SJM HAS SPOKEN! Our ACOTAR Book Announcement Reactions

Summary

Podcast Summary: “SJM HAS SPOKEN! Our ACOTAR Book Announcement Reactions”

Podcast: I'll Read What She's Reading
Hosts: Reggie, Mikayla, and Kennedy
Date: March 6, 2026

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Overview

This special emergency episode captures the electrifying reactions of Reggie, Mikayla, and Kennedy to the bombshell announcement that Sarah J. Maas (SJM) will release not one, but two new ACOTAR books within the next year. The hosts excitedly break down SJM’s recent “Call Her Daddy” interview and speculate about the future structure, content, and impact of the ACOTAR series, while reflecting on fan theories, character arcs, and what this news means for their podcast and broader community.

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Main Discussion Points & Insights

1. Initial Reactions to the Double Book Announcement

• The hosts are in shock and awe at the news, noting how unexpected a double release is.
  • Reggie: “I went into it with pretty low expectations… I was not expecting October, let alone January as well.” [00:36]
  • Kennedy: “A double whammy. Did not see that coming.” [01:01]
• They joke about having “manifested” the announcement through earlier podcast episodes. [01:38]

2. Book Structure & Series Plan — What SJM Said

• Breakdown given by SJM (via the recent interview recap):
  • Book 6 = Part 1 of the next ACOTAR story (coming October)
  • Book 7 = Parts 2 and 3 (coming January)
  • Book 8 = Part 4 and finale of the saga
  • Kennedy clarifies: “Book six is technically part one of this next Acotar story. Book seven will be parts two and three, and book eight will be the fourth part.” [02:46]
  • ACOTAR will wrap after book 8.

3. Speculation: POVs, Structure, and Theories

• The group wonders about narrative structure:
  • Will there be multiple POVs? Consensus: It’s very likely, and more than just two. [03:34–03:41]
  • Is Book 6 a “Tower of Dawn/Empire of Storms” situation with split timelines? Plenty of speculation, especially about Mor as a focus character.
    • Kennedy: “Imagine waiting this long and the first book is Mor's POV. Come on.” [04:43]
    • Reggie: “I don't know if I could have just like a Tower of Dawn kind of book that's just like Mor and her story.” [04:26]
• Azriel, Elaine, and the death of the “Bryce + Azriel” theory:
  • Reggie (excited): "The best part of the interview...was the fact that she squashed the Azriel and Bryce theory." [04:48]
  • Gwen (from the hosts): A known “Gwazriel” shipper, disappointed but intrigued by the direction.

4. Fan Theories, Expectations, and Reading Experience

• The hosts express wariness about deep-diving into theories:
  • Kennedy: “I can't feed into any of it, because after the theories for Crescent City 3, I was really disappointed.” [07:40]
  • Mikayla: "It ruined my reading experience for Crescent City because I had all these theories in my head... and none of them happened." [14:24]
• They debate whether to do theory episodes ahead of the next book(s).

5. ACOTAR’s Narrative Evolution

• Discussion on how the series moved from Feyre’s single POV to multiple character perspectives (Nesta, novella, etc.), and the likelihood of upcoming books expanding this further. [06:08–07:19]

6. Book Cover Colors & Easter Eggs

• Deliberation over future cover colors:
  • Mikayla: “I think it’s going to be purple or pink because all the promo has been pink... But we already have a pink and a blue book.” [08:28–08:51]
  • Debunking over-analysis: Hosts note not to get too “Taylor Swift-y” with Easter eggs. [09:12–09:20]

7. SJM’s Interview Style & Spoiler Philosophy

• The hosts appreciate how SJM left major questions unanswered for mystery’s sake:
  • Kennedy: "If she would have actually answered those, do you think that would have... ruined your reading experience?" [10:03]
  • “You'll find out” as a repeated, purposeful phrase by SJM. [10:34]

8. Crossover Hopes & Fears (Throne of Glass, Crescent City)

• Longing for confirmation or denial about Throne of Glass characters appearing in ACOTAR:
  • Kennedy: “If she's not gonna do it, I wish she would just shut it down.” [12:16]
  • A persistent hope for cameos or connections, spurred by Crescent City revelations. [12:23]
• Noting limited Crescent City discussion in the SJM interview. [13:16]

