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foreverinastory's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Now that I've read this I can certify that this book is just as wonderful as I thought it would be. queer fairytale characters in a dark academia setting. Like, how perfect is this for me!?
The Grimrose Girls follows four main characters: Yuki, Rory, Ella and Nani. The first three have been going to Grimrose Académie for a year. They're coming back for a new year after losing their best friend Ari, whose death was ruled a suicide. But when Nani uncovers a fairytale grimoire in Ari's old closet, the girls are sure there was foul play involved in Ari's death. As the four begin to investigate, they find that Grimrose has hidden a string of murders at its campus.
Y'all this book was soooo good. I just wanna yell about how much I loved it. Throughout the book we get clues onto the students fairytale fates. I've so far figured out everyone except Nani. So I'm like super curious to find out more.
I loved the murder mystery in this! I had no idea how it would come together, but I absolutely loved it. Seeing how things worked on, I'm sure there are still MANY secrets to be revealed. I can't wait for the sequel. I also loved all the relationships in this book. The friendships, the romances, ugh YES. I'm here for it all. I love that our four main girls also don't pursue romantic relationships with each other. I really loved that we got to see the friendship between these 4. Loved it sooo much.
After reading this, I'm for sure adding Laura to my auto-read list.
Rep: Aroace Japanese MC, white lesbian female MC with fibromyalgia, white biromantic demisexual female MC with anxiety and OCD, fat Black-Hawaiian lesbian female MC. Black sapphic female side character, white sapphic female side character.
CWs: Abadonment, blood, chronic illness, death, grief, injury/injury detail, mental illness (anxiety & OCD), murder. Moderate: Gore, racism.
____________________________________________________________
I just finished The Last 8 and was curious to see what else the author had written and came across this book coming out November 2021!! AND LOOK AT THIS REP STATEMENT:
The Grimrose Girls has 4 main protagonists: 2 are lesbians (on page), 1 of them is a biromantic demisexual (doesn't use these labels on page, only mentions having no preference of gender as long as she feels a connection), and the fourth is aromantic asexual (written on the page).
AND
It has:
🌟4 fairytale retellings
❤️f/f romance
🍰an aroace protagonist
🏰boarding school shenanigans
⚔️swords
📚magic and murder mystery
Content warnings include: suicide mention, depiction of anxiety and OCD, parental physical/emotional abuse, mention of parental death, light gore.
I feel like Laura Pohl has answered my sapphic fairytale dreams.
The Grimrose Girls follows four main characters: Yuki, Rory, Ella and Nani. The first three have been going to Grimrose Académie for a year. They're coming back for a new year after losing their best friend Ari, whose death was ruled a suicide. But when Nani uncovers a fairytale grimoire in Ari's old closet, the girls are sure there was foul play involved in Ari's death. As the four begin to investigate, they find that Grimrose has hidden a string of murders at its campus.
Y'all this book was soooo good. I just wanna yell about how much I loved it. Throughout the book we get clues onto the students fairytale fates. I've so far figured out everyone except Nani. So I'm like super curious to find out more.
I loved the murder mystery in this! I had no idea how it would come together, but I absolutely loved it. Seeing how things worked on, I'm sure there are still MANY secrets to be revealed. I can't wait for the sequel. I also loved all the relationships in this book. The friendships, the romances, ugh YES. I'm here for it all. I love that our four main girls also don't pursue romantic relationships with each other. I really loved that we got to see the friendship between these 4. Loved it sooo much.
After reading this, I'm for sure adding Laura to my auto-read list.
Rep: Aroace Japanese MC, white lesbian female MC with fibromyalgia, white biromantic demisexual female MC with anxiety and OCD, fat Black-Hawaiian lesbian female MC. Black sapphic female side character, white sapphic female side character.
CWs: Abadonment, blood, chronic illness, death, grief, injury/injury detail, mental illness (anxiety & OCD), murder. Moderate: Gore, racism.
____________________________________________________________
I just finished The Last 8 and was curious to see what else the author had written and came across this book coming out November 2021!! AND LOOK AT THIS REP STATEMENT:
The Grimrose Girls has 4 main protagonists: 2 are lesbians (on page), 1 of them is a biromantic demisexual (doesn't use these labels on page, only mentions having no preference of gender as long as she feels a connection), and the fourth is aromantic asexual (written on the page).
AND
It has:
🌟4 fairytale retellings
❤️f/f romance
🍰an aroace protagonist
🏰boarding school shenanigans
⚔️swords
📚magic and murder mystery
Content warnings include: suicide mention, depiction of anxiety and OCD, parental physical/emotional abuse, mention of parental death, light gore.
