4.5 stars 
 A NON-SPOILERY REVIEW 
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 I loved this book and I can't face the fact that the original trilogy ends here. I need some answers!!! The accompanying novellas can't come out soon enough. 
 ACOMAF remains my absolute favorite, but I still really enjoyed this third installment. 
 I do have some minor issues with Maas's writing, like the overuse of "male", and all the characters purring and hissing and snarling, but she has a very dramatic writing style and words like that can be found in all of her books. So you either don't read them if it bothers you too much, or you suck it up and try not to roll your eyes every time someone is described as "lithe" or "feline". 
 I personally decided to go with the latter option, though I did roll my eyes quite a bit at some of her more overused phrases. 
 But repetitive phrases aside, I absolutely loved it! 
 It has a very different tone from its prequels, and whereas ACOTAR and ACOMAF were heavily centered on romance, ACOWAR was all about strategy, politics and war. And as a hardcore fan of A Song of Ice and Fire series, I was absolutely thrilled to see all the scheming and plotting and not to mention that epic battle scene! 
 The pace was unrelenting and I do believe that even though this book is the longest of the series, it's the fastest paced. The pages were just flying by and the tension and dread about what will happen were real. 
 I commend Maas on keeping me in suspense and not being able to stop reading! 
 If you're expecting it to be predominantly a romance like the other two books you might be a bit disappointed, but worry not! SJM still included some lovely, heartfelt scenes as well as some smut to keep her romantic-oriented readers happy :) 
 Now let's talk about the characters. 
 First of all, I love how far Feyre has come from that insecure, naive human girl. 
 I loved how her relationship with her sisters developed and it was so much fun to see more of Nesta's banter. After all this time I still can't decide if I love or hate Nesta, but one thing is for sure... her quips and sass are so much fun to read! 
 Rhysand was his good old self and although I found some of the scenes between him and Feyre to be lacking the emotional intensity of ACOMAF, they were still such a great couple and continue to be one of my favorite ships. 
 I also loved learning more about some other High Lords and their courts, and it was a great addition to have more time devoted to my favorite fox aka Lucian. 
 The Inner Circle is as amazing as ever, their banter and scenes together were what I lived for in this book. 
 I'm deducing 0.5 stars for the repetitive writing and some overused phrases, but I really enjoyed this book and I can't wait to read more about certain characters and about Prythian! 
 ACOTAR has become one of my favorite trilogies and deserves a special place on my shelves and in my fragile shipping heart. 
 (Let's talk about how Maas mercilessly sunk one of my favorite ships some other time)