9. Personal Impact & Podcast Origins

• ACOTAR’s role in the origin story of the podcast:
  • "This podcast was born because of Acotar...If we all hadn't read Acotar at the same time, this podcast wouldn't exist." [15:09–15:23]
• The hosts’ excitement about covering an ACOTAR release for the first time as a pod. [15:34]

10. Thoughts on Rereads & Keeping Up With the Story

• Rereading before new releases: Some planning to, others relying on recap content. [15:36–16:24]
• Anticipation bordering on physical—Reggie: “I actually kind of feel sick to my stomach, like in an excited way.” [14:53]

11. Silver Flames: Reappraisal & Context

• Discussion of SJM’s emotional investment in Nesta and how her life influenced Silver Flames:
  • Kennedy: "Hearing the things that was going on in Sarah's life and how much she put into Nesta as a character... made me appreciate Nesta more..." [16:47]
  • Mikayla admits the spice is her least favorite aspect, while Reggie highlights the emotional purpose behind “spicy” scenes. [17:14–17:41]

12. Humanizing the Characters

• Reggie appreciates SJM humanizing even the most beloved characters.
  • “We expect everyone to just be so perfect... But then... when a female main character makes a mistake, we’re so quick to be like, oh yeah, she made a mistake... I appreciated the way she talked about that." [18:15–19:35]

13. Aelin and Female-Driven Fantasy

• Celebration of Aelin’s character and SJM’s intent to create an unapologetic female lead:
  • Kennedy: “…She wanted to write this female character, that she didn't care if anybody liked… I think Aelin is probably one of the most liked people in all of her books.” [20:32–21:00]
• A reflection on the impact of female-driven fantasy at the time Throne of Glass was published. [22:06–23:09]

14. Behind the Scenes: SJM x Call Her Daddy

• Curiosity about how the interview with a major celebrity podcast came about:
  • “As someone who has a book podcast…and has reached out to authors…Who reached out to who and how did this happen?” [24:10–24:56]

15. Page Counts, Book Length, and Speculation

• The first new ACOTAR book’s page count is surprisingly low (~352 pages), with the second reportedly huge (~900 pages), sparking greater speculation about structure and content.
  • “Second book is like 900 [pages]…It’s got to have multiple point of views.” [26:10–26:16]
  • Concern/interest about whether Book 6 is essentially a novella or a “Mor book.” [27:13–27:44]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Reggie: “I was not expecting October, let alone January as well.” [00:36]
• Kennedy: “Book 6 is technically part one of this next ACOTAR story. Book 7 will be parts two and three, and book 8 will be the fourth part.” [02:46]
• Reggie: “The best part of the interview...was the fact that she squashed the Azriel and Bryce theory.” [04:48]
• Kennedy: "I can't feed into any of it, because after the theories for Crescent City 3, I was really disappointed." [07:40]
• Mikayla: “It ruined my reading experience for Crescent City because I had all these theories in my head… and none of them happened. And then I was sad.” [14:24]
• Kennedy: “This podcast was born because of Acotar. …it’s our roots.” [15:13]
• Reggie: “I actually kind of feel sick to my stomach, like in an excited way.” [14:53]
• Kennedy: “Hearing the things that was going on in Sarah’s life and how much she put into Nesta as a character... made me appreciate Nesta more...” [16:47]
• Reggie: "We expect everyone to just be so perfect... But... when a female main character makes a mistake, we’re so quick to be like, oh yeah, she made a mistake… I appreciated the way she talked about that." [18:15–19:35]
• Kennedy: "She didn't care and everybody loves her [Aelin]." [21:00]

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Key Timestamps

• 00:24: Announcement that two new ACOTAR books are coming within the year
• 02:46: Hosts summarize SJM’s series plan (Books 6–8 structure)
• 04:43: POV speculation and Tower of Dawn comparisons
• 04:48: Squashing of Azriel + Bryce theory
• 07:40: Disappointment with feeding too much into fan theories post-Crescent City
• 12:16–13:16: Discussion about crossovers and hopes for Throne of Glass connections
• 15:13: ACOTAR’s centrality to the podcast’s origins
• 17:14: Silver Flames: thoughts on Nesta, spice, and emotional context
• 20:32: Aelin’s creation and female-driven fantasy discussion
• 26:05–27:44: Book lengths and what they might mean for content/structure

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Tone & Style

The conversation is lively, informal, and full of excited speculation. The hosts balance reverence for SJM’s work with playful self-awareness, acknowledging the obsessive theorizing of the fandom while also expressing their personal and emotional connections to the books.

