently been one of our favorite hockey romance series. So we're very excited to cover this book five in that series by Stephanie Archer. As always, both tiers get our main feed episodes one day early and ad free. And if you are a member of tier two, you get the video of every episode. So please come on over and join the party. We would love to have [e-mail] Flights of Fantasypodcast. Woo. All right. And speaking of Patreon, Kim has some shout outs. Yay.

[Anna]

I sure do. So one of the many benefits of being one of our tier 2 book batches is that you get a special shout out on one of our episodes. And in this episode we are shouting out Susie, Catherine and Maria T. Thank you guys so, so much for supporting us. We so appreciate you guys and we love you.

[Christina]

Thank you guys.

[Anna]

Xoxo. Thank you. Okay.

[Christina]

All right, listeners, consider this your official spoiler warning for the entire ACOTAR series. So without further ado, let's jump back into Prythian where we left off. Kim and Christina had chatted about the House of Wind as its own character, which.

[Anna]

Oh God.

[Christina]

And of course our favorite sexy shadow singer, Azriel, AKA the chaperone of the house.

[Kim]

Yes. Yes.

[Christina]

All right, so one of the first things that we want to discuss in this episode is let's do a little mental health check in with our girl Nesta.

[Kim]

Oh, let's do it. She needs it, guys.

[Christina]

We are finally getting into a better place, Right? Like the, you know, we were at the bottom in the beginning of the last few episodes, right?

[Kim]

Yes.

[Christina]

And this now we are really in an upward trajectory. Nesta has invited the priestesses to train with her, which is huge. This is a big step in the right direction. The quote she says to Cassian is, you said this training would help me with my problems. Perhaps it could help them. At the very least give them a reason to get outside for a bit. I love this because this is really the first time we're seeing Nesta think outside of herself. She's setting aside her own uncomfortability. She's willing to be vulnerable for the first time in a long time. I mean, we really have not seen this side of Nesta in this book yet, right?

[Kim]

No.

[Christina]

And she's persistent about it. No one signs up initially. And she's hurt, she's discouraged. And it would be easy, I think, for her to take that as a personal insult and turn that inward into more self hatred. But Cassian is so sweet. And he tells her the same thing that Amren told him, which is just keep reaching out a hand.

[Kim]

Oh God.

[Anna]

I know.

[Christina]

And so she leaves a sign up on in the library. She checks it every day. And then eventually she takes it a step further and she starts practicing in the library. And I love this because Clotho is so pissed off.

[Kim]

Oh, I love it.

[Christina]

She like calls Cassie up to her desk and she's like, you need to get your girl Nesta. Because she is distracting my precinct.

[Anna]

She's doing some stuff.

[Christina]

She is karate chopping books. She is kicking knee highs.

[Anna]

She's roundhousing the shelves. And it's too much, too much.

[Christina]

The girls don't know what to do.

[Anna]

I love that.

[Kim]

It's almost like a teacher calling in a parent. And the parents like, well, but is she still getting her work done? Okay, yeah, well, but is she hurting anyone? Okay, so what you're saying is everything's fine. I'll go talk to her.

[Anna]

Sure.

[Christina]

Okay.

[Anna]

Thank you.

[Christina]

That's exactly what it was.

[Kim]

Thank you.

[Christina]

That's exactly what it was.

[Kim]

Oh my gosh, Christina, that's so perfect.

[Christina]

So Cassian's like, okay, sure, I'll go check on Esther. So he finds her and she sure enough is like doing her little maneuvers. And she drops her elbow. And Cassian's like, you dropped your elbow.

[Anna]

You dropped your elbow.

[Christina]

So he goes over and he's, you know, very respectful. And they've drawn a bit of a crowd because of course Nessa's like in the middle of a library again. Kickboxing.

[Anna]

She's punching.

[Christina]

She's punching. And so he comes over to correct her. He's like super respectful. He's asking permission to touch her. He keeps himself removed a little bit. And afterwards he kind of whispers low into her ear and he's like, you know, that punch was perfect this morning. And she's like, oh, was it?

[Anna]

Was it?

[Christina]

Was it?

[Anna]

What do you mean?

[Kim]

I don't know.

[Christina]

So it turns out she played A little trick on Cassian. She did all of this to get him to come into the Library so that the priestesses could see how, you know, how he wasn't imposing and how he wasn't overbearing and that he was respectful. Because I think that she realized that the reason why the priestesses didn't want to leave and come train is because it would be with two men, Asriel and Cassian.

[Kim]

Well, and I think she probably put herself in their shoes with thinking. They think this is going to be like Windhaven. They have no understanding that it's not. And this only works, this little risky little game only worked because she knew that Cassian would be so respectful and wonderful and treat her with the utmost beautiful respect. Because he always does. Like, that was never a thing in her brain that, like, oh, this could not work. If Cassian comes in and he's grumpy and surly, she's like, no, no. He'll come in and be his perfect, respectful self and they'll see it.

[Anna]

Wonderful self. Exactly. Yeah, totally.

[Kim]

Totally.

[Christina]

And they do, and they see. And it's a beautiful, sweet moment. And, you know, she's been trying to show them that, like, it's not just about strengthening your body. It stills your mind. It calms you. There's a lot of power behind this training, and it works. Gwen shows up the next day, and it's like the little you put in the door, like, it opens it. And then, sure enough, like, within a few days, more and more priestesses arrive. And this is a big deal, because for some of these women, they haven't stepped foot outside of that library decades. You know, Gwyn, it's been years. And that's a big thing for them. And Nessa recognizes the courage it takes for them to show up. And these women are stepping outside of their comfort zone. And eventually, this is what actually gives Nesta the courage to try scrying again for the Trove, because she's been so hesitant to do it. And what she says to Cassian is, I am asking them to be brave, to work hard, to face their fears, yet I'm not doing the same. And Cassian's like, well, no one's accusing you of that. And she responds, I don't need anyone to say it. I know it. And I might fear this crying, but I fear being a cowardly hypocrite even more.

[Anna]

Well, that's growth.

[Kim]

It's growth.

[Christina]

Growth for her.

[Kim]

I mean, look at how far we've come.

[Anna]

I know. We really have.

[Kim]

And this moment from her. Really reminds me of the moment where she decided to go to the High Lords meeting back in Acowor.

[Anna]

Yes.

[Kim]

When she made that choice. And it almost feels like that was a little stepping stone to here. Like these were the same feelings but she couldn't articulate them like this back then.

[Christina]

Yes.

[Anna]

You know, that's a great point.

[Kim]

Yeah.

[Anna]

That is huge for her because she keeps everything so internal that when she is able to communicate how she's feeling, it's such a sign of growth for

[Kim]

her and a weight off her. Yeah.

[Anna]

Yes, totally.

[Christina]

She's so self involved with her grief, she can't look outside of herself. But when you take yourself out of the equation and you do things for others, it gives something back to yourself. You feed a part of your soul.

[Anna]

Absolutely.

[Christina]

People want to help each other and it's brings her out of herself. It makes her realize that like, hey, like other people are also going through things.

