Thank you so much to HarperCollins and NetGalley for an ARC in return for an honest review!

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4,5 stars - a dark fantasy romance that lived up to my expectations and left me desperate for the next book

<i> “There is a lake with still waters” </i>

Reading a new-to-me author is always a little bit exciting and a little bit scary, but Julie Soto had me by the throat in her excellent grip from the very start.
The writing is fast paced and easy to keep up with, and the magic system feels familiar enough to almost immediately grasp (at least for fantasy readers) yet also new enough to feel fresh and intriguing. I liked the world and its politics, and the plot felt just as interesting to me as the romance aspect did.

I loved the push and pull between Briony and Toven, they’re both trying to balance duty vs needs vs wants and watching them struggle to figure out what they want and who they want to be in the current political climate of the story was a deliciously angsty treat to read.
The other characters were also interesting and fun to read about, and I am especially intrigued by and fond of the Hearst family as a whole. Including the house. I love a magical house.
I really enjoyed getting to know the characters both in the past and present, and to see how their pasts informed their actions and choices in the present.
I’d love to see more of the familiars as the story progresses, and more of the bonds between siblings and friends… And between Briony and Toven, most of all.

I can’t wait to see where the story goes next - especially with that ending!! Oh my gosh!!

THAT WAS AMAZING!!!!!! Easily my #1 book of 2025 and one of my all time favourite books EVER. Briony and Toven had the most delicious slow-burn and I am just so so so IN LOVE with the two! And not only them, but all the lovable side characters?? The Hearst Family, Larissa, Phoebe, Cordelia, Rory!!!! Gosh, my heart broke for so many of the characters, including our Briony and I am SO here for the rebellion!! And not only the characters, but the plot? The magic? The worldbuilding? Everything was perfect. Rose in Chains is one hundred percent going to be such a hit come release day!

Read this if you love:
-Enemies to ??? 👀
-Unique Magic System
-Flashback chapters of academy days
-Complex characters

Make sure to check trigger warnings before reading though as this is a dark romantasy!

Thank you HarperCollins UK for the advanced readers copy in exchange for an honest review! Rose in Chains hits shelves July 3, 2025!

This is my first book by Julie Soto and not only did I have no idea that this was a reworking of a fanfiction, I wasn’t aware that Julie Soto had written fanfiction. Is this a bad thing? Not in my opinion, I think that Rose in Chains stands firmly and strongly as a work in it’s own right and is a strong start to a very dark fantasy/romantasy series.

Warnings, there are plenty of warnings both at the start of the book and in pretty much all of the reviews I’ve seen but, if you’re a fan of dark romantasy and have been feeling a little burnt out by the multitude of romantasy titles that have flooded the market in the past couple of years, then Rose in Chains will definitely re-ignite your flame!

This book is totally bingeable – I read it in one day! I was totally pulled into Briony and Toven’s story and characters. Briony at first sight appears to be a bit of a spoiled princess but, as you get to know her and live her experiences, she epitomises strength, fortitude, determination, albeit mixed with a healthy dose of headstrong stubbornness and a tendency to act before she thinks at times! Her resilience and ability to retain her kind and caring nature simultaneously are truly strengths to admire. Whereas Toven, is all closed doors and secrecy, everything about him screams untrustworthy, mysterious and dangerous, yet there’s far more to him as a character than that and it was truly thrilling to discover the small reveals as the story progressed.

From a world-building perspective, yes, there is a bit of an info dump at the start of the story but, in one way or another, any world in a fantasy series needs to be introduced and understood, at least at cursory level. Soto doesn’t pull punches here, or to be honest anywhere else in the book. The whole misogynistic culture of Evermore and the double standards of Bomard are laid bare. Women are property, controlled and dominated by a purity culture that mimics the horrible standards we often see applied in the real world, however, Bomard overlays this appalling culture with an additional magical standard that is truly horrendous!

In terms of plot, truly addictive – the thrills and danger of an invaded kingdom, a hidden uprising, slavery, evil actions and plots amidst plots, alongside an aching, overwhelmingly intense, desperate, slowest of slow burn, forced proximity storylines that literally had my hairs on edge at the slightest, smallest interaction between Briony and Toven. Supplement this with flashbacks that provide insight into the lead up to the invasion, including Briony’s personal recollection of Toven and the developing politics, and powerplays that culminated in Briony’s position now, all contribute to a gripping read that had me gripped from start to end, and has left me devastated as I now face the long wait for the next book in the series.

I read this book over a month ago and I still think about it basically every day! It's important to note that this is just the first part of the story and not a standalone. Rose in Chains absolutely got me — the slow burn was burning. The backstory hit hard, and I loved that the political system was just as important as the magic system, which was fascinating in its own right.

