This book was interesting to start but I decided to DNF. It lost steam and I couldn’t force myself to continue. Thank you for the opportunity to read this though.

I received a copy of this book for a fair and honest review. I am all about Camelot and their tales. This is kind of a twisted version of that. Morgan is feel like she is casted off because her brother is king. I don't want to give away too much. I love the interaction of the characters and the adventure. Even the training scenes that took place. I want to see what comes with the rest of the books. I thought it was all about the journey. I did take a little to warm up to Morgan in the beginning, but she just trying to find her own Legacy.

Thoroughly enjoyed! I did not know much about this author or this series before starting but love that it's a reimagining of the legend of King Arthur. Many twists and turns as we voyage with Morgan though the task given to her by Arthur. Some unexpected betrayal, suspected romance, and a wealth of lovable, sometimes challenging, characters.

Omg this book was absolutely amazing! I can’t believe it took me so long to get to it but once I started it I had to keep reading until it was finished! I need the next book asap!

Thank you, @netgalley, for providing the ARC of this book. It has been sitting on my digital shelf for a while, and I decided to try reading it this week. I could not have imagined how much I would like it, and I ended up binge-reading it for two evenings straight.⠀
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Morgan Pendragon, a princess with fae blood, faces a tough situation involving doomed love and a dangerous mission that could lead to war. Despite being born into a life of duty, she seizes a chance to break free when her brother, the king, asks her to find a powerful fae weapon.⠀
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The book follows the journey of the main character, Morgan, from her very young age to her current days, providing an understanding that her life was never good, and she always struggled. Being the sister to the king doesn’t give her any benefits, and she tries to live a peaceful life within the allowed borders set by the king. Initially, she follows all the rules and expectations. However, with each chapter, new interactions with the characters bring Morgan to discover new facts about herself. I liked that the story was really slow, allowing us to unwrap each detail of her life and identity slowly without realizing it.⠀
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Her journey as a favor to her brother changes Morgan as a character gradually. The truth starts to unfold around her. The only drawback that annoyed me was that the truth was so easy for her to uncover, but she didn’t even want to try and maybe see for herself. I have never read an Arthurian retelling before, and this one fascinated me. The good ones are the bad ones, and vice versa. That was truthful and unique.⠀
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As it is a slow burn the whole time and the love triangle exists, it is as of now hard to say about the male main character something more than he is broody and mysterious (I loved it). The nice mix of a small portion of ACOTAR and FBAA with an Arthurian retelling gave this romantasy a special vibe that I am eager to follow in the next written books.⠀
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If you like the tropes:⠀
🖤Dark fantasy⠀
🖤Enemies to Lovers⠀
💔Slow burn⠀
🗡️Arthurian retelling⠀
✨Magic and monsters⠀

I loved the concept of this book, however I unfortunately couldn't get into it.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this! I would definitely give this author another shot with other books that they write, but perhaps this one just wasn't for me.

"Queen of Roses," the first book in Briar Boleyn's "Blood of a Fae" series, is a really cool adventure into a world where magic, mystery, and danger mix together in a super interesting way. Boleyn tells a great story about the Fae, these magical beings, and their world filled with secrets and exciting stuff.

The story follows a young Fae who is trying to figure out the complicated world of Fae society, where queens rule and things can get pretty tricky. Boleyn describes this world with lots of detail, making it feel like a real and colorful place with magical creatures and cool landscapes.

The main character goes through a journey from being not so sure about things to becoming strong and confident. Boleyn creates characters that you care about and want to know more about. The way she describes things is like painting a picture with words, making it easy to imagine the fantastic world she created.

The story keeps you interested because there are surprises and interesting things happening all the time. There are twists in the plot, and you never really know what will happen next, which makes it fun to read. The book talks about important stuff like who you are, what you're meant to do, and the tough choices you have to make. Is not just a story about magic; it's also about love, secrets, and what it means to have power. Boleyn mixes together romance, political drama, and magic in a way that's exciting and easy to understand.

It's perfect for people who like fantasy stories with interesting characters, cool worlds, and a bit of mystery. If you want a fun and magical adventure, this book is a must-read!

