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adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Everyone should read this book. That being said, mind the triggers.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Genocide, Hate crime, Sexism, Slavery, Violence, Trafficking, Murder, Sexual harassment, War, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Bullying, Confinement, Infertility, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Blood, Medical trauma, Stalking, Death of parent
Minor: Hate crime, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Rape, Abandonment
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was really interesting to me - all of the politics and world building made me both so interested and frustrated because I just want to know all of it and everything going on. I will say this gets pretty dark and points, but it all felt necessary to building the story rather than just adding it needlessly traumatic events for each character.
The ending!! The ending!! I want the next book like literally right now.
The audiobook narration for this is soso well done - Ella Lynch does such an amazing job with this overall and her voice was just literally MADE to be a narrator.
Thank you to Hachette Audio and Netgalley for the advanced copy!
The ending!! The ending!! I want the next book like literally right now.
The audiobook narration for this is soso well done - Ella Lynch does such an amazing job with this overall and her voice was just literally MADE to be a narrator.
Thank you to Hachette Audio and Netgalley for the advanced copy!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Physical abuse, Slavery
Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual violence
Minor: Rape, War
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Gore, Slavery, Trafficking
Moderate: Child death, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Infertility, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Blood, Kidnapping, Murder, Sexual harassment, War
Minor: Rape, Death of parent
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
"He knew yesterday that they were coming. He knew they'd find her untouched, and he'd ransacked the library for a solution to his problem.
Briony's breath hitched at the realization that he'd skipped over the easiest one."
--
If you're a fan of dark romantasy with high-stakes angst and a palpable enemies-to-lovers tension, this book is for you.
From the start, the story plunges you into a world of magic, historical politics, and morally grey characters that will keep you guessing.
For those familiar with the source material ("The Auction"), the general plot feels comfortingly familiar—until the last couple of chapters, where the story takes a surprising and welcome turn.
The unexpected twist makes the journey worthwhile for both new readers and longtime fans.
The narrative is told through a third-person limited point of view, primarily following the thoughts of Briony. Her perspective makes her a wonderfully unreliable narrator, adding a layer of intrigue as you try to decipher the truth from her perception of events. This limited viewpoint, along with a dual timeline structure, provides a fascinating look into the complex and often dark nature of Toven, and a deeper understanding of why Briony is drawn to him.
--
"If she could hear one sound for the rest of her life, she wanted it to be Toven Hearst moaning her name."
--
And the romance? She's a slight slow burn in this one for sure, but the yearning between the two is undeniable.
Julie Soto masterfully builds the romantic tension, and I am eager to see how Briony and Toven's feelings will develop in the next two installments of the series, in which I'm sure the stakes will become higher
higher
Briony's breath hitched at the realization that he'd skipped over the easiest one."
--
If you're a fan of dark romantasy with high-stakes angst and a palpable enemies-to-lovers tension, this book is for you.
From the start, the story plunges you into a world of magic, historical politics, and morally grey characters that will keep you guessing.
For those familiar with the source material ("The Auction"), the general plot feels comfortingly familiar—
The unexpected twist makes the journey worthwhile for both new readers and longtime fans.
The narrative is told through a third-person limited point of view, primarily following the thoughts of Briony. Her perspective makes her a wonderfully unreliable narrator, adding a layer of intrigue as you try to decipher the truth from her perception of events. This limited viewpoint, along with a dual timeline structure, provides a fascinating look into the complex and often dark nature of Toven, and a deeper understanding of why Briony is drawn to him.
--
"If she could hear one sound for the rest of her life, she wanted it to be Toven Hearst moaning her name."
--
And the romance? She's a slight slow burn in this one for sure, but the yearning between the two is undeniable.
Julie Soto masterfully builds the romantic tension, and I am eager to see how Briony and Toven's feelings will develop in the next two installments of the series, in which I'm sure the stakes will become higher
higher
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Death, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Abortion, Murder, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment
adventurous
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Slavery, Trafficking, Sexual harassment
Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, War
Minor: Torture, Abortion
The prevalent theme throughout the book is of women being auctioned and used as sex slaves and there is moderate description of the use of an elixir that makes them more willing to perform sexual acts for those who purchased them. There are also mentions of rape, and descriptive non-consentual touching throughout.
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, War
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
I just can't believe my eyes!!!! This is the same author who wrote The Auction. 😑
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Murder, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Toxic friendship, Sexual harassment, War
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Skillful writing as always from Julie Soto! There was a tiiiny bit of disappointment with this for me:
It was honestly very hard for me to rate this book - one of a trilogy - in complete isolation to its fic counterpart which was a standalone story. (Familiar characters always hit different.) While I certainly enjoyed the new world building, I’m looking forward to “more” in the coming books, not just plot-wise, but I felt like some character development was lacking,and I recall that being bigger towards the end of the story. Some understandably omitted elements were missed.
It was honestly very hard for me to rate this book - one of a trilogy - in complete isolation to its fic counterpart which was a standalone story. (Familiar characters always hit different.) While I certainly enjoyed the new world building, I’m looking forward to “more” in the coming books, not just plot-wise, but I felt like some character development was lacking,
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Sexual assault, Slavery, Violence, Xenophobia, Sexual harassment
Moderate: Rape, Sexual violence, War
Minor: Abortion
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
“There is a lake with still waters.” 🥀⛓️
Read this if you like:
- Dramione fan fiction
- Dark romance (please please check trigger warnings!!)
- Forced proximity
- Academy setting
- Enemies to lovers
- Political intrigue
- Slow burn
- Tension
- Rival kingdoms
Jumping in at the end of a brutal multi-year war between kingdoms, Rose in Chains follows Briony and Toven, long time political and academic rivals, as Briony’s kingdom falls and she is taken prisoner by the Bomardi. Along with the remaining Eversun, she is captured and sold off to the Bomardi elite to be used as a source of magic. Think Fourth Wing and The Handmaid’s Tale in the best (and darkest) way
Rose in Chains is the first book in The Evermore trilogy, which started out as a Harry Potter Dramione fanfic on AO3 by LovesBitca8, aka the legend herself, Julie Soto. I’ve said it before but I will read anything that she puts out. Her story telling is impeccable, her characters are always so developed and layered, and the tension is immaculate.
Told in dual then-and-now timelines, Julie Soto works her magic to build an intense slow burn full of tension, yearning, and danger. Every character felt so dimensional and the plot was full of high stakes and political intrigue.
As much as I loved this book, the story’s Harry Potter fanfic roots definitely added a lot of context that may lead to some confusion if you just randomly picked this book off the shelves. There were moments where I found myself connecting dots based on the HP universe. If you are coming in without that knowledge, the plot may feel a little disorienting at times. Personally, I didn’t mind that at all but I can see how it may bug some readers.
Overall, I absolutely loved this book but it didn’t give that 5 star feeling. It’s sitting somewhere between a 4⭐ and 4.5⭐. If you give this book a try, please please please check trigger warnings. It’s heavy on the dark romance themes.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, Trafficking, Kidnapping, War