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adventurous
challenging
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
I picked this up because I really enjoyed Not Another Love Song so I have some faith in Julie Soto (most new romantasy these days is so bad so I won’t read it unless I know the author or it’s recommended by someone trustworthy). I didn’t really like Briony at first and I think she came off as much younger than she was supposed to be (teenager vs 25, which makes sense in retrospect due to the origin of this story). It also took me an embarrassingly long amount of time to clock this as a dramione fanfic, and once I figured that out it brought down my enjoyment of this book for a while.
Overall, though, I enjoyed this book, but I think I would’ve definitely preferred to read it on AO3, rather than in this format (and maybe I have lol, I can’t remember). Especially because that means I wouldn’t have to wait years for the next books to come out and the story to be finished. I’d much rather read the longer fanfic all at once.
Overall, though, I enjoyed this book, but I think I would’ve definitely preferred to read it on AO3, rather than in this format (and maybe I have lol, I can’t remember). Especially because that means I wouldn’t have to wait years for the next books to come out and the story to be finished. I’d much rather read the longer fanfic all at once.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infertility, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, Trafficking, Medical trauma, Murder, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Rape, Violence, Abortion, Pregnancy
adventurous
dark
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder, War
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
The bad. As a reader familiar with the prior version.
Separating the ghost version that lives in my mind from the newly published work seemed like an impossible task. And you know the author knew this. Even each character was introduced with skin, hair, and eye color descriptors, as if to say, this is not the red head you expected!
And while the reader encounters a new magical world, the history, traditions and vibe are only slowly, sparsely, revealed through the course of this book; and mostly as secondary material to our two main characters’ interactions through the years. We do not have much of that knowledge when key scenes occur right away, and I could not help but fall back mentally on HP scenery and settings during the initial action.
While I did truly try to come into this with fresh eyes, I found myself also questioning key conflicts and character choices that didn’t appear to make sense in the new world. One large conundrum for me was the brutality of the Bomards’ subjugation of the Eversuns. Why do they hate each other? Will we see evidence of increasingly cruel othering? What ideological difference was twisted to bring about this rift? Or was there a historical event? An inherent unfairness of circumstance?We’re unclear.. just that heart and mind magics are different. And each one thinks theirs best. Additionally, the children of the two lands go to school together and they switch between the two countries. With all other things being equal, the bonds made or even just common contact should have engendered a tolerance in the younger generation, imo. Without the extremist violence, racist ideology, and cruelty of the DeathEater cult , what would bring the inhabitants of one country to so completely plan for and execute a dehumanizing system of slavery, rape, confinement, magical draining, and branding ??
And the big baddie? We know almost nothing of substance of them until the very end of the book.
The Good. Familiar banter.
The main character interaction was very familiar, but I think it worked even given the changes in setting and overarching mythos.
Separately, and not insignificantly, the author excels in sweet steamy scenes, and those moments never disappoint.
The Good. Departures and surprises.
When I started feeling surprised by what came next, and saw that the author was likely going to take us for a totally new ride in the next installment, my estimation of the book went up.
I’m hoping the next two books show the author finding more freedom, and with that a stronger, more cohesive story.
Separating the ghost version that lives in my mind from the newly published work seemed like an impossible task. And you know the author knew this. Even each character was introduced with skin, hair, and eye color descriptors, as if to say, this is not the red head you expected!
And while the reader encounters a new magical world, the history, traditions and vibe are only slowly, sparsely, revealed through the course of this book; and mostly as secondary material to our two main characters’ interactions through the years. We do not have much of that knowledge when key scenes occur right away, and I could not help but fall back mentally on HP scenery and settings during the initial action.
While I did truly try to come into this with fresh eyes, I found myself also questioning key conflicts and character choices that didn’t appear to make sense in the new world. One large conundrum for me was the brutality of the Bomards’ subjugation of the Eversuns. Why do they hate each other? Will we see evidence of increasingly cruel othering? What ideological difference was twisted to bring about this rift? Or was there a historical event? An inherent unfairness of circumstance?
And the big baddie? We know almost nothing of substance of them until the very end of the book.
The Good. Familiar banter.
The main character interaction was very familiar, but I think it worked even given the changes in setting and overarching mythos.
