A Curse or a Miraculous Gift?
Yzabel spent most of her life convinced that her innate, and unavoidable, ability to turn food into flowers was a curse destined to kill her at a young age. As a devout Catholic she abhorred the waste of food, particularly as she watched the poor around her starving from shortages. She routinely mortified her flesh and fasted continuously, praying to God to free her from the curse, so that she could fulfill her purpose of making life better for the Portuguese peasants. It was not until Yzabel met Fatyan that she began to understand that perhaps her curse was actually a gift from God, and that by mastering it, she could use it to turn flowers into bread, to feed the poor at no cost, other than her own effort. A Curse of Roses is an excellent teen read, as it takes widely accepted negative thought patterns and turns them on their head, showing the importance of perception and the prevailing gentle nature of love and acceptance. See the source image

A Curse of Roses is based on the story of Portuguese Queen Isabel, and her husband Dinis. In the Miracle of Roses, Isabel was caught feeding the poor against the will of her betrothed, King Dinis. The king did not oppose feeding the poor because he was cruel, but rather because he didn’t see a way to do it fairly and on a large enough scale; according to history he was actually fairly progressive and kind for his time. But when he saw all the bread that Isabel was carrying turn to roses, he understood that it was a sign from God, blessing her charitable efforts. I can see why Diana Pinguicha would find inspiration in such a beautiful story, and I applaud her ability to weave in the ideas of accepting oneself, and the differences of others, into the narrative of ruling justly, while still providing for those who have the least.

The Enchanted Mouras are also based on Portuguese legend, reputed to be seductive female shapeshifters, who have been held in one place by a curse. Fatyan can only be set free to try to break her curse through a kiss…and when Yzabel kisses her, she does more than just free Fatyan, she also frees her own latent sexual desires. So, at the same time that Yzabel is grappling with acceptance of her gift, she also has to grapple with her own sexual nature. She slowly comes to the realization that she is in love with Fatyan, which she Pin on Enviable Engravingsviolently rejects as a dreadful sin. Yet, as Yzabel travels along the path of self discovery and acceptance, she begins to understand that all love is beautiful when its aim is to help two people be the best versions of themselves. As a believer, she realizes that she must accept herself as God created her, and that there can be nothing ugly or abhorrent in what He has created. This part of the story arc really resonated with me, as I thought about friends and former students who had similar struggles with accepting their sexuality. I hope that this book will find its way into the hands of those who are questioning their own self worth, and that in it they will find glorious validation.

A Curse of Roses belongs in every public high school media center, and in the hands of every parent who questions how to help their child accept the love and gifts that are out there waiting for them. Beyond that, it is a tale rife with magic and intrigue, and even one almost spicy love scene, for those more interested in reading just for fun. All in all, this is a great read, and I highly recommend it!

4.5 hearty stars!
*This review originally appeared on LitBuzz

What an unexpected GEM! It took me a few pages to understand what an incredible story this would turn out to be, and I’m so glad because I LOVED IT. Set in the 13th?? Century yes, the 13th! This super unique fantasy isn’t like any other LGBTQ+ YA novel we’ve seen before. The focus on the main character is special, and as the reader we really witness not only the protagonists character development but those around her as well.

The narrative is so well written, the description of places, people.. FOOD was page turning, and you bet I kept reading! I finished this book in less than two days!

Because the novel is set in the 13th century, the language is also appropriate for its time, and it’s quick to grasps concepts and meanings. I’m happy to support not only an own voices debut, but also one set in Portugal. There’s magic, there’s intrigue, there’s romance. It checks off all my boxes, except… That I wish it was written in first person. BUT It still deserves ALL the stars because it was SOO GOOD and I totally recommend it!

My initial review for A Curse of Roses was simply “lesbians have won with this one!”, and that’s absolutely true and tells you a lot about what you should expect from this book. But let me expand on that a bit.

First of all, the book might not be using modern sexuality labels, on account of it taking place in 13th century, but it makes it very clear that Yzabel is a lesbian. And this is a major part of the novel, maybe even the most important part: Yzabel coming to terms with being a lesbian.