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Final Thoughts

• The ACOTAR fandom and this podcast are entering a new, thrilling era with two back-to-back releases—an unprecedented moment for both readers and the show.
• The hosts are cautious but hopeful about the direction of the series and eager to share the journey with listeners, promising theory episodes (eventually!) and ongoing, enthusiastic coverage.

Transcript

[A]

Foreign. Hello, everybody. Welcome back to I'll read what she's reading. I'm Reggie.

[B]

I'm Mikayla.

[C]

And I'm Kennedy.

[A]

And this is an emergency podcast recording. We had to get together ASAP as soon as the biggest news of the year was dropped.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

That Sarah J. Maas is releasing not one, but two actar books within the next year.

[C]

Yeah, it's about time.

[A]

I was not expecting that at all. I was kind of. I went into it with pretty low expectations. I thought if we got an ACOTAR 6 announcement, it was going to be like it's coming out in the end of 2027 or something. I was not expecting October, let alone January as well.

[C]

I mean, I was expecting because she was going on Call Her Daddy now that the book would come out at some point this year. But a double whammy. Did not see that coming.

[B]

Didn't either.

[A]

I screamed.

[B]

I think that was what people came to watch specifically. And so, yeah, I mean, we got our wish.

[C]

We got our wish.

[B]

We got our wish that we got an announcement and a book in 2026.

[C]

Yes.

[B]

So was about. It came true.

[C]

It did come true.

[B]

What episode was that where we talked about probably like our 2026.

[C]

Some things.

[B]

Yeah. Like it excited reads or something like that. So I mean. I mean, you could say we kind of manifested it. Yeah.

[A]

It was all us. Everyone. We take all credit.

[C]

You're welcome. Not really. No.

[A]

I feel like I felt a little sudden because how long ago did she do her post where she said drafts are done? You know what I mean? Because I feel like those edits happened fairly quickly.

[B]

October.

[A]

Okay, maybe that makes sense. So it's been. That will have been like a year.

[C]

Well, and also I've been seeing. I don't know if she said this exactly on the Call Her Daddy episode. I was a little conf on what she was talking about. The way I've seen people interpret it is that the one coming in October is going to be shorter and then the one coming in January is going to be long. The way she said it is. She couldn't fit part one, two and three in one book. It couldn't be bound together.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

So it had to be split.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

So I think part one is the one we're getting in October and two and three is the one we're getting in January.

[B]

I thought it was four parts.

[C]

And then the fourth one is the next book that she's currently writing.

[B]

Oh, yeah.

[C]

Is what I understood the way she summed it up.

[A]

And this is like A summary of the interview. She said that book six is technically part one of this next acotar story. Book seven will be parts two and three and book eight will be the fourth part. So pretty much what you said, but specifically story and then it's over.

[C]

Acotar's done it. Book 8.

[A]

Which makes me like, we can get into like theories and stuff. Makes me giddy that this next story is just so big that it's gonna be so long.

[C]

Let's ask, should we do our fall retreat on October 27th and have it be acotar themed?

[B]

Yeah, why not?

[A]

We're taking everybody to the laris.

[C]

The retreat. We do a retreat every fall. Maybe we should do an acotar themed retreat. What?

[B]

What do you think it's going to be?

[C]

Do you guys think it's multiple POVs?

[B]

I feel like it has to be.

[C]

It's not just, I mean two, it's. I feel like it's gonna be more than two.

[B]

Yes. Because I feel like when Alex was rapid fire questioning her, she kept saying, you'll find out to a lot of questions where I was like that. You wouldn't be able to find out if it was just like one point of view.

[A]

I've seen a lot of people speculate, but I'm a little unsure as to how this would work with it being split with like where it says, you know, part one of the next acotar story. Someone was saying they think it's going to be. A lot of people think it's going to be a Tower of dawn empire Storms.