Overall, I cannot shut up about the lovely, pathetic, obsessed Toven Herst. If he doesn't hand me my virginity in a glass, I don’t want it!

I enjoyed reading this book, even though some elements were just not for me. It was well-written; I read another book by this author and the writing has definitely improved. The plot was interesting, however it was a bit too slow-paced for my liking. Sometimes it felt like a 600+ pages book and it dragged on a little. It is a dark romantasy and I knew it before I started reading this book, so I have no issues with that. Nonetheless some parts of the plot did not sit well with me, and that’s pure personal preference. And I did not vibe with the characters at all; maybe the book would have been better with two points of view instead of one, Briony was not enough for me. I needed something more, maybe another point of view to broaden the universe and the plot. Maybe in the sequel…
Also, I would encourage you to check the content warnings out if you’re easily triggered. I will repeat it, it is a dark romantasy. Not the darkest I’ve read but dark enough to warn you about it.

Thank you to Netgalley for an e-ARC in exchange for a honest review.

(4.75 ☆)

“Sometimes I have to act without your approval to do what’s best for my family! Not just you, all four of us!”

Rose In Chains by Julie Soto is a dark romantasy that follows Princess Briony Rosewood and high ranking bomardsun Taven Hearst.

The parallels between this and The Auction was astronomical. Julie had me on my knees the entire time because wow. Everything was chef’s kiss—the. Characters, the writing, the smut, etc.

If you can’t tell, this is a rewrite of the popular Dramione fan fiction The Auction, and I honestly didn’t think it could get any better but it did. Trust me it did!! It brought the vibes, the references, the scents, the quotes, and so much more.

Not going to lie there was a time where i started confusing the characters and places because so much was going on, but besides that everything was interesting. Julie wrote it in a way where she had you in a chokehold.

Forever grateful that I got to read this in advance, but sad at the same time because I have to wait even longer for the second book. Anyways, for all my Dramione lovers, be prepared for this one!! Also, if you get the quote, I literally love you <3

*Thank you to NetGalley, Harper Fiction, and to the author, Julie Soto, for providing me with this e-arc in exchange for an honest review.*

Listen, this is undoubtedly my book of the year. Julie Soto has outdone herself (again) with this gorgeous masterpiece of a book and I'm here to tell you all why you need to read it.

This book is maddening, obsessive, the romantasy book of my DREAMS. It is set in a dark world full of blood feuds, crazy tension, and the most addicting slow burn enemies to lovers romance.

I was turning pages faster than I could breathe, I could not get enough of this book, of these characters. The plot is unlike anything I have read before and it is captivating, I know that the darker elements of this book (women literally get sold) will not be for everyone but I would read this book time and time again if I could.

The flashbacks are a key part of this book, they add in so much important detail and getting a glimpse into the Princess of the Eversuns past life is interesting. To see how Briony and Toven interacted before everything goes down is a really great insight.

Briony is one of my new favourite FMCs, her character development from the earlier chapters was heart-warming to watch - how she overcomes so much.

I fear Toven Hearst has me in a chokehold and we haven't even fully seen this man at his best. He's like a snake shedding skin, revealing more to us as the story unfolds.

Like a lot of other early readers have said, The Auction was outstanding but I fear Rose in Chains may be unbeatable. Definitely one of my 2025 top books. I can't stop thinking about it and I already know I'm going to need to get my hands on every edition possible - the obsession is real.

Thanks so much Harper Collins and Julie Soto for the eARC, all opinions expressed are my own.

I loved this and I’m gutted that we have to wait for the next book. The worldbuilding is excellent, easy to follow and really clever!

But it’s Toven and Briony that steal the show, the slow burn, the lingering tension, every sentence in this book was heavily weighted and added to this story!

I’m so excited to see what’s next.

This was so unserious lmao. I don't even know how to review it. This sure was a book, I guess! I do not understand the cult following it has at all because so much in this book made absolutely no sense! Actually laugh out loud funny.

I'm absolutely obsessed with this story! The characters, especially Briony and Toven, are so well-developed and complex. The slow-burn romance between them is electric, and the plot is addictive - reclaiming an invaded kingdom from the inside is thrilling. The magic system and world-building are also incredibly well-done. I'm eagerly anticipating the sequel, but the two-month wait is going to be torture!

I am and always will be a massive Julie Soto fan. I've been reading her since her fanfic days and I know this one was based off of her Dramione fic The Auction. Admittedly, that one isn't a favourite of mine from her but I still loved it.

Now moving on to Rose in Chains, it did not quite capture the magic of the Auction. I'm not sure if it's because with Draco and Hermione, we have a previous connection and investment in their characters while these people are new and I personally didn't care for them so their fate was not something I was invested in.

