Reviews with content warning for Child death - House of Roots and Ruin

Reviews tagging 'Child death'

House of Roots and Ruin by Erin A. Craig

46 reviews

espurrr's review

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad 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

5.0

This book has ruined me. Alex is one of the sweetest, most endearing characters. He is so thoughtful and intelligent. Verity deserves everything good. The flirting through flower language is adorable. The plot hits so many gothic high points. The atmosphere is perfect and really adds to the tension. And that ending. I'm certainly going to be thinking about this book for a while too come.

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cosmichippie's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

5.0

“A wilting flower holds just as much splendor as one on the cusp of opening. People are so quick to idolize the fresh and the new. They fetishize it.” He rubbed at his forehead, his eyes bright with fervor. “Why should we celebrate one without the other?”

I absolutely loved this book and already told everyone I know about it. Such a perfect sequel to House of Salt & Sorrows and it was so enjoyable to hangout with Verity as she's gotten older and get a different perspective from one of the sisters. The ambience and theme of this story are misty, plant filled solariums with secret gardens and passageways in the manor it's based in. The main character sees ghosts and most of the time you don't know who's real and who isn't as a reader. The mysterious, confusing, thrilling pacing of this book is so well done. There's romance and descriptions out of this world and I could perfectly envision everything. The mmc's father being a botanist and so many plant, flower, and potions being described made my plant loving heart pitter patter.

“I was crying for all the things I'd thought I'd understood but didn't. Crying for all I'd hoped for that wouldn't be.”

The story begins from the first book in this lovely duet, where Verity is older but doesn't remember the events from her childhood and is still living in Highmoor. She has become an aspiring artist and gets invited to create a portrait for a young duke in a neighboring family's home. Despite Camille, her older sisters, confusing disapproval Verity decides to leave and then arrives at Bloem and things get strange very quickly. And by quickly I mean mysterious bone chilling murders, a horrifying story from the mmc to explain why he's paralyzed from the waist down, and a very mysterious family.

The plot in this book gives me the creeps so much, the ideas and concepts that are developed in the plot throughout Verity's adventures in this manor gave me goosebumps for hours. I found it so chilling once we began meeting some of Verity's ghosts, and finding out which characters were alive and not. It was fascinating to see Verity learn about her family's history and past and as she began to recall past memories and put pieces of her life together. Very good tie ins for the series in those portions and a lot of family lore.

“The People of the Petals bury their loved ones full of seeds, stuffed into the bodies. It aids in the decomposition process, helps the dead return more quickly to the earth. Then from their death…new life.”

I enjoyed Verity and her innocent and pure heart. I also loved the two new characters that came in at the end of the book despite how the story ended. That was a twist I had no idea was coming. I don't have good enough things to say about Alex, I loved his character, and I found the romance between the two characters to be eye opening. I think the idea of watching the two fall in love for the first time over the span of weeks was so well done. The author portrayed it so innocently but equally implied how concerning it was as a reader. Erin's harrowing writing style is incredible, most of the time you know something is wrong and have such a strange feeling in your stomach but the plot hasn't come together yet and you just have to sit with it until it resolves. This book was very difficult to put down, I pretty much didn't. When I tell you I was on the ground with my jaw on the floor for the entire last few chapters I am not kidding at all. Nothing could have prepared me for how much I have enjoyed this series. This author knows how to write a solid cliffhanger epilogue. I'd happily write a dissertation on this book that's how much I loved it.

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reynoldsreads's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes

4.75

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siglerbooknook's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

5.0

This book was every bit as entertaining, chilling, twisted, and enjoyable as the first.

I was surprised when this story focused so much on the romance. Then it surprised me again by being sweet, gentle, and almost like a daydream.
I spent half the book on the edge of my seat sure things were about to go terribly wrong.

And BOY did they. Once the chilling secrets started to show up they felt like a waterfall sweeping me along at a mad rush along with Verity. Every twist was a jarring mix of anticipation, hope, uncertainty, and fear. Every answer made perfect sense yet offered 3 more questions.

The plot is a wonderfully example of the dangers of ego and "playing god".

The ending made me want to throw the book across the room in the best possible way, and I can't explain why without major spoilers. It's the kind of ending that makes me speechless and shaking my head because "that can't be right!" You'll have to read it for yourself to truly understand what I mean...

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malisac16's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

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meant2breading's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.5

House of Roots and Ruins expands the world Craig developed within House of Salt and Sorrows and I enjoyed learning even more about the magic system and its tie to the Gods. While I favor book one, there is a lot to love about this book. The descriptions in this story are so lush and it is EXACTLY the type of dark, gothic, and a little eerie atmosphere I want to be hooked into. I think you’ll enjoy this book if you love Romantasy with some ghosts, dark and twisty vibes, and a murder mystery. I personally liked some aspects of the romance not all (if you know you know) and did not like the ending, so this is where my rating fell slightly, but I did enjoy the different FMC this time. Plus, the world Craig created was very hard to step away from. I’ll plan to read book three if written and more from this author!

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