[Kim]

Yeah, exactly. I thought it was such a beautiful way to end part one is that you see just Gwen's name on the sign up sheet. I know. That gives me chills every time. It's so good. I love it so much.

[Anna]

So good.

[Christina]

So I want to end this little check in with Nesta with this quote. And it's actually a conversation between Feyre and Cassian. And Nessa's not there. But were doing this whole theme of Nesta being a wolf started in Acomaf and Ack War and we're carrying it through to Akisoff. And what Feyre says to Cassian is Nesta is a wolf who has been locked in a cage her whole life. Cassian responds, I know. And then he says in his inner monologue, she was a wolf who had never learned how to be a wolf. Thanks to that cage humans called propriety in society. And like any maltreated animal, she bit anyone who came near. Good thing he liked being bitten, which. Oh, because he does.

[Anna]

Yeah, he does.

[Kim]

Oh, I love it.

[Christina]

But I love this because I feel like it's really important to remember as we make our way through especially the next few episodes because it's gonna get heavy, guys. Particularly when we get to the heart scene with Nesta telling Feyre about the baby that this is all part of her journey. Right. She is like a caged animal and she's a wolf who. This is beautiful. Who's never learned how to be a wolf.

[Anna]

Yeah.

[Christina]

She doesn't know how to be a pack animal.

[Kim]

Yeah, yeah, she doesn't.

[Anna]

She's a black cat. You know, she's She's a wolf who is acting like a black cat who wants to be by themselves, but really, she needs that found family. She needs that group around her. Absolutely.

[Christina]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Anna]

I love that.

[Christina]

And this idea that we talked about, healing is not linear. It's going to be up and downs and we'll get to it when we get to the hike, guys. But it's going to be fun.

[Anna]

Yeah.

[Christina]

All right. Christina, will you do a little lesson for us on the Dread Show?

[Kim]

Oh, yeah. History lessons with Christina. I know. Oh, my goodness gracious. Okay, so first in our history lesson, let's talk about Meryl. Oh, girlfriend's booked and busy gal. She is a booked and busy librarian. Okay, so she's researching a lot of things and man, they're all important. So specifically, she is studying the Great War, Valkyries and realms. You heard it right. Realms. Plural, plural. So quote, when she first came here, she was obsessed with theories regarding the existence of different realms, different worlds living on top of each other without even knowing it. Whether there is merely one existence, our existence, or if it might be possible for worlds to overlap, occupying the same space, but separated by time and a whole bunch of other things. I don't think it's a spoiler just to say that we do have a mastermind section. So all I'm going to say is the word mastermind. Okay.

[Christina]

Boom.

[Anna]

Boom.

[Kim]

So some philosophers believe there are 11 worlds like that. Interesting. And some believe there are as many as 26, the last one being time itself. And what has 26 strings, my friends?

[Anna]

The harp.

[Kim]

Yeah, that's interesting. Okay, and the last one being time itself. Really? Such a foreshadowing to the end. Yes. Okay, so another important piece of history we learned in this book is the history of the Daglan. So Rhys actually gives us this little history lesson as they know it. So here are the Tldr spark notes. Okay, so quote the Daglan. They ruled for millennia and enslaved us. And the humans. They were petty and cruel and drank the magic of the land like wine. We have some interesting theories about drink, the magic and the land like wine in some of our other Theories episodes. So go find those there. But Fion and his magical sword Gwydion overthrew the Daglan. And Fion then became the only High King this land has ever seen.

[Anna]

So far.

[Kim]

Pin that for Acotar. Six Thoughts? Uh huh.

[Christina]

Yep.

[Kim]

Also, Theon was betrayed by his queen, who had been leader of her own territory, and by his dearest friend, who was his general. They killed him, taking Some of his bloodline's most powerful and precious weapons. And then, out of the chaos that followed, the seven high lords rose. And the courts have been in place ever since. So that's a brief history as they know it. Okay, and speaking of those powerful and precious weapons, that brings us to the Dread Trove, everyone. Okay, quote, the cauldron made many objects of power long ago, forging weapons of unrivaled might. Okay, let's walk through these items. Number one, the mask, which can raise and command the dead. The harp can open any door, some say between realms. The crown, which can be used for mind control, but must be within a close proximity to its victim to initially form a connection.

[Anna]

On.

[Kim]

Also important to note here with the crown. A person under the crown's control is aware of being controlled, but cannot stop their actions. Really, a true nightmare there.

[Christina]

Yes, truly.

[Kim]

Also, we do have a fourth mystery object, veiled in shadow. More on that in the coming weeks. But it is also important to note that no one in history has ever wielded all three trove items at the same time and lived to tell the tale. Until Nesta. Okay?

[Christina]

Until our girl.

[Kim]

Until Nesta.

[Christina]

She is so powerful.

[Kim]

She is a really special princess. So let's talk about how this relates to ACOTAR 6. So, first of all, let's be bop back up to Meryl.

[Christina]

Yes, she has got to be important.

[Kim]

Guys, if this didn't seal the deal for me, please listen to this quote that we learned about Meryl in this book. This is from Meryl. The wind whispers to me even here under so much stone, it finds its way in through the cracks and murmurs the goings on of the world in my ear. I am descended from Rabbath, lord of the western wind.

[Christina]

What?

[Kim]

How did I never pick up on this before? Meryl is descendant of a lord of the wind.

[Christina]

It's giving, like, witchy vibes. I mean, I love Meryl. If you have been with us long enough. I love our girl Meryl, and I have so many theories on her. Yeah, it's just interesting. She's writing a book on the Valkyrie. She's writing a book on the great war. Girlfriend, like you said, is booked and busy, and I feel like Meryl's gonna be our girl, like, our knowledge girl, you know? We're gonna go to her. I feel like she's gonna be our little library.

[Kim]

And I hope so. In some way, it feels so important that the winds wh to her, because we know that the winds whisper to Koshe. Koshe hears Whispers on the wind. Specifically. Also, the bone carver Bonyc while he was in the prison, mentioned that he hears the wind whispering things to him here, even under stone. Like all these things together. And then she is descendant from the Lord of the Western Wind. What does it mean?

[Christina]

It's like if you're hearing wind at this point, I'm like, is that a good thing?

[Anna]

Right.

[Kim]

Is it a good thing or a bad thing? I don't know.

[Christina]

Although Boney see, I do miss him sometimes.

[Kim]

Oh, yeah.

[Christina]

The other thing that's interesting here that you talked about, Christina, is Fion and the High King. Because we do have an entire conversation with Amren really trying to push Rhysand and asking him, like, you should be High King. Like, why else are all of these objects here now in power, you have the trove items. Later you'll have nest of swords. And I just. I wonder if we're laying the groundwork for some inner circle turmoil.

[Kim]

Oh, I don't know.

[Christina]

I just. The most reluctant leaders make the best leaders, right?

[Kim]

Yes.

[Christina]

But it just feels in character for Rhysand to say, no, I do not want to be conqueror.

[Kim]

Yeah. Oh, totally.

