3.75 rounded to 4 Stars

Queen of Roses is loosely based off the King Arthur tale but with fae . Same characters but names and genders have been changed.
This book follows Morgan Pendragon who is half fae after her mother. She is the kings first born daughter but has been denied her birthright due to her fae lineage. Instead her brother Arthur takes the throne and is becoming just as cruel as her father was. Morgan is also trying to protect her innocent younger brother from Arthur too.
Morgan sent on an impossible mission by her brother soon learns what she is capable of and what her brother the king really is up to.
The romance I thought was going to happen ended up heading towards a love triangle which I don’t mind.
The world building is fantastic in this book and I really enjoyed it. The plot flowed perfectly and had a good steady pace. I enjoyed the action throughout the book. I especially loved the twists that I did not see coming.
The ending does finish on a cliffhanger but I have book two I can delve straight into!
This is a great start into a new series.

Thank you to Netgalley, Publisher and the author for and advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

This book started off a little slow for my liking but about halfway through it was so worth it. At first I couldn’t wrap my head around some of the drastic changes in some rather famous characters but I can’t wait for book 2

I really enjoyed this book! I went into it blind and was really pleased with how. Inch I loved it. Having an Arthur/Merlin retelling but with Fae mixed in is just genius!

Even though most of the story is set with them travelling, I didn’t find myself getting bored as there was still plenty to encounter in the woods.

I really liked the characters! I think Draven needed to be featured a bit more. As soon as Vesper came into the picture Draven kind of disappeared. I absolutely loathed Vesper and thought he was slimy right from the start. I did like Morgan BUT she did start to annoy me because it seemed like she wasn’t capable of thinking for herself! She had absolutely no backbone and was hoping she’d build one as the story went on but sadly not. Hopefully in book 2! I’m also hoping to see more of Draven’s furry kitten friend too.

Really nice and easy to understand world building as well. This one definitely ended on a cliff hanger though so will need to immediately dive into book 2!

I received an ARC copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Lately I’ve been really enjoying retellings of stories I know from being a child so when I saw there was one based on King Arthur but with fae I was immediately interested.

I really enjoyed the fact that it was switched on it’s head - Morgan, a young fae, half sister of Arthur being the protagonist made me feel straight away that this was something I would enjoy as Morgan is usually depicted to be the villain and Arthur as the good guy. But that’s not the case here.
Morgan is the older sister who has been passed over for the crown by her father in favour of Arthur. Arthur is currently the king when we are introduced to the characters and Morgan has been promised to the priestesses but would rather be a knight.
As you might guess Arthur is after Excalibur and has sent his sister Morgan to bring it to him. Joined by Draven they set off in a hurry. As time passes Morgan starts to change physically along with powers manifesting.
This book has some of my favourite tropes - strong female main character, grumpy mysterious love interest, forced proximity, touch her you die etc.

It is what you would expect from the first book in a fantasy series in that you have the required world building but I would say it’s not the whole first half of the book is explaining what’s happening and you’re almost begging for the story to start.

All around a very good read. Something familiar with the King Arthur story but at the same time it’s not a story that I’ve found to be overdone.

Also - I have a love/hate relationships with cliffhangers. I will 100% be picking up book two. Plus the authors note promised more spice in book two…

This book is now one of my absolute favorites! Spice is always a plus! I devoured this in one sitting. I could not put it down. It does end on a cliffhanger so enter at your own risk but book 2 is out now. (Thank goodness because I need answers) Definitely pick this up if you are also an SJM fan.

Blood and ash fans your next five star read is here. A world to get lost in one of the best books I have read this year.

This book was absolutely amazing!! I loved everything about this book, it had me enthralled from the very beginning all the way to the last page! Morgan is such a wonderful character and I can’t wait to see her grow more confident in herself and her abilities! All the characters were super loveable and I hope we get to see more of them! I will say that one of the plot twists I could see coming, but there was still a lot I did not see coming at all! There are many twists and turns in this book and they kept me riveted for hours! If you are into fairytale retellings or the legend of Camelot you will absolutely love this book! This book is a true slow burn and I can’t wait to see where it goes from here!

I wasn’t sure I was going to enjoy this at first. The first part of the book is a lot of world building which, I totally understand but it was just a lot of information. I instantly liked the characters though so I pushed through. I’m so glad I did because part two really got the story moving. Morgan is set up perfectly for some amazing character development and the mystery that is Draven is superb. Definitely recommend sticking with the book even if you hate a lot of world building. It’s worth it.