[C]

That was my first thought because Mort

[A]

is gone

[C]

back to the more point of view.

[A]

I actually here's the thing. I don't think I'm very intrigued by her storyline. I'm really excited to see what we learn about her. But I'm a. I don't know if I could have just like a Tower of dawn kind of book that's just like more in her story.

[C]

Imagine waiting this long and the first book is Mor's pov. Come on.

[A]

I think it's gotta be Azriel and Elaine. And let me just say this. I think that first of all, the best part of the interview for me was not the announcement. Well, the announcement was the fact that she squashed the Azriel and Price theory. Loved that.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Because I hate seeing that. I know Kennedy is a Gwen and Azriel Gwazriel.

[C]

Gwen Real.

[A]

Gwen real. I think I'm gonna guess it's going to be Azrael and Elaine. But the Next book. But the thing is that the next book is continuing their story. Right.

[C]

I really do think it's going to be a Tower of Dawn, Empire Storms type thing.

[B]

Well, you know what I find kind of crazy is. Well, Nesta has to be involved in this somehow. Because I'm curious to know what story this is going to be. Especially after Crescent City.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

I feel like I don't want to go too much into it just in case people haven't read it.

[C]

You want to know what though? Ms. Mass herself said you've had time. You've had time.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Spoilers. No, but I agree. Like keeping it respectful though.

[B]

Too much detail. But it's weird because. Okay. Correct me if I'm wrong. First, second book, Feyre pov. Like it's about her third book is still her.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

Ish.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

It's a bigger thing. But then we get the novella and then it is.

[A]

That's multiple.

[B]

Yeah, multiple. And then it's just one book for Nesta, which I find interesting.

[A]

But it is in the third fairest book. Third person.

[C]

I can't remember.

[B]

I don't think hers was.

[A]

So hers is first person.

[C]

I do think we are going to get Nesta's point of view in one of the books that's going to be released. I would be really surprised if we don't. Like you said. Especially with what happened. Happens in Crescent City.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

I wonder though if it's going to be a similar thing. Kingdom of Ash, where you have. If not this next book, the next or the next.

[C]

I would love that.

[A]

Six point of views or more. Because how did we. Many did we decide?

[C]

I think there was like 13.

[A]

13.

[B]

Yeah. But it's interesting because it is written in third person.

[A]

I just can't see her ending this series and wrapping it up with like Elaine and Azriel or. You know what I mean. I feel like the last book has gotta have a lot of perspectives. I don't know which could be very interesting. No idea where things are gonna go. And I'm stoked about that.

[C]

I think I've. It's hard because obviously with this interview coming out, everybody's back on the theory train and I can't feed into any of it because I just think after the theories for Crescent City 3, I was really disappointed. And so I just have to. Honestly, I don't even want to watch any theories tiktoks because I just feel like anything that I see that people are putting out doesn't guarantee that I will be disappointed. But I don't Know if you guys felt like this when Alex was asking her some of the rapid fire questions, Sarah would, Would, would say, like what?

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

And so I think the fandom has gotten a little too far, but I don't know where it's going. I don't want to even think about where it's going. I want it just to come to me. And it is what it is.

[B]

Yeah, I agree. What color do you think it's going to be? Blue. Like the color of her sweater. I think it's going to be purple or pink because all the promo has been pink. Purple.

[A]

E. Well, and also she had in the caption, pink heart, blue heart.

[C]

Maybe pink and blue equals purple.

[A]

Well, and someone said, I think it's going to be pink, and then the other one's gonna be blue. I'm like, we already have a pink and a blue book.

[B]

Yeah, we do.

[C]

Oh, I forgot about that. That's true.

[B]

So I think it's gonna be dark.

[C]

It's kind of like this teal. Like the color of the sweater she was wearing.

[B]

Yeah. I don't think she thought too much about it, to be honest.

[A]

Well, I saw Alex Cooper post a

[C]

video that was like, I saw that.

[A]

Let's look at her rings, and let's look at the way that her hands were sitting. And I'm like, look, I love a good Easter egg.

[B]

Not to discredit her because I think she is a genius, but I feel like the way she explained it, it just like all sudden comes to her.

