a fun fantasy romance read

thank you to the author, netgalley, and the publisher for this advanced copy to review!

Katy Rose Pool can do no wrong. After reading her Age of Darkness series, I was SO excited for Garden of the Cursed. It did not disappoint. Katy is a master at character development. I truly enjoyed every character in the story, given the depth and dimension given to each and every one of them.

The world was extremely unique. I adored the contrast between high and low society living and I think Katy did a fantastic job depicting them both. I also loved the idea of spell casting. As a result, I could not put this book down!

Marlow and Adrius’ relationship was complex and real. I enjoyed the slow burn nature of their relationship and can’t wait to see where it goes in book two!

Garden of the Cursed hit all of my high points for a young adult fantasy. Pool absolutely slayed with this one.

The magic system is unique in its execution.  It's controlled by five families giving it an almost mafia like vibe and the elite scenes feel almost Regency in their crafting. The magic is made by taking parts of an individual like their memories, blood, tears, etc. It's then crafted into a spell or hex card that is sold. This aspect pushes into the idea of the rich get richer and the poor get poorer. Those that live in the Marshes sell just to get by. The rich profit.

That leads me into the characters crafted by Pool. Marlow is a cursebreaker living in the lower part of society. She once had her foot in the world of the elite and then her mom went missing. For almost a year she's been seeking answers as she breaks curses to stay afloat. Pool crafted a sarcastic badass with a deep heart that has barred itself from the world. Though Marlow is the main MC, Adrius is the love interest who holds a corner of Marlow's hidden feelings that she refuses to accept. When he comes to her for help after being cursed, we know its only a matter if time before the barriers break.

This novel takes the fake dating trope and expertly weaves in a little second chances amongst the rich and poor dynamics. The side characters add to the plot and push the reveals and backstory to a path along twists and turns that kept me guessing. It ends on a reveal of a cliffhanger that makes book two in this duology seem way too far away.

If you love action packed young adult reads with expertly crafted characters and dynamic chemistry, you'll want to grab this gem. I didn't even bother with an audio this time, I was way too immersed in Pool's writing. Partly why it took so long too finish.

Thank you Fierce reads and Henry Holt for a gorgeous gifted copy. I will be stalking the summer calendar for book two!!

The magic system was COOL - hex cards with clearly defined rules and activation words that can only be created by trained professionals under the “complete” control of the five noble families. Also, the structure of the city: the Marsh with its stink and the gang-controlled territories and the Evergarden with its flowers and parties and wasteful magic. I also liked Marlow and wanted way more about her day job, rather than just her using those connections to call upon convenient favors.

Now for the negative: so much of the worldbuilding was left super vague. It felt rather similar to Pool’s other series in that way. We don’t understand how the magic actually works (how are cards made? What does a grimoire actually do?), we don’t understand the politics or relations with the larger world (is magic everywhere? What’s the system of government in this town? What do other cities/countries think of the town and its noble families? What’s trade like? How do they treat people from other countries? I could go on)

Instead most of the book was spent on the romance and the con that facilitated that romance. I just finished the book and I literally can’t even remember the love interest’s name because he didn’t have a personality, just a series of circumstances.

And of course there’s a sequel, though it felt like it would only take another 40 pages to wrap everything up; better to just throw in a cliffhanger I guess.

Absolutely addicting YA fantasy. I need the sequel now, please. Garden of the Cursed takes place in Caraza City, a city of two parts: the Marshes, the seedy underbelly where two rival gangs control all; and Evergarden, where the rich elite spend their days, ruled by the powerful Five Families. The Five Families corner the market on legal magic in Caraza City, which of course means that there's a thriving black market for illegal magic. Protagonist Marlow has lived in the Marshes for a year now, ever since her mother's disappearance. She's tough and inquisitive, and has successfully become one of the city's best cursebreakers. Though she has few leads, she's never stopped looking for information on what happened to her mother. While working on a case, she runs into Adrius Falcrest, son of one of the Five Families and Marlow's former best friend, who had betrayed her in the past. She wants nothing to do with him, but he desperately needs her help to break an unusual curse that has been placed upon him. So Marlow agrees to help, hoping to find more information on her mother back in Evergarden. They strike up a fake dating scheme so that Marlow can investigate and attempt to break his curse. But time is ticking. Can Marlow find the truth about Adrius' curse and about her mother's disappearance before it's too late?