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[Kim]

If anything, I think here than talking about feeling the only High King and Amren pushing the High King. If anything, I think it's really laying the groundwork for the reader what. What a High King would be. Because I think it's going to be a conversation and I think it'll be like, who should be it? Should we have it? Should it be Rhys? Should it be Nesta? I don't know. I think that there's going to be some conversation around. Oh, this is what High King used to be and what it looked like. But I don't think at this point that it would be in character for Rhys to do it. I don't know. It'd be interesting.

[Christina]

Yeah. It doesn't feel in character for him simply just because he seems to like to allow everyone to have their autonomy over their courts. And I think the only kings we have seen so far in this book are evil, you know, like Hybern and Amarantha trying to rule. But it's interesting how pushy Amren is about it.

[Kim]

Well, I think Amren's a little also, like, look, we know that you're good. We don't know that about anyone else. So if we know we're good guys and we have all these items that could literally just. We could win every battle. We should just be in charge. But I think that Rhys, I don't know, especially Rhys in this book. I could see him being like, you know what? I gotta do the hard thing. I gotta be it.

[Christina]

I think the thing that scares me is, like, it's shortsighted because you think of, like, you can have a good ruler, but that doesn't necessarily mean that down the line things aren't good, you know? Yes, obviously, Rhysand is so fair and amazing, but absolute power corrupts absolutely eventually, right?

[Kim]

Totally.

[Christina]

So it's interesting conversation and, I mean,

[Kim]

I think it would make sense currently with, like, Tamlin and Baron and, like, people we don't trust. If we can get Eris in there, if we could get.

[Christina]

Yes.

[Kim]

Elaine or Lucien in there. If. If we get good people in all of the High Lord spots, then we don't need it.

[Christina]

Yeah, absolutely.

[Kim]

Yeah. All right.

[Christina]

Kim, can you lead us through the nightmare that Nesta has after she tries scrying?

[Anna]

Oh, man. Yes, I would love to. So, okay, as Ena just said, Nesta does try to scry. It does not go well and in fact goes Very bad, very fast. The scrying, you know, it doesn't work, but it does unfortunately trigger her nightmares and her power. And the house literally wakes Cassie up and is like, hey, bestie. So Nesta's in danger. We need you to get in there asap. Which, again, I love it. I love, I love it. It's looking out for her. And when Cassian gets to her, Nesta is completely out of control. She is surrounded by this flame that is so cold, it's bas. Ice, which is fascinating. And she is screaming in pain while her power is just exploding around the room. And Rhys actually shows up and starts using his night court magic to try and contain it. But it's Cassian who actually reaches her and he says her name. And that's the moment she freezes for half a second, just long enough for Rhysand to smother those icy flames.

[Kim]

Why?

[Anna]

Mates.

[Christina]

Mates.

[Kim]

Mates mate.

[Anna]

Watch. And this interestingly mirrors that earlier scene with Rhys's nightmares when his shadows take over the townhouse and Feyre is the one who brings him out of it. But this one hits even harder because Rhys actually goes into Nesta's mind to try and calm her down. And while he's there, he feels what she went through in the cauldron. And that's when he realizes that her trauma is so much worse than he ever understood. And I feel like this was so important that Rhysand get a firsthand account of the trauma and pain that Nesta is experiencing. Yes, I liked that he was the one that got to see it, because you could see him be like, holy shit. I did not know that it was like that for her.

[Kim]

Yeah, the trauma. Exactly.

[Anna]

And then we get that absolutely horrifying line about Nesta's power being, quote, death, pure death.

[Kim]

Like, yeah, I mean, that's.

[Christina]

That's really setting us up, you know, that's terrifying.

[Kim]

Straight up death.

[Christina]

Straight up.

[Kim]

And Boney C did hint to that, but this feels different. We're not being cryptic. We're not speaking in riddles. We're like, no, no, it's death. It is pure, 100% death.

[Christina]

Yeah, it's different. And I also think it's like you said, Kim, it's important for Rhysand to see this. And I think it's also important for us as the readers, because Rhysand is a reliable narrator to us in some ways, like, we trust him. And so to hear Rhysand, our high lord and savior, say, holy shit, this is worse than I had imagined, that makes the reader go, oh, we trust Rhysand. Okay, okay. So she's really in a dark place. We've heard it from her pov. We've seen other people mention it. But Rhysand saying it after going in her mind, I think hits differently for the readers.

[Kim]

And I think it probably hits differently for Cassian and Asriel.

[Christina]

Yeah, they trust their brother.

[Kim]

Well. And they're like. For him to say it, he doesn't like her at all. And for him to say, my God.

[Anna]

Yeah, how bad must it be? Okay, so then it gets worse. So Rhysand decides to bring Elaine up to the House of Wind to check on Nesta. And things quickly escalate because of Nesta's insecurities, which we'll get to in a second. But the main catalyst is Nesta realizing that Elain doesn't need her in the same way that she used to. And it's important to remember that Nesta was Elaine's main protector in the earlier books. And it was honestly one of the reasons we struggled with her character so much, because there was this weird favoritism that Nesta showed toward Elain over Feyre. And so Nesta does feel betrayed by Elain in a way. Like she has chosen Feyre and the Inner Circle over Nesta. And obviously this is Nesta's POV and it's her journey. So, of course, this is the lens that we're looking at it through. This is what Nesta says. Feyre had rescued Elain time and again, but Nesta had sat by, armed only with her viper's tongue. Sat by while they starved, sat by when Hybern stole them away and shoved them into the cauldron, sat by when Elaine had been kidnapped and when their father had been in Hybern's grip, she had done nothing, nothing to save him either. Fear had frozen her, blanketing her mind. And she let it do so, let it master her. So that by the time her father's neck had snapped, it had been too late and entirely her fault. Why wouldn't Elaine choose Feyre? She didn't stop the wolves when they gathered around her again. Hateful, razor sharp truths on their red tongues. She didn't stop them as they began to rend her apart.

[Christina]

That wolf imagery again.

[Kim]

Exactly.

[Anna]

Yeah. So that's. This is rough.

[Christina]

It's really heartbreaking.

[Anna]

It's. It's really sad because like we talked about at the. We kind of start this part where they're coming off a high with Cassian and training, and Nest is making strides. She's helping with the priestesses. She's starting to open up to Cassian, and she's kind of starting to make friends with Gwen and Emery. And this is what we talked about with the healing isn't linear. You know, it's like we go two steps forward with Nesta and, like, five steps back. But it's family. And I think we know that no one can push your buttons like family can.

[Christina]

Absolutely.

[Anna]

And clearly seeing Elayne be buddy buddy with Feyre is a big trigger for Nesta. And it's kind of this reminder that, like, she's on the outside and they're all talking about her and it's her against them, you know, and it's rough. And I do think this is foreshadowing for what happens later in the book. It's like the straw that broke the camel's back. These things just keep hitting her, and it breaks her a little bit every time.