[A]

It didn't feel that deep.

[C]

Not like Taylor Swift, where she's like, putting in all these Easter eggs.

[B]

Yeah, yeah. So I just don't think, like, if it is the color of her sweater, like, applause to her, but I really don't think it was. I think I. I also think it's

[C]

such a harmless thing to announce on call her daddy if she would have known the color. Because she did ask, didn't she? Yeah, she asked the color of the book.

[B]

I think she did. And she said something about like, I can't tell you or like, I can't say that yet.

[A]

Well, and here's. Here's the thing. I feel like a lot of people are mad because she didn't answer a lot of the questions that Alex her. But in a way, I kind of like it. Okay. I mean, I like that she answered the Bryce and Azriel thing. And. Hold on. There was like a list of all the things she actually confirmed, but I feel like it would kind of like ruin some of the mystery of going into the next book if she were to just be like, oh, let me tell you what Moore's other power is. Let me tell you what Mama Archer on if she's from. You know what I mean? Like, if she would have actually answered those, do you think that would have, like, ruined your reading experience a little bit? Or if she would have been like, oh, there's nothing special about Feyre's mom. You'd been like, oh, I mean, you know what I mean?

[C]

I also appreciated that she said things like, you'll find out or you'll learn about it to know that it's. There is a purpose behind that. So, I mean, selfishly, you know, I just want her to confirm or deny whether or not we will see the throne of Glass people again. That's all. I. I get why she doesn't.

[B]

What did she.

[C]

Did you. Did she say something about, you're gonna get a Christmas surprise? When she asked her about what Lorcan did, she was.

[A]

Oh, she was, like, kind of joking about it.

[B]

Like, oh, she's like, oh, maybe I'll do like a.

[A]

A little Christmas present for you or something. Okay.

[C]

Okay.

[A]

I think I'm glad she didn't say anything about throwing a glass, because if I knew something was coming, I would have so many theories going through my brain. I'd probably get, like, set my expectations a little too high. So I'd rather her just be like, maybe.

[C]

No, I want her to say, if they're not, I want her to say no. Because unfortunately, the thing I hate about myself is I don't. I hate this about myself. Okay. I don't know if I will ever be satisfied if they never get mentioned again. Yeah, unfortunately.

[B]

I feel like there's always gonna be, like, that hope in the back of my brain about, like, especially now. Like, I feel like she's done this where she's interconnected the universes and stuff. I'm like, I feel like that's the one that we're waiting on.

[C]

I'm not even asking. I'm not even asking for a straight up. Aen and Rowan. They're in the series. Honestly, I want them to be happy living their best life. Even some tiny little thing like give me maybe Manon or Dorian or, you know, maybe not. I want AEN to be happy. I just. If she's not gonna do it, I wish she would just shut it down.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

So then it leads me to believe that there's. It's going to happen because she didn't straight up shut it down. And I hate that.

[B]

Even, like a cameo.

[C]

Just a little thing.

[A]

I mean, I think about. Sorry. Getting into Crescent City here. I think about how much I freaked out when I learned that Lydia's. Can I say this? Lydia's ring or. She's a descendant of what's his bucket. Brannon brand.

[B]

Is it Brennan or Brandon?

[C]

Brandon. Brandon.

[A]

She's a descendant of Brandon. And like, all of that, I was

[C]

like, she didn't even ask her a question about Lydia. She didn't ask any questions about Lydia.

[B]

Honestly, I didn't ask any questions anything about Kristen City. Besides, like I said, are we getting

[A]

an appearance from Bryce in Crisis or in Actar 6? Like, she wouldn't have answered that color gonna come. You know what I mean? Like, I felt like there was a lot of talk of Throne of Glass, a lot of talk of Acotar, but like, really not anything about.

[B]

Well, I think. I mean, I guess she obviously knew that. Yeah. She was gonna announce. And so I think she was trying to just focus on. Because I feel like really, Throne of Glass wasn't discussed very much at all.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Compared to Acotar.

[C]

I think the only times it was really brought up was. I mean, there was obviously a huge discussion about Aylin. Other than that.

[B]

And Wart Logan did.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

And Run and Rhysand. Are they related? Yeah, I just.