This fantasy/mystery was exactly up my alley. Great worldbuilding. The world feels true, both gritty and beautiful, with an interesting magic system. I was instantly invested. Marlow was easy to connect with. She has this front of toughness that she's had to develop, but underneath she's just scared to let anyone in. And Adrius... He's a perfect love interest. Cocky rich boy at first glance, until his true feelings and insecurities come out. Classic friends to enemies to lovers trope. The mystery kept my interest throughout. I couldn't wait to uncover the truth about Marlow's mother and Adrius' curse and how they were connected. The cliffhanger ending totally worked on me. I will be awaiting the sequel with bated breath.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

🌌Marlow Briggs is pretending to be in love with with a powerful noble in order to find answers and clues to her mother's disappearance.

🌌This duology for will have teens reading the whole book in one sitting...speaking from personal experience that is.

Garden of the Cursed was an entertaining YA fantasy romance. This is my first book by the author and the cover definitely intrigued me and got me to pick it up. The pacing felt slow at times even with all of the fighting/action, but the mystery of Adrius’s curse and Marlow’s mother kept me listening. Some of the twists were predictable, but I thought the plot threads came together pretty well.

I’m not 100% sold on the second chance-ish friends to enemies to lovers romance between Marlow and Adrius and I felt more frustrated than anything with them most of the time. I tried to keep in mind that they’re just teenagers, but it became increasingly difficult since they never talked to each other and the same miscommunication kept happening over and over again. The book ends with an interesting reveal and cliffhanger, but it’s not a cliffhanger that will leave you feeling gutted.

The narration by Jennifer Blom was enjoyable and I thought she did a wonderful job as Marlow. Some of the characters were voiced similarly though and there were times when it was challenging to distinguish between characters.

Audiobook Review
Overall 4 stars
Performance 4 stars
Story 3.5-4 stars

Marlow lives in a world with hexes, spells, and curses, and she’s great at both casting spells and breaking curses. She used to be a part of the lavish upper crust life, albeit as a bystander, but lives on the rough side of town ever since her mother’s disappearance a year ago.

So when Adrius, the rich boy who crushed her heart, shows up at her house in the Marshes, she knows something is weird.

Turns out he’s coming to her for help because he’s cursed… and it’s giving Ella Enchanted... he’s been cursed to obey any demand given to him. Personally that’s where my ears perked up because I love seeing men get taken down a peg :0)

The two work together to break the curse even though Marlow is wildly over Adrius’s shit - and even better, they fake date to make it plausible that Marlow’s around all the time to deflect demands unknowingly (or purposely?) given to Adrius. They end up working against a time limit to figure out who cursed Adrius and why and the drama is juicy and so are their eventual feelings for each other.

I really enjoyed this! And I am annoyed that book 2 isn't out right now. The way the book ends...cruel to leave me hanging.

I def went into this with the wrong expectations - I dont know why I thought it was going to be some moody, gothic-esque romance - it's not. But I'm not complaining because I'm definitely a fan of Sci-Fi and besides space SF, this is the next best kind. The plot was interesting, the characters were also interesting and felt fully developed - they were complicated and full of depth and compassion. The various conflicts were engaging and just overall, the book was very good.

I loved Katy's first trilogy and I cannot wait to see what journey she takes us on with these characters. I'm excited.

This book too me a while to finish. It’s not that I wasn’t enjoying it (because I absolutely was) but the long chapters gave me a hard time. I found myself growing bored by the middle of some chapters and wanted something to break that up. I think this book would have benefited from more chapter breaks.

Now, onto the story. I really liked the world and world building here. The magic system was interesting because it was accessible to anyone for the right price. I also loved the almost mafia-esque situation with the powerful families and the underworld that Marlow found herself in.

I liked the romance and always find fake dating and enemies to lovers to be great tropes. This was actually friends to enemies to fake lovers to lovers but it was still a fun set of tropes.

I will definitely read the sequel because I really want to know what’s going to happen next.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I gave this a four out of five stars. I really enjoyed this book, I want to add this to my collection. I can’t wait to read more about these characters. I liked the characters, friendships, relationships, and growth of the characters.

I’ll be honest – I requested this book from NetGalley based on the title and cover alone. I mean, look at it. It’s a piece of art.

After her mother’s disappearance, Marlow moves to the other side of the tracks and makes a name for herself as a cursebreaker. This is a concept I haven’t read before, and it immediately intrigued me. When former BFF Adrius, scion of an affluent family, requests her help in breaking his curse, she’s unsure about taking the case. For reasons unknown, he spurned and humiliated her a year ago, and the pain is still there. Adrius has been cursed to do anything he’s commanded. Just take a sec and think of the implications of that. Tell him to jump off a building – he does it. Hand over all his money – it’s yours. Even worse, if the curse isn’t broken within a certain timeframe it becomes irreversible. In order to find the person who cursed Adrius, he and Marlow must pretend to “fake date” so no one questions her presence in the wealthy Evergarden society as she investigates.

