‘It’s Going to Be a Long Book’: Sarah J. Maas Teases ACOTAR 5, 6 and Possibly 7 and 8

After months of waiting, we have some news on bestselling romantasy author Sarah J. Maas’ next project! Some history: Back in December, when Maas was named Spotify’s top author for audiobooks, she offered readers a little teaser of what was going to happen in A Court of Thorns and Roses book 5, but nothing ever came of that. Until now. That’s right, Maas has given us another little teaser into Book 5, Book 6 and maybe even beyond! Read on to discover what we know so far. 

What Sarah J. Maas just revealed about ACOTAR Book 5 

In the video posted to Instagram by Spotify, Maas first starts by thanking people for listening to her books, saying, “I am thrilled to be the top author for this year’s Spotify Wrapped.” 

She then went on to thank the narrator, Elizabeth Evans, who Maas said is “actually in the process of re-recording all of the ACOTAR audiobooks, to be released with the 10th anniversary of ACOTAR this spring.” 

Once she brought up her beloved bat-boy series, Maas simply couldn’t resist letting her fans know what’s in store for them once the next installment is released. 

“No surprise, it’s going to be a long book,” the author quipped in an Instagram video. “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.” 

Fans of the series will remember that the first three books—A Court of Thorns and Roses, A Court of Mist and Fury and A Court of Wings and Ruin—revolve around a girl named Feyre Archeron after she gets swept away to the magical, faerie-run world of Prythian. Maas then released a novella entitled A Court of Frost and Starlight, which followed Feyre, her mate Rhysand, her friend Cassian and her sister Nesta.   

Nesta and Cassian then became the sole narrators and focus for the fourth book, A Court of Silver Flames, which was released in 2021. 

Given that Maas has chosen to switch from one sister to the next, fans have assumed that the next book in the series would be about the third sister, Elain. They have also speculated that the third “bat boy,” Azriel, will serve as her love interest, although that might get messy since, technically, Elain already has a mate named Lucien, and Azriel had a connection with Nesta’s friend Gwyn in Book 4. 

However, there have also been rumors that book 5 will follow Rhysand’s cousin Morrigan (“Mor”), since she was away on a secret mission for all of book 4, but since Maas has yet to write in Mor’s POV and has yet to hint at any sort of future for her, this seems unlikely. 

The magical plot of the book remains the biggest mystery. Since the most recent Crescent City book, A House of Flame and Shadow—released in January 2024—started out in Prythian and heavily featured both Nesta and Azriel, it is safe to assume that the characters in ACOTAR 5 will still be dealing with the aftermath of that, but it is unclear if it will be the main plot or just serve as a side quest.

It remains unclear when ACOTAR 5 will be released, but here’s hoping it’s sometime soon! 

The latest update occurred earlier this month, on July 11, when Maas posted on Instagram, teasing that she had finished her first draft of ACOTAR 6, before even announcing what book 5 will be about. Naturally, fans went crazy, with comments like, “Just casually SJM broke the internet again with just 4 seconds video !!! I can’t sleep now,” and “LET THE GREAT RE-READ BEGIN.”

People were also quick to notice that an arrow on the front of Maas’ notebook next to the number 6, which some believe means books 6 through 8. Others believe it could be a foreshadowing of the plot of the book, but until Books 5 and 6 are released, readers won’t know for sure.

Other Sarah J. Maas book news 

Speaking of Crescent City, Maas has gone on record saying that she does have plans to return to the world of Lunathion and see how characters like Bryce, Hunt, Hypaxia, Ruhn and Lidia are doing after the downfall of their corrupted government, but she warned, “You will have to wait a bit.” 

She did say that she knows “Who the book’s about. I know the big ideas of what I want to happen.” 

Another world fans want Maas to return to is that of Aelin—the main character in the author’s first series, Throne of Glass. 

Based on past books, there is a potential for a crossover, especially since Lidia is confirmed as a descendant of Aelin. Plus, at the end of Kingdom of Ash, Aelin flew over Prythian and Lunathion but never interacted with any of the characters, making fans wonder if there will ever be a prolonged crossover between worlds.