Because, you see, she grew up with extremely strict christian beliefs; when we meet her she uses a cilice on a daily basis to mortify her flesh and “atone” for her “sins”. Her fasting is caused as much by her following the doctrine of her faith, as it is by her literal inability to keep food in her mouth due to the curse. Her whole life seems to be resolving about the laws put down in the Bible, to the point where no one around her can even understand why she puts herself through such trials. She was brought up a certain way, with the Bible and the talk of martyrdom of her saint aunt, and a magical curse running through her veins - all of which turned her into a pious girl who hated her own flesh and blood.

Her upbringing also means that the thought of women loving other women never crossed her mind. And once it does, she views it through the lenses of her faith: as something sinful. A Curse of Roses does an absolutely brilliant job of talking about this, of showing Yzabel’s struggle to reconcile her desires and the teachings of Christ.

It’s also interesting to note that Yzabel is quicker to forgive others their transgressions (or even admit whatever the society views as such is actually nothing more than a way of life & doesn’t have to be forgiven) than to forgive herself. It’s a great strength of her character, the way she chooses kindness time and time again; the way she doesn’t judge others but instead tries to understand their point of view.

The greatest example of that being Yzabel’s treatment of Denis’ mistress. Not only does Yzabel not resent the girl, she’s actually making sure that the relationship is one based on consent and that the girl isn’t being raped by Denis.

But that strength can also be a flaw, and yes, the narrative does acknowledge that, in two ways. One, Yzabel was called out a few times throughout the story on how treats herself in contrast to how she treats others, and those conversations helped her grow and accept herself. And two, those around Yzabel who wish her harm (or simply wish to exploit her position), use her piousness and her belief that she’s tainted (because of the curse and later because of her attraction to women) to manipulate her.

All this to say that the pacing of the book and the way the plot is handled in general is very smart. It uses characters’ flaws to its advantage, it doesn’t spend unnecessary details on things that Yzabel - the only character from whose perspective we view the world - would not know about. And I do believe that is something that A Curse of Roses should be applauded for. It’s absolutely not bad writing for certain details to only be revealed as very much telling instead of showing, when you take into consideration the POV character had no way of knowing about them before. Yzabel is as much surprised as the reader, and that’s a good thing.

I’ve seen people try to argue that the pacing is actually off, that the book is too slow, that it’s boring and nothing happens for whole chapters, but it seems that those people don’t take one thing into consideration: this is a character driven novel. There’s Yzabel’s curse, there’s magic in other forms, there are prelates stealing from the Portugese crown, there are women being accused of witchcraft, but at the end of the day this is a coming of age story of a catholic lesbian in the 13th century. And when viewed as such? The slow parts make perfect tense.

The fact that A Curse of Roses is focused so much on the characters also means that the romance is great. In some regards, Yzabel and Fatyan are a juxtaposition of each other. Yzabel believing in every word of the Bible instead of her own mind & Fatyan having strong opinions on every subject. Of course, it’s not simply black and white like that, and both of them change, but once again, this is something that even the narrative mentions: the girls complementing each other. And it’s one of the reasons they’re so drawn to each other. Because the attraction is obvious from the first time they meet (not to Yzabel, but to Fatyan and surely to the reader) and it only grows stronger and stronger as they spend more time together, in close proximity.

And yet, the romance actually blossoms very slowly. No, it’s not insta love just because two girls want to be close to one another immediately after meeting. It’s not insta love just because they see beauty in the other and don’t want to let go of that. In fact, it takes most of the book for Yzabel to even accept that she’s a lesbian and that it doesn’t go against God’s wishes. That romance is as much central to the story as Yzabel learning to control her gift, and it’s given all the attention it deserves. And what I love most is that once Yzabel does accept it, there’s no shame in it anymore, to the point of there actually being a sex scene in the later part of the book. Not saying that I want to read about teenagers having sex, but that it’s extremely refreshing to see sapphic girls allowed to have that.

The writing itself is very beautiful, as well. It feels a little bit like poetry at times, it’s full of metaphors. The language is flowery, but not in a way of purple prose, where the meaning is lost for the sake of pretty sentences. More, given the subject at hand, the prose takes some liberties to build a magical atmosphere, heavy with the scent of roses. There are instances where a more natural word order is forgotten to create something poetic from a mundane description. It’s wonderful.

