When Sarah J. Maas recently posted some videos from a Taylor Swift concert, the reaction from the ACOTAR fandom was largely the same. Girl, get back to your computer!
The fifth book in the series – A Court of Silver Flames – was published in February of 2021, which means we're coming up on four years of waiting for the next book in the series. I don't know about you, but I'm getting impatient.
With this in mind – while we wait – here's everything I (a member of the fandom) have managed to dig up about the sixth and currently untitled ACOTAR book.
Expect it in 2025 – with a potential update in March 2025
There was an update from the publisher Bloomsbury in 2023 that said fans could expect the book in 2025. Although, some sources have circulated saying we might have to wait until early 2026. Honestly, at this rate, we might end up with the first series of the ACOTAR TV Show first.
Sources suggest we'll get news on the official release date at the quarterly Bloomsbury trade and business update on 20 March. It's common for Bloomsbury to make major book release announcements on these dates. So keep your eyes peeled for some potential news on the release. We'll keep this article updated, so watch this space.
It will likely focus on Elain's perspective
Fans know books one, two and three focused on Feyre. Book four, a novella, set up the transition of events to hint at a change of perspective in the story line. Following on, book five, focused on Nesta's (Feyre's sister) point of view and her eventual romance with Cassian. As a result, the current hypothesis is that book six will follow the perspective of Elain, Feyre's other sister. Many people have taken this Time Magazine article as confirmation, but it really just confirms it as a fan theory.
In one of my many reddit deep dives, I found a theory that some of the book could be in Mor's POV. Silver Flames often had cryptic references to the day that Eris found Mor in the woods. So, it could be a set up to give us the full story, and in her point of view. I personally think that we'll see a potential Mor and Emerie romance, which adds to the theory that we'll see the storyline through her eyes at some points.
We're going to get a lot more Azriel
Because we don't really know anything concrete, we have to largely rely on hints and clues. And a lot of these come from the unpublished bonus chapters. There was an unpublished bonus chapter early on that detailed a demure but heated encounter between Nesta and Cassian which in a way foretold the events of book five.
Most fans will know of the two bonus chapters that came with Silver Flames, one that features Azriel - if you haven't read them, you can find links on the subreddit. In this chapter, he has an electric moment with Elain at the townhouse and then, a sweet encounter with Gwyn at the House of Wind. Using the theory that these bonus chapters give us some insight into the events of the coming books, we can expect to get a lot more Azriel.
And Maas has certainly hinted that he may form a romance with the third Archeron sister Elain. It's stirred up mixed feelings in the fandom. Some are here for it. Others – like myself – love Lucien as a character and are rooting for him to get the girl.
Also, a third Archeron sister ending up with the final member of the Illyrian trio? It feels too neat. I think it's more likely Azriel will end up with Gwyn? We’ll just have to wait and see where the story goes.
One of the core group will betray them
The origin of this theory is not clear but everyone in the fandom is on board. There are suggestions that the theory began here, with quotes from the evil queen Briallyn: “There are many in the world who would happily see the Night Court fall. Who would betray their so-called High Lord for a chance at power.”
A popular theory is that Mor will betray the group. She's known for being secretive and there's still a lot we don't know about her back story. Eris for example has hinted there was a specific reason he left her in the woods to die.
Other theories say it will be Gwyn who is the betrayer. Or even Nesta after some speculate that Cassian dies. Personally I think it could be Lucien. Especially if Elain ends up with Azriel.
But let's be clear. Sarah J Maas has never confirmed there will be a betrayer, so this could just be a theory.
Expect the spice to stay high
This one is confirmed, straight from the horse's mouth. Maas has said that Azriel is a freak in the bedroom.
Anyone who's read the series knows that the heat was turned all the way up when we arrived at book five. Given this Azriel titbit, there's absolutely no sign of it being turned down in book six.
It's likely the last one in the series – or maybe not?
It was widely accepted that this book was going to be the last book in the series but Maas recently did an interview with Today, that hinted there might be another one.
Maas said that she knows what her next four books are going to be. One of them we know is ACOTAR 6, what about the rest? Given that she's only got two active series going (ACOTAR and Crescent City), this hints there is more ACOTAR coming. The other three can't all be Crescent City books, right? So, unless she's already got another series in the works, this suggests we'll get more from the ACOTAR universe.
