first things first
While being aware of Dramione fanfiction and having read a couple, I didn’t read the fanfiction this book was based on, so I kind of went into Rose in Chains blind. With that being said, I had no prior biases or expectations, so I’m not comparing this book to anything other than its own entity.
main thoughts
As a whole, I greatly enjoyed this book; honestly, more than I expected to–especially considering the slavery aspect, which was extremely difficult to read. The main critique I have of this book is that we’re just dropped right in the story without any concept of the world, the magic systems, and knowing nothing of the prophecy that allegedly made Briony’s brother–Rory–the chosen one to defeat the big bad. This made the first few chapters of the book a little jarring to read, so I kind of wish there was a little more explanation before reading all the flashbacks later on.
Aside from that, I enjoyed this read. Briony is intelligent and extremely capable and talented with magic while Rory, unfortunately, is not. This is where I was incredibly irritated with their father, the king. Rather than thinking, “hmm, maybe it’s not my son who is the chosen one, perhaps it’s my daughter,” the king fully embraced his misogynistic ways and persuaded Briony to help Rory with everything every step of the way. God forbid anyone know the princess was more talented than the prince 🙄 I also couldn’t help but feel like he was setting Rory up for failure in this way; making the prince believe he was stronger in his magic than he really was seemed not only cruel, but also completely undermined the whole “taking out the bad guy with super magical powers” thing.
I have to give the author some credit for starting this book out with the good guys losing, though. I’d never quite read a book that had that kind of story line, let alone a book that started out with the heroes losing. I actually quite liked that aspect and I thought it made the story more interesting.
Toven is a little infuriating–like any good a-hole MMC should be–and his infatuation with Briony is absolutely palpable. While he was one of her bullies in school, she always felt an undeniable attraction to him (and vice versa), yet they’re on completely opposite ends of the war. I have a feeling there’s something more going on with Toven’s family than we know about yet. I’m not sure if they’re planning a rebellion, but I know they aren’t as loyal as they’ve made themselves appear.
bullet points
- the white/silver hair MMCs are making a comeback and I’m so here for it (all my fellow Kakashi fans, rejoice!)
- this was my first read by Julie Soto, and I’m thinking I definitely need to read her contemporary romance.
- I’m super curious to see how the relationship between Briony and Toven progresses in the next two books. The slow burn is suuuuper slow, but I’m hoping these two are fated mates, or whatever this world’s equivalent would be.
- I loved Toven’s mom.
- Larissa is someone I expected to hate but I came to really like her by the end. I’m hoping she doesn’t betray Briony or Toven because she’s a super interesting character.
final thoughts
This was a great book that kept me engaged and interested to see what would happen next. If you’re interested in reading this book, make sure you check TWs because this is a dark read.
I’m really looking forward to reading the next book and continuing the story. The cliffhanger this book ended on was wild and most definitely has me ready for book 2!
As always, if you end up reading this book, feel free to come back and let me know what you thought in the comments below!
Happy reading!
thank you
I want to give a huge thanks to Forever Publishing for gifting me a copy of this e-book. All opinions stated are my own.