I feel like Laura Pohl has answered my sapphic fairytale dreams.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Death, Mental illness, Blood, Grief, Murder, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Gore and Racism
bakinglizbet's review
adventurous
dark
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Blood, and Murder
rogueblackwood's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Author: Diverse? Yes! Female, Brazilian, and Gay. She/her
Characters: Super Queer! trans, ace, aromantic, demi, pan/bi, and lesbian main characters. And a variety of races, home countries, and skin tones!
Subjective rating: 5/5
Writing: 4/5 (it's YA for sure but was well done!)
Plot: 5/5, the pacing was really well done. You could tell it was well planned and that you had clues that were available but not glaring.
Characters: 5/5, each character felt real, and each character had a distinct voice and motivation
Themes: 5/5, found family on point!
Narrators: Multi, Each chapter goes back and forth between the main 4 girls. Rory, Yuki, Ella, and Nani
POV: Multi 3rd person
Genre: YA Paranormal Mystery, with light Romance side plot. YA LGBTQ
Type: Series, Book 1 of ? from Grimrose Girls, no date for sequel yet
Content Warnings: death (on and off-page not too graphic), betrayal, child abuse (light and off-page), talk of suicide, chronic illness
So this is more of what I wanted from Malice but didn't really get. It is a unique retelling in every way, it plays into the tropes I love without being predictable fully. You see the parallels but nothing is completely as it seems.
As far as rep, can you get better than this? I don't know if there are straight characters lol! We have trans, ace, demi, pan/bi, and lesbian characters all of whom are very flushed out and none play into harmful stereotypes. You also have a character with chronic illness in this which I found so amazing. Rory has fibromyalgia that she battles with but doesn't allow to control her life.
I felt like the little side romances felt genuine especially for teens, the first flutters, and how everything is life and death at that age. None of them felt forced and you saw the attraction.
Characters: Super Queer! trans, ace, aromantic, demi, pan/bi, and lesbian main characters. And a variety of races, home countries, and skin tones!
Subjective rating: 5/5
Writing: 4/5 (it's YA for sure but was well done!)
Plot: 5/5, the pacing was really well done. You could tell it was well planned and that you had clues that were available but not glaring.
Characters: 5/5, each character felt real, and each character had a distinct voice and motivation
Themes: 5/5, found family on point!
Narrators: Multi, Each chapter goes back and forth between the main 4 girls. Rory, Yuki, Ella, and Nani
POV: Multi 3rd person
Genre: YA Paranormal Mystery, with light Romance side plot. YA LGBTQ
Type: Series, Book 1 of ? from Grimrose Girls, no date for sequel yet
Content Warnings: death (on and off-page not too graphic), betrayal, child abuse (light and off-page), talk of suicide, chronic illness
So this is more of what I wanted from Malice but didn't really get. It is a unique retelling in every way, it plays into the tropes I love without being predictable fully. You see the parallels but nothing is completely as it seems.
As far as rep, can you get better than this? I don't know if there are straight characters lol! We have trans, ace, demi, pan/bi, and lesbian characters all of whom are very flushed out and none play into harmful stereotypes. You also have a character with chronic illness in this which I found so amazing. Rory has fibromyalgia that she battles with but doesn't allow to control her life.
I felt like the little side romances felt genuine especially for teens, the first flutters, and how everything is life and death at that age. None of them felt forced and you saw the attraction.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death
Moderate: Chronic illness
Minor: Child abuse and Blood
ofbooksandechos's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
The mystery was kind of predictable, however I’m curious to see how things will play out in book 2. Especially since there are still a lot of secrets to be unveiled
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Child abuse
olivialandryxo's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
I’ve been excited to read this book ever since I found out about it a few months ago, and it didn’t disappoint. Pohl’s story is the perfect blend of fairytale magic and thrilling dark academia, a combination I didn’t know I needed in my life. I formed all sorts of theories as I read and trusted hardly anyone, yet I was still surprised as pieces of the puzzle fell into place. The intrigue never stopped, and I didn’t want to stop reading.
I loved all four of the protagonists from the beginning. Ella, Yuki, Rory and Nani were amazing, complex and well-written characters, and there were some equally well-written side characters. It was surprisingly fun to try to connect people and events to different fairytales as I read.
