Whist I appreciate that NetGalley and the publisher provided me with arcs of these books, I will not be sharing my thoughts in full, as I saw that the Amazon listing for this series used AI generated images. Generative AI is theft, and I refuse to support any creators who indulge in it or endorse it.

This was my second read through and I enjoyed it more than the first time, just knowing the depth of the characters to come.
I do think the first book doesn't quite do the series justice. The development comes in the rest of the series and if you don't completely love them in this book, you will in the rest of the books.

I initially read this series out of sequence, and having gone back and read books 1-3 in the CORRECT order, I can confidently say that the first book is better than the second, but not as good as the 3rd.

I won’t lie i picked up this book without realising it was a King Arthur retelling, and I am glad I didn’t because it exceeded all my expectations and I might not have picked it up if I knew! Anyone who is a fan of a court this cruel and lovely will absolutely love the world and characters created by the author.

The world building and the character development was incredible. I am obsessed with Draven and I cannot wait to see how the series unfolds.

Thank you to the publishers for providing me with a copy to review. 5/5 stars.

4.5 ⭐️ rounded up to 5. I really enjoyed this book. It had some concepts that were a bit different than the other fantasy books I've been reading lately. I found the FMC likeable and I was glad to see that she could take care of herself despite the challenges she'd faced during her upbringing. I didn't enjoy the MMC as much as I'd hoped to and hopefully I will as I continue on with the series.

This story had an interesting premise and a lot of potential, but I sadly wasn't a fan of this book. The beginning was hard to get into due to all the characters thrown at us, and it turned out to be Sword in the Stone inspired, which wasn't in the summary so I didn't know to expect it. The story seemed to be about that more than fae, which is what the synopsis had focused on. The author put a lot of focus on describing clothing and settings, which really pulled my out of the story every time. The main plot of the book also didn't start until halfway through, and it felt very disconnected from what the story was about up until that point. I found myself going through the motions, not feeling any tension or rooting for the characters. The last 25% was the hardest to get through, as it didn't seem very logical and a lot felt random.

I'd recommend to anyone who likes Sword in the Stone retellings, minor fae presence, and slow-moving stories. It does have spice.

Thank you to NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honestly review.

I wanted to love this one so bad and I just couldn’t get into it :( I see it everywhere, all over TikTok, and Ms. Boleyn is so nice and friendly. The story is just soooo slow and drug out. I feel like so much has happened but at the same time… nothing has. There just wasn’t anything to really grab my attention and real me in.

I absolutely adored this King Arthur retelling!!

This was a brilliant Romantasy book with a morally grey MMC, a fierce FMC and a lot of tragic backstories and high stakes.

I was rooting for the main character so much and desperately wanted her to escape her vile brother (the king).

I loved the twists and the fact everyone felt untrustworthy.

Couldn't put this down. I am eager to read the sequel!!

As a fan of Arthurian legends, I enjoyed this fantasy retelling! I loved the world-building and can't wait to see how this slow burn romance continues in future books.

Did not finish this book after about 20%, cool premise but could not get into this writing style. So slow

This dark fantasy novel was quite a rollercoaster for me. Although some parts were challenging due to the trials faced by the protagonist, I found the book engaging and well-crafted. While I'm unsure if I could handle reading this genre regularly because of the intense moments with certain antagonistic characters, I'm thankful for the experience and excited to dive into the next book in the series.

"Queen of Roses," the inaugural entry in the Blood of Fae series, is a dark romantic fantasy inspired by Arthurian legend that I thoroughly enjoyed. It revolves around Morgan, a princess of Camelot rumored to possess fae lineage. Due to her father's bias against fae heritage, Morgan is denied her rightful position as queen and instead instructed to join the temple of the goddesses upon reaching maturity.

As Morgan's half-brother Arthur rises to power, his transformation into a power-hungry king who despises the fae sets the stage for an enthralling narrative. He assigns Morgan the task of locating an ancient weapon of great power, launching her on a perilous journey filled with danger and intrigue.

The story unfolds with thrilling adventures, mysteries, tension, and moments of self-discovery for Morgan. While romance takes a backseat in this installment, indications of a slow-burning relationship promise further exploration in future books.

I was particularly drawn to the intricately constructed world, the depth of character development, and the multitude of twists and turns that pave the way for future installments. I eagerly anticipate the next chapter in Morgan's odyssey and the unfolding of this epic fantasy saga.

I got to 60% and unfortunately had to DNF

I liked the premise of the book, the twist from a traditional King Arthur retelling.

The world was very well thought out and magical and has strong roots in that regard

Where I struggled was with the believability of the characters and the “so what” of the plot. I constantly felt like I was saying “okay anddd?”

Maybe I learned slow burn romance isn’t for me.

Right from the start I was drawn in by the prologue. One of my fav. Tropes is “touch her and you die” and this book has big vibes for it.
This story feels like a unique Arthurian retelling with a treacherous court, a dangerous quests and lots of spice!
I devoured this book.

This is one of the first dark fantasy books I have read. I really enjoyed it, even though everything the FMC goes through make it hard to read in spots. I thought it was well written. I am not sure this is a genre I could read often because I get too stressed with some of the horrible characters, but I’m glad that I read this one and I am about to start the next in the series. I am excited to see where this story takes us.