[Christina]

Agreed. And I think, you know what you said about no one can push your buttons like family. There's a saying like, no one can push your buttons like family can because your family built those buttons. Like, that's who you grew up with. That is who forms your first sense of attachment, your first sense of love and understanding of love. And also your way that you fight. You know, I tell my kids this all the time. You don't have to like each other every second of the day. We do love each other. And you also. Part of learning how to grow up is how to fight well and how to argue. And they didn't know how to do that. There was no Nesta. Elain and Feyre were all kind of messed up.

[Kim]

Oh, God. They had no parent.

[Anna]

Yeah.

[Kim]

There was no parent in that house.

[Christina]

There was no parent. No.

[Anna]

There was no stable parent.

[Christina]

Feyre was mothering them more than anyone.

[Anna]

Yeah. The youngest was mothering the entire family, which is insanity. Don't get. I won't go on my dead hog. But, like, right.

[Kim]

We just co.

[Christina]

Listened to our earlier episodes.

[Anna]

There's no stable foundation. They were not taught how to get along with each other, let alone fight with each other. There was no training.

[Christina]

So it's like they immediately resort back to those, like, young adolescent years of like, cut, cut, cut.

[Anna]

Yeah.

[Kim]

Like we've said, they don't have their own foundation of separate relationships. They've never gotten out of these boxes they were put in. Elain is this infantilized, not allowed to have a backbone. Nesta takes care of her, and that's her one thing she can channel herself into. And then Feyre's on The outside. And so now that that's shifted and Feyre's not on the outside, now we're seeing those dynamics shift all around the board where just because Feyre's not on the outside also means that Elain's in and Nesta's out. Yes.

[Christina]

You know what I just realized when you said that about how Nesta channeled all of her energy into Elain, it almost mirrors her mother.

[Kim]

Oh, interesting. Oh, wow.

[Christina]

Because her mother channeled all of her sick devotion and attention to Nesta. It's a singular focus. And it's almost like that's the only way Nesta knows how to do something is a singular focus.

[Anna]

Yeah.

[Christina]

Which is really interesting. I just thought of that when you said that, Christina.

[Kim]

Because she's mirroring what her mom did without realizing it.

[Christina]

Because that's all she knows.

[Anna]

Well, because if you don't heal your trauma, you're doomed to repeat it. Like, it's like history is doomed to repeat itself.

[Kim]

Yeah.

[Anna]

If we don't learn from it. So let's do that.

[Christina]

Well, and piggybacking off of this, we've touched upon this theme. But there's a self fulfilling prophecy to Nestor in Nesta's mind. What triggers her the most about this argument with Elain is that it's reinforcing this idea that everyone's talking about her and that she's this big fuck up. And Nesta resorts back immediately to that cornered, caged wolf mentality. If she bites first, then she can't get hurt. If she shows them the worst version of herself, then there's nothing left to lose because she will have lived up to their low expectations. So I will say I do have to give Nesta credit though, because after this fight, Cassian walks in and he says, what did you do? Or something like that. Which is a fair statement. She's an adult and she's known to do those things.

[Anna]

But my God, they really do treat Elaine like a child. They're like, did you upset Elaine again? Elaine is a grown ass woman.

[Kim]

Like, let her live.

[Christina]

Let her live. And Cassian comes in and he's like, what did you do? And Nesta whips around and she is about to make a cutting statement to Cassian and she stops, she pauses, she takes a breath and then she turns around and she walks away. And it's a big moment of growth

[Anna]

because normally that is where we really

[Kim]

would have gone off the deep end

[Anna]

and we would have said things that

[Christina]

all three of us would have been like, how could you say that to Cassian.

[Anna]

Yeah.

[Christina]

And she doesn't. But what's also interesting is it's Cassian's inner monologue, and he takes it as pity. He gets, like, upset that she's pitying him that he can't handle it, which to me just reinforces his own insecurities of not being with Eris and all of that. So it's really interesting that this moment of growth for Nesta also showcases Cassian's insecurities in an interesting way.

[Kim]

Totally. So interesting.

[Anna]

Yes.

[Christina]

There's this quote later. It's such a snarky, unkind comment, but it also made us all laugh. All three of us texted each other about this.

[Kim]

Yeah. Oh, yeah.

[Christina]

It's after Elaine and Nesta's fight, she's back down at, like, the river house. And Elain stands up for herself, which, great job, Elaine. But she makes a comment, she hits below the belt. She knows it's gonna hurt Nesta, and she throws it in her face that Feyre was the one who rescued her from Hybern when Hybern stole her in Acowar, not Nessa. She makes a huge point about this. And Nesta's response is, look who decided to grow claws after all. Maybe you'll become interesting at last.

[Anna]

Elaine Nesta, our little sweet potato. Elaine.

[Kim]

I feel like Sarah put this in here to the fandom. I know you guys all think she's boring.

[Anna]

Yeah. Like, I'm aware of it. And this is a little tongue in cheek nod to you. Yes, I'm seeing it. I see it.

[Kim]

And it's also funny that it. It came right after Elain said something super cutting and interesting. I was like, whoa, where's that been Elain? And I love that Sarah was like, see, she's not boring. Yeah, it's really good.

[Anna]

You just wait.

[Kim]

And it's true.

[Christina]

This is the Elain that we started to see at the end of Acowar. And she comes in like, get your hands off my sister. And attacks the king of Hybern. Like, this is great. This is exciting for us to see these little tidbits of her.

[Kim]

Yes.

[Christina]

It's just made us laugh.

[Anna]

It felt very like breaking the fourth wall.

[Kim]

It is Sarah kind of being like,

[Anna]

maybe you'll become interesting at last after all.

[Kim]

Like, oh, I love it. Oh, God. Because also, it is such a sister cut.

[Christina]

It's like such a sibling argument, you know? And then it's like an hour later, you're like, can I borrow your sweater?

[Anna]

Do you want to go to the mall? Yes. Or no, I'll ask.

[Christina]

I'm going to go get my nail set and get a slushie.

[Anna]

Yeah.

[Kim]

Do you want to go to Smoothie King, yes or no?

[Christina]

I love it.

[Kim]

So true.

[Christina]

It's such a sibling dynamic, but also

[Kim]

they didn't learn how to recover from those things because they didn't have parrots. You're right.

[Christina]

They're not going to get their nails done.

[Anna]

No, they're not.

[Kim]

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[Anna]

You do.

[Kim]

You do, Gwen. And then we learn, of course, about the absolutely horrific backstory and events of what happened in Sangre Va to her and the death of her sister. And then Emerie to sweet Emerie. We also learned about her trauma. And seeing her open up to the other two is also so beautiful. And she tells him about her father and, oh, God, he's so horrible. He's sore. He's so sick and twisted. And they just all bond over this shared trauma of not being enough to stop events that they had no control over that were happening around them to their loved ones. And it's so hard to read, but also beautiful to read. Them build each other up and see each other in these deep, dark places that they did not think anyone else should see or would see or could help them out of, or could love them through. And for them to find each other like this is so beautiful. And on the lighter note, one of my favorite things I always forget about in this book is Emri and Nesta loving smutty books. It's just so amazing.

[Christina]

It brings me so much joy.

