Reviews with content warning for Emotional abuse - Violet Made of Thorns

This was an interesting new world, definitely great for anyone who loves fairytale or royalty themed fantasy. It definitely gives off The Cruel Prince vibes, so that is a great readalike. The characters aren't necessarily the most likeable, but that's supposed to be the point. They both will do whatever it takes to further their status in society.

The central romance might have been the best thing about this book. There is a lot of court intrigue, but sometimes I had difficulty following it. This might have been becuase I listened to the audiobook, though. The narrator was great, but sometimes I don't pay quite as close attention, so maybe I missed something plotwise.

While I don't think this necessarily needed to be a series, I do understand where the author wants to go with the story. I am kind of interested in seeing what happens next, so I might pick up the next book when it comes out. We'll see!

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azrah786's review against another edition

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4.25

**I was provided with an ARC through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review**

CW: violence, blood, injury, self harm, body horror, gore, death, death of parent, murder, emotional abuse, racism, sexual content (non-explicit)
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A fast paced, dark fairytale story following an unapologetic, self-serving seer with a penchant for twisting the truth; a just as headstrong and arrogant crown prince she is always butting heads with and a prophecy that ties the two of them and the fate of the kingdom together.

Now none of these two leads are the most likeable of characters and you want to just shake the both of them on various occasions but their banter? *chef’s kiss* This isn’t your usual enemies to lovers pairing, they have more of a hate to “oh no these intense feelings I have for you and the fact that you get me plus are really attractive is messing with my head” going on and I couldn’t get enough of it.

Though the spotlight is very much on Violet - the control and power she has over her own destiny and her role as primary seer of a kingdom hanging in the balance. I was absolutely enraptured by the curse elements in the story and Chen beautifully wove the tensions of the foretold prophecy and political situation together that I just couldn’t put the book down!

The worldbuilding and magic are super fascinating however, they are an already established element of the story and weren’t expanded on as much as I had hoped. Also there were also some great side characters that I can’t help but wish had more page time.

That aside I really enjoyed this one and need the sequel yesterday!
If you like morally grey characters that aren’t always likeable and all the fairytale vibes with a dash of darkness then this book is for you!
Final Rating – 4.25/5 Stars

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camiclarkbooks's review

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adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious slow-paced

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

4.5

I received a digital ARC Of "Violet Made of Thorns" by Gina Chen through Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.

“Violet Made of Thorns” was a fun high fantasy story that took classic fairytale elements and turned them into something fresh. Gina Chen’s debut novel was well written and the plot was interesting. The characters were a little flat, but interesting enough to keep a reader’s attention. Since it appears that there will be at least one sequel, I think we’ll get more character development in a following book.

The best part of “Violet Made of Thorns” is unquestionably the titular character herself. Violet Lune was unapologetically prickly and self-serving. Although she was not outwardly malicious toward anyone but her nemesis, Prince Cyrus, she never hesitated from telling lies and spinning the truth to her best advantage. Often times, heroines are described as being snarky and narrators assure readers that the heroine only looks out for number one but that is often not the case. Those heroines are usually all bark and no bite and are usually much kinder than they or the narrator say. That’s not the case with Violet though—both her thoughts and words reveal just how unapologetically thorny her personality is and how she schemes to maintain her precarious position with the royal family in the court. I look forward to seeing Violet again in a sequel and hope she remains as prickly and self-serving as in “Violet Made of Thorns.”

If you’re in the mood for a book that’s like a more cynical “Among the Beasts and Briars” by Ashley Poston, give “Violet Made of Thorns” a try. It’s a new fairytale filled with court intrigue, curses, a refreshing main character and will leave you wanting more from Gina Chen.

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bookstarbri's review against another edition

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adventurous dark 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

4.5

A lot of YA fantasy lately is being called "enemies-to-lovers" with "morally gray characters" and "high stakes" and a lot of the times, those are sort of accurate but not really true descriptors. Gina Chen gives us all three in their true, classic form. THANK GOODNESS.

Our MC is Violet and she is incredible. Anytime I see a book comped with The Cruel Prince, I get nervous because The Cruel Prince is one of my favorite books and has one of my favorite MCs. But I think that comp is perfect for this. The fairies in Violet Made of Thorns are a bit different and not center stage, but they do play a part in this story and I wouldn't be surprised if they had a larger role in the sequel(s). The plot of this story is very open-ended at the conclusion of this, so it leads a lot of guessing as to what will happen in book 2, but I was really happy with its ending!

The characters are great. Violet and Cyrus were really the most developed of all of them, but I was fine with that since I think they were the crux of this story and their dynamic was INCREDIBLE. Their song and dance and back and forth were just great. The sheer disgust they felt for even feeling anything positive towards each other was IMMACULATE. I love them hating each other and loving each other and the up and down of their relationship. It's spectacularly done and the third act of this story was insane with the two of them and SOOO GOOD. I also just love Cyrus on his own. I think he really cares about his kingdom and Violet. He reminds me of a certain fae prince in that he's totally dumb and stupidly in love with this girl who kinda sorta wants to kill him sometimes. SO PERFECT.

The other characters were fine, but it was clear they were meant to be true side characters. However, I do hope we get more Camila in book 2 as I really loved her! She added a lot of comedic relief in this book that I appreciated. Dante was another side character who I enjoyed, but for a much different reason. His character is partially why this book wasn't quite a 5-star read for me. He is a really interesting character to me and almost elusive for a good portion of the book, but when the 3rd act came around and the plot was reaching its climax and we got more revelations about Dante, I wanted those important revelations and moments drawn out more. Everything surrounding his character in the last few chapters were so rushed and I was left confused on exactly what his role was and how he fit with everything. I don't mind a little ambiguity for the sake of anticipation for book 2, but I was left wondering what all these revelations meant for him and how his actions played a part in the greater plot. This also applies to our villain character! I wanted to get a bit more of a seamless transition on their revelation as well.

Those were my only remaining question and I'm all for adjusting ratings for 1st books in a series as the series continues, so I'll see if I change my mind on the .5 when I read book 2. Overall though, this was such a cool book and I'm REALLY excited for it as I think it'll be a really great series. I already can't wait to dig in to the sequel! The story is incredible, the world building is seamless and interesting, and I am in agony until this sequel

Thanks SO MUCH to Delacorte Press and NetGalley for providing an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

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