A review by reading_with_manders
Rose in Chains by Julie Soto

dark medium-paced
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

The first few chapters of Rose in Chains were agonizingly clunky to the point that I almost DNFed multiple times. The only reason I pushed through is because some of my friends who’d also gotten an advance copy assured me that it did get better. But those first chapters? The writing was stiff and stilted and the characters were flat and monotone. I did not believe for even a second that any of these people liked each other, which is rough given that two of them were twins.

There are also just so many names being used in the beginning and it is overwhelming because there isn’t much context for who these people are and why I should keep track of them (spoiler, I’ve given up on trying).

The book finally found its footing after the auction, when there was time to focus on Briony, Toven, and a few supporting characters rather than spend every other paragraph full-naming every single named character.

If you’re wondering does this read like a fanfiction? The answer is yes and no. Yes, because it felt like more of a serial polishing than a serial filing. No, because the first 20% of the book could really have used some fanfic magic of already caring about the characters to make it palatable.

I wish that the marketing was less focused on the IP that the fic was originally based on, especially given how much of a shitshow that author is, and that the book had done a better job of distancing itself from that original IP.

Will I continue on with this series? Probably. Am I going to be getting any of the five bajillion special editions? No.

Even though I did end up enjoying the majority of the book, because of how many times I nearly DNFed and how much the series didn’t even try to pretend that it was an original story instead of a fanfic with renamed characters and magic, I cannot in good conscience give this anything above a 3 star rating.

Thank you to Forever for the arc, I’m sad I didn’t like this more.
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