[C]

There really wasn't. It was very Acotar focused, which makes sense because she was going on Call her daddy to announce the release day of her next Acotar book.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Iconic move a little bit. Anyways, I know we don't really want to discuss theories because we don't want to, like, really dive into those. The thing is, is the. The listeners. I know you guys are going to come at us before the book starts and you're going to want us to do an episode on theories. Just.

[C]

I'll. I can try. And I can just really not get my expectations.

[A]

That would be cool. Yeah, I. I will.

[C]

I. I do think.

[A]

Here's my question. Oh, sorry.

[B]

Go ahead.

[C]

I. I just think it ruined my reading experience for Crescent City because I had it all these theories in my head what was going to happen, and none of them happened. And then I was sad.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Do you think once we have a cover and we're approaching the release date that we will know, like, when are we gonna get the synopsis? Do you think the synopsis is gonna say.

[B]

I'm not gonna read the synopsis, Elaine.

[C]

I bet you anything it will come with the title.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

I also think the title will Be a dead giveaway of whose point of

[B]

view it will be.

[A]

Yeah, I just, I get so, like, I have this feeling of opening up the book to start reading it, and I actually kind of feel sick to my stomach, like in an excited way. Like, I get a little nauseous thinking about it.

[C]

I mean, not to get like, so cheesy, but this podcast was born because of Akotar.

[B]

Yeah, yeah, it's true.

[C]

It's our. It's our, you know, our roots is Acotar. If we all hadn't read Acotar at the same time, this podcast wouldn't exist.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Thank you, Sarah.

[C]

So, I mean, and we haven't had. In the span of us being on this podcast, there has never been an Acotar book released.

[B]

This is the first one.

[A]

Wild.

[B]

I mean, will you guys reread the entire Acotar series before?

[A]

I've already reread it.

[C]

I'm thinking I honestly might because some of the questions she was asking her, I kind of was like, I forgot about that. Yeah, obviously I remember a big, big chunk. I. I feel like I can remember the first and the second book very heavily, but I feel like Acowar isn't one that I really remember a ton. Either that or watch someone's synopsis video.

[A]

Yeah, yeah, I've already reread them, so I don't think I will read them a third time. I think I might want to do. Reread some of the books before the eighth one comes out. If it's going to be another million years.

[C]

I don't know if it will be though, because she's currently writing it.

[A]

Yeah, I don't know.

[C]

I kind of want to talk about. Just really quick, briefly, get your guys's. Because I think out of the three of us, I'm the one that probably likes Silver Flames the most. Hearing her talk about Silver Flames, did that change your guys's mind about the book at all?

[B]

Oh, yeah, yeah.

[A]

Well, I mean, I've always loved the book, I personally or.

[C]

Or I guess even you listeners, because I feel like there's so much hate towards Nesta, hearing like the things that was going on in Sarah's life and how much she put into Nesta as a character. I feel like made me appreciate Nesta more as a character because I know there's a lot of people who hate Nest out there or dislike her. So I just found her experience writing that book really interesting.

[B]

Yeah, I feel like it's not necessarily the character, maybe, maybe more so the character. And I feel like I can understand the character more. It's honestly the spice that I don't like the book as much as others. And I get it, I get it. You got to have a little spice in your life. But it. It's a very vulgar book comparatively to the rest of the other books.

[C]

I also found it interesting that she made the comment that the. I mean, it's funny that we're now talking about spice, and they're. A big chunk of their conversation was about, you know, making books. Once they have spice, they're. You know what I. Do. You guys know what I mean?

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

I found it interesting that she did say that she felt like a lot of their. The spicy scenes had a ton of purpose because it was them working through emotions, which I don't remember reading the book feeling that way. And maybe I would feel that way now with this lens that I have listening to her, how she felt while writing the book. Does that make sense?