This book was great, I really enjoyed it and will definitely be continuing on with the series! Overall I'm giving this 4 stars, unfortunately I didn't get completely absorbed into this world, however I would like to say that I believe the reason I wasn't truly sucked in is because of my own lack of arthurian legend knowledge so I had to keep really thinking about and analysing when I recognised names/places.

By the end of the book I was completely on board with our characters and both feel like I know them and can't wait to learn more about them, I found the main character's growth throughout the book really good, at times she was annoying to follow but she grew from those moments and looking back at how the character is I do thing the more screaming in my head why are you being so stupid moments were necessary for growth of the character.

Unfortunately there are no more 100% true positives, moments that I loved that I can give without spoilers but just know there were so many moments that I found myself just eating the story up and not being able to put it down.

The ending was predictable, but I'm not sure where we're going to go from there, I feel like there were a couple of character revelations that were obvious and then honestly I just got a couple of lucky guesses in too, there was only one moment near the end that truly shocked and surprised me and I would have liked for there to be a bit more of that feeling that it gave me, however obviously a couple of the more predictable elements I feel like my guesses could have been completely off, they just happened to hit.

Overall I would recommend this, and for me I can only see my enjoyment of the following books in the series increasing especially with how we ended. I would say if you enjoyed the TV show merlin as a kid and now as an adult have read books like a court of thorns and roses, red queen, and sin eater's daughter then I would say give this book a go as there is a very good chance you'll like it!

Thanks to @netgalley , the publishers, and the author for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Please do yourself and read this book!

Thank you NetGalley for granting me access to this book in exchange for my honest review.

If you enjoyed the ACOTAR series and you are looking for something new to read, look no further. This book has it all!

Morgan, the main character, was written beautifully and I thoroughly enjoyed reading about how she finally got answers to some of her life long questions. She did make me furious at times by doing some very stupid things! But it definitely helped add to her story. I also love that her two best friends are attracted to the same gender, I loved that there was some representation in this book.

Arthur... the hate I felt for this man! The author did a fantastic job at writing this character. Even when I thought I couldn't despise him more... the author proved me wrong. This character had my blood boiling!

I think that this book was well paced for the most part, the end could have been made a bit longer or the actual rise of the story could have come sooner. However, the ending really left me questioning most of my assumptions about certain characters.

There is also some spice in the book. It's not extremely smutty... but I'm hoping the next book gives me more.

This book really bought out so many emotions and I highly recommend giving it a read. Please read the trigger warnings that are provided if you are a sensitive reader.

Ok so I literally just finished the book and I…don’t know what to say. Lol I liked it, I think? I mean there were moments I enjoyed where I giggled a little or got a little emotional for the characters but I wasn’t like “deeply moved”. The story throws you right into Morgan’s life and while I usually don’t mind jumping right in I found myself confused at times or wondering what the heck is going on. I feel like it could’ve used more/ better world-building and an expansion on the characters so I could feel better connected to them. Quite often I felt that Morgan was a bit dumb/gullible and weak. Don’t get me wrong she grows a bit throughout the story but it was so frustrating to read how easily she is deceived, how gullible she is knowing her brother wants her dead and how unwilling she was at first to stand up for herself or protect herself! Yet the love for family, her friends, her people is moving. You want her to wake up and rise up so bad I couldn’t help but root for her. There were things throughout the story that were interesting enough that the story did hold my attention till the end at least. Despite a few aspects, I still enjoyed the story enough to continue because I want to know what happens with Morgan and her powers, Dravens goals & aspirations, and what happens to Kaye, Lancelot and the rest of the gang. I wouldn’t recommend this to anyone except someone just coming into the fantasy romance genre. I feel like to someone more advanced you’ll find this book enjoyable but lacking and if you’re new to the genre then you might just devour this.

(Thank you to NetGalley and Briar Boleyn for sending me a free copy of the book in exchange for an honest review!)

When she was young, Morgan watches her father kill her Fae-blooded mother. Now 20, Morgan lives in a very human kingdom where anyone with Fae blood is heavily persecuted. Due to being part Fae, she’s passed up for the throne and the only thing that really saves Morgan is that she is King Arthur's sister. Instead, she is expected be sent to the temple when she turns 21 to study under the High Priestess Merlin, a fate she’s not exactly thrilled with, but one she must accept. Arthur comes to her with an important task that could save the kingdom.

I kind of went into this blind as I’m personally not familiar with the story of King Arthur and Excalibur, but I know enough understand this is a dark re-telling and a fresh take as many of the characters are gender-bent. So while Queen of Roses encompasses all of our favorite tropes, it actually ended up being very unique for me. There’s a lot of world-building, secrets, and witty banter. It’s difficult to know who to trust and encourages turning the pages to find out. I have to say, the beginning of the novel is on the slower side, but pacing does improve as it goes on.

