Dieses Buch ist einfach großartig. Alle Romantasy Fans sollten es lesen! Ich bin schon hooked für den zweiten Teil!

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC copy. I really enjoyed this book, the world building was great and the romance sizzled. My only reservation was that I easily could see it was based on a Dramione fanfiction, however I realise that is not necessarily a negative. The story was involving and suspenseful and I'm excited to read the next book. 4.5/5

This was not as spicy I anticipated, and it felt like not enough happened. Like, they saved a lot of plot for the next book. However. really loving the dynamic and the direction of the series.

3.5 stars.

A solid read throughout but I didn't get the hype I have heard for it. I think it says everything that my favourite character was Serena 😂

The last 60 pages had me very intrigued and has made me consider picking up Book 2 more than the majority of the book did

dnf 66%

i tried. i really tried, but in the end there were a multitude of factors that influenced my overall decision to drop this book. rose in chains was one of my most anticipated releases of 2025, but this book was not the exciting romantasy everyone on social media raved about. i went into reading rose in chains with an expectation that the world feels new and different—far removed from its origins. the beginning is riveting, full of heart-racing action and nail-biting moments as the war unfolds, but as the narrative continues it starts losing all momentum and that initial interest starts to fizzle. anytime i opened up my kindle, i either didn’t bother with reading or focused my attention elsewhere—i had to stop reading rose in chains twice and dreaded picking it up. that was when i decided, “no more”. the writing was repetitive and the overall structure could’ve been made cohesive if a substantial amount of this book was cut. we did not need the same scenes occurring each evening to ‘show’ character growth. much of the main story consists of briony being locked away for her protection, feeling sad and oftentimes whining about something; sometimes she’s allowed out to the social gatherings where women are sexually assaulted. the plot was slow and repetitive, with almost no progression to keep the narrative engaging.

as the narrative unfolds, the finer details are handed to us through a series of flashbacks and, though this literary device doesn’t bother me, it doesn’t create engaging reading when we have little to almost no knowledge of the world, its magic and its history leading up to these points. the flashbacks were used too much and out of order and often at random moments, and the details we are given are vague and lacking crucial information. this works fine when it’s fanfiction, because we know the text it’s derived from and the world is already established, but not as much when it’s been traditionally published as ‘original’ writing. the concept of mind versus heart magic is really interesting, but the execution was lacklustre as the magic is never fleshed out—why is mind magic “acceptable”, but heart magic is inherently bad? why does one kingdom favour one form of magic over the other? maybe the answer will be handed to us in the next two books, but don’t expect me to be waiting around for it.

this is advertised as dark fantasy and while there's dark elements such as sexual slavery, forced sterilisation, and non-consensual moments (make sure to read the trigger warnings for further information), this isn’t as dark as i expected. that isn’t julie soto’s fault; it’s more so an issue personally with my expectations of what i want in my dark romances and what i assumed this book would involve. part of this book revolves around the intricacies of the war between the eversuns and the bomardis, and the bomardis' odd obsession with purity through women’s virginities and the purchasing of sex slaves who are used to bolster the strength of heart-magic. so, while dark in nature, our main character manages to remain unscathed bar her full agency no longer being her own but rather in the possession of toven hearst. i read elsewhere that briony’s sterilisation never actually occurred and unlike her fellow eversuns, her virginity remains intact within a bottle. magic!

♡ briony rosewood
for someone who has first-hand experience with war, death and slavery, briony rosewood was neither strong, nor weak. she was flat, bland and disinteresting. briony's personality doesn't mold, shift or show growth as her encounters with horrific acts unfold—i refuse to accept, “oh, she's become dissensitised,” as an excuse to cast aside her lack of characterisation. not once does she mourn the tragic loss of her twin brother, who also happens to be the leader of the eversun kingdom, but she has enough personality to hyperfixate on some random housemaid who kissed her. for someone described as intelligent, she lacked critical thinking and possessed an iota of emotion when faced with what should’ve been harrowing moments. she sits inside a jail cell writing words with grapes to show solidarity, meanwhile, there’s women being forced to perform sexual acts under the influence of substances or sacrificing themselves in vain to protect the other women. i wanted to witness a woman scorned and belittled by patriarchal social constructs to show some rage and fierceness.