[Kim]

I love it so much. It is almost like a fourth wall break, too, of Sarah being like, okay, I know my girlies and we love some smutty books. It's so good. I love. They bond over their romance books. And then I like that they very respectfully kind of corrupt sweet little Gwen into the dark side. And they started off with a very, like, mild romance book.

[Christina]

That was so cute.

[Kim]

It's very good.

[Anna]

So cute.

[Kim]

And it's so well done because they're like, I don't know her past. I don't know what she likes to read. Let's ask this in a very open, mindful way. And would you be open to this? We'll start you off with a little mild romance, maybe like a historical romance where they just. Yeah. You know, the hand.

[Christina]

The hand cleanses.

[Kim]

The gloves touch in the courtyard. And Quinn was like, I'd really like that. And she's so sweet. I love them so freaking much. And oh, my gosh, one of the best parts is when Gwen tells them about how they're being written into history. Into the Valkyrie history.

[Anna]

Yes.

[Kim]

And this quote just kills me. Okay. The back of her throat ached. Her eyes stung. We're in a book. Gwen's fingers slid into hers, squeezing tight. Nesta looked up to find her holding Emery's free hand as well. Gwen smiled again, her eyes bright. Our stories are worth. Worth telling.

[Anna]

I love it so much.

[Kim]

That's so good.

[Christina]

That quote perfectly sums up their found family. Yes.

[Anna]

Our stories are worth telling. Yes.

[Kim]

And they are. Oh, God, also, the sleepover. Those guys will never get over the sleepover.

[Christina]

A house that's just like, can we have a bubble bath? It's just bubbles. There's no water.

[Anna]

There's a mini Pegasus in the corner, you guys.

[Christina]

Pegasus.

[Kim]

It's literally the most perfect sleepover that's ever existed. I can't even.

[Christina]

They're making friendship bracelets. Before friendship bracelets were cool.

[Kim]

They were.

[Anna]

I mean, my God, what trendsetters.

[Kim]

What trendsetters? What trendsetters.

[Christina]

Exactly.

[Kim]

I love this so much. When Was yous On youn Own Kid? When did that come out?

[Anna]

Midnight. So, no, definitely after this.

[Kim]

We know Sarah's a swiftie.

[Anna]

She surely is.

[Kim]

Maybe she was thinking make the friendship bracelets when she was writing this.

[Anna]

And I just think that Sarah and Taylor are connected in so some way on some plane that I can't prove. But it is canon in my mind.

[Christina]

Yes. I love it. And I love that all of this, everything you've talked about. Christina. And then Kim. What you're gonna talk about in a few minutes with the Valkyrie training is setting up this foundation for the blood rite. Right. Like, they don't know this yet, but that trust that's been missing from her and her sisters and from her and everyone else in the inner circle, aside from Cassian, and just knowing that the three of them will still show up, will still reach out a hand, will still. Will still, you know, even through the darkest will be there. THEY LAUGH together. They do all the things that Nesta has been missing in every relationship in her life.

[Anna]

Truly. Yeah.

[Christina]

And it's really building that. Like, so when they're in the blood rite, it makes it even more powerful when Nesta is like, I have to find my girls. Like, I gotta get to my friends.

[Anna]

Yeah.

[Kim]

Not to mention the bracelets are very important in that blood rite.

[Anna]

They sure are.

[Kim]

Wish upon a star. Wish upon a bracelet. It's important.

[Christina]

Technically, this, the sleepover happens after the hike, after Nesta learns that she can imbue objects. And so when Gwyn is saying, yeah, we all say, like, a little wish, a little wish for our friends. Nesta's like, let me. Because she. I think she was like, maybe our wishes will come true. But what she does is like. It's because she says, babe, we always find each other.

[Kim]

And it's like, you will.

[Christina]

It's like a little heavenly fire that's stored in there. But this is one that works because that's just a small little thing.

[Kim]

I loved it. Agreed.

[Anna]

Yeah. Okay, let's talk about the Valkyrie training just for a quick second. Because I do think it's one of the reasons that Silver Flames works as well as it does. And I think this story really understands where these women are coming from. Like we've said, all three of them come from systems that taught them in one way or another, that their bodies don't truly belong to them. Whether that was abusive homes, brutal traditions, sexual violence, or just years of internalized shame. So when they start training together, it's not actually about becoming these lethal warriors, about reclaiming Ownership of themselves and their bodies. And what makes it especially touching is that none of this happens alone. The Valkyries only exist because of that found family theme that we just talked about. They heal together, they laugh together, they mess up together. And it's a choice for Nesta, Emory and Gwen to embrace the ideology of the Valkyries. And it becomes about kind of reclaiming their self, agency and their choice. And I just love how Sarah. Yeah, I love how Sarah wove this in. I think it's so beautifully done. I think it's so important for all three of them. And I just love that they chose to do this together. And I. I also wanted to say when Christina, when you were talking about like found family, I think it's also really easy for all of them because none of them know each other's baggage. And so they're coming in without this baggage that Elain and Feyre know about Nesta. Gwen and Emery have some preconceived ideas maybe about Nesta, but they barely know her. So when they're coming into this and deciding to do this together, they're all on the same level with each other. And Nesta does not feel like she's on equal footing with her sisters. And she never has. There's always been this like push and pull with them. Whereas it's not like that with Emory and Gwen. They are all doing this together and it's equal. And it's so.

[Kim]

It's beautiful. You know what it is?

[Christina]

It's beautiful.

[Kim]

Beautiful.

[Anna]

So let's quickly just run through the few things that we do know about the Valkyrie. So they were not actually a race of a Fae, but rather females from various types of Fae. So the Valkyrie were not their own race. They were just kind of a bunch of different Faes coming together.

[Kim]

Like Nesta Emory warriors.

[Anna]

Exactly like. Yes, exactly. So they were recruited in early childhood and trained. There are three levels. There is Novice, Blade and then Valkyrie obviously is the ending. And the Valkyrie's territory is gone. And they died out in the Great War 500 years ago.

[Kim]

Also, Cassian dated one of them.

[Christina]

He sure did.

[Kim]

Named Tamwin. So I hate that.

[Anna]

That. Wait, really?

[Kim]

Tamwin?

[Christina]

We couldn't have another name, Sarah, you

[Anna]

couldn't have picked another name? Yeah, I just. I love all of this. I think it's so helpful for all of them. The mind stilling and the breathing and the. I am the rock upon which the surf crashes. Oh God.

[Kim]

I have never wanted to try meditation again. It is not for me because my brain moves a million trillion miles A minute. I will. I'll try it sometimes when I can't sleep. But this made me want to try it again because it's so beautiful.

[Anna]

It's so beautiful.

[Kim]

It's so beautiful. I love it.

[Anna]

I love the cutting of the ribbon.

[Kim]

The cutting of the ribbon. The logistics of that. That's. That's.

[Anna]

I would struggle.

[Christina]

Yeah, I would struggle with that. So something that's interesting I want to pin for whenever we do an Acotar. Six theories. The Moors off in Valahan, which to me sounds like Valhalla, which is what the Norse mythology, the Valkyrie believe is like the afterlife heaven. So I'm just like, okay, yes, just Valkyrie, Valahan, Valah.