5⭐️
ARC

Morgan Pendragon’s life has never been her own to control. Morgan was originally supposed to be queen of Camelot, until it was rumoured that her blood was tainted with the blood of the fae and her birthright was stolen by her younger brother Arthur. So Morgan was then promised to the goddesses, that is until her brother tasks, or more likely threatens, her with finding a fae weapon of legendary power. Morgan’s travel companions can’t be trusted, especially the dark haired man that seems to have too many secrets and keeps her heart racing.

You should read Queen of Roses if you like dark fantasy romances, retellings, slowburn, enemies to lovers, tension, banter, forced proximity, “touch her and 💀” and found family.

TW: SA, homophobic comments, death, domestic abuse and many more, please read the full TW before reading.

I seriously ate this book up. I LOVE Morgan Pendragon ( or Le Fay), literally my favourite character in Merlin, so when I read that this was a King Arthur retelling forced on Morgan I was immediately interested. Morgan is a badass that has been put through a really HORRIBLE time (please read the TW!!) and she had finally found her way out of Camelot and hopefully will be able to take charge of her life. I can’t wait to see her take more charge of her life and really become the powerful character we all know she can be! Then Kairos Draven comes along most importantly see my Goodreads note at 27.0% "“Who? Who did this to you?” UGHHH I LOVE”. NOW this book is slowburn and I can’t wait to see how Morgan and Draven’s relationship will *hopefully* flourish in the next book. The author took a lot of time with the world building and its truly great. You can literally picture King Arthurs throne room like your standing inside of it. Also note that this book does end on a cliffhanger!! I have already received an ARC for the second book “Court of Claws” and I can’t wait to start reading it!

Thank you NetGalley and Starwater Press for an advanced readers copy for an honest review.

So I am betting I am like most of the readers for this one. We grabbed it because of that last line. Great for fans of Holly Black, Jennifer Armentrout, and Sarah J. Maas. Well that was nothing but lies. This story had so much potential but it fell so short. From the characters being under development to the plot being a mess at times. I wish that I would have loved it. Because with some simple tweaks it would be amazing.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy of Queen of Roses.

Sadly, I’m DNFing this 30% of the way in. I rarely do this (and never with ARCs) but her writing is so choppy that it’s distracting, the descriptions of rooms go on for pages and I just can’t make myself keep reading. The premise of the story is intriguing but the writing is just bad. I’ve seen comparisons to many other romantasy series that I love but I strongly disagree. This reads like a very rough first draft of someone who reads a lot of the same books I do and decided to see if she could do it, and unfortunately, it didn’t work.

Epic fantasy adventure - a creative and fresh refresh of the story of Camelot with new takes on Arthur, Morgan, et al. Action, betrayal, secrets, wars, and a bit of slow burn make this a must read for fantasy and Aurthurian fans alike!

Spellbound by this fantasy novel! The imaginative world-building and captivating characters transported me to a realm of magic and wonder. A must-read for fellow fantasy enthusiasts seeking an enchanting escape!

Thank you to Netgalley, and Briar for the eARC.
1⭐️ DNF.

I DNF this book at 10%, twice. The first time I was in a reading slump and feel I didn’t give the book the chance it deserved, so I went back and started it from the beginning.

The writing is atrocious, these characters that are speaking to each other feels like they are talking to a stranger. There is no connection between any of them. Every other paragraph there is “…” ending the sentence. I was hoping it would get better as the story went on, but I couldn’t make it that far.

Our main character, Morgan, and her friend are talking about their training, going to a tavern, etc, nothing worth remembering, as they run into a big man off-putting man. (One of the only paragraphs that was more than 3 sentences and put some descriptive thoughts into it.)

This man is a stray farm boy from the lowlands who is training to become one of the knights, even has a strong potential to become apart of the royal guard. Yet, this farm boy doesn’t know who the royalty he will eventually be serving actually is or at the very least, who Morgan is?

I read further than that, but since all my thoughts were stuck on that, I can’t remember anything that happened after. DNFd soon after. This book is still worth giving a chance, it was just not for me. ❤️

I enjoyed this one a lot and had a lot of fun reading it! I love retelling and I wish we had more King Aurhtor/Camalot retellings because this was great. I love how the author included the fae in this as well. Morgan was a great character and I LOVED Kairos. Their banter and chemistry were incredible and the spice was great.