Fake dating is a popular trope, but I grew weary of it pretty quickly. Especially since it’s so obvious Marlow and Adrius still care deeply for each other. Judging by other reviews I’m in the minority on this, but I’m more of a straightforward person so that explains it. Marlow holds onto her pain and anger so tightly she’s oblivious to the truth in front of her, for which she ultimately pays a high price.

As far as who cursed Adrius, there’s a list of obvious suspects with clear motives. I was sure I’d pegged the culprit, but I was wrong each time. And that ending? My heart is still bruised over that one, and I’ll be needing that sequel really soon.

With a cat named Toad who can detect curses, a fast-paced plot that rarely stands still, incredibly high stakes, and an intriguing mystery, this fantasy novel will keep you flipping the pages.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Readers looking for a new fantasy that straddles the line between high and contemporary fantasy with romance will enjoy this fresh YA. The story details a world in which the wealthy and powerful are the ones who control magic and access to it. While the rest of the population must depend on black market curses. The heroine of the story is a curse breaker who once was part of the elite through her, now missing, mother's job. The story stays fairly fast paced as the mystery unfurls with tons of romantic tension.
It was a bit disappointing that not much was revealed until the very end, leading to a cliffhanger. The romance especially, does not really manage to get off the ground at the end. May need follow up with the eventual sequel to find answers. (Thanks to Henry Holt Co. and Netgalley for the ARC)

This book you guys! I loved it and I can't wait for more! Garden of the Cursed is the first book in a new series by Katy Rose Pool and if you don't have this on your TBR shelf, I recommend you add it right now.

Marlow Briggs grew up amongst the rich and privileged and when her mother mysteriously disappeared, she fled to Caraza City. Ever since, she has made a name for herself as a cursebreaker...she's also garnered a few enemies along the way. As she does her work, she always has her mother in the back of her mind and she's determined to figure out what happened to her.

When Adrius Falcrest, Marlow's old friend and scion of one of Caraza's most affluent spell-making families, asks her to help break a life-threatening curse, Marlow wants nothing to do with the boy who spurned her a year ago. But a new lead in her mother’s case makes Marlow realize that the only way to get the answers she desperately seeks is to help Adrius and return to Evergarden society—even if it means suffering through a fake love affair with him to avoid drawing suspicion from the conniving Five Families.

I love Marlow as a character. She has her flaws for sure but in the end, she is smart and determined and willing to do whatever she needs to in order to find the answers she's looking for. She does push the limits of some of her friendships but she's loyal and willing to do anything for those she cares about. This is partially what has created her pool of enemies and I couldn't truly hold that against her. Once she found herself back in the fold of the elite, she stood on her own.

The world that Pool developed here was interesting and engaging. There's magic, lots of danger, and gangs. As the investigation draws Marlow into a web of deadly secrets and powerful enemies, a shocking truth emerges: Adrius’s curse and her mother’s disappearance may just be clues to an even larger mystery, one that could unravel the very foundations of Caraza and magic itself.

If you're looking for a new YA series to pick up, choose this one. I couldn't put this one down and am excitedly waiting for the next book.

5/5 stars, this was absolutely incredible

Thank you to Macmillan Children's Publishing Group, Henry Holt & Company, and Katy Rose Pool for the arc through netgalley in exchange for an honest review!

When the author Katy Rose Pool reached out to me via my bookstagram account asking if I wanted an advanced reader's copy of this book because of my support of her other books, I immediately said yes. Her Age of Darkness series is so well done and has such an amazing cast that I was so excited to see what her next book had in store, even if she mentioned that it was built for a different sort of audience. It turns out, this story was built exactly for my tastes as well.

This book opens in a speakeasy with magic cards, and I knew immediately that I was going to adore this book. One of my favorite time periods to read about is the roaring 20s and this book gave off those vibes, especially with The Marshes and all the counterfeit spells and more. Not to mention I've always loved the idea of spell cards, or magic cards that can do different things since my friend played a character that relied on that in one of our dnd campaigns. It was incredibly cool and so when I learned that this book had both curses and magic cards, I was even more excited.

One amazing thing I found in this story was the plot, it was always quickly moving and there were always new twists that kept me interested. Katy did such a good job balancing the underworld events with the high society events, there was just enough of both where I never got bored with too much of one or the other. There were so many wheels behind the scenes turning as well for the mysteries in this book and undoubtedly there's still so much more to uncover in the next book. I think the mystery aspect of this book was done very well, even if there were a few things I managed to guess, it was easy to fall into the story and get carried away.