I also loved Ella, Yuki and Rory’s friendship, and seeing Nani slowly become a part of their group. The dynamic among the girls was brilliant, as were the two slow-burn, friends to lovers romantic subplots. I say subplot because, while both involved a member of the main squad, the romance was definitely not a focus of the story. Emphasis was instead placed on the girls themselves and the mystery of Grimrose, which I think was the right choice. Be that as it may, what bits of romance we did get were adorable, and I’m hoping there’ll be more in the sequel. There’s one relationship I think could turn romantic, and I’m hoping that it does. Fingers crossed! (What can I say? I’m a hopeless romantic at heart.)
Overall, I was pleasantly surprised by just how great this book was. It pulled me in immediately and I was hooked from cover to cover; now that I’m done, I’m wondering just long the wait will be for the sequel. (Probably a year or so, since this just came out.) I’ll definitely have to check out Pohl’s other books in the meantime. And if it wasn’t already clear, I love and highly recommend The Grimrose Girls!!
Representation
I loved all four of the protagonists from the beginning. Ella, Yuki, Rory and Nani were amazing, complex and well-written characters, and there were some equally well-written side characters. It was surprisingly fun to try to connect people and events to different fairytales as I read.
I also loved Ella, Yuki and Rory’s friendship, and seeing Nani slowly become a part of their group. The dynamic among the girls was brilliant, as were the two slow-burn, friends to lovers romantic subplots. I say subplot because, while both involved a member of the main squad, the romance was definitely not a focus of the story. Emphasis was instead placed on the girls themselves and the mystery of Grimrose, which I think was the right choice. Be that as it may, what bits of romance we did get were adorable, and I’m hoping there’ll be more in the sequel. There’s one relationship I think could turn romantic, and I’m hoping that it does. Fingers crossed! (What can I say? I’m a hopeless romantic at heart.)
Overall, I was pleasantly surprised by just how great this book was. It pulled me in immediately and I was hooked from cover to cover; now that I’m done, I’m wondering just long the wait will be for the sequel. (Probably a year or so, since this just came out.) I’ll definitely have to check out Pohl’s other books in the meantime. And if it wasn’t already clear, I love and highly recommend The Grimrose Girls!!
Representation
- biromantic demisexual protagonist with anxiety and OCD
- Japanese aromantic asexual protagonist
- lesbian protagonist with fibromyalgia
- Black-Hawaiian fat lesbian protagonist
- queer trans girl side character
- Black side character
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, and Physical abuse
Minor: Suicide and Death of parent
Mental illness: one of the protagonists has anxiety and OCD. Suicide: mentioned occasionally, as it’s believed to be how the protagonists’ friend died. Parent death: both of Ella’s parents died prior to the story, as did Yuki’s parents.itshardizzy's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
ohhh what a ride.
the book was very good and I've finished really fast. I really liked how complex the MCs are and how they aren't perfect and have real problems. The book deals with a lot of things, but mostly with grief and with finding ones trueself. It was PLL meets Brothers Grimm but make it Sapphic (and I loved it).
the characters are all relatable and they have real struggles and not just rich people problems. the author really succeed in blend the personal problems of the characters with the main plot and in showing that in the end they are all teenagers that still haven't figure out life. even the side characters have well constructed background and problems that aren't connected with the MCs. and the relationships where really natural and really comfortable to follow.
the plot is very interesting and i saw how PLL heavily influenced the author, literally there was times where I was "am i reading PLL?". there was clues well hidden everywhere and it was fun to put the pieces together.
one thing that I want to talk about is the diversity in here. Although it is a school for the rich and privilege, we also have a few special cases like Ella and Nani, but I didn't really think they tackled those privileges as well as the author could. what the author did well - in my opinion - is to display LGBTQ+ characters without that being the main focus of their stories, being gay is treated normally and that was awesome; but that doesn't mean the author didn't explore the struggles that comes with being yourself and that shows thru Yuki and Svenja.
also I loved Pippa talking with Rory about her being the only black girl in their club and about even though she is rich, black people will never be seen the same as white rich people.
honestly this was a great read, but there was a few parts where i was like ???like the part where yuki told them about what she had said to Ari right before she died and there wasn't much of a reaction; and like the author was building this secret for chapters and making us anxious about how the others would react, but in the end it wasn't that big of a deal . I'm really excited to the follow up and to see if some of my predictions will become a reality and to see how they are gonna deal with the new found truths and with the things they've done.
the book was very good and I've finished really fast. I really liked how complex the MCs are and how they aren't perfect and have real problems. The book deals with a lot of things, but mostly with grief and with finding ones trueself. It was PLL meets Brothers Grimm but make it Sapphic (and I loved it).