[A]

Yeah, just puts into perspective for you. Because, like, even, for example, the whole Rhys and Feyre and the whole pregnancy thing, it's like, I loved everything she said about that because it's like when we pick up a book, it's like we expect everyone to just be so perfect. And for some reason, when a female main character makes a mistake, were so quick to be like, oh, yeah, like, she made his mistake, like, whatever. But then, like, I don't know about you guys, but when a man makes a mistake in a book, it's like, he's the worst. You know what I mean? But it's. I felt like she was just trying to make them feel a little more human, even though they're obviously not. And so. And think about how much she. How much she loves Rhysand. She. She loves him. It's like her favorite character. She's obsessed with him. Like, I like that, you know, we all make mistakes. Like, I appreciated the way that she talked about that because I think people are just so quick to be like, that's why I hate Rhysand and he's the worst. And, like, he's no longer my favorite book boyfriend just because of that one mistake he made. We're so quick in books to point out mistakes people make and let it. I don't know.

[C]

I mean, like Sarah said, He's 500 years old, but also, this is the first time he's had a mate. This is the first time his mate has been pregnant. This is the first time he's living some of these firsts as well.

[A]

Oh, I was like, so literally sobbing the Whole time she was talking about, like, the reason why she wrote the whole story, that whole storyline. I mean, I didn't have nearly as a traumatic experience as Sarah did with her whole C section in her.

[C]

That was wild.

[A]

That was. I felt so much anger in my soul hearing her talk about that. So having read this story that she has written and how she put that into the story, it made a lot of things make a lot more sense to me as a reader. Made me appreciate her a lot more as an author. And I think moving forward into these next books. I mean, it's crazy what, like, a little perspective will do for you as a reader. Absolutely.

[C]

Now, I also feel like we have to talk about our girl Aylin. I loved the comment that she made that she wanted to write this female character, that she didn't care if anybody liked that she didn't. And correct me if I'm wrong, I think Aelin is probably one of the most liked people in all of her books. Yeah. Like, it's just crazy to me how she had. She didn't care and everybody loves her.

[B]

I mean. Yeah, she's so cool. Yeah. I think it's also just like, really interesting to see that perspective too. Whereas it was almost like a rebellion kind of time in her life and she was pushing boundaries for things. And I feel that's exactly what Aylin did. Not that she was rebelling, but, like, she was always pushing boundaries for, like, things, you know? I don't know. I also just think it's a character. She's a character that you kind of wish and hope to be like.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

Meaning where you just, like, have confidence in yourself and you don't care who likes you and is just, like, naturally charismatic. I don't know, it's just like, also,

[C]

like, do everything for the people that you love.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

I don't know.

[C]

She don't have one single character flaw. I mean, maybe she does, but it's just so cool to me. And also, I mean, obviously I didn't read Throne of Glass when it originally came out, and I can't remember, I don't know, the year it came out. I don't know what other books were being published around then, but I kind of feel like a little bit of the discourse around them talking about Throne of Glass was kind of. There weren't a lot of fantasy books out there because she kept referencing Lord of the Rings, right. Where it's these male driven fantasy stories, but she wanted to write one that was a female driven fantasy story. And so Just to think that. I'm sure there were other fantasy stories that were female driven, but to think back to the time when Throne of Glass was being published and there weren't a lot of stories in the fantasy realm about females, and that she may have been one of the first, I think is so cool, because now we can sit here and we can rattle off 20, 30 fantasy series that are female lead driven.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Maybe that wasn't the case when Throne of Glass came out. And I never thought about that until I watched the interview because, I mean, I read it two years ago and there's so many now, so it was crazy.

[B]

A lot of insight on the books that we have read, which I feel like is very interesting that she is giving the insight on things now when I feel like she could have done it even sooner because the last, of course, Silver Flames came out in 2021, in 2026, and now she's just saying stuff about, like, the behind the scenes of everything, which is kind of crazy. I. I also get why she didn't say it immediately because I feel like wounds could have been too fresh, like after Chorus, Silver Flames and stuff. But it's crazy that we're getting like, kind of like an inside scoop five years later.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

I want to know how this interview came to be. As someone who has a book podcast and has reached out to authors and had, you know, agents reach out to us to interview authors, who reached out to who and how did this happen? That's what I want to know. Like, how so cool to me that obviously Sarah J. Maas is huge. Her series are huge. It's taken celebrities and the world by storm. Call her daddy is huge. Think about the celebrities that call her daddy. I'm not saying Sarah is low hanging fruit, because she's not. I'm just saying obviously to us, she's an A list celebrity.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

But to call her daddy where she interviews Miley Cyrus, like all of these other. I just want to know how that interview came to be.