Another argument people seem to be making against A Curse of Roses is that magic isn’t described well enough. Which… is just flat-out not true? In reality, magic is a vital part of the novel and as such is written about often. And not only when Yzabel turns food into flowers, but with other characters as well. There’s a whole discussion at some point about the differences between the magic of Yzabel or Fatyan and the magic of Brites, how the girls simply possess magic but Brites had to learn to perform it. It’s clear, from everything we know about Yzabel, why she feels resentful toward her gift at first; it’s clear why some characters are trying to use magic for evil purposes; it’s clear why a lot of them have to hide the magic at all cost.

But the most outrageous offence I’ve seen against A Curse of Roses is that it’s anti-feminist (coupled later in the review, with a statement that Denis was actually a nice guy and that Yzabel was wrong to judge him the way she did, more on which in a second). And I just can’t understand how it’s possible to take that away from a book about a girl who makes sure the mistress of her fiancé actually loves him and is happy, who runs shelters for old and sick prostitutes because she believes they need protection, who is allowed to literally help run a kingdom.

And Denis? Sure, he’s not a villain here, but he didn’t give Yzabel reasons to assume he would be okay with her magic. On the contrary, his views on witchcraft are pretty clear when he imprisons a woman without much evidence against her. And while he might otherwise be a very patient and even caring man, it’s important to remember that Yzabel mistrust is as much about him as it is about how she herself views her own gift.

This is a very long-winded way of saying that A Curse of Roses is a beautiful tale of century long curses and people using any means available to them to ensure they experience some happiness in life. It’s a wonderful story of a lesbian learning to accept herself, enriched by magic and roses.

I found it really hard to see beyond all of the religion in this book. Trying to wade through all of that to find the story hidden underneath was a lot of work.

Every time I request a YA book on NetGalley, I panic a little when I remember how hit and miss I am with the YA genre. When I do enjoy a YA novel however, I'm really loving it. A Curse of Roses absolutely falls under that 'love it' umbrella.

A Curse of Roses, tells the story of Yza, a kind-hearted princess forced into an arranged marriage with a man she doesn't love, all fight a curse that turns any food she touches to flowers, a curse that's slowly killing her. In a desperate, last-ditch attempt to save herself, she turn to the enchanted Moura Fatyan, who promises both to cure her and help her train this 'curse' into something that might also allow her to help her people. Slowly, they fall in love. but battle homophobia and political drama.

What's fascinating about this story and what I think makes it so compelling is the small scope. Yza has grand goals of improving the lives of her countrymen, but the focus on this story is on her and the local villagers within her immediate reach. The cast here is small, with only a handful of important named characters, but the politics and court drama never feels empty. It's these two points that really allow Yza's own story, her fight against that terrifyingly internalized homophobia, the development of her relationship with Fatyan, and her partnership with her "husband'". Even the climax of the story is "minor", so to speak, and the story is stronger for it.

The homophobia in A Curse of Roses stems primarily in Yza's Christian faith, something I (and I imagine other readers) am uncomfortable with due to personal background. Yza's internal turmoil of coming to realize she loves women, her deeply internalized homophobia, leads to extreme anguish and even there are mentions of self-harm as well as one fairly intense scene of self-flagellation that I had to take a pause at. While Yza manages to overcome these struggles without losing her faith in God and, in my opinion, well explored, the subjects were deeply uncomfortable to me, who's faced extreme homophobia through Church and have left because. Reader be warn.

Overall, I rate this book a 4/5. The tight scope and small cast made for a tightly woven sapphic story of a young princess trying her best to help her people, while finding love for the first time.

I didn't enjoy this book as much as I'd hoped but I'm pretty sure the issue is more me than the book. There were just certain aspects that weren't really for me. But I really liked the relationships between the characters (both romantic and platonic) and I loved seeing Yzabel's growth throughout the book.

Oh my goodness!!! This book is fabulous!! I have preordered it for my whole family to read! Pinguicha did a fabulous job with this novel!! I am in love!!!!

Thank you to Netgalley and Entangled Publishing LLC for giving me an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

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

Yzabel is the princess of Aragon and goes to Portugal to marry the king and secure the peace between both reigns. While doing that, she has to hide from everyone the curse that makes every meal transform into flowers. She goes to rescue and Enchanted Moura, who is the only one who can help with her curse.

As a turn of events, they fall in love. This is my favorite part of this book, together with the fact that it is related a lot to how Yzabel, who is really religious, can accept herself without feeling she is disappointing God.