I especially love the character of Morgan. She fights for her people. I love that she isn't perfect at everything, but she tries her hardest. She has people who push her and care for her. I enjoyed her journey of becoming what she has been suppressing and embracing herself. She’s no damsel in distress and can save herself in this one.

Special shoutout to all the little creatures. I would love to have my own little Exmoor.

**Planning to come back and update with instagram post.

Thank You to NetGalley and Briar Boleyn for the opportunity to review this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Tropes
❤️‍🔥Slow Burn between FMC and MMC
❤️‍🔥Who did this to you
❤️‍🔥Touch her and die
❤️‍🔥Forced Proximity
❤️‍🔥Fated
❤️‍🔥Self Discovery


What can I say about this book.....? I loved it! Briar took the Aurtherian tale and tipped it on its head! She said lets make it a fantastical fantasy world with Fae, Magic, and full of mystical creatures. She did such a wonderful job with the world building that I felt like I was along for the ride.

I loved that she role reveresed a few of the side characters ( i.e. Merlin and Lancelot).

But most of all she made me fall in love with our FMC Morgana Pendragon. Who is the older sister to Aurther. The story is about discovering who she is. She is a half fae half human (maybe) who has no idea what she is capable of. She is witty, snarky, caring and courageous.
Then we meet her match the mysterious, broody, insuffrable MMC Kairos Draven. Who is chosen to be one of her personal protectors/ guards on the epic journey that King Arthur sends Morgan on to find The Sword of Perun ( better know as Excalibur).

Overall I enjoyed this book and look forward to seeing what book two brings!

Warning it does end on a cliffhanger!

I am a sucker for Arthurian legend retellings. Everything we know or are familiar with when it comes to Arthurian legends is turned on its head with a fae twist to it.

It was so refreshing to read a re-telling that isn’t just cut and paste of the original tale! Especially with the added element of fae. I loved the plot. The story itself is super easy to read and goes along at a comfortable pace.

I found the main female character Morgan to be very one dimensional and incredibly naïve. Even at 80/90% through the book she STILL hasn’t figured out the lies she has been told & the truth of the world. I preferred the other characters so much more!

Despite my struggles with the female main character, I actually enjoyed this book. The plot had me hooked from the get go and I will be continuing on with the series.

Morgan Pendragon, bound by her brother's commands and promised to a pious existence in the temple of the Three, has a life already decided for her. Hindered from claiming her rightful throne due to her fae lineage, she seizes an opportunity to escape, embarking on a quest for a potent weapon. Amidst inner conflict, she uncovers world-altering revelations.

This book has its highs and lows, but on the whole, it's enjoyable and lays the foundation for the series. It has great potential to become a fan favourite, thanks to its engaging Fae storyline and well-crafted plot. But it somewhat felt lacking in some other aspects.

The world-building is vivid and dynamic, avoiding excessive poetic descriptions. The brisk pace keeps the action alive, unlike many fantasy books that tend to take their time picking up.

Kairos Draven's character is amazing. He’s compassionate and respectful not only to the heroine but also to the surrounding nature.

On the downside, Morgan comes across as annoying. While her sheltered nature and naivete are understandable, her self-deprecation and excessive submission grind my gears. Particularly her unquestioning acceptance of a harmful drug and failure to seek aid after torture.

The romance was disappointing, diverting from a promising slow burn to an unexpected love triangle.

But despite flaws, the series starts well, concluding with a compelling cliffhanger I'm eager to know more about. I’m hopeful for Morgan’s character growth in the following books, and a return to the more fitting slow burn romance that the story initially hinted at.

(Posting review on Instagram soon @beco_books)

🌹 𝙌𝙪𝙚𝙚𝙣 𝙤𝙛 𝙍𝙤𝙨𝙚𝙨 🌹
𝖡𝗋𝗂𝖺𝗇 𝖡𝗈𝗅𝖾𝗒𝗇

I do love a good fantasy and I discovered this one and its sequel on @netgalley , so thank you for the complimentary copy! Imagine the world of Camelot, but fae. Arthur is on the throne, despite his half sister being the true heir and he feeds off power and fear, sending

Morgan Pendragon, a princess whose life has been bound by duty and sacrifice is stripped of her birthright because she is rumored to carry the fae's tainted blood. She is destined to serve the Goddesses in the temple upon reaching maturity, but Morgan craves more, yearning to seize control of her own fate. She is sent on a treacherous quest by her brother and King, Arthur, to uncover a legendary fae weapon, also known as Excalibur. As Morgan unravels the intricacies of the fae world, a shocking revelation dawns upon her – the secrets coursing through her veins render her a greater threat than she could have ever imagined.