♡ toven hearst
toven is meant to be a misunderstood, morally grey kind of main character. his actions, while abhorrent, have reason to justify them—he’s ‘protective’ of briony, hence one of the reasons for purchasing her for an obscene amount at the auction. it was clear toven has pined for briony for a long time, but maintained his hidden feelings. for what reasons? i don’t know and that was one of my biggest issues. we have zero reason to believe his feelings are genuine because we aren’t shown or even told the reasons for his feelings. i don’t have much else to rant about because toven, much like briony, is such a flat and uninspiring character.

♡ briony rosewood + toven hearst
the affection toven feels towards briony comes across as forced, with no substance behind it to make his feelings appear genuine. despite the series of flashbacks to, i assume, provide context and justification of toven’s actions leading up to him purchasing briony, i still walked away from rose in chains believing toven did not have an inkling of affection for her. this is supposed to be slow-burning, with so much tension and situations of forced proximity, however the chemistry was missing. i wanted pure obsession. i wanted yearning but the flashbacks were unconvincing and did not make me believe in toven’s affections. the lack of emotional foundation from the very beginning made each interaction unremarkable and unbelieveable.

♡ the side characters
the sheer amount of side characters in rose in chains is insane and the fact that a majority of them had full names, as if we're supposed to know who they are, further irritated me. realistically, how many of these characters will be monumental to the overall narrative? i can’t imagine most of them, therefore we don't require full name introductions to an inane cohort of characters who won't mean anything in the grand scheme. it was wasted writing.

rose in chains is supposed to be a slow-burn romance with pining and yearning, with a hint of obsession from afar but it was everything but. for the slow-burn to work, there needs to be tension and chemistry however everything between toven and briony lacked emotions and connection due to the missing emotional foundation. our leading characters were flat, with no dimension or interesting aspects to their personalities—briony is nothing more than a captive princess (who can study, walk around hearst hall and still use her magic), but she has zero ambition to save her kingdom; toven is meant to be the villain and we’re led to believe his actions are justified under the guise of protecting briony, but we’re never told or shown the reasons to make his feelings appear genuine. the lack of world-building was the most disappointing aspect for me. i love to read fantasy because the worlds are far removed from reality, but when there’s a lack of information and expansion on what we do know, nothing about the world remains engaging.

Thank you so much for the ARC. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to read this because I didn't have the time.

Wow, wow, wow. I don't even know where to begin, I devoured this in 48 hours!! This was one of my most anticipated releases and it did not disappoint - this was deliciously dark and the most tension packed romantasy I've read in a while. Julie Soto's writing is nothing short of spectacular in this and I am already itching to return to this world, I genuinely cannot stop thinking about this book and these characters.

Rose in Chains is an absolute MASTERCLASS in an enchanting enemies to lovers story that is brimming with angst, yearning and anticipation. This is truly how you write a slow burn. My heart is so happy this is a trilogy and this first installment has set up a high stakes and mouthwatering series that I cannot wait to sink my teeth into.

Absolutely speechless and undeniably one of THE romantasy's of the year. Will be rocking back and forth waiting for book 2!!

This is a dark romantic fantasy - please check content warnings before diving in! The full list can be found on Julie's website.

The biggest thank you to HarperInsider at Harper Collins for sending me a proof copy to review - I'm so grateful!

While I enjoyed it for the most part, I feel this should not be marketed as a Romantasy. Dark Fantasy with a romance subplot for sure, but when I heard it’s a Romantasy I was expecting something a little more light hearted. Still very intrigued to see where the next installment goes!

⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ½

Much appreciation to HarperCollinsUK and Netgalley for the eARC!!

This is one of those books that you either absolutely love or find to be a complete mess, and I can honestly see why. The premise of a captured princess and her morally grey captor with a secret past is compelling, and the slow-burn, enemies-to-lovers tension is either addictive or completely forced, depending on who you ask. The world-building and unique magic system are great concepts, but the book throws so many names and terms at you that it often feels like you need a glossary just to keep up. I appreciated the dark themes and the emotional depth, but some of the character choices like a slap that goes unaddressed and an unnecessary focus on the heroine's virginity, left me with questions. Ultimately, if you're a fan of a particular kind of dark romantasy with a heavy dose of angst and betrayal, you might just devour this. But if you're a new reader expecting a polished, standalone fantasy, you might find it to be a frustrating and disjointed read.

#RoseInChains #Netgalley

5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Please take in mind it’s my opinion, and everyone is allowed to have one.

I was hooked from beginning till the end with this book, it was such a wild, intriguing and intense ride. So much action, intensity?? Power?? You got me there.