[Kim]

Interesting. Yeah.

[Christina]

I mean, they're. They died out, but like, show me the bodies.

[Kim]

Show me the bodies.

[Christina]

Kim said it.

[Anna]

Oh, God. I mean, they thought Drake and Miriam were.

[Christina]

Listen, there are crazier things have happened.

[Anna]

You know why that we said that? Because we said, show me the bodies. And they couldn't show us the bodies of Drake and Miriam again. But they're alive. So I don't know. I'm just saying.

[Christina]

Just saying.

[Kim]

It does feel like maybe that's where they originate or something. Like Valhalla or like maybe we find some, like, important texts and things there for them or something.

[Anna]

Yeah. Okay, Anna, let's chat about.

[Kim]

Okay.

[Christina]

All right, guys. Well, I think this will come as no surprise to anyone, I hope, because you've read the book and you've come this far, but yay. Feyre's pregnant. Hence the giant magical force field that Rhysand has placed around her, constantly masking her scent. But when she finally announces her pregnancy to everyone, and it's obviously so much joy. Cassian. Azriel.

[Kim]

Oh, my God. This is one of the cutest things in the book. I swear to God, every time.

[Anna]

Agreed.

[Christina]

They are so beyond. They're going to be uncles.

[Kim]

And it's like so adorable.

[Anna]

And they're like.

[Christina]

And Rhysand drops the force field just like a smidge so, like, Cassian can kiss her cheek and kiss her cheek.

[Kim]

It's so cute.

[Anna]

I can't handle it.

[Christina]

I love it.

[Kim]

I love it so much.

[Christina]

But Nesta is in the room as well, and she is also extremely happy for Feyre. But there is. There's a twinge of sadness because she doesn't feel comfortable expressing herself as the others do, because she hasn't been in a good place with Feyre and Rhysand for a long time. I mean, it's been a year, right? And now she's been banished to the House of Wind. And this is what Nessa says. Nessa said quietly to her sister, congratulations. For she had said nothing, had only been able to stand and watch them, all their joy and closeness, as if she were looking through a window. And this is again, so sad. And it parallels the moment in Acafa when Nesta walks up to the townhouse and everyone is celebrating, you know, the winter solstice and sees everyone together and she's looking through the window and she just feels like she's an outsider interloper.

[Kim]

And she feels like that in Fashion Star. Like, even when they're sitting inside too, she says, like someone looks at her and says it's like she's looking through a window as well.

[Christina]

And she does feel genuine happiness for Feyre. She doesn't know how to express that because again, she's just. We've all the reasons we've already discussed, they don't know how to bridge that gap. And it's so sad.

[Anna]

It is really sad. Yeah.

[Kim]

When feelings are hard for Nesta, he, I think reverts back to, okay, well, what's not a hard feeling? Anger tends to be her lashing out.

[Christina]

Right. But she doesn't hear.

[Kim]

We see it a little bit when Feyre takes her in the hallway and she's tells her it's a boy and.

[Anna]

Yeah.

[Kim]

Tells her that it's a boy. And she's like, very excited to tell her. Nesta's not kind, but I think in this moment, growth. We did get congratulations from her mouth. That's good.

[Christina]

Yeah.

[Anna]

Yeah.

[Kim]

Yes.

[Christina]

Yes, yes.

[Anna]

Sure.

[Kim]

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[Christina]

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[Kim]

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[Christina]

But anyway, so this is a moment where Nesta does agree to search for the made objects. You know, she agrees to scribe, which we've already gone through her nightmare. And Rhysand says, you have a choice. You will always have a choice here. And she says, I'll search for it. Of course I'll search for it. Because she sees Feyre cradling her stomach and she's like, of course I'll do it. And it's this wonderful moment. It's also interesting because Rhysand says, you have a choice. You will always have a choice here.

[Anna]

And then we find out that Rhysand

[Christina]

is hiding a big truth from Feyre throughout this book.

[Kim]

Yeah, and I guess it's not like Feyre has a choice either.

[Anna]

Well, okay, that was my thought when I was arguing with myself in the shower. I'm like, okay, because I've been thinking about this a lot, but it's like, okay, but in my understanding, an abortion is not an option in this world. So like, that's my under. Like I. There wasn't ever a conversation about like Feyre ending the pregnancy. So in my mind I'm like, but what? I don't think he's hiding a choice. He's hiding very important knowledge. But there's really no choice for Feyre. Like I, I think she's gonna go through, like, she's not gonna end the pregnancy.

[Christina]

No, no, no. I think it's more just him not telling her and just kept being like, well, I don't wanna scare her, but

[Anna]

yeah, I do think he was going to. I don't think he was gonna let her go into labor and not know this information.

[Christina]

I don't think so either. I think he wanted to collect everything, all of his knowledge. I think it's a classic. I want to control the situation as much as I can and I'm scared. And I'm going to come to you with all of the info so that you don't have to spiral.

[Anna]

Right.

[Kim]

It tracks for Rhys to do that. And I'm gonna take it on me. Cause I'm the one that fixes everything and I'm gonna do this for everyone. And when we talked about in Frost and Starlight to this book, his mindset was, no one can be this happy. It's gonna get ripped away from me. No one can be this happy and nothing go bad. And Cassian was like, no, everything's fine. Just be in peace. Just be with your mate. Just be happy. You already paid the debt. And he was like, no, no, no, something bad's gonna happen. And I think he was already at this frantic almost place of it's tentative, it's gonna get ripped away. And then this happened. He's like, I fucking knew it. I knew it, I knew it. And he's like, I have to fix it. I have to fix it. Like, I think there's that level was already hyping up in Frost and Star for sure. But where it feels like he crossed the line is when he specifically told her doctor not to tell her information. I think that that was really hard to read. The doctor being involved feels icky.

[Anna]

Yeah.

[Christina]

It's a weird kind of harkens back to like decades ago when, you know, a woman wouldn't necessarily be told everything about the information because we're too fragile or whatever.

[Anna]

Yeah, right.

[Christina]

But again, it goes back. I mean, Rhysand's like you guys talked about in another episode, like he, you know, not perfect. He is fallible at times. And this is him making a mistake. The difference is we don't get his POV or Feyre's pov. So it's hard because it's like we're just dropped this bomb and we're all supposed to swallow it.

[Anna]

Right.

[Kim]

This is really the only thing in this book that I think makes me feel like maybe some of Rhys's character is being sacrificed for plot in that we needed to keep this from her so that Nesta could tell her. And it could be this big climactic moment to go on the hike. And it makes me sad that I feel like Rhys's character was sacrificed for that plot moment.

[Anna]

I completely agree, Christina.

[Christina]

I 100% think that's what this was.

[Anna]

I agree. And I was to even go a step further than that. Yes, for the hike. But I think Sara did this so that Nesta would have to give her powers back and save Feyre the way that Feyre saved Elain and Nesta. Sarah doesn't always want her characters to be these incredibly powerful women with too much power that they don't know what to do with. So I think in her mind she's like, how can she give it back in a way that helps and saves Feyre?

[Kim]

Right.