[A]

I. I can see it going either way.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Oh, for sure. Yeah.

[B]

I think it's so cool.

[C]

Like, Sarah J. Maas is so cool. Just. Wow.

[A]

Doesn't it kind of make you guys giddy to think that we interviewed Elizabeth Evans? And do you guys remember some of the questions we at? Like, she was talking about like a prod. She was being very. If you go listen to our episode with Elizabeth Evans.

[B]

That's true.

[A]

I had a feeling after that interview, I was like, something. I've been working. Yeah. Something. Is she didn't spill anything. No, but my. My hopes were starting to get a little high after we talked to her. Because audiobooks, I'm sure they've already been recorded.

[C]

Also,

[A]

there's a page count, you guys, on Goodreads on Bloomsbury.

[B]

Oh, what's the page? I did see that, but I didn't know if I trusted it.

[A]

It's on Bloomsbury. Assuming it's correct. Why wouldn't be?

[C]

That's the publisher.

[A]

Yeah. Book one. Do you. Did you see this?

[B]

Like 200 something pages.

[A]

It's 352 pages.

[C]

Oh, so the first one is shorter.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

Second book is like 900.

[B]

That doesn't make sense to me.

[C]

It's got to have multiple point of views. It has. You're telling me it's as long as Kingdom of. Kingdom of Ashes?

[B]

Well, Crescent City. All of her books are that long. Yeah. Oh, they are? Yeah. Oh, I don't think they're as long as Kingdom of Ash, but I think all the Crescent City books are like. I think the first one's 700 something.

[C]

I think they just get progressively 200 pages more.

[B]

That doesn't make sense to me. But, you know, it is what it is. I guess.

[C]

But maybe that's why it took her so long to come out with the Acotar book, is because it is long. I don't know.

[B]

Well, no, it doesn't make sense to me how it's broken up, as we'll

[A]

find out, because I feel like with

[B]

Acotar, they've progressively gotten longer. Like all of the books besides the novella. And this one's gonna be shorter than Acowar and a Core of Silver Flames.

[A]

It almost makes.

[C]

Oh, the first one you're talking about.

[B]

Yeah. Oh, the first one. Coming out in October.

[C]

Do you think it's going to be considered a novella? No.

[A]

No.

[B]

How long is the first ACOTAR?

[C]

400 something.

[B]

So it's even shorter than Acotar.

[C]

Oh, for sure. Yeah, for sure. Acotar has to be around at least 400.

[B]

That's what's not making sense to me.

[C]

Why I'm telling you guys, I. What if it's literally more. What if it is more a tiny, like, not novella, but it's her story, wherever the heck she is. And then the next book, it's back to Azrael and Elaine. I'm telling you, I. I have a feeling. I have a feeling.

[A]

I have a feeling the relationship between Asriel and More. He knows something. She's been away. She's gonna have to come back. But here's the thing. If it is a more book, we're gonna be going in even to the next book. Like, really buckled up. I don't know. I don't know.

[B]

I don't want to see that. But, you know, it is what it is.

[A]

You know, I'll take anything. Anything at this point.

[C]

Well, no, I. I will take whatever.

[B]

Sure.

[C]

I mean, we're getting what we're getting. If it's a more book.

[A]

If you guys decide to reread. When I did my reread, because I was always like, more whatever after my reread, I paid a lot of attention to her. I feel a little more excited about her story. Not maybe excited. Maybe that's not the right word. More intrigued. So thanks so much for listening. If you guys have any thoughts that you want to share with us, leave them below. We're very excited. This is like I told my husband, like, people were saying this is like the super bowl for, like, readers, but I literally was like, nobody can talk to me. We're excited to see what is in store for us the end of this year into next. It's going to be very, very exciting and we can't wait to discuss all the things with you. Thanks so much for listening. We know this was, this was literally spur of the moment. We were like, we're sitting down and we're chatting about this, so we hope you enjoyed. Anyways, you can catch us every Wednesday here on wherever you listen to podcasts as well as YouTube. You can find us on Patreon, find us on Instagram, TikTok, Shet. She's reading pod and that's all. We'll see you guys next Wednesday.

[C]

Bye.