Nesta Archeron

Nesta, the eldest of the three Archeron sisters, was turned Fae against her will and in the process “took” power from the Cauldron. Her power is death itself and, as someone Made, she is one of few people with a certain connection to Cauldron Made objects and its magic.

Nesta and her sister Elain, used to be inseparable. Nesta was very protective of Elain and doted on her, but their closeness was badly damaged in the later half of the ACOTAR series. Nesta and Feyre have always had a rocky and tense relationship.

Nesta was groomed by their mother growing up in the Human Lands, to be a cunning political strategist. After their mother passed and the Archerons fell into poverty, Nesta was extremely bitter at the world and hated their father. By the end of Silver Flames, Nesta is repairing her relationship with her sisters and learning how to forgive herself and her father, after the King of Hybern killed him right in front of her.

A Court of Silver Flames centers on Nesta’s character arc as she comes out of a very dark sense of self to become a badass warrior. She’s spearheading a new age of the Valkyries, with her close friends and a mate, while healing complicated family relations and holding true to her own identity.

At the end of Silver Flames, she bargains with the Cauldron that she’ll give back her power if it saves Feyre, Rhysand, and Nyx during his birth with severe complications. Except, the Mother interfered as Nesta gave her power back and ensured she still got to keep some of it.

The Mother is ACOTAR’s main divinity, said to have spilled the contents of the Cauldron to create this world. Nesta now has a little power, but exactly how much is still a mystery.

Throughout her story, Nesta is HEAVILY tied to the eight-pointed star. An eight-pointed star appeared on her when she made the bonded bargain with Cassian. Bargains are marked with a tattoo, and she has no idea why that particular design came forth for her and Cassian. We believe it’s because the bargain was to get her to start training and kickstart the beginning of her new life and world opening up.

Nesta also found the chamber beneath the Prison, which has this same eight-pointed star on the floor and where she finds the Harp.

Throughout Silver Flames, Nesta and her friends learn about Valkyries and train to become the new era of these incredible female fighters. Nesta, Gwyn, Emerie, and some of the priestesses of the library beneath the House of Wind, leave off at the end of the book continuing to train as these elite warriors because they recognize no matter how good they’ve gotten, the training never stops.

Nesta, Gwyn and Emerie were forced into the Blood Rite, which is a very dangerous Illyrian rite of passage from trainee to full blown Illyrian warriors.

Nesta has the title of Oristian, because she chose to stay behind at Ennalis’s Pass to fight the bad guys so her friends could escape. This allowed Gwyn and Emerie to reach the monolith at the very top of Ramiel, so they possess the final, and highest honor, extremely rare title of Carynthian. Only a dozen Illyrians have achieved Carynthian, including: Rhys, Azriel, and Cassian.

The girls don’t care about these Illyrian warrior titles, all they care about is being ‘Valkyrie.’

At this point, Nesta and Cassian are mated and were gifted the House of Wind, so it is officially their home. The House is practically sentient, thanks to Nesta. When she needed a friend upon first arrival she “Made” the house. We don’t know if she still can after she gave most of her power back to the Cauldron, but Nesta used to be able to create magically Made objects, imbuing power into weapons or charms for her friendship bracelets so they could always find each other.

Gwyn (Gwyneth Berdara)

Gwyn is a priestess in the library at the House of Wind. This library beneath the House of Wind, is a sanctuary for several hundred priestesses, who have experienced their own trauma and now call the library home and their safe space.

Gwyn came here after she lost her twin sister in a tragic attack on Sangravah. Azriel was the one to find her from that Hybern attack and brought her to the House of Wind with the help of Mor.

Gwyn works under another priestess, Merrill, who is studying the Valkyries and working on a completed work of the female warriors.

Gwyn’s grandmother, a river-nymph, seduced a High Fae male from the Autumn Court. Her mother, the child of that union, was given to the temple at Sangravah because she was not welcome in either of her parents’ territories. But during the Great Rite in Calanmai, a High Fae male chose Gwyn’s mother to bang bang bangity bang. Gwyn and her late-twin, Catrin, were conceived but never learned who that male was.

Emerie

Emerie is a female Illyrian who owns a Clothing shop in Windhaven, the Illyrian Camp where Rhys, Azriel and Cassian grew up. She is also a fellow Valkyrie by the end of Silver Flames.

