I was always a voracious reader as a young child and teen, staying in on rainy weekends to get lost in my newest book. I would gladly dive into anything from the YA classics like Harry Potter, the Hunger Games, and Divergent and also into the timeless reads— Pride and Prejudice, Great Gatsby, and anything by John Steinbeck. I was heavily influenced by a father with a forever-expanding TBR pile and a penchant for reading all the books on the yearly award lists.

But my hobby escaped me as the stresses of growing up engulfed me. I got lost in TV and movies, and the realities of young adult life. Television became my escape, which was a fine substitute for a while, but not forever. In my late 20s I eventually tried to get some friends together to get a book club, and it worked well for a while. We read books together for a year, swapped hosting duties, and made meals themed for each novel. It was a blast, but eventually, Covid hit, and book club became virtual, sucking a lot of fun out of the community aspect of it all.

Flash forward to the year 2023— it’s been a weird one for me for a number of reasons, but mostly because I still feel a bit of a haze coming out of the height of Covid and trying to return to normalcy. The internet seems to share the sentiment that the last 3 years were a complete blur, where we all collectively dissociated and just coped the best we could with the new world we were left with.

I’ve emerged with a struggling sense of self, trying to get back to the hobbies and little daily pleasures that bring me joy. I tried and failed to read maybe 3 or 4 books before something stuck— all in the variety of self-improvement, which I should have predicted wouldn’t zap me back into my old reading habits. But then, thanks to TikTok, I stumbled across A Court of Thornes and Roses. Something in my algorithm was summoning me, for better or worse, to get lost in this fantasy series. I was not initially sold on the premise— a universe centered around the lore of Beauty and the Beast, but filled with magical creatures. But I dove in anyway, desperately needing something to lose myself in.

I decided to get the first installment on audiobook. Let me tell you that I was NOT sold at first. I am notoriously picky about main characters, and about the audiobook reading style. None of it was working for me, I felt the main character was obnoxiously prickly and strongheaded for no reason. I struggled to get into the beauty and the beast lore of it all. Even the lead male character felt hollow and mildly predictable. I was not buying it.

But slowly, finally, the magic hit me. Quite literally, as soon as more magic started unfolding in the world, I could feel myself coming alive again, letting myself fall into the escape. I finally could get out of my head and into this new world, with its fairies and monsters and all trials that the main character fell into. I hate to admit it, but I even bought into the love story of it all, despite not considering myself a romance novel girlie (rom-coms for some reason, are a whole other category).

Now, just a few months later, I’m halfway through book 3 out of 5, and fully committed to the characters, drama, and of course, all the bat boys (IYKYK). I’m even fully immersed in ACOTAR TikTok, trying not to get spoiled, but very much enjoying all the very very niche meme content related to my beloved characters.

All in all, it’s been a weird season of life for me, but listening to the ACOTAR series has really helped me get into this chilly autumn, immerse myself in something and really let myself relax for the first time in a while. If that’s all it is to me, I think that’s a big win. But I will always remember how this series breathed some color into my world in a very complicated post-pandemic 31st year of life. For that I will always be grateful.