[Anna]

And I don't like that because that's not fair to Rhysand and I don't like that. Like you said, Christina, she's sacrificing Rhysand's character and everything we have built with him for the past three and a half books to then throw that away for plot just so that Nesta can tell Feyre and she can go through this whole emotional journey and then at the end she can save her.

[Kim]

Yeah.

[Christina]

It's such an odd way of doing it. Like if she had thrown a sentence in there of Rhysand talking to Cassian Azriel saying, I just need a little more time. Because the thing is, obviously we know he's going to tell her, but we don't ever get him saying a timeline. So it's very ambiguous.

[Kim]

Well, and it's hard because we don't get Rhys and Feyre's POV in this book and this is a huge deal for them and this is all circling around them. Yeah, well, and we'll get to it next week. But everything surrounding this with Feyre and Rhys's character, how they react to things, how they handle things with this pregnancy, it's confusing as the reader and it feels like it doesn't track. And I know it's not their book. So all we can think is that there's off page stuff and we're not in their pov. And this is how it's happening through

[Christina]

nested, not ill characters are having off. You know, listen, it happened in my brain. It's happening.

[Kim]

Yes, but it's just. It's hard. It's hard.

[Christina]

It is hard.

[Kim]

But I. Kim, I really love that parallel though of Nesta having to save Feyre and her having to give her powers back, because that makes so much sense. And realistically, as an author, you're like, how do we get there? This is the way to get there. And honestly, I don't know how else she could have gotten there.

[Anna]

Yeah, I think Sarah saw what she wanted the end game to be. She knew that Feyre was going to be pregnant. We know that that was planned. Okay? So she knew that. So she's like, here's a, here's Z. How am I gonna get there?

[Christina]

How do I blow this up?

[Anna]

How do I blow this shit up to the point where Nesta has to be buried 10ft under the ground in grief and rage. Oh, okay. I'll just have Rhysand keep some super important information about his mate and her body. Like that just doesn't make. It's not his part.

[Christina]

It's weird. Especially after you. The mate conversation. And she was so pissed off. Don't keep secrets from me. Don't tell me. Like, you can't not tell me things. You have to trust me to be able to handle this. She goes up and pelts for three days in a cottage.

[Anna]

Like, I guess he didn't tell her

[Christina]

exactly what you said. Kim. I think it was all for the end of the plot. And how did we get there? Yeah, and I do. I mean, it is a beautiful journey. We go on.

[Kim]

Oh, it's gorgeous.

[Anna]

It's gorgeous. It's gorgeous. I cry every time I cry.

[Kim]

And like Reese kneeling. It's gorgeous. We love it. It's gorgeous.

[Anna]

But then it's like you said. But yeah, ultimately Rhysand's character gets sacrificed because people won't. People. That was not enough for people to redeem Rhys. Like, the people are still just like, I hate him now. Like, I absolutely hate him now.

[Kim]

Well, it doesn't feel like something he would do because we know him. We do know him.

[Anna]

We love him. And I still do. And I still love him. And I still. I'm obviously I'm upset with Sarah because I can't be upset with Rhysand because he doesn't exist.

[Kim]

Right.

[Anna]

Except for in my heart. But yeah, ultimately I'm frustrated that I don't have a better solution for Sarah. But I just hate that she did this to Rhysand because he was so beloved.

[Christina]

Here's the thing is, I can get over it and I can, like, it can piss me off. But we can go on all of this, this entire journey with Nesta and forgive her and love her at the end of this. And I already have a foundation of love and trust and respect with Rhysand, so him fucking up can piss me off. But it's like when your husband fucks up.

[Ad Voice]

Up.

[Kim]

Yeah.

[Anna]

And that is very similar, Rhysand. I'm so glad you said that, Anna, because it's very similar to my husband, Rhysand and. And my husband are.

[Christina]

We will talk this out and I will be mad and we might yell at each other for a few days and you might have to grovel, but guess what? At the end of the day, I love you and I trust you.

[Anna]

I love you forever.

[Christina]

Forever and ever.

[Anna]

Yeah, forever.

[Christina]

And there we Are.

[Anna]

I think that's a great point. It's like we forgive Nesta, and she's done some pretty terrible things.

[Kim]

And it's also important to recognize that Feyre forgives Rhys. If Feyre can forgive Rhys. I feel like we don't have a ground to stand on for not forgiving of ourselves.

[Anna]

Very great point, Christina.

[Kim]

Also important to remember Sarah based ries end off her husband.

[Anna]

Her husband. So he's not evil.

[Kim]

Yeah. Who's not evil? So I do think that Feyre forgave him a little too soon. But we'll get to that next week. Okay? Yes.

[Anna]

Okay.

[Kim]

So, all right, guys, let's.

[Ad Voice]

Let's.

[Kim]

Oh, wow. What a transition.

[Anna]

Okay, pivoting a little bit.

[Kim]

There's no good way to do this. Let's go to the Bog of Origin.

[Anna]

Okay. Come on, Ms. Frizzle.

[Christina]

Come on, Ms. Frizzle. Take us on a little magic school bus.

[Kim]

Oh, God. What a terrible place to go on a school field trip.

[Christina]

Okay, this might be my least favorite.

[Kim]

So bag of orange, let's go. All right. Cassie and Nesta, Azriel. We're going to the Bog of Or to find the mask. And almost immediately, everything goes to shit. Because, you know, of course it does. So they're ambushed by those missing Autumn Court soldiers. Error. Sword them about. There you are. Hey, guys. Asriel is hit with an ash arrow that limits his power. And Cassian has to make the impossible call to leave Nesta behind in a tree like a koala bear so he can go save his brother. Okay, so now Nesta is alone and terrified and, like, clinging to a tree in a place that very much wants her dead. And it's awful here and terrible. And of course, in this moment, she's having flashbacks to the battle in Acowar. And she's spiraling that Cassian's gonna die. And so she's like, nope, not today. History will not repeat itself. I'm gonna shimmy on down and make myself useful. And it doesn't go well. So she walks to the water daughter and is almost immediately met with this beyond terrifying creature called the Kelpie. So who, we later find out, wanted her to be his bride so he could breed her. Thank you so much for that translation, Amren. I really needed that for my nightmares. Okay, so now I can't tell you how much I hate this kelpie. So Cassia now is all in this tizzy because his koala mate has escaped from her tree.

[Anna]

Yes.

[Kim]

He's panicking and thinking she's dead. And it's actually really sweet. Like, he's screaming her name and he's like, so worried and just like screaming, nesta. And there's a whole part where he's like, if I don't find her, I'm going to crumple up and die. Like, he's just so worried. We love to see it. You know what we don't love to see, though, is the kelpie. So we got to talk about it. I hate that. We do.

[Anna]

I don't want to.

[Christina]

I don't want to go on this journey anymore.

[Anna]

I don't want to do it.

[Christina]

I like to get off the bus.

[Kim]

I'm just. I'm going to do it. I'm a big girl. Okay. Quote, lips and teeth collided with her mouth and she screamed as the kelpie kissed her. Her. His black tongue shoved into her mouth, tasting of foul meat.