Emerie’s father was abusive and one day, he clipped Emerie’s wings rendering her unable to fly like male Illyrians. After her father died during the war with Hybern, she enchanted the clothing shop and has held onto it despite her male relatives attempting to make her give it up.

Elain

Elain is the middle Archeron sister. She was forced into the Cauldron and turned Fae along with Nesta, and for a long time she deeply mourned her mortal life.

She was engaged to a Lord’s son, Greyson, who became disgusted with her when he learned she became Fae. The moment she came out of the Cauldron, Lucien claimed that she was his mate. Unfortunately for Lucien, he was on Tamlin’s side at the time, who had partnered up with Hybern and was an indirect accomplice to the two Archerons turning Fae.

As much as things have changed since then, Elain is indifferent to her mate. She has not accepted the bond or given him a chance, but she also hasn’t outright rejected him and told him to never come around again.

Whereas Nesta took from the Cauldron, the Cauldron gifted powers to Elain. Elain is a Seer, meaning she can see the present and future. We know very little about what specifically this means. We haven’t seen any display of Elain’s Seer powers since Wings and Ruin.

Elain is currently living in Velaris at the River House with Feyre, Rhys, and Nyx. She has become dear friends with the half-wraith twins, Nuala and Cerridwen, who are servants and sometimes spies for Rhysand.

Elain has been working through her trauma of losing her human life by gardening and cooking, leading a considerably simple life. There’s not much to report on her relationship or lack thereof with Lucien. He has been traveling and helping with alliances, living on his own, and giving her respectable distance.

In Azriel’s bonus chapter there is a spark between Elain and him and they’ve been dancing around each other for a while now. They share a moment on Winter Solstice, and they almost kiss. She wants to but then Rhys shows up and Az tells her that it was a mistake. As far as we know, there has been no new development between Elain and Azriel since Winter Solstice.

Rhysand, Feyre, and baby Nyx

Rhys and Feyre are the High Lord and Lady of the Night Court with their new baby Nyx.

After Nyx’s birth, and after Feyre had been gifted back life thanks to Nesta making a bargain with the Cauldron, they were quite shaken, but happy that their family is all together. Nyx is the star of the Inner Circle. Mor stayed with them for weeks after the birth, taking a break from going to Vallahan and Nesta has a lot of admiration and love for her little nephew.

Feyre is still teaching art classes in Velaris with her business partner, Ressinia.

Rhys is doing research on other planets and universes. This is hinted at when Cassian visits Rhys’s office in the River House.

We still don’t know Rhys’ last name.

Rhysand’s sister and mother were killed by Tamlin’s father and brothers. Which led Rhys and his father to kill Tamlin’s family. The only two survivors of this fight were Rhys and Tamlin, and how they each became High Lords of their Courts.

In Silver Flames, Amren mentioned the idea that Rhys could be the next High King of Pyrthian, with new magical swords in play—the ones that Nesta accidentally created, and now we also have Gwydion back in this world. There has only been one High King and it was more than 15,000 years ago. High King Fionn rallied forces against the Daglan and overthrew them, then brought about an age of peace for Prythian.

Amren, Cassian, and Azriel think if Rhysand becomes High King of Prythian, he will be able to unite the Courts in a way they haven’t been able to in millenia. Rhys, however, is against this idea. He doesn’t want to force the other High Lords, who he has worked very hard to win over as friends, to kneel to him.

Rhys can’t imagine fighting an internal war to become High King. Amren argues that the High Lords of Winter, Summer, and Day might be willing to kneel. The Dawn Court would kneel if the others do. Only leaving the two outcasts: Beron, who’s already a major problem, and Tamlin, who isn’t exactly a threat all on his own anymore.

The Night Court holds the most power, between their magic and the Dread Trove and Nesta’s made weapons. Amren says that this is a sign from the Cauldron itself. She warns, “But know that the Cauldron’s benevolence will be extended to you only for so long before it is offered to another.”

Cassian

Cassian and Nesta are officially mated, and planning an intimate but elaborate ceremony that Rhys is paying for. Rhys gifted the House of Wind to Nesta and Cassian as a mating present.

Cassian is still Commanding General of all of Rhys’ armies. There is unrest in the Illyrian camps after the war with Hybern, many Illyrians resent Rhys and the Inner Circle blaming them for so many losses. During the final battle, the Cauldron was utilized and took out an entire wave of a thousand Illyrian soldiers.