This is a slow burn enemies to lover fantasy romance. All things considered this first installment is mildly spicy, which left me slightly disappointed in that department, but I am excited to see what book 2 brings. The story and the characters are setting this up to be a great series. I love that many of the familiar Camelot characters are women in this version including Merlin and Lancelet (instead of Lancelot) Book two, A Court of Claws is already out and I know there’s going to be a third book for sure.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC of Queen of Roses in exchange for a review!

This is a King Arthur inspired story with a Fae twist. I enjoyed the character building, as well as the world building. It’s a slowwwwww burn, but the world building and the plot make it exciting. I would love to have seen a more in depth development of Morgan’s powers and coming into her Fae heritage, but I have a feeling that we will see plenty of that in the next book. I can’t wait to see how the relationship between Morgan and Draven grows.

Oh my gosh, the cliffhanger ending though?! I loved that it switched to a different POV - I love dual POV, especially in fantasy, and would have loved even more of that.

I think it’s important to read the trigger warnings listed for this book, but I think that the author handed all these dark themes really well.

Overall, I really enjoyed this and can’t wait to dive into book two!!

This book was such a delightful re-imagining of the classic tale of King Arthur. Believe me, this stands entirely on its own as an entertaining and original story. This book pulls on so many familiar characters that you think you know, yet casts them in new roles.
Our FMC Morgan is fierce yet naive and she goes through a lot of personal growth throughout the story. This young woman has endured all sorts of trauma and has been forced to hide who she really is. It was great to see her start to embrace herself as the book went on.
As far as Draven, the MMC goes..I can't wait to read book two. By the time I finished this book, I had so many questions about him. He is a protector, a defender, and seems to be so much more than he lets others believe.
Our secondary characters were fun additions to the book. I loved the way all the characters support each other. It makes me want friends like that too.
The lore and mythology created in this story is intricate. There are gods and goddesses of old that tie into the history of this world. These legends help lead where the story takes us.
There are a few of my favorite tropes in this book such as enemies-to-lovers, one horse, and "who did this to you?" If you like these tropes, check this book out!
There is little bit of spice in this story, but it is a slow burn.
This story features pain and cruelty but also shows the power of friendship and hope.
There are a few trigger warnings, so please check the list before you read the book if this is a concern for you. This was a 5 star rating for me because I loved the storyline and am hooked so much I need to read the next book!
Thank you NetGalley and Briar Boleyn for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

Disclaimer: I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Publication date: April 15, 2023

Queen of Roses is the first in the Blood of Fae series by Briar Boleyn. This is my first book by this author and I already have been approved for book 2!

Morgan Pendragon was born to be a Queen. The first child of the King and his first wife who was rumoured to be Fae. Fear of her bloodline ensures her father skips heirs and bestows the crown on her brother who is just as evil and uncaring as her father was.

Promised to the goddesses, Morgan spends her days training for a war she’ll never fight and learning about the goddesses she doesn’t believe in. As she watches her kingdom and people starve in the wake of her brothers rule, Morgan does everything she can to give back and help her people.

Morgan is sent on an impossible mission to the Bloodlands in search of Fae artifacts that are said to contain magic and power. Accompanied by her brother’s handpicked goons Morgan sets out on an adventure of a lifetime.

After refusing the medicine she has taken for years to keep the “Fae blood” at bay, Morgan’s appearance begins to change and power flows through her. As Morgan struggles with who to trust and what these powers mean, we’re left with a cliff hanger leading into the next book

This is a 3 star read for me. There were some bright spots in the writing and story to keep me interested in reading the next instalment. There were parts that seemed unnecessarily long and detailed and other important elements that weren’t teased out or explained enough. I see potential, so am looking forward to seeing what’s next!

#NetGalley #queenofroses #briarboleyn

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a free copy for review.

I enjoyed reading this - the main characters were well developed and there are some clever twists on Arthurian legends here, most notably the character of Arthur and indeed Morgan herself, which prevented predictability. The world building was done well, building out from the Court to the city, surrounding lands and then Morgan's journey.
A weaker area, however, are the secondary characters, particularly the villainous ones - the motivations for some of their actions, particularly those carried out against Morgan by Florian, for example, was never clear to me, which leads to some elements feeling gratuitous or simply there to show how horrible Morgan's life was.

The romance is slow burn indeed, a little surprisingly so, in fact considering the emphasis placed on 'spice' in the description, but gets there in the end, although with a love triangle on route.

Overall, a good first novel in what I assume to be a trilogy, that sets the stage, with a dramatic cliffhanger, for the next book.