Republishing a well loved fic was probably quite tricky, as fans will go in this one with presumptions and expectations. With that said, trying to give opinion through the eyes of someone who hasn't read The Auction, this was quite enjoyable, very readable and something a newbie in romantasy would enjoy.

3 stars.

Wow wow wow.

I had no idea that this was a reworking of a fanfiction until I was about halfway through this, and while I can see the similarities to the series the fanfiction was based upon, I think this stands strong all on it's own, and it felt so unique!

This was just incredible - I am obsessed, I can't stop thinking about it, I already want to reread it. This just delivered in every single way. Briony was a fantastic heroine, I felt so much for her, I loved how headstrong and determined she was in the face of everything she was going through, and yet at the same time remains soft and genuine, and I loved her. Toven is such an interesting counterpart - mysterious and secretive, you don't really know if you can trust him, and yet the tension and chemistry between them is OFF. THE. CHARTS.

This is a SLOW BURN. And I mean, the slowest of slow burns, and I was eating it up! You've got forced proximity, INTENSE yearning, I was literally screaming at any miniscule interaction they had with each other!

In terms of plot, this was so addictive - trying to take back an invaded kingdom from the inside? Malevolent evil, enemies literally everywhere you look, intense levels of danger? Tiny hints throughout of hope... Ugh, so good. You get flashbacks every so often back to before the invasion, you see the lead-up to what happened and see how the politics and power change over the years. I loved the magic system, I got to grips with it straight away, and the worldbuilding was delivered so naturally, it felt genuinely like the real world.

I could go on and on. I adored this, I devoured it. I can't believe there's still two months for this book to come out so I have to wait even longer for the sequel! 100% a new all-time favourite.

This is a very dark fantasy book so please check trigger warnings as I did find some moments really tough to read and had to take a break in between once I was able to get back into I devoured this book rather quickly, I do feel sometimes though nothing really happened to move the plot along and the pacing became slow and hard to push through but the last few chapters really made up for this and I am really interested to see how things progress and develop further in the next book.

Thank you Netgalley and HarperCollins for the eArc in exchange for an honest review.

After feeling burnt out on romantasy Julie Soto has reignited my fire with Rose in Chains! This is how romantasy should be done. Rose in Chains will definitely be in my top favourite romantasy books for 2025.

I really enjoy dark romance and this story delivered. The writing was engrossing, the slow burn (and I mean slow burn) romance was *chef's kiss* and the world building was very well done. The pages flew past and it makes for a great binge read.

Briony was a soft heroine with a bit of fight. I think she will really kick some butt and become even stronger in book 2. My biggest frustration of the book was how naive Briony was to Toven's affections and actions. Would have liked her to have a little more backbone/fight but I'm sure she'll be kick a** in book 2.

Toven is a man of many, many layers and secrets. Is he good? Is he evil? Or is he our favourite colour...morally grey?

The tension between Toven and Briony was exquisite. Their relationship wasn't the main focus of the book and that really helped keep the plot well-developed and strong. I loved the dual timeline showing how their relationship develops.

I've not read the original fanfiction but everything was easy to understand.

Readers should take note of the trigger warnings before reading though. This isn't the darkest romance but there is sexual assault, implied forced sterilisation, violence against women, etc.

I’ve read and loved Julie Soto’s two traditionally published contemporary romances and I couldn’t wait to get my hands on Rose in Chains to see her writing in a darker romantasy format and boy was I not disappointed.

This was incredible, it was dark it was luxurious it was gripping and written in such a way that I was completely consumed by it.

I literally could not put this one down, it starts with a bang and the story is so intricately woven between the present - where the Bomards have won the war and the Eversuns are faced with a life of servitude or death, and the past where they are all together in school learning to wield their magic in a supposed neutral environment but with tensions running ever-increasingly high.

This was a really really slow burn so much so that it’s still burning right at the end of the last page and I cannot wait for the next instalment of the story. This was a true enemies to lovers (spoiler - they’re still enemies by the end) with each main character being on opposite sides of the war, the yearning was impeccable.

There is so much to the story, a unique and intricate magical system that I adored, a world where women simply cannot be allowed to wield power, a world where even those on the side of those in power, but don’t necessarily agree with it must simply do what they can to survive.

The main characters, Briony and Toven have so much depth and so many layers to them. Briony is a smart, powerful woman with loyalty to the crown and her family, a drive and a desire to survive to give hope to her people.

Toven is a complicated character, with many layers to his personality though he’s on the wrong side of the war as the story is told through Briony’s POV we aren’t privy to Toven’s true feelings or thoughts (he’s on the evil side but is he truly evil?!!) Seeing him unravel, and his facade slip when with Briony was just exquisite.