First of all, I want to comment that I am from Catalonia which, if I am not mistaken, was part of Aragon at the time this book is set, so I am excited because Yzabel is from the same place I am, I was so happy with this little thing while reading. Also, I was expecting a book with lots of magic, love, and action and I wasn't disappointed, although it was not what I imagine at all.

About the characters, they were quite good but I felt like I didn't get enough of them, I would have loved to know them deeper, I finished the book feeling like I just got the surface of who are they and what they want. I miss more conflict, for me, it is like the biggest antagonist was Yzabel lack of confidence.

Then there is religion, I kind of like how the book shows it as a way to love yourself the way you are and if God made you that way is for a reason, I want to say that I am not a religious person at all but I kind of like the approach of it Diana gave.

To end, love was the theme of the book and, as I commented earlier, I like it a lot, but let me go deeper into it. When people read a book about the love they expect a love story, which appears here to obviously, but this book gives so much more than that. This is a book about self-love and acceptance. Yzabel has huge problems with herself and her sexuality, what is translated into self-punishment, you can see how everyone around her just wants to protect her and she doesn't realize that, all she can feel is how everyone will hate her true self if she goes out. To see her improvement page to page was everything.

To sum up, I like this book a lot because I find the message it gives is a really important one nowadays but I missed more action and deep on the characters.

Reading this book I had no expectations since I knew nothing of Portuguese mythology or history but the author’s description of the world drew me in. It is a very interesting plot, that makes me want to read more of Portuguese’s mythology. I loved the characters, although Yzabel could be too self sacrificing at times. Also her relationship with Fatyan was very slow burning and at times I wanted it to sped up, but that’s just me. There are some scenes that can be hard for some to read but overall I really enjoyed this story.

LGBTQ+ representation in this Portuguese folklore retelling. The novel had a promising premise that falls flat in plot driven action but makes up for it in pacing and character development; female/female romance. A compelling story. Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to review this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion

Aside from the pretty cover and title, there's not much I can speak of in a positive light.

One of the main aspects of a book that I find to be the most important as a reader are the characters. If a book has a weak plot, but strong characters that are well fleshed out and full of personality, I can overlook it. As a matter of fact, I have read plenty of books with cliched plots and average writing, but have enjoyed the book solely because I love the characters. This cannot be said with A Curse of Roses. In addition to the weak and slow-progressing plot, I could not bring myself to care about a single character. Yzabel, the main character, was annoying to me, mainly because her entire personality revolved around her excessive piousness and confused feelings for Fatyan. I get that this was supposed to be a large theme in the book, but it did nothing for making Yzabel a likable character. Ironically enough, the one character I found to be remotely interesting was Denis who showed strong character development throughout the novel. Other characters, such as Fatyan and Brites, are hard for me to judge because I barely feel like I know anything about them at all.

Characters aside, the plot was boring and not well-established. I kept waiting for the chapters to build up to something, but found myself disappointed. The ending especially caught me off guard because it was so vague and inconclusive. I hate to give a book with so much representation one-star, but I find it hard to rate it any higher.

A Curse of Roses is a story about self-acceptance and questioning the beliefs we assume to be true. In a society where queer identity and magical powers are considered evil and demonic, A Curse of Roses portrays the difficult journey of questioning the authority figures in our lives. Whether it be religion or the government, Yzabel's journey is about finding the strength within ourselves to accept who we really are apart from what we might have been told. Her journey has to be my favorite element of A Curse of Roses, this sapphic fantasy about power and the truth.

The lines between curses and gifts is often tenuous at best. You know those lines about great power? It's like that. With power comes the potential to misuse it and also use it to change the world. In A Curse of Roses, readers see both. The ways gifts can be turned into curses, fear into hatred, and love into possession. Fast paced, A Curse of Roses discusses the beliefs we've grown up with and the ideology that is imparted to us. While love has the ability to bloom, it also has the ability to wither.

Really interesting book and even more interesting once you learn it's based around an actual legend of a certain event that happened with real individuals. I also appreciate the inclusivity by interpreting a woman loving woman relationship. You don't come across those mainstream often and I think many queer individuals will benefit from the representation.

<i>Thanks to NetGalley and Entangled Publishing for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.</i>

A Curse of Roses is a retelling of a Portuguese legend turned historical fantasy. The story revolves around Princess Yzabel who is betrothed to the king of Portugal. The people of Portugal are starving, while at the same time Yzabel is turning all the food she touches into flowers. To rid herself of this curse, she seeks out an enchanted Moura, who turns her world upside down instead.