Bri is such a queen character, doesn’t back down, truly refreshing. Was so great to see how much more she developed into her magic like the queen she is.

And Toven??? Where do I begin? I was waiting for him to enter the book, it got even more interesting then. I’m so curious about his character, I’d honestly love to be inside his head. The fact I underestimated him, but swear he and his fam are more than we think..

Then the tension between those two??? I was on edge, I need more MORE M O R E! And the ending?? I’m sorry??? I’ve got so much more questions than before, I can’t wait to see how book 2 is going to be like.

I was fully obsessed with this book! I loved the angst and drama and the slow burn slow burned 🥰
This book is dark, so check triggers, however if you pick this one up you won't regret it!

I wish I liked this more. At the start I really was engaged, it read like a fanfic so my emotions were all in, but I lost interest around 50%.

While reading this book, my mind was dwelling on the fact that this was inspired by Harry Potter world and who all these names were originally, like the fact that there are so many names of families and individuals dropped, without the background source was very confusing. I think this should have been edited more, as well as marketed differently.

Not enough for me like this.

My first Julie soto and bit my last I can’t wait for part 2. I struggled at first wasn’t sure if this was my kind of read but goodness it is so well written and Julie knows just how to give the reader a ride!! This story has me hooked and who knew the man we all wanted to hate seems to be a hero or is he?

I couldn’t bring myself to care sorry. DNF at 19%

the story begins in the middle of a war. knowing that it's supposed to be enemies to lovers romantasy, this immediately unsettled me. people are literally dying and tortured and you're conflicted with your feelings toward an enemy??? an enemy who's your BULLY back in school btw. girl...

btw patriarchy is alive and well here, and the MC is actually very smart but demanded to "hold back" so her twin brother could shine better. but apparently she didn't only hold back, she actively HELPED him excel and impress their tutors. and he never bothered to thank her, sometimes he didn't even realize that SHE helped him. omg. i was so mad on her behalf i hate stupid incompetent men.

A fantasy book like none I have read before including themes of slavery and human trafficking. It's a fantastic start to the series and I'm really intrigued to see what will happen next.

I really enjoyed this.
It was extremely difficult to read at times so please check the trigger warnings exspecially at the beginning. It serves its purpose though as you feel for the characters so much and it creates so much tension and emotions whilst reading.
I love the slow burn of it and I’m really looking forward to the next book- its set the story up really well and I can’t wait for the story to develop more

A lot darker than I expected and as much as I enjoy this author’s writing I couldn’t get into this one like I was hoping to. 2.5 stars

This was just so interesting. The concept felt a bit inspired by The Handmaids Tale and so the themes did get a little bit darker at times. And important to note is that despite this being a Romantasy, it is very slow burn. But especially the dragon plotline got me really hooked at the end. I am looking forward to see how this story unfolds, since this is only the first book in a series.

Princess Briony Rosewood has lost everything, her family, and her people have lost the war against the Bomardi. She has lost all hope, then she is captured and sold off to the highest bidder. She wasn't expecting for her childhood school enemy Toven Hearst to win her, but she is determined to find a way to make right everything she believes in.

This book was exactly want I wanted it to be, I just wish we had gotten all of the story in one volume but alas I understand why the story was spilt the way it was. My only gripe is the world building needed a bit more fleshing out. The author did a good job of separating this story from it's original form, but in doing that the world and magic system needed to change and I am not sure all the information we needed was presented. The romance was delicious and had me on the edge of my seat. I just loved the story and the direction it is going in. I am eagerly waiting the next part of the story.

Julie,Julie ,Julie hello you dark smutty queen you !! thank you so much for letting me review the audio and book i felt very very lucky.


The war is lost , there is no hero , the princess is a prisoner all is lost or is it .........

i am in love with this world , the characters and the plot i would live in this world's main character { princess ] yes please !!

it is so dark and sinister brilliant dark fantasy tie me up and gag me now !! one of my favourite slow burn stories this year , you could leave me in this dark romance story forever .

i have read the book and listened to the audio wow the way the narrators bring these characters to life made my spine tingle , i thought the flashback parts helped me understand them all better . the world building is a chef kiss .

Julie writing i have no words she knows how to suck you in and live in this book forever .i am totally invested in this story my dark-side is ready for more that for sure . I am happy to go sit in Julie's head cause i love how she thinks outside the box .

i am giving this book 5 delicious dark stars