Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the chance to read this book.

So it happened, my first Netgalley book that I didn't actually like -wince- it was bound to happen eventually, but it was a shame it was this one. It sounds like something I would like, but I just didn't click with this book, and from the very beginning. I'll try and sort out the mess that is my feelings about this book.

Basically we get a complicated magic world where faeries, werewolves and wizards coexist with humans that don't really know the real truth about them- they're kind of groupies. The magical beings get their own set of rules, and live charmed lives. Bry is a fairy tale stereotype, another type of mystical being, and she likes reading hieroglyphics. Still with me? Then she meets a bloke and begins to question everything.

So my first problem was the romance, if you want to call it that. Two girls, two guys, match made in heaven. The guys are seasoned players, unable to marry or settle down because of the curse of being the leaders of their people. It means they have hooked up with girls over the years, because well, they can. Then the two leading ladies are pristine virgins who have never been kissed. I have no problem with either on their own, but putting that together as if the girls have to pure as snow pissed me off. Why? Why did it have to be this way?

In all honesty, the writing was just too simple in place for me. There isn't any tension, and it doesn't carry the complicated plot well. This extends to Knox's wolf as well; it mutters 'Mate! Mate!' constantly in his head, and sounds like a two year old. For me the idea of werewolves is that they are sexy predators, not two year olds having tantrums. It entirely killed Knox's vibe for me and well, there went the point of this book.

It's didn't really feel YA for me, maybe more Urban fantasy? I dunno. All I know is I struggled through. It seems like others have liked this though, so maybe you'd like it more than I did? Two stars.

I received this ARC in exchange for my honest opinions.
As soon as I started reading this book, I immediately felt like it reminded me of something. It took me a while to realize what it was, but the beginning really has the same vibe as the movie Ella Enchanted with Ann Hathaway. Or at least I think so.
We have all these cool characters who are supposed to be living their lives according to these templates that they have been dealt. For example, our main character Bryar Rose has been dealt the life of Sleeping Beauty. So she is supposed to do exactly as Sleeping Beauty would, like marrying Prince Philpot and loving all forest creatures. Only she doesn't. And that's a problem. Instead, she is having these strange dreams, involving Egypt and a young man she doesn't know. And she really wants to be a human and go to a normal high school. Instead, she's stuck in magical therapy with everyone else who is failing at fulfilling their template.
So Bryar and her best friend Cinderella end up breaking into a jewelry shop, where Bryar manages to take pictures of an ancient Egyptian scroll. And while she has decided to crack its' mystery, Bryar also meets the man of her dreams. Literally, the man she has been dreaming about - bad boy Knox. And as she enters a world that has been out of her reach until now, Bryar will have to make decisions about her future.

This book really surprised me. I am not normally a fan of these types of fantasy books, but I actually enjoyed this more than I thought I would. The characters were awesome. The setting was also pretty cool. I liked that it took place our world with a pinch of fairytale.

As I mentioned before, I am not the biggest fan of fairytales as I feel I've outgrown them. That being said, this was really fresh and honestly entertaining. It almost felt like the author really wanted to shine a light on the tropes we read all the time in YA fantasy books specifically. We have female characters that are very similar in their expectations and understanding of the world. Yes, we now get a lot of "badass" female characters who are supposedly fighting those tropes, but at their core, they all ultimately want the same things. It was refreshing to read something that highlights the abuse of tropes and the need to battle them with something new. At least that is my personal opinion.

This novel was much better than I expected it to be and I enjoyed it. If you think you know your fairy tale characters, think again. Nothing is ever as it seems and there are multiple plot twists in this modern day novel. Each character has secrets, ones they know and ones yet to be discovered. There is magic and fairies and werewolves....oh my!! The story is told from first person point of view of the two main characters in the novel.
Bryar Rose believes she is a nonmagical human, but knows of the magical world which makes her a Magicorum, which follows a fairly tale life template. She is Sleeping Beauty and her "prince" has already been picked for her, even though she cannot stand him. Her "aunties" aka fairies, push her towards him. She is very tech savvy and uses that to read papyri from ancient Egypt.
From her dreams, she keeps seeing a werewolf and finally runs into him when taking pictures of the papyri. Knox is an alpha werewolf and the warden. Only 3 wardens can be around at the same time, one from each category: wizard, fairy, and werewolf. They need to find the fountain, which will restore magic when it is activated. Wardens cannot marry, but activating the fountain would change that, especially when Knox's wolf recognizes Bryar Rose as his mate. He fights it, but cannot win against instinct.
Bryar Rose and Know work together but there are those who want to keep them apart for their own reasons. Bryar Rose has a secret that she does not know about and must be activated before her 18th birthday. An evil society is after Bryar and the knowledge she has. Knox has his own responsibilities and is searching for a villain who has constantly eluded him. Bryar and Knox's worlds are about to collide and the impact is going to change everything. I am looking forward to the next novel in the series to see where Bryar and Knox's story will lead.

