This poetry collection by Helle Gade revolves around the themes of loss, love, loneliness and longing. When I read poetry collections, which is not often, it's to connect deeply with words on a page from critical perspective.

Helle Gade is a modern-day Danish Viking. She is suffers from a chronic illness and all the delights that come with it, so she self-medicates with liberal amounts of chocolate. When she started writing poetry in 2011, she found a perfect outlet for all the bottled-up emotions, and since apparently there were plenty, she has published numerous poetry collection since then, with more coming. Her book Nocturnal Embers won the Best Poetry Collection with eFestival of Words.

She loves staying up all night immersing herself in the wonderful worlds of books. When she's not buried in a book, she is busy with photography and book blogging.

great ideas but the execution can use some finesse.

i was caught up in the author's thought process though.there's something very raw and powerful in that. they definitely have talent and i will be on the lookout for more of their books in the future.

thank you to net galley and publisher for ARC.

*2.5

These poems were mediocre - they didn't really stick out to me. I haven’t connected with any of the poems nor were they riveting. I thank NetGalley for giving me an Advanced Readers Copy in exchange for my honest review!!

I haven't connected to almost any of these poems... They all felt kinda bland and were structered like a random sentence split word by word rather than lines.

2.5/5 stars

Nothing in this felt new and I often knew the upcoming words and phrases. Nothing in this sparked aninterest in me, but I still think you should give it a read. The representation of chronic pain was nice.

The cover was what drew me in in the first place. I had heard of other collections by Helle Gade, but it was my first time reading them and I enjoyed reading this poetry collection, which was a quick read.
I felt like I could relate to a lot of poems, but they still didn’t move me. So while I appreciate the technicity, the emotional part was missing for me and the description of the book misled me into thinking it would be a different sort of poetry. I tend to prefer poetry that is more lyrical, with more words, more images, so these poems were mostly too short, too ‘to-the-point’ for it to move me or stay with me afterwards.
My favorite was without a doubt “Dark Ladies” and the ending of “Death in Disguise” is one of the parts that I found very powerful and I wish there had been more poems like this one. Poetry is a very personal kind of writing and I feel that it's a very moody sort of reading. "Urban Rose" was a nice collection to read and it was obvious how much of themselves and their feelings the poet poured into their work, but most of the poems still failed to resonate with me.

Amazing works! So relatable and important to be said! I really loved the rawness and that cover is beautiful

Diese Gedichtsammlung behandelt meist kurze Gedichte zu verschiedensten Themen wie Trennung, toxische Beziehungen, Selbstliebe, Mobbing und psychische Erkrankungen. Ich mochte die Gedichte, insbesondere diejenigen, in denen die Autorin psychische Ängste ansprach; die verwendeten Vergleiche und Metaphern konnten die beschriebenen Gefühle gut vermitteln.

Insgesamt gab es in dieser Sammlung allerdings nur wenige Gedichte, die mich länger beschäftigten und berührten. Das Buch hat mich unterhalten, es wird mir aber vermutlich nicht im Gedächtnis bleiben. Gute 4 Sterne.

In English:

This collection of poems features mostly short poems on a variety of topics such as breakup, toxic relationships, self-love, bullying, and mental illness. I liked the poems, especially those in which the author addressed psychological anxieties; the comparisons and metaphors used were able to convey the feelings described well.

Overall, however, there were only a few poems in this collection that occupied and touched me for a long time. The book entertained me, but I probably won't remember it. Good 4 stars.

This book had some very good and moving poems in it, and i did love a lot of them, but not all of them made me feel things they were meant to, and some of my joy about reading poems disappeared.
But overall I did think they were good and some of them were even beautiful written, I was just not feeling all the things I was meant to feel.

The collection started strong and I could identify with a lot of the poems. However, the more I kept reading the less I found myself enjoying the poems. The way the poems were written was a little different from what I am used to, which I found enjoyable. It’s an overall good collection, and a quick read.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for providing me with a digital copy of this book, in exchange for an honest review.

The topic discussed in this poetry collection are dark and painfully beautiful. The writer's main concern was discussing the thematic concerns of grief, love, and spiraling into the depths of one's emotions. The poems written were short and impactful, as it enhanced the appreciation that would be felt by readers.

Personally, I am very picky when it comes to poetry, despite it being one of my favorite things in life. The writing in this was quite lyrical, but a bit too short and blunt at some points. I understand its purpose, but it still didn't quite match my preferences, as I usually tend to enjoy more sentences and structures, even if the meaning held is the same.

Overall, a lovely collection of poems and I can tell how much emotion was poured into them. I am glad that I got to read such personal and heartfelt poetry, because it really did affect my heart in many great ways.

Nice enough poems, but nothing that really grabbed me through language or imagery or form. Most of the poems were fairly banal; I do wonder if this is because the author is writing in a second language....?

Urban Rose is a collection of poems by Helle Gade. The author takes us on a path, the ups and downs of life, leading us through fhope, longing, loneliness, mental health illnesses...

Beautifully written short poems that show a lot of dark emotions but still make you feel peace and see hope. Author's style is extremely simple but with it she shows the deep rawness of feelings. It truly feels like she left a piece in herself with every poem, making the reader a part of her story, but also letting discover deeper meaning for herself/himself as well.

I think there is a poem for everyone in this collection. Like I found myself in some of the poems, there were some I didn't fully get, but I enjoyed them nonetheless.

well-written poems, the chosen themes are important and difficult to deal with but the author has succeeded perfectly in her intent, ensuring that the reading was not heavy but smooth and pleasant. I will definitely buy the paper book!

It was beautiful, The topics are about mental health and self confidence. And they really reached out to me.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Helle Gade for an eARC of Urban Rose!

Urban Rose is a deeply personal poetry collection that explores themes of depression, anxiety, insomnia, and chronic illness that I found very raw and relatable. While I found the style very simple and customary to a fault, I could tell each piece was written with profound emotions and events behind them which I can appreciate. The line "Pleasure / Is a dream/ That comes before heartache" will stick with me!

This was such a beautiful collection of poems. I could relate to several of these, and it made the experience much more enjoyable. I really loved her writing style, and I'm looking forward to reading more of her works in the future.

Gripping and emotional, Urban Rose is an amazing poetry collection. With an intimate and lyrical writing style, Helle Gade penned deeply moving poems illustrating the miseries and wonders of humanity.
I loved the raw portrayal of emotions, most of the poems really resonated with me and made this a very enjoyable read.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC in exchange for an honest review

Pretty interesting start and would honestly be open to and up to reading alot more from this author then we’ve gotten. This was very interesting and I’m excited to get into way more in the near future!