I loved this book! The entire series is great! It follows a young girl whose brother is king but is not very nice. He sends her away on a journey to retrieve an item of great power with two men who don't treat her well. Along the journey one of those men is killed and it leaves her alone with the other. They have a strained relationship but over time he grows to care for her. Then they run into another man who decides to join them on their journey and she quickly falls for him. Little does she know, he is not who she thought he was.
She ends up getting very badly hurt and the man who she never thought would be her savior is the one who keeps her alive.

The characters were great. Very easy to care about. The story had a good flow and the perfect amount of twists and turns.
Definitely enjoyed.

Briar Boleyn is the pen name of established historical romance author Fenna Edgewood. This is her romantasy debut. Loosely inspired by Arthurian legends, Queen of Roses follows a 20 year old Morgan le Fay, and while other familiar names may pop up, their characterizations are new and surprising. I am sometimes a bit leery of romantasy, where the plot can sometimes be secondary to the spice, but this book definitely falls on the fantasy side of the binary. This is a dark story, and definitely a slowburn as the main characters of this book don't get together in this book. I liked this. a lot, excited to read the rest of the series.

Queen of Roses is the first book in the Blood of a Fae series, a retelling of the story of King Arthur, his knights, and all the others in the legend, in a magical context with many of the characters re-imagined.

At first I was a little confused with the different re-imaginings of the characters but once I looked past it, I was pulled into the world. I love the way the author has developed the plot, the world and the characters, bringing in so many different adventures and dynamics among the characters. Honestly, I was not a fan of Arthur as a character in this book and found Morgan to be a little annoying at first. I loved how Lancelet and Galahad are depicted and their relationship with Morgan.

I started to enjoy the book a few chapters in and could not stop reading until the very end. The ending of the book with the most unexpected twists and turns culminated in an amazing climax, setting up the tone and direction of the next book. At this point, I knew that I was truly hooked and would definitely find my way through the series, following Morgan as she discovered herself, the extent of her powers, and becomes the leader she was born to be (I hope!)

First of all a thank you to NetGalley and the authors for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book is a dark romantasy inspired by tales of Camelot and King Arthur, with a focus on Arthur's Sister Morgan Le Fay.

This book series has an extreme slow burn, in that the characters who seem to be intended to be a couple do not get together in this book.

The author is excellent at writing the villains in a way that makes you absolutely hate them. Scenes with Arthur and Florian left me seething.

I did predict the plot twist, but that isn't to say it was obvious. Morgan is a conflicting mc, she frustrated me in places. Loved the dynamic between her and Draven. Draven was a great mmc. I look forward to reading book 2.

Would recommend for lovers of TOG and ACOTAR, as well as anything written by Nisha J. Tuli, but also, please check the CW before reading.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Liked and recommend it!
Spice level: 🌶️🌶️ Some sexual tension, 1-2 scenes
Format: eBook

🌹 Queen of Roses is a story about Morgan Pendragon. She witnessed the death of her mother when she was 5, and when her father also later died, she was the eldest heir meant to be Queen. However, her father saw to it that she was relegated from the throne out of shame for being a half-fae Princess. Instead, her brother took the throne and became King Arthur of Camelot.

✴️ What I liked:

~ Wow, what a beginning! Both the prologue and the first chapter are engaging and suck you in right from the start! Also, the ending is 🔥🔥🔥!

~ The world-building and adventure in this story is incredibly captivating! I was completely engrossed in following the journey with these characters.

~ The interest growing between enemies-to-lovers Kairos Draven and Morgan is intriguing.

~ I love, love, LOVE that there are female knights! And especially a female side kick named Lancelet who likes girls. 💪🏳️‍🌈

~ “Is it really so much better to think ourselves superior to the people we are supposed to be serving?”
I love the empathy the FMC Morgan feels towards citizens and that she joins a group of hunters in secret to help those struggling to provide food for their families. The care she feels towards others is a twist to how King Arthur is portrayed in this story.


✴️ What didn't work for me:

~ I was hoping the FMC would be developed as a strong female. Perhaps she will find herself and become stronger as the series progresses, but in this first book her character is portrayed as:

‼️ Possible spoilers ‼️
- Reckless and makes poor decisions (e.g. going into a dark alley alone, going into her room with the door left wide open and still drinking out of the goblet, etc).
- Surprised by things that have already been mentioned and she should know about (e.g. she was told her mother drank the same potion as her but gasped in surprise when her uncle told her the very same thing, knowing that Florian was planning to ask Arthur to make her his wife but yet acted like she didn't know about it when Arthur told her that she had a marriage prospect).
- Weak and subservient to men. She fights back some (e.g. following the attack by Florian), but still continues to do as men tell her, even when it causes her great harm (e.g. taking a double dose of medicine when it almost killed her). I do like that later on in the story she didn't listen to the MMC Draven and bought the mask anyhow, finally allowing herself to be free.


✴️ Final thoughts:

"My name was on his lips as he promised unspeakable darkness to any who came between us."

This is my favorite quote from the story, and I absolutely cannot wait to see where the rest of the adventures with Morgan and Draven will take us!

The fourth and final book in this series was just released on 3/31/24.



Thank you to Victory Editing Netgalley Co-op for allowing me the opportunity to review. All opinions are my own.

Read the 3 books in this series in only a few days. I really liked the characters and the story line.

Review to come soon