Basically, this had everything: strong female characters, a dark and broody love interest who can kick ass, courtly intrigue, great villains, mythical beasts, interesting and well-thought-out lore and world-building, an epic quest with a motley crew, kickass best friend, sibling love, fae, magic, romance, and of course SPICE.

Can't wait to read the sequel

Jump into 'Queen of Roses' by Briar Boleyn for a unique blend of Arthurian legend and fae magic. The story unfolds around Morgan Pendragon, a princess navigating a life shadowed by her brother, King Arthur.

The narrative starts off slow, building its world in a way that gradually draws you in. Morgan, initially presented in a certain light, evolves into a character of depth and complexity. The romance element is subtle, taking a backseat to the larger story, but it’s there, unfolding at a leisurely pace.

What’s refreshing is the gender-swapped roles of Merlin and Lancelot, adding a new dimension to the Camelot saga. The pacing might require some patience, but it’s worth it for the intricate world that Boleyn crafts.

'Queen of Roses' combines familiar myths with a modern twist, making it an intriguing read. It balances predictability with unexpected turns, earning it a solid 4 out of 5 stars. A slow burner, but one that rewards your time.

#bookreview || Queen of Roses (Blood of Fae #1) by Briar Boleyn

▪︎Star rate : ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
▪︎Spicyness: 🌶

I just finished the first book of the Blood of Fae series and holy sh*tballs! 😱
Holy freaking lawd!
This book, you guys!
This book literally blew my mind.
I can't express how invested I am in this series.
The angst, the banter between Morgan and Kairos are out of this world.
I can't even erase the smile on my face everytime these two bicker. 😏🤭

The slow burn of this book made my blood pressure go up by the way but it even reaches it's peak when that leech Vesper came but still, this book literally captured me.

I need more from from Kairos and Morgan!
I need more fighting, action and more spicyness! 😉

#bookblogger #bookrecommendations #book #bookworld #booksofinstagram #bookworm #bookcommunity #booklover #books  #booknerd #bookstagram #booklove #bookaddict #booktok #bookshelf #bibliophile #love #bookobsessed #bookstagram #bookporn #booknerd

“Queen of Roses” is a dark fantasy romance novel by Briar Boleyn, that takes the timeless King Arthur legend and adds a fresh, fantastical twist. The book is the first in the “Blood of a Fae” series and follows Morgan Pendragon, a cast-off princess who is rumored to carry the tainted blood of the fae in her veins.

The story is a tale of self-discovery, love, betrayal, and adventure that will keep you on the edge of your seat with its slow-burn romance, enemies-to-lovers trope, magic, mythical creatures, tension, banter, and unexpected twists.

The book’s world-building, character development, and plot are more than I expected for a debut novel. The author does an excellent job of creating a dark and deadly world that is both fascinating and captivating. The way the Arthurian legend has been reimagined and cleverly interwoven into a totally new direction is sublime. The characters are well-developed and have distinct personalities.

The setting is vividly described, and the author does a good job of creating a dark and mysterious atmosphere that draws the reader in.

The book’s editing is well-done, and the writing is fluid and engaging. The story is predominantly plot-driven and has some truly excellent world-building that managed to captivate me the more I read.

I recommend this story for fans of Holly Black, Jennifer L. Armentrout, and Sarah J. Maas.

The romance between Morgan and the dark and enigmatic warrior is slow-burn and spellbinding, but it could have been explored further. The book’s ending is also somewhat abrupt and leaves the reader wanting more.

Overall, I would give “Queen of Roses” a rating of 3,0 stars. While the book has an intriguing plot, it lacks depth and character development in some areas. I remain optimistic that the next book in the series will deliver the thrill I’m searching for.

content warning: sexual assault.

“Queen of Roses” is a spellbinding journey through a world where love, danger, and destiny collide. Boleyn's vivid descriptions and well-crafted characters make this novel a compelling read for those seeking a tale of forbidden love, dangerous quests, and the resurgence of ancient powers.

I loved this book. I was hooked from page one and loved the slow burn romance in Queen of Roses. This book has: romance, magic, suppressed powers, broody bodyguard, an evil king, and found family. I loved every second and can’t wait for the next book in the series.

I just wasn't able to get into this myself, but I definitely see where this is going to have an audience. The fae twist on Arthurian lore is really a unique angle and I think this series will do really well.