It’s a good time to be a Sarah J. Maas fan. A Court of Splintered Harmony, the sixth book in the ACOTAR series, is set to release Tuesday, Oct. 27, and Maas has recently been dropping juicy teasers for the past three days — and everyone is already losing their minds. Since A Court of Silver Flames was released in 2021, fans have been waiting years for the next book in the series, and Maas hasn’t shied away from giving fans most of the announcements they’ve hoped for. Spoiler alert: Spoilers for the ACOTAR series follow.
Maas posted the first quote teaser on Instagram Oct. 20, a week from A Court of Splintered Harmony‘s release date. Since then, Maas has dropped a new quote every day, each tied to a different character. As exciting as these quotes are, though, they are also gut-wrenching, full of implications and hints that create emotional spirals in her comments section.
With A Court of Splintered Harmony releasing in just a few days, the internet has been buzzing with theories since Maas posted the quotes on her social media. Will the Dusk Court be remade with Nesta as a main component in its rebuilding? Or are Cassian and Nesta really endgame? Does the Harp (which stops time, opens doors, and opens portals between worlds) mean Nesta will be hopping dimensions, creating possible crossovers between Maas series? Here are the internet’s theories based on each quote.
Quote 1 may be Feyre’s POV of her giving birth to Nyx.
The first quote posted was from Feyre’s perspective, making fans especially excited as they anticipate being able to dive back into her first-person narration, since A Court of Silver Flames is fully in third person from Cassian and Nesta’s POV. The quote read, “My body wouldn’t move. Couldn’t move. I could do nothing to help him, nothing at all, and I would die from it, this despair and agony. Please, I tried to beg the darkness. Please. Anything. I’d give anything for him to be safe. My life, my territory, my — would you give that too?”
Immediately, the internet erupted with fans stressing that this quote implies Rhysand coming close to death or fully dying again, commenting things like “A court of HOW DO I MOVE ON WITH MY DAY NOW, SARAH” and “SARAH, you’re supposed to kiss the brick first before you hurl it at us.”
Others have been throwing around a theory that this quote could come from a scene where Feyre is giving birth, something that happens in A Court of Silver Flames, but now from her POV. This theory stems from the end of A Court of Wings and Ruin, the third book in the series, when, after Rhysand dies and Feyre and the other high lords resurrect him with magic, Rhysand and Feyre agree that they’d rather die together than face a life separated and create a magical bond that ties their lives together. So, this quote could be her pleading during labor while on the brink of losing her mates, her son, and her own life.
Quote 2 might be Nesta separating from Cassian for a dangerous journey… or more smut.
The second quote was from Cassian’s POV: “So Cassian let her go. Let her keep walking down the hall, and out the front door. Nesta didn’t look back at him. Not once.”
While commenters began panicking again, with one even saying, “I’ll literally block you,” even more theories were created. Some have theorized that this could simply be Cassian supporting Nesta and letting her go on a “hardcore conquest” necessary for the story. This could be likely, especially given how hard it was for Cassian to let her go alone during their quest for the Harp hidden in the Prison in A Court of Silver Flames.
However, others also came up with less stressful, more fun theories. Some say she may just be going for another stair workout, referencing her consistent attempts in A Court of Silver Flames to be able to climb down the 10,000 steps in the House of Wind. Others playfully reference a highly intimate and unforgettable scene in A Court of Silver Flames, saying she may just be going to get some water after holding onto the headboard all night. My personal favorite theory, though, is that Cassian in this quote may just be staring at her backside as she walks away. And although this sounds silly, knowing Cassian’s “passionate” character, this fan may be spot on.
Quote 3 could hint at a Throne of Glass and ACOTAR crossover, or revival of the Dusk Court.
The last quote posted was from Nesta’s POV: “On trembling legs, head spinning, Nesta managed to get to her feet. Maybe whatever called for her over the northern horizon was a siren song, luring her away from what mattered, who mattered. Come, it beckoned, but to where? To what end? More shadows and loneliness and secrets? It would consume her if she let it.”
Many commenters believe this is a massive hint to a crossover with Throne of Glass, another Maas series in what fans call the “Maasverse.” People have noted the reference to the north and the phrase “to what end” and believe it sounds suspiciously similar to Throne of Glass. Some even theorize she may be going to see Aelin, the female protagonist in Throne of Glass. — who makes a hidden cameo in A Court of Silver Flames when a scene from Kingdom of Ash (the last book in the Throne of Glass series) coincides with ACOTAR as she falls through worlds. To the Night Court, she is perceived as a “rare red star” shooting across the sky, which they recognize as a bad omen, while readers recognize it as a possible hint to future crossovers.
This would not be unusual for Maas or her stories, as Crescent City features a complete crossover. “To whatever end,” which also seems to be subtly hinted at in this new Nesta quote, is well known amongst fans as the vow of love and loyalty spoken by Aelin and Rowan, her love interest, providing further evidence for the crossover theory.
Others, however, have more so seen hints about a possible revival of the Dusk Court (the lost eighth court in Prythian), believing Nesta is being called from the northern horizon to the Dusk Court because it is “her court.” Fans also see clues hinting at the potential of more to come with Nesta and the Harp, thinking that the phrase “spintered harmony” in the title and other references to it are related to them. With how many possibilities there are, I’m on the edge of my seat waiting for the truth to be revealed.
With mere days left until the release of A Court of Splintered Harmony, I’m thrilled (and honestly a little nervous) to see what new quotes might be released next.