the characters are all relatable and they have real struggles and not just rich people problems. the author really succeed in blend the personal problems of the characters with the main plot and in showing that in the end they are all teenagers that still haven't figure out life. even the side characters have well constructed background and problems that aren't connected with the MCs. and the relationships where really natural and really comfortable to follow.
the plot is very interesting and i saw how PLL heavily influenced the author, literally there was times where I was "am i reading PLL?". there was clues well hidden everywhere and it was fun to put the pieces together.
one thing that I want to talk about is the diversity in here. Although it is a school for the rich and privilege, we also have a few special cases like Ella and Nani, but I didn't really think they tackled those privileges as well as the author could. what the author did well - in my opinion - is to display LGBTQ+ characters without that being the main focus of their stories, being gay is treated normally and that was awesome; but that doesn't mean the author didn't explore the struggles that comes with being yourself and that shows thru Yuki and Svenja.
honestly this was a great read, but there was a few parts where i was like ???
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Violence, Blood, Grief, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Self harm and Death of parent
Minor: Racism and Transphobia
beforeviolets's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Thank you so much to Sourcebooks Fire for sending me an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!
A thrilling retelling of classic fairytales filled with twists, magic, and just the right amount of darkness. Think Disney Princesses turned dark academia.
The first two-thirds of this book really struggled with the pacing. It dragged SO MUCH and I don't know if it was an attempt to counteract the feeling of over-exposition or in order to build tension, but either way it made it hard to read and made me almost DNF this read a few times.
HOWEVER, the last third of this book was SO MUCH FUN! It was riveting, properly gorey and spooky and magical in the way I was expecting this entire book to be. It just sucked that I had to get through so much of the text before I was able to experience it.
This book was promised with a lot of diversity, however, there was quite a bit of problematic representation which I will explain below.
(Minor spoilers ahead)
The Asian character struggles with parental pressure to be the very best and have perfect grades and be the perfect daughter.
There is a character who is very clearly the "mean masc lesbian" type.
The half-Native, half-Black character's entire plot line is that she has an absent Black father who abandoned her. She is also stereotyped as a "mean lesbian."
One character has OCD and it is introduced by one of the other characters questioning if she had taken her meds. Her opinions and experiences were also constantly doubted or questioned due to her OCD.
The character that is meant to be Belle from Beauty and the Beast has a trans girl as a love interest (insinuating that the trans woman is a beast).
On that note, the trans girl's fairytale retelling is that she is The Ugly Duckling, explicitly stating that as a trans girl, she has become a swan.
Especially seeing a book written by a queer author, it was sad to see the lack of care put into the quality of the diversity.
My lovely friend Jess also discusses the representation, so I would suggest viewing their review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4268785942?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
TW:mentions of suicide, parental physical and emotional abuse, self-harm, and parental death. depictions of anxiety, OCD, blood, and gore.
A thrilling retelling of classic fairytales filled with twists, magic, and just the right amount of darkness. Think Disney Princesses turned dark academia.
The first two-thirds of this book really struggled with the pacing. It dragged SO MUCH and I don't know if it was an attempt to counteract the feeling of over-exposition or in order to build tension, but either way it made it hard to read and made me almost DNF this read a few times.
HOWEVER, the last third of this book was SO MUCH FUN! It was riveting, properly gorey and spooky and magical in the way I was expecting this entire book to be. It just sucked that I had to get through so much of the text before I was able to experience it.
This book was promised with a lot of diversity, however, there was quite a bit of problematic representation which I will explain below.
(Minor spoilers ahead)
The Asian character struggles with parental pressure to be the very best and have perfect grades and be the perfect daughter.
There is a character who is very clearly the "mean masc lesbian" type.
The half-Native, half-Black character's entire plot line is that she has an absent Black father who abandoned her. She is also stereotyped as a "mean lesbian."
One character has OCD and it is introduced by one of the other characters questioning if she had taken her meds. Her opinions and experiences were also constantly doubted or questioned due to her OCD.
The character that is meant to be Belle from Beauty and the Beast has a trans girl as a love interest (insinuating that the trans woman is a beast).
On that note, the trans girl's fairytale retelling is that she is The Ugly Duckling, explicitly stating that as a trans girl, she has become a swan.
Especially seeing a book written by a queer author, it was sad to see the lack of care put into the quality of the diversity.
My lovely friend Jess also discusses the representation, so I would suggest viewing their review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4268785942?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
TW:
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Mental illness, Blood, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, and Physical abuse
Minor: Self harm, Suicide, and Death of parent
themixedpages's review
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Vomit, Acephobia/Arophobia, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Deadnaming