Not to acotar post on main but I really wish that Rhys was given the same tender space and consideration within the books to handle his healing with processing the trauma from Amarantha. As Feyre got with her abuse from Tamlin.
Perhaps it's outside of SJMs wheelhouse, perhaps she was too hesitant to dip her toes into the unfamiliar territory of a male victim's recovery and trauma from sexual assault. But I would have liked to have seen his struggle and recovery from that.
We get a scene with the nightmare and a brief mention during sex after the mating bond. I feel like there could have even just been some conversation there, between them, to address it.
For 50 years, he was subjected to sex that he hated and loathed to keep the peace. That doesn't just go away. He swallows it down, sure, that's the flex of his character 'protecting,' everyone within self-sacrifice. That's where he finds his identity. But we had an opportunity to really see and get to know a man who was hurt, traumatized, and scarred. We could have healed with him like we did with Feyre. I feel like we missed it.