This is by far the best story I have read from Christina Bauer.
It gives a new meaning to the fairy-tale concept, empowering the female characters without emasculating the male counterpart.
Witty and funny, reaches YA readers with real comments and situations that they can relate.

Oh my goodness this book was so good. It was so unique that I was shocked when I read the story and realized what the storyline was. Bryar Rose is a misunderstood teen that has no idea who she really is, with her best friend Elle they try to uncover truths and half truths to get to the real story. Enter bad boy Knox who takes an interest in Bryar Rose and realizes what truth has been hidden from her along with his best friend the mysterious Alec. Working together may be their only chance at answers. Thank you NetGalley and Christina Bauer for allowing me an ARC of this book and for allowing me the chance to write a honest review.

Christina Bauer is quickly becoming a favorite young adult author of mine! She continues to impress with her latest upcoming title Wolves & Roses! 5 amazing stars from Stormy Day Reading!!

I received this free eARC novel from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

Bryar Rose is supposed to live the life of Sleeping Beauty - you know? Cursed to sleep until Prince Charming shows up and saves the day? Instead, Bry is a failed fairy tale. She takes medicine to fight off the sleep curse that she has, and her three godmothers already have her prince lined up: Philpot.

Except Bryar doesn't want to be Sleeping Beauty. She definitely does not want to be with Philpot either. What Bryar really wants is to be a normal human. Not too much to ask for, right? And hopefully, when Bryar turns 18 in three days, she will get just that, because the sleeping curse should be lifted when she turns 18. And then she can ditch Philpot and go to a normal high school and have a normal job.

This is what Bryar looks forward to the most. Oh, and sneaking into a jewel shop with her best friend Elle - you know Elle? Cinderella? Yeah, Elle steals the jewels to return to the rightful owners, and Bryar takes photos of an ancient Egyptian scroll that the company upstairs gets shipped. Because Bryar has been dreaming about this scroll, and she is determined to crack it and find out what it says.

Then Bryar meets the man in her dreams - bad boy Knox - along with the owner of the company Alec. Well...she meets them when she got into the office with the papyri illegally...

Turns out that they want her help to figure out what it says. And Alec is even willing to pay her for it, being the big bad wizard that he is. Knox is a little harder to figure out, especially when he seems not to want Bryar's help. But the werewolf can't seem to stop following her around and bossing her around.

All Bryar had to do was keep on the lowdown until her 18th birthday, but Bryar's never been good at that. And when it seems that there are a lot of people going after her for numerous reasons, Bryar realizes that she hasn't been told just exactly who she is and how important she is for a lot of people.

But she's going to figure it out real soon, and she's going to have a lot of important decisions to make before it may be too late.

I have never read any of Christina Bauer's novels before, so I was very excited to start with a new series and get a feel for her work. And I loved it! I loved the original storyline with very familiar fairy tale stories and how these characters are definitely not like the original ones they are supposed to be living.

Plus, this takes place in today's time, so they are in a major city instead of a palace or tower in the middle of the woods. It definitely added flavor to the novel overall!

Bryar is awesome. She is super smart and pretty funny actually. She knows her "duty" but hates it and wants something better for herself rather than living the life her godmothers want her to live. Plus, who would want to be shacked up with a guy named Philpot for the rest of your life if you don't even like the guy? Definitely not me.

Also, Bryar is a computer geek and she loves finding the mystery of the Egyptian papyri message. What more could you ask for in a girl? Then to top it off, she knows self defense and how to fight her way out of a sticky situation. It's no wonder Knox is infatuated with her :)

There was so much mystery and secrets involved in this book that the reader definitely isn't bored at all. There's no time! Plus there is so much action and adventure crammed into this book that I felt like I was on the go all of the time.

There were a few moments when I got confused with this new world full of werewolves, wizards and fairy's, but for the most part I was definitely along for the ride and enjoying every minute.

And can I just say that the scenes with Knox were amazing?!? I am seriously hooked on this guy and will definitely be picking up the next book to see what happens! I just wish it wasn't so far away from now to get my hands on #2, because I really want to read it now! Always the curse to getting ARC's, I suppose haha.

I am so glad that I got this eARC and if this is anything like Bauer's other novels, I can tell that her fans will definitely enjoy this one as well, along with new readers like me! :)