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A review by sachaps
Rose in Chains by Julie Soto
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Oh gosh what can I say. First, thank you NetGalley, Hatchett Audio, and Julie Soto for allowing me this ALC. I will be honest, I read The Auction years ago and it is one of my favorite Dramione fics. So this is probably my most anticipated read of the year and it did not disappoint! My perspective IS as someone who knows the source fic, so I cannot separate my knowledge and expectations; however, I think she did a good job creating her own world inside the story.
Worldbuilding: The world isn't too complicated for the most part. Two sides are at war and have their own beliefs about the source/use of magic that plays into their societal and political stances. We are dropped into what is essentially the end of this conflict and our FMC side lost. The introduction of the auction and why it started seemed to fit the narrative of their political/magical world. Because we follow the FMC around and she, due to her situation, is confined to limited travel, it is a lot of telling instead of showing.
Characters: There are a lot, haha. You are introduced to a lot of characters at once, which can feel slightly overwhelming. Our FMC is the twin to the heir, and she was raised as such. She is very opinionated, but at the same time, has been slightly conditioned to lower her own needs and thoughts in favor of her twin. I do think this plays a role into a lot of her decisions, which depending on the reader will appear frustrating or not. We've barely scratched the surface of our MMC but it is obvious that he is morally grey.
Romance: I think this is where the book is going to face some issues. It is being marketed as a romantasy when in reality it is a dark romance. It is also a sloooow burn. Our MMC tries to push our FMC away but she cannot leave his property, so they are forced to interact (love forced proximity).Honestly, a lot of development hinges on moments via flashback .
To the Dramione girls. I was initially worried about how Julie planned to transform The Auction into not only its own original story, but also a trilogy. I can comfortably say she introduced enough underlying plots to uncover and some major twists and changes that even I couldn't predict where the story was going by the end. My jaw was on the floor by the end, and I felt joy to know that even as someone who read the original fic I could be surprised.
I thought this would be my favorite read of the year, and as of now it definitely is!
Worldbuilding: The world isn't too complicated for the most part. Two sides are at war and have their own beliefs about the source/use of magic that plays into their societal and political stances. We are dropped into what is essentially the end of this conflict and our FMC side lost. The introduction of the auction and why it started seemed to fit the narrative of their political/magical world. Because we follow the FMC around and she, due to her situation, is confined to limited travel, it is a lot of telling instead of showing.
Characters: There are a lot, haha. You are introduced to a lot of characters at once, which can feel slightly overwhelming. Our FMC is the twin to the heir, and she was raised as such. She is very opinionated, but at the same time, has been slightly conditioned to lower her own needs and thoughts in favor of her twin. I do think this plays a role into a lot of her decisions, which depending on the reader will appear frustrating or not. We've barely scratched the surface of our MMC but it is obvious that he is morally grey.
Romance: I think this is where the book is going to face some issues. It is being marketed as a romantasy when in reality it is a dark romance. It is also a sloooow burn. Our MMC tries to push our FMC away but she cannot leave his property, so they are forced to interact (love forced proximity).
To the Dramione girls. I was initially worried about how Julie planned to transform The Auction into not only its own original story, but also a trilogy. I can comfortably say she introduced enough underlying plots to uncover and some major twists and changes that even I couldn't predict where the story was going by the end. My jaw was on the floor by the end, and I felt joy to know that even as someone who read the original fic I could be surprised.
I thought this would be my favorite read of the year, and as of now it definitely is!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Sexual violence, Slavery, Trafficking
Moderate: Death, Medical trauma, Classism
Minor: Abortion
Abortion: mention of a forced abortion on a side character
Medical Trauma: characters undergo forced steralization