Through the flashbacks to their time at school we get glimpses of what could have been between them before the war. The conflicting feelings, the stolen touches, the digs at each other to hide their true feelings, I could not get enough.

This was by far the best romantasy I’ve read this year. I was exhilarated and emotional, the high stakes had me on the edge of my seat and the cliffhanger at the end was simply perfect for making me desperate for more.

Thank you HarperCollins and Netgalley for the digital arc in exchange for an honest review.

I picked this book purely on a whim. I saw someone online saying they couldn't put it down and as I am currently favouring romantic fantasy books, I thought I would give it a go. Well, I couldn't put it down either. My only complaint is that I didn't know it was to be a trilogy, so now I have a long wait for part two. At the start of the story, a civil war is raging, and as the opposition forces win, Princess Briony is captured, along with other members of her household. Their magic is suppressed, and they are locked away, to be auctioned off to the highest bidders to be used as Heartsprings (magical boosters to their owners' magic), as well as for more unsavoury purposes. Briony find herself being sold to Toven Hearst, a young man she had been at school with, and who she had developed feelings for, although he treated her indifferently. She fears for her future, but things do not turn out quite as she expects. The book flips between the present and the past, allowing glimpses into the characters lives as young adults. Some of the scenes are pretty unpleasant, especially in the treatment of the women by their male captors, but there is nothing too graphic. I will definitely be reading book two, whenever that may arrive.

First of all, I just want to say I'm OBSESSED with this book.

This is hands down the most addictive and bingeable book I've read this year.

Rose in Chains is a Dramione fanfic-turned-original and honestly? It mostly works—and the romance is so worth it. If you’re into slow burns with major tension, mutual pining, and that “we hate each other but also want to make out” vibe, this will be your jam. I was hooked.

The world-building isn’t super strong, and the villain doesn’t totally land, but if you’re here for the angst and chemistry, you’ll have a great time. Just check the trigger warnings first—it goes pretty dark.

Rose in Chains is a part ONE (of three) Just so you are aware (cause I didn’t realize it until I was amidst reading it). Thank you to netgalley for the ARC in return for this unbiased review.

OK I have to start with the fact that I have loved Julie Soto ever since her fan fiction days  This story though based on one of those has enough different that I was engaged with these NEW characters. The magic lore and system is very creative and well thought out so far… I am sure there is more to come and if I know Ms. Soto a twist or 2 in the coming storytelling.

The chapters seesaw from present day to back-in-time and while I understand why that format was chosen from a storytelling perspective I must admit I am NOT a fan! I find it distracting and disruptive to the flow and continuity. There is also a bit too many names dumped on us all at once – it made it a bit difficult to follow who was who for a good chunk of the story.

The story however, building on tropes enemies to lovers and good versus evil, is setting up to be a timeless classic. The strong female lead and the enigmatic male are set to make an unstoppable duo that will compliment each other as all partnerships should.

4.5 ⭐

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins for granting me early access to this e-ARC.

I'm not the biggest romantasy reader because I usually feel they're written only to tick certain tropes off the list, without any plot or yearning / slow burn.
However, I have to admit this one hooked me from the beginning and it kept my attention because even though I had an idea of where it was headed, I was still surprised.
And the slow burn really got to me 🥲 I was biting my nails at a certain point and my nerves were wrecked because of the yearning and sexual tension!

We start the reading journey strong, with a life and death war between two rival countries and meet our heroine, Briony, and recurring side characters.
A bit later on, we also encounter Toven, the MMC and Briony's MORTAL ENEMY (gasp) and slowly the story starts to unravel, where the present is masterfully intertwined with the past.
I loved the fact that the time jumps were so carefully crafted; we kept jumping back to the past but only where it made logical sense. Thus, we got glimpses of the past that explained a lot from the present.

I also appreciate the way the characters were built. We encounter unlikable ones, absolutely vicious ones (I love a character I can truly hate, LOL), but also characters that we get attached to and root for. When it comes to the MCs, we get to know them layer by layer, especially the MMC.

The world building was good and the magic system is well explained from the beginning. Although I felt I didn't grasp everything from the start, I got later on.
The writing was easy to follow and I appreciated that the language used to depict the spicier scenes was done in good taste, without making it feel cringe.

Overall, I absolutely recommend this book if you love the slooooooweeeeest of burns I've read in a long time and if you like a good political intrigue. And a cliffhanger ending that was so well executed that it left me speechless and I had to take a couple of days to think my review through!

Please keep in mind this is an adult book, with a lot of heavy scenes that depict bullying, death, SA and violence.

Wow!!!

This book made me feel every emotion.

And the slow burn... it was painfully gorgeous.

How am I supposed to wait for book 2?!