Cassian is also stepping into the role of courtier, acting as the go between for Lucien and the band of Exiles (Jurrian and Vassa) and Eris.

Azriel

Azriel is Rhysand’s spymaster and a rare shadowsinger. This means that he has a connection with shadows that allows him to wield and control them. Shadows are also kind of sentient with him. They whisper to him, he can hear and feel things that others can’t thanks to his shadows, and he can even transport through them. Azriel can winnow in his own way as a shadowsinger.

Azriel continues training with Cassian, Nesta and the rest of the Valkyries.

Azriel is a bastard born Illyrian and for eleven years lived in a cell with no windows or light. When Az was eight, his brothers came to his cell and burned his hands leaving them permanently scarred and are a huge sense of shame for him.

At eleven Azriel was dumped at Windhaven where Rhys’s mom took him in, she was good friends with Azriel’s birth mother.

Azriel HATES the Illyrians. Unlike Cassian, he does not take pride in his people and, if it were up to him, he would happily burn it to the ground.

Azriel and Cassian both have unfathomable power for Illyrians. And the fact that they’re bastard born with this much power pisses off the other Illyrians who look down on where they come from. They each have seven siphons, which channels their raw power. In comparison, the most powerful of other Illyrian warriors might have one or two.

Azriel is the owner of Truth-Teller. The dagger that he always keeps close to him.

Az is the most patient of the bat boys, the most introverted, has a dry sense of humor, and can be very scary when he’s in his lethal mode. He got his title of spymaster for a reason, and will torture in interrogations.

He was in love with Mor for 500 years, but never acted on it even though everybody, including Mor, knew. In recent months that one-sided love has not been burning so strong. His eyes are on Elain but there are also bread crumbs that he has a little something for Gwyn too.

Mor

Mor is Rhys and Feyres third in command with the power of truth. We still don’t know what that means.

She is the disowned daughter of Kier, who runs the Court of Nightmares within the Night Court. When Rhys isn’t around, Mor keeps things in line with this sub Court.

When she was 18, she was sold off to Eris and supposed to marry him. But instead, she slept with Cassian—a bastard born illyrian—and it tainted her. This made her family livid and Eris refused to marry her. It’s implied there is more to this story from Eris’s side, he even says that the only person he owes an explanation to is Mor. But Mor hates Eris, she hates her family, but she is happy with her found family which includes her cousin, Rhysand.

While Mor calls Velaris home, she does have a secret estate within the Night Court that she visits in Frost and Starlight. It’s called Athelwood and she has horses there, though she prefers not to tell anyone about her hideaway home.

In Silver flames, Mor is primarily in Vallahan, a faerie territory on the Continent, trying to get them to sign the peace treaty from ACOWAR. However the King and Queen of Vallahan are greedy and they are wanting to expand their territory, not limit it through a peace treaty.

The current status of Mor’s efforts with Vallahan is unknown, and we don’t know if she’s made progress getting them to agree to the treaty. The last we hear is that the work Mor is doing for Rhys and Feyre in Vallahan requires research, which Clotho is helping Mor gather.

While in the House of Wind Library, Mor has quite the charged run in with Emerie. Who, we can gather, has a crush on Mor. Mor prefers females, and it’s largely still a secret from the Inner Circle. Only Feyre knows the truth from when Mor told her in Wings and Ruin

Amren

Amren is Rhysand and Feyre’s Second-in-Command.

She was an extremely powerful creature and is said to be older than Prythian itself. In her words, she was “a messenger and soldier-assassin for a wrathful god who ruled a young world.” She slipped into this world from a different realm only to be trapped here when the rift closed.

Amren was put in the Prison and spent millenia imprisoned in it. She is the only known creature to escape the prison. Which she did by giving up her grace and perfect immortality to bind herself into a High Fae body. This, technically, makes her Made but not as strong or direct from the Cauldron like Nesta and Elain.

When she went into the Prison, the Courts were not formed yet in Pyrthian (well over 15,000 years ago) and when she escaped, the High Lords had their new ruling order with the seven courts in place.

In ACOWAR, she saved the day on the battlefield in a fiery bird-like form, then came back out of the cauldron as a simple, rather powerless, High Fae. Which is what she is now, no longer that powerful creature contained within a High Fae form.

She has a lover, Varian, who is a Prince of Adriata and captain of the guard. He’s from the Summer Court, cousin to its High Lord, Tarquin, and he frequently visits his girl Amren in the Night Court.

