Queen of Roses by Briar Boleyn | AHHH!!!!

I've got another book review to share with you lovelies!!

And I'm super excited cause this one is a King Arthur retelling with fae & just was done so well!

Queen of Roses by Briar Boleyn

Synopsis: A doomed love, a dangerous mission, and a kingdom on the brink of war...

A cast-off princess…

Born into a life of duty and sacrifice, Morgan Pendragon’s destiny has never been her own. Rumored to carry the tainted blood of the fae in her veins, her birthright is stolen from her when she is a mere child. Growing up in the shadow of her brother the king, she has been promised to the goddesses when she comes of age. So, when her brother commands that she seek out a fae weapon of legendary power, Morgan seizes the chance to break free from the chains of her fate.

A dangerous temptation…

As she travels, Morgan finds herself drawn into a strange group of outcasts, led by a dark and enigmatic warrior whose sharp wit and fierce beauty set her heart ablaze. But while Morgan struggles to reconcile her desires with her duty, she and her new comrades discover dangers that await them beyond anything in their wildest nightmares.

A slumbering kingdom awoken by blood…

Believed to have vanished generations ago, a fae kingdom dreaded by mortals is ascending once more, bound to reclaim what was lost by violence and bloodshed. As the fae world, with its intricate web of lies and mysteries, is slowly revealed to Morgan, she is led to the terrible realization that the secrets she carries in her blood make her a greater threat than she could ever have imagined.

The first in an action-packed new series brimming with magic, danger, and spellbinding slow-burn romance, Queen of Roses is perfect for fans of Holly Black, Jennifer L. Armentrout, and Sarah J. Maas.

~My Thoughts~

*First, I received this book from Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review, all thoughts & opinions are my own.*

This is the first in a fantasy romance series, and it felt so different from a lot of the fae reads I’ve read lately. It reminded me a lot of ACOTAR and From Blood and Ash, however I will say I enjoyed this one way more than the latter personally.

It felt very refreshing and wonderful to read!!

It was true hate-to- friends-to-lovers, slow burn, stabby heroine, & King Arthur retelling all rolled up into one.

And we all know how much I love a good retelling😍

I do recommend looking at the content warnings first, there was child abuse, child death, and alcohol abuse that I remember for sure off the top of my pregnant brain that forgets stuff lately 😅

So so good though if you can skim past those parts, and I can’t wait to snatch up book two!!

I started & finished it in the course of one night, because I couldn't put it down lol! I just had to stay up late to finish it!

Moran, the main character was so easy to start rooting for and I wanted so desperately to know where things would end up for her, I knew there were more books in the series so I had gotten rather nervous for her when nearing the end.

 I really liked the relationship between her and mr. dark and broody, I ended up loving him more and more as the story continued and he bantered and fought with Moragn.

I hated several side characters that were meant to be hated as they were terrible people, but there was one in particular introduced towards the end that I really did not like. I had already guessed the ending for this character and his 'reveal' so I wasn't surprised when he turned out to have been evil the whole time. I don't want to spoil who it was, I try to be very careful with spoilers in my reviews, but let me just say... it was very predictable.

Not predictable because of the writing or anything, it's just... Morgan had been through so much from people, like this chick does not freaking trust easy for a reason okay! And then all of a sudden, doesn't need to know more, is totally willing to trust this random new dude they just met... yeah, no someone drugged her or something. 

So when dude-the-readers-definitely-knew-not-to-trust betrays her, yeah no, not surprised.

Now on the topic of characters that I didn't like and we weren't supposed to, I will say that Morgan's brother Arthur, I really just empathized with her so much when dealing with. Because even though he'd become a monster, he was still her little brother, she couldn't look at him and not see that part of him.

And oh crap, that hit home. 

The backstory, the side characters that all felt like people coming off a page and not one of them the same, gahh it was so good!!

Next book please!!

What about you lovelies? Have you read this series or any works by the author??

Thoughts on King Arthur retellings?? I've read a handful of them, but I hope to read more.

Lots of love,

~NoelW