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obr 's review for:
The Rose and the Claw
by Nancy O'Toole
Not so much the romance nor the "who could ever love a beast?" angst, what we have here is a wonderful, colorful tale of friendship and redemption. While the execution could feel a bit vague early on, when things start to come together it is absolutely perfect in its sweet, clean and vibrant fantasy novella format. It's certainly left me wanting more from the Twin Kingdoms, and I'm usually the first to complain a book isn't long enough! Think a concept closer to a mini Curse So Dark and Lonely, only with sass instead of romance.
The premise is thus: Kris is a beast. Rose Gardener is... Well, pretty for a dark-haired, solidly-built, musket-toting 30-something Vardian in the svelte blond-haired lands of Kelvia. Forced to become caretaker of Rosewood Manor and its beastly inhabitant by some angry townsfolk, this feisty lad ain't gonna take it lying down. But if she's going to escape, she needs to bide her time, make plans... Not spend time talking to Kris. Not getting to know the man beneath the monster. Not getting tangled up in the magic of the manor...
This is a novella of two halves, and if I'm honest it was the first half that had me wondering if I was reading the right book for me. The character voices were strong, I loved the world building, I loved that the characters were not teenagers nor did they act like them... But the plot could feel a bit thin and patchy in places, like it had been forgotten in character musings that hopped from one point to another. A couple of times when starting a new chapter I'd skip back, convinced I'd missed a few pages somewhere.
But. And this is one of those big BUTs...
I loved it. Second half and boom, we're cooking with gas. We're past the nebulous musings that do technically help to explain the characters and their situations but feel a tad vague, and suddenly things start clicking into place. Things start happening, twists crawl out of Rosewood Manor that are foreshadowed just enough to be delicious reveals you can't wait for rather than the slightly confusing half-truths told earlier that had left me frustrated. If the first half had been as good as the second, this would have been a 5-star read, and from nitpicky ole me, that's something!
So what is there to love regardless? Rose is a tough character (accented dialogue made me think bolshy Texan!), a fish out of water in a land that expects women to be meek, mild and mostly silent. She is certainly none of these. She's also not one of those cliche butt-kickers; sure, she can hold a musket, but it ain't hers exactly... She cooks. She gardens. She's dang competent and worldly without seeming fake. Thank the writerly gods for realistic older (30+ - ha!) women. She's got a backstory of love and loss that makes her more than a one note character. Kris is the tortured soul rather than the inner brute changed to match his nature, and his chapters are far more introspective which gives him is own voice. His backstory too holds many secrets. I was a bit weirded out by his early insta-attraction to Rose, but that kind of fades out... And to be honest, their friendship was more compelling without it having to be all loved-up.
Novellas often don't have the time to really develop their worlds, yet this one manages to in spades. OK, so maybe some of it in the beginning can feel confusing (the whole faith/words/gods thing, or how sometimes info can feel ever so slightly dumped in rather than coming naturally), but once the setup of the Twin Kingdoms, it's history and customs have been established, it was a real draw for me. Many fantasy books can't make a setting so fleshed out in 300+ pages (though the one nitpick here: is it medieval or gunpowder fantasy, and why would either have a kitchen island with barstools in an old manor?)
Yes it could be longer. It could have more things going on. I'm not convinced that it needs to, as the ending felt perfect for the characters and left my shrivelled heart with a little spark of "awww". Maybe the beginning could be a bit vague, and yes I could wish that part had a few more pages to smooth things out, but it was a sweet read that made me smile because it was right for what it was.
The premise is thus: Kris is a beast. Rose Gardener is... Well, pretty for a dark-haired, solidly-built, musket-toting 30-something Vardian in the svelte blond-haired lands of Kelvia. Forced to become caretaker of Rosewood Manor and its beastly inhabitant by some angry townsfolk, this feisty lad ain't gonna take it lying down. But if she's going to escape, she needs to bide her time, make plans... Not spend time talking to Kris. Not getting to know the man beneath the monster. Not getting tangled up in the magic of the manor...
This is a novella of two halves, and if I'm honest it was the first half that had me wondering if I was reading the right book for me. The character voices were strong, I loved the world building, I loved that the characters were not teenagers nor did they act like them... But the plot could feel a bit thin and patchy in places, like it had been forgotten in character musings that hopped from one point to another. A couple of times when starting a new chapter I'd skip back, convinced I'd missed a few pages somewhere.
But. And this is one of those big BUTs...
I loved it. Second half and boom, we're cooking with gas. We're past the nebulous musings that do technically help to explain the characters and their situations but feel a tad vague, and suddenly things start clicking into place. Things start happening, twists crawl out of Rosewood Manor that are foreshadowed just enough to be delicious reveals you can't wait for rather than the slightly confusing half-truths told earlier that had left me frustrated. If the first half had been as good as the second, this would have been a 5-star read, and from nitpicky ole me, that's something!
So what is there to love regardless? Rose is a tough character (accented dialogue made me think bolshy Texan!), a fish out of water in a land that expects women to be meek, mild and mostly silent. She is certainly none of these. She's also not one of those cliche butt-kickers; sure, she can hold a musket, but it ain't hers exactly... She cooks. She gardens. She's dang competent and worldly without seeming fake. Thank the writerly gods for realistic older (30+ - ha!) women. She's got a backstory of love and loss that makes her more than a one note character. Kris is the tortured soul rather than the inner brute changed to match his nature, and his chapters are far more introspective which gives him is own voice. His backstory too holds many secrets. I was a bit weirded out by his early insta-attraction to Rose, but that kind of fades out... And to be honest, their friendship was more compelling without it having to be all loved-up.
Novellas often don't have the time to really develop their worlds, yet this one manages to in spades. OK, so maybe some of it in the beginning can feel confusing (the whole faith/words/gods thing, or how sometimes info can feel ever so slightly dumped in rather than coming naturally), but once the setup of the Twin Kingdoms, it's history and customs have been established, it was a real draw for me. Many fantasy books can't make a setting so fleshed out in 300+ pages (though the one nitpick here: is it medieval or gunpowder fantasy, and why would either have a kitchen island with barstools in an old manor?)
Yes it could be longer. It could have more things going on. I'm not convinced that it needs to, as the ending felt perfect for the characters and left my shrivelled heart with a little spark of "awww". Maybe the beginning could be a bit vague, and yes I could wish that part had a few more pages to smooth things out, but it was a sweet read that made me smile because it was right for what it was.