Going into this book, I really did not know what to expect. I have never read anything about Portuguese mythology or history so I was completely surprised when the story drew me in. Pinguicha did an amazing job explaining the way the magic works, as well as building the world Yzabel and Fatyan live in. What made me enjoy this book so much was the empowerment of women, whilst at the same time still being believable in the time that the story is set in.

The themes the book touches upon are not to be taken lightly. Throughout the story many topics come up such as internalised homophobia, starvation, sexism, self-harm, as well as religious justification for before-mentioned actions.

I found Yzabel a very frustrating main character. She is too virtuous for her own sake; she punishes herself for everything, even the things that are beyond her control. She seems to perfect in the sense that she ALWAYS chooses to be kind (maybe I just don't relate). Furthermore, I would have liked to see a bit more in the story in the sense of the world. As I said, I do not know anything about the history of Portugal, so for the context of some things in the story, it would have been helpful to get a bit more historical context.

Above all, this story is about Yzabel finding herself and going against the grain of much of what her religion has told her her whole life. I did really like this book and I would like to once again stress how ownvoices narratives bring so much more perspectives for (historical) fantasy to the table.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for giving me this Arc in exchange for an honest review.
The story is set in 1288 in the kingdom of Portugal, and is based on two historical figures of Portuguese royals. Yzabel was promised to her fiancé, King Denis, as a child to seal a political union. Their relationship at the beginning of the book is strained because Yzabel hides a very big secret from him, anything she puts in her mouth turns to flowers, and she can barely sustain herself. While the princess starves because of a "curse" the country is ravaged by famine as well as a plague. Yzabel is anxious to help but her actions are curtailed by the decrees of her future husband.

In order to rid herself of the curse that prevents her from eating she frees a 100 year old Moura called Fatyan, a creature of magic and a Moor, who according to legend threw herself of a tower because her affianced was killed in war. Fatyan agrees to help Yzabel gain control of her sahar, aka magic, by embracing it as a gift and not trying to suppress it as she has done so far.

There is a slow burn romance between Yza and Faty as the former learns to wield her magic. At the same time, they must navigate various dangers such as jealous men, corruption by officials, a conniving man of cloth and accusations of devil worship and witchcraft. As a high born lady, Yzabel is very cloistered, sheltered and restricted. There is a small cast of trusted people that surround her and try to help her. The story is imbued with many Christian values of charity and kindness but also messages of self acceptance.

However I found Yzabel a very frustrating heroine to follow. She is too "vitreous" and self flagellating, always punishing herself for things that are beyond her control. Brites admonishment sums it up in my opinion: “Yzabel, I love you like a daughter, but sometimes talking to you is like talking to a wall.” She gently rapped her knuckles on the princess’s temples. “This should think for itself. It should know right and wrong aren’t as black and white as a book paints them to be.” Yzabel main challenge aside from her magic is learning to accept who she is, while unlearning the self loathing she internalized mostly through her religion.

#ACurseofRoses #NetGalley

I really enjoyed A Curse of Roses! I liked Ysabel and Fatyan's relationship a lot, and I felt like their journey to falling in love was very realistic. I liked Yzabel's relationship with basically everyone in the book; she was such a kind, caring character who I could tell just genuinely wanted the best for everyone, and took the time to try to help people even though she was constantly starving. As Fatyan helped her start to control her powers, her character became even more well rounded as she was able to focus on her hunger and hiding the flowers less often. There is a lot of internalized homophobia in this book: as Yzabel first starts to be attracted to Fatyan, she thinks there is something wrong with her and that she is going against God. That made me really sad to read, but I liked how Fatyan basically sat her down and explained to her that there was nothing wrong with her.

The start of the book shows our MC Yzabel with her attendant Brites and her guard Vasco. Already they have great chemistry, bantering with each other from the get go.

Yzabel is cursed like her aunt, all food turns to flowers. As a ruse, to avoid suspicion she says she is fasting, when truthfully all she wants is to eat something. Her great-aunt died young and Yzabel believes she will die just after her 18th birthday. She is to be married to the king and he seems to be paranoid about Yzabel, forcing her to eat while not knowing of her curse.