Lucien

Lucien is originally from the Autumn Court but hasn’t lived there for a long time. Since his love was murdered by his family.

He and Tamlin had quite the falling out, and while Lucien keeps tabs and occasionally goes back to the Spring Court.

Lucien is the youngest son of the Lady of Autumn, but Lucien’s mother has been keeping a secret, she had a secret love affair with the High Lord of the Day Court, Helion, and from that love, a baby was born. Lucien has no clue he’s not Beron Vanserra’s biological child.

While Lucien doesn’t know his father is Helion, other people around him are starting to put the piece together that Baron is not his father, like Rhys and Feyre.

Lucien has his own home in Velaris, but he spends most of his time away from the Night Court, living in the Human Lands with the Band of Exile.

Jurian

Jurian was the eyeball ring on Amarantha but in ACOMAF. He was remade from the Cauldron in the hopes that he can help destroy the wall and help Hybern conquer the mortal lands. During the war he was spying on Hybern and after the war, he joined Queen Vassa’s Court as an emissary.

Him, Vassa and Lucien all reside in the Graysen’s family mansion in the Mortal Lands and are very good friends.

Vassa

Queen Vassa rules over Scythia—a kingdom on the Continent.

She was cursed by Koschei to be in her human form at night and a firebird during the day. In ACOMAF, the Mortal Queens didn’t like that Vassa was not wanting to ally with Hybern so they sold her to the Death God, Koschei, who enslaved her into this curse and bound her to his lake on the Continent.

Papa Archeron bargained with Koschei to temporarily release Vassa from her enslavement in order to help in the war effort. As far as we know, by the end of Silver Flames, Vassa has still not returned to Koschei’s lake. But Koschei tells Azriel “Tell my Vassa I’m waiting”

Helion, High Lord of the Day Court, is working to try and free her of this curse, but because it is tied to her blood, his efforts have been unsuccessful.

Koschei

Koschei is an immortal Death God from another world. He is referred to as one of the Old Gods and is the older brother of Stryga (the weaver) and the Bone Carver—both died in ACOWAR.

Long before the Cauldron and the Mother, even before Prythian was Prythian, the Bone Carver fell into this world with his older siblings. Because of the power they have they were seen as gods and worshiped as such. Koschei and his sister, Stryga, loved the attention.

Eventually an Ancient Fae female warrior tricked Stryga and confined her to the middle, she also then bound Koschei to his “little lake on the Continent.” Where he is still bound to with his curse still intact and we don’t know where exactly that lake is.

In addition to Vassa, Koschei has a fondness for imprisoning women.

Elain has had visions of Koschei. From ACOWAR “I saw young hands wither with age. I saw a box of black stone. I saw a feather of fire land on snow and melt it.”

Magic Swords

Night Court

The Night Court is running smoothly with the threat of Hybern gone. Rhys is still cautious about who he lets into Velaris for the safety of the city. Which is understandable given that he has a baby and mate that he will do anything to protect.

Feyre and Rhys are ruling the Night Court, doing their best to provide and govern their people.

Autumn Court

Tamlin and the Spring Court

Tamlin is that he is still in his beast form roaming his lands and not ruling them. There is genuine concern among the other High Lords about what to do with the Spring Court, especially with Beron as a threat just north of it. The Spring Court is extremely vulnerable right now against enemies, and so is the mortal well south of it.

In Sarah J Maas’s Call her Daddy interview, she states that she’s conflicted about giving Tamlin a redemption arc, and what would have to go into it. She said “IF I were to ever write more about Tamlin […]”. It doesn’t seem like Sarah herself has the patience or interest to give Tamlin any sort of redemption arc.

The Continent

The Continent is located east of Prythian and is sectioned off into the Fae territories and the mortal lands.

The Fae territories are Vallahan, Montessere, and Rask.

The human lands are split into six kingdoms and each ruled by a Queen. There are currently only four remaining Queens.

• Demetra was the Queen who died at the Battle of Velaris for giving the Inner Circle their half of the Book of Breathings.
• Briallyn was the one cursed with old age by the Cauldron after Nesta went in. She was killed in ACOSF after searching for the Dread Trove and allying herself with Koschei. Briallyn was gathering an army, but it is unclear if the other queens’ were for their own territories too
• Vassa is the Queen of Scathyia (the most northern of the mortal lands on the continent)
• We don’t know the rest of the Queens.