Reviews

The Bloodstained Key by Charity Rau

fiction_fuss's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

The story is chilling and tragic. This book was set in crazy atmospheric and is guaranteed to raise goose bumps at any rate. This was a very quick read. It's slow going at first, but engaging and towards the ending, I felt, was rather bizarre. I couldn't do anything until I completed this.

The author is great at creating a creepy atmosphere and then wrenching it into something even darker as the page turns with such patience and brooding, quaint characters living a simple life. 

The book reminds me of The beauty and the beast, but it got me gasping at the end. The second book in the series got many more surprises, can't wait to read it too. 

I love Betsy the most, aside from Marianna. Some of the characters are morbidly abnormal. When the tension builds in and the real drama occurs, makes it a compulsive read. The author shows small town dynamics with her unerring writing style. 

Overall, this is an enthralling, if somewhat disturbing, story . This is one of those novels that just draws you in and never lets you out. 

bookmarkedbybecky's review

adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

The Bloodstained Key is a Bluebeard retelling.  I wasn’t familiar with the original tale -  a wealthy man murders his wives to gain more riches and power.  Here, Marianna is the latest fiancée to Lord Bludington. She desperately tries to uncover the mysteries in Thunderwell Manor before her curiosity causes her own demise.  

I particularly enjoy the setting at Thunderwell Manor with its creepy hidden passages, locked rooms, eerie paintings, magical keys, and ghost stories. The cliffs on the property where Lord Bludington's previous wives mysteriously disappeared create a sense of isolation and locked-room vibes, which truly adds to the atmospheric setting. The story, though relatively short (~300 pages), left me wanting more time to explore the characters and plot points. However, the epilogue nicely suggests another fairytale retelling from Charity Rau. I look forward to book 2.  

shonaj29's review

adventurous dark emotional inspiring mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.0

I loved the combination of magic, fantasy and mystery within this book. I felt like the writing flowed really well and it didn’t take me long to read it at all. 

I thought that Marianna was a great main character, who had a lot about her. I found her a little annoying at the beginning, but she soon came into her own and put her detecting skills to work. 

I’m really excited to see where this series goes. I hope there will be a book 2! 

cait_reads13's review

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense

4.25

If you know me, you know I love retellings! As soon as I heard that The Bloodstained Key was a Bluebeard reimagining, I knew I had to read it. I’m so happy to report it is just as creepy and mysterious as I’d hoped it would be!

I loved that from the very first page, FMC Marianna knew that something wasn’t quite right about Lord Bludington. What made the story even more addictive was that no one else could see credit in Marianna’s misgivings! It added this great spooky touch to the story that I couldn’t get enough of. 

Along the same line, it was nearly impossible for Marianna to decide who was trustworthy and who wasn’t. The story kept me guessing until the very end! I couldn’t believe which characters turned out to friends and which were revealed as foes.👀

The conclusion of the book set up the subsequent installment of the series wonderfully, as well as revealed what fairytale retelling is next! I can’t wait to read what happens in book two! 

🖤 Dark Fairytale 

💪 Strong FMC

😱 Scary Gothic Mansion

🗝️ Mysterious happenings

🤫 Secret rooms

🚫 No Romance

📖 Short Chapters

🫣 Hidden World

🔮Prophecy and a Curse

📖 Retelling

📚 Sets up the plot for book 2!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

goatsinspace's review

• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Marianna's life is turned upside down as she faces familial financial ruin, her father's expensive illness, and her grief over a previous love lost at sea. When the enigmatic Lord Bludington offers her a chance to save her family, she reluctantly accepts, only to find herself trapped in a web of mystery and danger.

Despite being haunted by personal tragedy, she remains resilient, trying to keep her family's spirits up, especially for her sister's sake. The plot unfolds with twists and turns that kept me guessing and I found it quite engaging. The short length of the book makes it a quick and engaging read, perfect for fans of YA fairytale retellings and fantasy with a side of mystery.

While the main storyline is intriguing, the side characters (especially the servants) feel quite underdeveloped. At one point, it's implied that they would work for nothing except the goodness of their hearts. They seem to serve as plot devices rather than fully realized characters, which at times detracted from the overall story. Despite this, the novel's compelling mystery makes it difficult to put down.

This is a YA novel that trends towards the younger side in dialogue and characterization, but the mystery is interesting. This is a quick and fun read in a Regency-era fantasy world. I did not expect that epilogue!

dbegley1968's review

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.5

I received a free digital copy of this book from the author and appreciated the opportunity to read it.  I liked the premise of the book, but the writing style just wasn't for me.  

kricklereadsbooks's review

5.0

 

This Gothic thriller was beautiful retelling of the Fairytale Bluebeard. I wanted to read this book because of Charity Rau's fairytale challenge I am taking part of this year. this was a pretty straight forward retelling of the original fairytale and I enjoyed this book. This is not a common fairytale this was a great opportunity to learn more about the fairytale.  This book reminds me of Rebbecca by Daphne Du Maurier, with the wife being made to feel not worthy by the staff...... My biggest complaint of the book is Marianne's sister..... I Hated her and wanted bad things to happen to her all through the book. Even with the redemption of this character I still hated her.....

️ Fairytale rating

9/10 for keeping with the original fairytale

7/10 for originally, taking the tale and giving it an original twist

10/10 for personal enjoyment 

hopelessromanticbookworm's review

adventurous mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

“When it seems things can’t possibly work out, that’s when you will need to reach down deep to find that inner strength. You are stronger that you know my dear.”

This is the first time I have read a book from this author. I have been in a slump for a while and just needed to get back into reading. This book is different to what I normally read because first of all there is no romance (I am a HUGE romance lover) and it’s strange to read a fantasy retelling without romance.

However, I did enjoy the book. I found it fast paced that kept me guessing throughout, and had me wondering what was going on especially how suspicious all the staff were at the manor.

As I mentioned above this fantasy book is a retelling. I’m not sure what fairytale this is a retell of but it was interesting to read. I loved the characters especially Betsy she was just so lovely and just someone you would want as a close friend. The mystery of this story had me in all the twists and turns as I was second guessing myself most of time, when new information came to light. 

This is the first book of this series so when I read the epilogue i just felt all giddy! 😁 I am very intrigued on how the author will spin the next fairytale retelling book ☺️ and how the story will continue for these characters x

charityann's review

dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

 I'm so excited my first book is now available to readers! I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed writing it. If you love Gothic settings, strong heroines, and secrets and suspense, I think you'll love it.