The cast of characters was perfectly built for this type of story too, with Marlow an excellent main character even if she had her flaws. It just allowed her to stand out to people around her and made her very good at her job. She's cocky sometimes, but a good actress and excellent at finding out what really happens behind closed doors. Adrius, I was skeptical about him at first, in the beginning pages I didn't really like him but oh boy did I end up loving him. Now? He's my favorite character and I just need more of him, he's for sure book boyfriend material. But even the side characters like the upper society's groups, the gangs in the Marshes, and Marlow's best friend Swift was such great character. I cannot wait to see some new ones in the next book especially how this story ended off, but getting to learn about all the characters here was an amazing experience.

Adrius and Marlow might actually kill me, their story is so complex and I love both of them so much. Everything about their dynamic is great to read about, and perfect for anyone looking for enemies to lovers' angst. And I mean, lots, and lots of angst. They go from enemies to childhood friends to pining to enemies to fake dating to pining again to enemies, and they leave as enemies at the end of this book I am so upset. The author knew what she was doing and I NEED to see them together again. I am so incredibly desperate. Based on what happened at the end I'm really not sure where they stand but I am incredibly desperate for their interactions in the second book and for Adrius to call her "minnow" again. If you know you know.

[TW: knives, blood and gore, alcohol and drunk people, death of a loved one, murder]

As a fan of Katy Rose Pool's work previously, the bar was even higher for me. But Garden of the Cursed exceeded expectations. It was like a mystery detective story meets magical curse breaking all with a second chance romance element to it. The secrets of the past are never dead in Garden of the Cursed. I basically immediately loved Marlow and how determined she is, how reckless, and how cunning. The world of Garden of the Cursed is one where people are being pulled by strings out of their hands.

That cover though! First thank you to the author and to the publishers for a free ARC of this book. The cover art for this book is S-T-U-N-N-I-N-G. Love the book. Cant wait for the final book as this is a duology! I have to say great world building very intentional! i loved the love story and the love confession! Absolutely adorable. The friendships were also some of my favorite as well. THANK you and i'll have another! please and thank you!

I've been waiting for a 5 star read for June and I finally got it on the last day of the month with Garden of the Cursed. I had no expectations going into this book so every character and action was an utter delight and I didn't want to have to put the book down to deal with the real world.

I loved the interactions between Marlow and Adrius. They felt like real actions and real banter between two people who have a shared history that they don't see the same way. Marlow's characterization is so well done and I felt everything that she felt. This was one of those times that I fell completely into the story along with the characters.

The setting was analogous to New Orleans and the Louisiana bayou, but it wasn't a carbon copy so it took me a little while to figure out the analogy. Katy Rose Pool took the setting and made it her own and I wasn't annoyed with it like I have been with other fantasy novels. There was no cajun like language, no specific tells, and it felt like a fantasy world. I also liked the fantasy system of spellcraft based on cards and it felt like a call-out to Gambit from the X-Men.

Overall I was so pleased with this book and of course it ended on a cliffhanger that I really should have seen coming, but didn't. I can't wait to read the next book.

Thank you to Netgalley and Henry Holt and Co. for the arc for review purposes.

It should be no shock at all that I absolutely loved this book. I devoured it in only a few sittings. I loved the world and the magic. I think it was all well-explained and well-built. The fake dating was absolute perfection. I really loved Marlow and I was compelled by her mission to find out what really happened with her mother and I literally shouted when the big twist was revealed. I know this just came out but I already can't wait for more in this series. There's so much more to learn about the world and the characters.

Magical and mysterious, GARDEN OF THE CURSED was a fantastic start of a new duology centering around curses, the secrets lurking in high society, and a girl cast out and on the search for what happened to her missing mother. An opportunity presents itself early on that allows Marlow to return to the society that cast her out and figure out once and for all the events that led to her mother’s disappearance. There’s a bit of fake dating involved as Marlow reconnects with her childhood friend Adrius, and their relationship was quite fun at times. There’s a bit of heartache involved as well due to past circumstances involving Adrius, and it’s interesting to see that play a role in their present.⁣
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I really loved the magic system and the curses involved, and the danger that comes along with curses and dark magic. Curses aren’t ever used for good, and being a cursebreaker puts Marlow in the sights of many a bad fellow. She has her fair share of enemies, including one of the Marshes most notorious gangs. ⁣
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The world-building was fantastic. It’s got a bit of an historical high-society feel mixed with the Art Deco era with it’s bit of mobsters and gangsters, but it feels modern and fresh. I think my favorite part of the whole book was the world because it’s just so interesting and combines so many elements of various fantasy worlds that I enjoyed. Even the watery slums were dimensional and super interesting. ⁣
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All told, a fantastic first installment, and I’ll be waiting not-so-patiently for the next one. 5 stars. Many thanks to @turnthepagetours @mackidsbooks and @henryholtbooks for gifting a copy for the tour!