Sarah J. Maas' ACOTAR book 6 has fans running wild with theories on plot and characters
Fans of Sarah J. Maas' ACOTAR series have been piecing together the breadcrumbs of plot and characters for book six following the author's draft announcement
Sarah J. Maas announced that she has finished the first draft of the sixth A Court of Thorns and Roses book.
On July 11, the #1 New York Times and internationally bestselling author posted a short and sweet announcement of this news on her Instagram, and now, fans of ACOTAR are trying to piece together possible clues.
Maas created her own “Maasverse” out of the popularity of her growing assemblage of 16 books. She is a trailblazer of the genre “romantasy,” which is a blend of romance and fantasy. The hashtag #romantasy is a TikTok phenomenon with several billion views.
While a release date for the sixth book hasn’t been announced yet, fans speculate that the turnaround time from first draft to published book could range from 18 months to two years. So that leaves a lot of time for fans to run wild with their theories.
Maas has been teasing this book since 2023, but there have been very few updates or breadcrumbs for fans to work with. In a December 2024 TikTok for Spotify, the author hinted at the length of book six.
“I’m not gonna tell you guys anything” about the sixth book, Maas said in the video. “No surprise, it’s going to be a long book. It’s too early for me to tell you who it will be about and what’s going to happen, but I hope to have more details for you soon.”
Here’s what fans have been theorizing about ACOTAR book six:
The ACOTAR book six draft announcement
Most of the recent theories have been based on Maas’ simple draft announcement. But fans believe there’s more to it than meets the eye.
The caption reads, “First drafts DONE.” In the video, Maas shuts her notebook and laptop, then shows herself popping a bottle of champagne against a background of beautiful forested scenery.
On the notebook, the front has her handwriting, saying, “ACOTAR 6,” but there’s a dash or arrow mark following the six.
The ACOTAR fanbase immediately turned into FBI investigators, trying to decipher this mark. Some think it’s an arrow, nodding to archery and the character Elain Archeron. Others think it symbolizes a dash and swear they see the number eight, meaning there will be eight books.
Elain Archeron will be stepping into the spotlight
The book blog Cosmic Reads broke down the major theories dominating discussion threads.
The main theory is that this book will be from Elain Archeron’s point of view. There hasn’t been a deep dive into the character before, so many fans believe this is her moment to shine and explore her powers, as well as resolve key relationships.
Azriel’s POV will dominate book six
Many ACOTAR readers think the fan-favorite character Azriel will be the focus of book six.
Fans theorize the book will be in his POV or a dual-POV with Elain, as there is a slow-burn romance readers want to heat up in this next book.
Other theories about ACOTAR book six
Other fans think ACOTAR book six will be about Gwyneth Berdara and a possible love triangle between Azriel and Elain.
Cosmic Reads writes that others think the love and romance will take a backseat in this book. Instead, fans believe the book will focus on the court’s politics and a possible “rift in the Inner Circle,” according to the blog.