[Anna]

Oh, my God.

[Kim]

The foul meat feels egregious, Sarah. Like, we got it. It was gross.

[Anna]

Sarah, we got it. Okay.

[Christina]

Oh, listen, in case anyone needed another reason to not go into dark bodies of water, Kim and I certainly didn't. But in case you did, we would have never.

[Anna]

I would have never even gotten closer.

[Kim]

I would have.

[Christina]

We would have flown over and I've been like, the mask is in there. Fare thee well. I'll wait here.

[Anna]

Well, well, we must. Can we do like a little osteo mask? Can we pull it out like that?

[Kim]

I will tell you, the second I read this upon this reread, I was like, oh, wow. This is. This is really proving Kim and Anna's point about dark bodies of water. This is really proven your point, ladies.

[Anna]

This is what lives there.

[Christina]

This is what lives there. There are sharks, there are snakes, and there are kelpie kelpies.

[Anna]

And there are kelpies with black tongues that taste of foul meat.

[Christina]

Okay, so you think the next time I don't go swimming in the ocean any deeper than my waist, I'm not gonna be thinking about that?

[Anna]

Yeah, you're crazy.

[Christina]

You're insane.

[Kim]

You go in the ocean, you're gonna

[Christina]

be thinking, yes, I'm gonna be thinking about a kelpie. If I get knocked down, it's because the kelpie got me.

[Anna]

The kelpie Copy. Not the waves.

[Kim]

Not the waves.

[Anna]

It's the kelpie. And you're gonna be dragged.

[Kim]

I'm gonna be dragged.

[Christina]

And I'll be screaming.

[Anna]

She's like, in ankle deep water and she's like fighting for her life. And I just stand up. Just. Just quite simply stand Up.

[Christina]

I can't. The black tongue.

[Kim]

Get the coast guard.

[Anna]

It's like. Anna, for the love of God, stand up.

[Christina]

He looks sweaty and hot.

[Anna]

Needs a little dip.

[Kim]

I can't. Okay, okay. All right. Okay. Back into Nesta, Our girl. So it's really bad. But then she's drifting into the water. And the power of the mask. Here it is. Here it is. Okay. It's an icy song. Through her, Nesta summoned the dead to do what her own body could not. Though she had fought back against Tomas, against the cauldron, against the king of Hybern, they had all happened to her. She had survived, but she had been helpless and afraid. Not today. Today she would happen to him. Yes.

[Christina]

She would take back your power, Queen.

[Kim]

I love this. This is so important, so climactic in her story. And I love seeing her say she would happen to hit him. It's so important. And I love that she then carries this through with her. Oh, it's so good. Okay, but she. So she comes out of the water wearing this mask, surrounded by all the dead soldiers. This visual. I can't. Okay, listen. This I know. A golden mask sat upon her face. Primitive, but embossed with whirls and patterns so ancient, they lost all meaning. Water sliced on her clothes. Her hair had been ripped from its braid. And in her hand, clenched there, a kelpie's head dangled by a sheet of black hair, torn up, face frozen in a scream, exactly as the king of Hybern's head had hung from her hand.

[Christina]

Wow.

[Kim]

She loves to hold a head.

[Anna]

She loves to hold a head.

[Christina]

She loves it. Listen. It makes an entrance. It's an impact.

[Anna]

It makes a statement. That's for sure.

[Kim]

Oh, what an entrance. Okay. And then Az and Cassian. But they were both Lyrian, whether Az liked it or not. So they did what their people had always done before Death's beautiful face. They bowed. I love that they bow in this moment. I fucking love it. I think it's.

[Christina]

We bow to Queen Death.

[Kim]

Oh, it's so amazing, Ed. Kaskan's like, you know, also low key, terrified. Because he's looking at her. He's like, she's not supposed to be able to take that mask off. She's holding a head. What's happening?

[Anna]

What's happening? I left you in a tree, and now you've got a mask on, you're holding a head.

[Kim]

What's happening? But they bow to her beautiful face. Oh, God. God. Death's beautiful face. So let's talk about Helion. Oh, I'm very excited to talk about Helion.

[Anna]

Yes. Okay, we're just gonna quickly touch upon Helion arriving in Valaris on his Pegasus. And he is there to help secure spells around the mask and also so that Rhysand can ask him about help with Feyre's pregnancy and her surviving the birth. Guys, this is so iconic. Helion, High Lord of the Day Court, arrived at the Hun city the next afternoon on a flying horse. He'd wanted to enter the Dark City in a golden chariot led by four snow white horses with manes of gold and fire. Rhys had told Cassian, but Rhys had forbidden the chariot and horses and let Helion know that he could win a win or not come at all. Hence the Pegasus. Helion's idea of a compromise.

[Kim]

I missed him. He's incredible. He's so incredible.

[Anna]

He's a vibe. And I'm like, never change, Helion. Never. I love you so much.

[Christina]

I want a whole nolla on just him and his court.

[Kim]

Me too.

[Anna]

I love that he was like, okay, here's my idea. Go with me here, Rhysand. I'm gonna come in on a golden cherry, and I'm gonna have four snow white horses with manes of golden fire. Thoughts? And Rhys like, no to the chariots and no to the horses. You can winnow. You can like.

[Kim]

Okay, so Pegasus rebuff. Rebuttal one.

[Christina]

Pegasus.

[Kim]

Pegasus.

[Anna]

Yeah. And Rican's like, fine, if you must.

[Christina]

Anyway, I love it so much.

[Anna]

I love Helion. I love. I. I really am thinking that we've got to have Lucian find out that he's Reptilian sun in Aktar.

[Christina]

I hope this poor Lucian needs some he. There is so much unhealed trauma within himself. And like, all agreed.

[Kim]

Achilles. Yes.

[Christina]

Throw the man a bone. Actually, that might him up, but also might not.

[Anna]

Yes.

[Christina]

All right, listeners, that is where we are going to leave off this week's episode. Join us next week where we will be having one of our heavier discussions.

[Kim]

But don't worry, we'll keep it light and fun.

[Anna]

Yeah, it'll be fun.

[Christina]

Keep it light and fun.

[Anna]

We might cry, but it'll be fun.

[Christina]

We're also to discuss the sexy times between Cassie and Anestha. So listen, it's, you know, we. We sandwich it in there.

[Anna]

That's right.

[Christina]

And also we will have our Mastermind section, which will be featured at the end of next week's episode. It's a good one, so stay tuned for that y. All right, cheers and happy reading.

[Kim]

Bye.

[Anna]

Well, friends, that wraps up another Episode of Flights of Fantasy Podcast don't forget to join our book club community on Instagram and TikTok at flights of Fantasy Podcast where you can share share your thoughts, theories and favorite moments with us and fellow listeners. We'd love to hear from you. If you enjoyed today's episode, please rate and review us on your favorite podcast platform. Your support helps us spread the magic of Romantasy to even more book lovers. Until next time, keep dreaming, keep reading, and remember every good story deserves to take flight.

[Kim]

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[Christina]

What do you have to lose?

[Kim]

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