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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
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
emotional
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual violence, Violence, Trafficking, Abortion
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
challenging
dark
emotional
fast-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
I was thrilled to receive an audiobook ALC of Rose in Chains. Julie Soto is one of my favorite authors, and her stories are incredibly captivating. Rose in Chains is a dark romance/romantasy book about the fall of the magical Evermore kingdom to Bomard following a long civil war. This novel is the first book in the Evermore trilogy. The backdrop of war was violent and sometimes difficult to read, but the desperation and fear that the characters experienced was so powerful. Listening to the audiobook, I felt the urgency and danger of this new world that the people of Eversun were facing.
The main characters of this book are Briony and Toven, who are longtime frenemies from school and different kingdoms. They often competed and were unfriendly to each other in the past, but cultivated a friendship during their final year in school before the country erupted in civil war. Both harbor deep, secret romantic feelings for the other. Briony finds herself imprisoned after the fall of Eversun and forced into slavery as she is sold to a citizen of Bromard. Miraculously, Toven is able to outbid everyone and she becomes his property, which doesn’t end up being as horrible as she feared. Soto masterfully builds the chemistry and tension between these characters agonizingly slowly throughout the entire novel.
The novel is in Briony’s POV, and we feel her anguish and terror through the intense emotion and rapid pacing of the novel. This feeling of urgency was well narrated by Ella Lynch, who spoke quickly and with great feeling throughout the entire novel. Her voice compelled me to keep listening as I agonized over Briony’s fate. The novel alternates between the horrors of the present day and Briony’s idyllic past in flashbacks. There are heroes and villains, and Briony’s despair kept me glued to the novel until the end.
The author teases the reader with an earth-shattering epilogue. How will we wait a year to find out what happens next? Dark romance is not usually a genre I read, but this novel drew me in from the first page. I can’t wait to receive my hardback special edition copy of Rose in Chains with the gorgeous sprayed edges. Order or download this book today, you will not regret it!
Thank you to Julie Soto, Forever Publishing, Hachette Audio and NetGalley for an advance listener’s copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review. All opinions are my own.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Kidnapping, War
challenging
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC, all thoughts and opinions are my own.
“Rose in Chains” is a romantasy based off of the Dramione fanfic “The Auction”. While I haven’t read that fanfic, I found the parallels pretty obvious. As someone who is a big fan of the canon, it was a little hard to separate from the original characters to these new characters, but I think I did my best.
Now on to my thoughts. I really love this authors writing style, it really hooks and draws the reader in with a combination of current and past timelines. However with that being said PLEASE check your trigger warnings with this. There is rampant SA in the book as a whole (primarily all the secondary/minor characters) and a master/soave dynamic which I’ve learned is my least favorite trope ever, although I think the author did it well, it was hard to stomach. Additionally, there’s a lot of graphic torture and large amounts of violence.
Overall, I think this was a good story but not 100% for me due to the triggers. There is a possibility that I’ll continue on when the other books release, but I’ll have to definitely prepare myself better if that’s possible.
“Rose in Chains” is a romantasy based off of the Dramione fanfic “The Auction”. While I haven’t read that fanfic, I found the parallels pretty obvious. As someone who is a big fan of the canon, it was a little hard to separate from the original characters to these new characters, but I think I did my best.
Now on to my thoughts. I really love this authors writing style, it really hooks and draws the reader in with a combination of current and past timelines. However with that being said PLEASE check your trigger warnings with this. There is rampant SA in the book as a whole (primarily all the secondary/minor characters) and a master/soave dynamic which I’ve learned is my least favorite trope ever, although I think the author did it well, it was hard to stomach. Additionally, there’s a lot of graphic torture and large amounts of violence.
Overall, I think this was a good story but not 100% for me due to the triggers. There is a possibility that I’ll continue on when the other books release, but I’ll have to definitely prepare myself better if that’s possible.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Sexual violence, Violence, Murder
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
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
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
A darkly romantic fantasy filled with longing, power, and slow-burning tension. Rose In Chains follows Briony Rosewood, a captive with quiet fire, and Toven Hearst, her enigmatic Buyer and past schoolmate. Their connection simmers beneath every word, brought vividly to life by a stunning voice performance that feels like magic. Haunting, lyrical, and unforgettable. 🌹⛓️✨
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infertility, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual violence, Slavery, Toxic relationship, Violence, Trafficking, Sexual harassment
forced sterilization
dark
emotional
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Happy release day to Rose in Chains by Julie Soto! A dark romantasy following Rose, a political prisoner enslaved in the home of a powerful man from a rival kingdom. It is not a light read, but it is gripping if you are a dark romance fan.
As a fan of the original Dramione fanfiction, it was hard not to compare the two. The story is romance centric and carries the ruinous, morally grey energy of the original well but, ultimately, I have the same complaint with the traditionally published novel that I did with the original fan work. It's too long. Easily forgiven with the creation of a whole new world but the world-building felt pretty thin, and unfortunately, the book dragged in the middle for me. Soto nails the tension and messy, complicated dynamic between the characters though and it is absolutely worth the ride if you're into dark romance with lots of angst. Thank you NetGalley, Julie Soto, and Hachette Audio for the ALC.
As a fan of the original Dramione fanfiction, it was hard not to compare the two. The story is romance centric and carries the ruinous, morally grey energy of the original well but, ultimately, I have the same complaint with the traditionally published novel that I did with the original fan work. It's too long. Easily forgiven with the creation of a whole new world but the world-building felt pretty thin, and unfortunately, the book dragged in the middle for me. Soto nails the tension and messy, complicated dynamic between the characters though and it is absolutely worth the ride if you're into dark romance with lots of angst. Thank you NetGalley, Julie Soto, and Hachette Audio for the ALC.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infertility, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery, Violence, War