Separately, and not insignificantly, the author excels in sweet steamy scenes, and those moments never disappoint.
The Good. Departures and surprises.
When I started feeling surprised by what came next, and saw that the author was likely going to take us for a totally new ride in the next installment, my estimation of the book went up.
I’m hoping the next two books show the author finding more freedom, and with that a stronger, more cohesive story.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, Slavery, Sexual harassment
Moderate: Rape, Injury/Injury detail
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Confinement, Death, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, Sexual harassment
No non-con or harmful sexual interactions occur between the two main characters.
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-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:
Yes
As someone who loved Julie Soto’s writing, I was excited to delve into her first foray into fantasy/romantasy. It’s giving dark, slow burn, forced proximity, enemies to lovers, rivals and so much more.
Important to note: this book has some dark themes and subject matter - be sure to read the trigger warnings ahead of time so you know if it’s right for you / what you’re getting into.
The world and magic system were unique and interesting. The realm that the story takes place in has some wild things going down and our FMC Briony ends up losing family members and allies whilst being held against her will. There’s a dual timeline that gives us a lot of the back story of how things got to this place, as well as Briony’s complicated feelings about Toven. I really liked a lot of the secondary characters and how they added to the plot & relationships.
I am very curious to know how this story moves forward - I can’t believe I’ll need to wait to find out.
Huge thank you to Forever and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for my honest review.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Slavery, Blood, Grief, Murder, War, Injury/Injury detail
dark
emotional
sad
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Omg this book was FANTASTIC! I ate it up. The enemies-to-lovers slowburn is killing me. The way Briony is such an unreliable narrator because of how events are colored by misconceptions. You kind of want to scream at her that she can’t see what’s right in front of her, meanwhile, you also want to scream at Toven because he just needs to tell her the truth! Like, UGH! I can’t WAIT for book 2.
PLEASE NOTE: the TW are not there to add word count. This book is DARK with lots of sexual violence and trauma. MC is 25, but trauma is trauma, even though she *spoiler* is actually sheltered from the majority of it.
PLEASE NOTE: the TW are not there to add word count. This book is DARK with lots of sexual violence and trauma. MC is 25, but trauma is trauma, even though she *spoiler* is actually sheltered from the majority of it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Grief, War, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Rape
slow-paced
Strong character development:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infertility, Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery
dark
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Loveable characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
A solidly mid-tier romantasy, and I mean that in a positive way. The world building isn’t the strongest but there were some intriguing elements to it that I’m hopeful will be expanded upon in the next book. The character of Briony grew on me slowly in the last third as I felt like she managed to gain some development there.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infertility, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Violence, Murder, Sexual harassment, War
Moderate: Confinement, Physical abuse, Blood, Medical content, Death of parent
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Rose in Chains, the first book in the Evermore Trilogy by Julie Soto, is a solid fantasy offering that presents a worth your read story. Some might be drawn to the book because they know about its pre-publication path, but you absolutely can pick up this book blind with just a love for fantasy.
Rose in Chains explores the story of Briony, a 20-something princess with magic who is sold into magical slavery after her kingdom falls. Over the course of the story, Ms. Soto invites the reader to discover Briony’s strengths and secrets alongside the character herself. As a reader, you get to watch Briony’s character growth and explore a rich new fantasy world.
Rose in Chains strongly stands on its own apart from its origins. The fantasy world that is created has its own lore and mysteries which exploring tropes that are familiar to most readers.
I explore this book in audio form and found the narrator be solid and the pace reasonable. I would recommend it in either written word or audio form.
Thank you to NetGalley and Hackett Audio for the chance to explore this ARC in exchange for my review. All opinions are 100% my own.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery
challenging
dark
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
After reading the original story by the author I think i set my hopes a little high for this book. I can definitely see some aspects of inspiration but some world building and relationship complexities fell quite flat for me. The ending was a fun twist but I feel like it was quite sudden and not hinted at nearly enough in the book to feel right. More so like it was an after thought. Overall, I would still reccomend this book (aslong as trigger warnings are THOROUGHLY read through) but it just didn't hit as much as I wanted it to.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Slavery
Minor: Violence, Abortion, War