u/Naive-Kick-3707

Disclaimer: The titles and covers discussed here have not been officially revealed by Sarah J. Maas/Bloomsbury as far as I know. They were apparently discovered by fans through Sarah's website/source code, so please take this with a grain of salt. If they are not the real titles/covers, then these are simply my theories based on the images the fandom has found.

Also, the fact that the upcoming story is one overarching story told across multiple parts/books is confirmed, so I am treating these as pieces of one larger narrative rather than two completely separate stories.

With that out of the way...

I HAVE THOUGHTS.

🔥 A Court of Splintered Harmony

First of all, the cover.

We have what appears to be burning bones/fire and this huge claw-like figure coming through.

And my immediate thought was:

Bryaxis.

Because we know Bryaxis is apparently still out there.

And if the information from Sarah's Call Her Daddy interview is accurate, Sarah referred to Bryaxis as “she” and confirmed that she is still around.

Which brings me to my completely unhinged theory:

What if Bryaxis and Elain are connected?

Bryaxis is essentially described as fear given form.

And Elain is a Seer.

She already exists in this strange space where she can perceive things that other people cannot. Her mind was fractured when she was Made, her visions are still not fully understood, and we really have no idea what the limits of her abilities are.

So what if Elain is somehow able to interact with Bryaxis in a way nobody else can?

Maybe Bryaxis isn't possessing her.

Maybe Elain doesn't literally become Bryaxis.

Maybe she simply learns how to use or manipulate fear.

And then I started thinking about the three Archeron sisters.

We already have:

Feyre → High Lady

Nesta → Death

So could Elain become associated with:

Elain → Fear?

Because Nesta has repeatedly been associated with death throughout Silver Flames, while Bryaxis is essentially associated with fear.

And honestly, I think that would be such an interesting direction for Elain.

Everyone sees her as the sweet, gentle sister who likes flowers, baking and gardening.

Imagine if the same character eventually becomes someone who can make other people terrified.

Not because she becomes evil, but because she finally learns what her abilities are capable of.

That would be such a fascinating character arc.

And then there's the title.

A Court of Splintered Harmony.

The word “harmony” immediately makes me think of Gwyn.

Gwyn loves music and singing, and we see her singing in the library throughout A Court of Silver Flames.

So obviously my brain immediately went:

Gwynriel? 👀

But then I started thinking about Elain.

Because “splintered” could describe Elain incredibly well.

Her mind was fractured when she was Made. Her relationship with her sisters has changed. Her place within the Inner Circle is complicated. Her Seer abilities seem fragmented and not fully understood.

So perhaps “splintered harmony” isn't referring to music at all.

Maybe it refers to the Inner Circle itself.

The harmony that has existed between these characters for years could finally begin to fracture.

And that would make a lot of sense if Elain's story involves stepping away from the Inner Circle or questioning where she belongs.

🕷️ A Court of Forgotten Melody

And then we get the second cover.

A spider, with what appears to be thread/spindle imagery.

And immediately I thought:

Throne of Glass.

Because of the Stygian spiders.

If that imagery is intentional, could we possibly be getting an actual Throne of Glass × ACOTAR crossover?

We already know the Maasverse is connected.

We know Crescent City and ACOTAR have crossed over.

So why couldn't Throne of Glass become more directly involved?

And then there's the apparent eight-pointed star imagery.

Which immediately made me think of Crescent City and Bryce.

So now we potentially have:

🕷️ Throne of Glass imagery

⭐ Crescent City imagery

🔥 ACOTAR imagery

all appearing across this new story.

And I am very interested in what that could mean.

And then there's “Melody.”

Again, we have the music connection.

Harmony.

Melody.

Which could absolutely point toward Gwyn.

But “forgotten melody” could also mean something much larger.

Something lost.

Something ancient.

Something that existed before the current courts and was forgotten.

Maybe an ancient history of Prythian.

Maybe something connected to the Dusk Court.

Maybe something connected to another world.

Maybe something connected to the larger Maasverse.

We simply don't know yet.

And here's the part that makes this even more interesting:

Since these books/parts are one overarching story, I don't think we should necessarily look at Splintered Harmony and Forgotten Melody as two completely separate plots.

They could be two stages of the same massive storyline.

Splintered Harmony

Something established begins to break apart.

The Inner Circle.

The courts.

Relationships.

The existing political order.

Maybe even the boundaries between worlds.

Forgotten Melody

Something lost is rediscovered.

An ancient power.

A forgotten history.

A lost court.

A connection to another world.

Or something from the Maasverse that has been forgotten by Prythian.

And then we still have the third part/book of the story to come.

Which makes me think these titles could be describing the progression of one enormous conflict, rather than simply telling us which character gets which romance.

And I STILL cannot stop thinking about the three sisters.

Because imagine if SJM really is building toward something like:

Feyre — the High Lady

Nesta — Death

Elain — Fear

That would be such an interesting thematic progression.

And it would completely subvert the way Elain is currently perceived.

The sister everyone thinks is the softest could potentially end up being associated with one of the most primal forces imaginable.

And Bryaxis being connected to her would make that even more interesting.

Again, I am not saying this is confirmed.

This is purely me looking at the possible titles, cover imagery, existing ACOTAR lore and the information we already have and trying to connect the dots.

But if A Court of Splintered Harmony really does involve Elain and Bryaxis somehow...

I am going to need several business days to recover. 😂

And if A Court of Forgotten Melody really does involve Throne of Glass or Crescent City connections?

I will simply cease to function.

What are everyone else's theories? Because I feel like there are approximately 900 different ways these covers could be interpreted.

I just saw a TikTok comment that absolutely broke my heart.

It said something along the lines of:

"Do you think Sam spent years thinking Dean might just come knocking on his door one day... like all the other times he came back?"

And now I can't stop thinking about it.

Dean died so many times throughout the series, and somehow, against all odds, he always came back. Sam had spent his entire life watching the impossible happen over and over again.

So after Dean's final death... do you think a small part of Sam kept hoping?

Not every day, obviously. But maybe every unexpected knock at the door, every time he heard an Impala drive by, every strange phone call... maybe for just a split second he thought, "Dean?"

I honestly feel like he must have. His entire life had taught him that Dean always found a way back.

Now I'm emotional all over again. 😭

What do you guys think?