Yzabel learns of a person called the Moura. A woman who might be able to help free her from her curse.

Ugh the feels, from the first meeting of Yzabel and Fatyan I was hooked. The way they interacted with each other was adorable and had so much chemistry oh my! "She fought the force pushing her up. “I’m not a puppet.”
"No?” Fatyan’s glare didn’t wane.The air stole one of Yzabel’s legs out from under her, left her poised on the tip of a toe.
"I don’t believe you.”
The yearning, the angst, the confusion. I just can't. This story is just so beautiful and the more I read the more beautiful it gets.

Also I know this is 1200s but Denis is not a nice man. I've said it, I'm not taking it back. okay I take it back, he was just made but he does care for Yza, just not in the way she can reciprocate.

The magic or Sahar as its known in the book was very interesting and I really liked learning more about it with each page. Going from believing she is cursed to bless was such a sweet transition that I adored.

The plot was so interesting, learning about Brites, Fatyan, Matias and Denis was wonderful and the plot was so strong ( I won't go into details because spoilers but *chef kiss* the full circle moments)

It was such a beautiful story that I throughly enjoyed. Im glad that the author also put an authors note telling us more about the real story and the liberties she took while writing this.

I highly recommend picking this up! 💖💖

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for my copy of the book. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

I originally was attracted to the cover. It's beautiful.

The author is a decent writer and can tell a story.

Personally, I felt a lack of connection with the characters. I did finish it without feeling forced, it's just... I felt it was missing something.

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC! First of all, I do not know how anybody can pass by this cover without feeling the NEED to know more. And, I'd like to say this story is just as beautiful as it appears. I really appreciate the author's note at the beginning. A kind of warning about topics that could make a reader uncomfortable. However, all these topics were covered with such class that I had no difficulty. This is based on a Portuguese story about a princess named Ysabel. Ysabel is not a typical princess and believes she is cursed. She is basically starving herself because the food she touches and tries to eat turns into flowers. However, with the help of an unexpected new arrival she learns to turn this curse into a blessing. This book has so many layers, from religious to political to the fantastical. What this comes down to is can Ysabel accept herself, all the things that make up herself, and be true to herself.

2020 has blessed us with several queer retellings of myths and fairytales, and I was admittedly concerned that A Curse of Roses would feel too similar to other books I’ve read this year to give it an objective review. Luckily, I needn’t have worried. Elements of Portuguese history and culture are both deeply interwoven into Yzabel’s story, which gave this book a unique perspective – exactly the purpose of an #ownvoices retelling.

Like most retellings, the plot is fairly basic, and Yzabel and Fatyan’s relationship follows a fairly standard cursed-mentee/wise mentor template, though both characters are interesting enough in their own right to make up for the straightforward narrative. Also, Yzabel is thirsty for Fatyan, and I loved it.

However, this book is much more a historical novel than I anticipated; Yzabel and her fiancé, Denis, are based on real Portuguese royals, and there are several references to the Reconquista. This leads to the most interesting part of the novel, for me: Yzabel struggles deeply with internalised homophobia and reconciling her desire for Fatyan with her Christian faith. I thought this book did an excellent job of pointing out the role that religion played in controlling women’s lives in the Middle Ages and the hypocrisy of various religious leaders, while also respecting Yzabel’s beliefs and the way she embodied what she saw as Christian values of charity and kindness. Pinguicha also does an excellent job at balancing the period-typical homophobia with an acknowledgment of the fact that queer women existed everywhere in history, and were often able to use gender stereotypes to their advantage in carving-out safe spaces for themselves without men getting suspicious.

If I had any issues with this book, it’s that I would have liked a slightly broader scope. This is a very tight-knit book with a small cast of characters, and almost all of the action takes place within the castle and the immediately surrounding streeting (save for one steamy scene in the local baths… ). I also think this book could have benefited from expanding a little more on Portuguese history for those of us who are relatively unfamiliar; without going into spoiler territory, some of the final conflict in this book is based on the divide between Christians and Muslims, which feels a little abrupt without a good understanding of the historical context. (I did quite a bit of Googling afterwards).

I’m not sure it’s really necessary for me to extoll the importance of ownvoices narratives to anyone who’s gotten this far into my review, but A Curse of Roses was definitely another example of how much diverse perspectives can bring to the fantasy genre.