I went into this book with zero expectations and only a cursory glance at the synopsis. I had read Sasha Peyton Smith's first duology and thought it was decent, and was excited to see where she would go next. I never could have guessed how much I would be blown away by The Rose Bargain.

The Rose Bargain is set in an alternate regency England where an immortal and cruel faerie queen rules. Anyone can make a deal with her, but you may lose more than you bargained for. I don’t want to say too much more because I think going in blind really helps to keep you guessing and surprised. I loved so much about this book, especially all the characters, I loved getting to know every single one. If you like plot twists this book will not disappoint! My only complaint is that I didn’t realize this wasn’t a standalone and now I have to wait to find out what happens… And after that ending I am going to struggle until I can get my hands on the next book.

I definitely recommend this book and can see this becoming a favorite for sure. Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for sending me this eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

What’s it about?
Ivy Benton prepares to debut into society while her family is on the brink of scandalous disaster. When she gets an opportunity to enter a competition to win a prince’s hand, she signs the contract with devastating consequences if she should fail.

My thoughts:
This was one of my most anticipated reads for the year and in the end, I found it lacking. This is a YA book, which I tend to love, but this leans more on the junior side of the spectrum. If f I was in middle or high school, I would have thoroughly enjoyed this book!

My main problem was the pacing, it almost felt like it was not fully fleshed out and skipped over parts. While the end did shock me and I am super intrigued about where this will go and might pick up book 2, book 1 read like a prequel to the series. Because the author had a lot to set up in book one and things felt rushed, unfortunately, all the characters felt surface and I couldn’t connect to any of them. Although my favorite parts were the intermittent chapters from all the side characters and I HOPE that book 2 leans on other POVs because Ivy is the least interesting character in the bunch.

Thank you to Netgalley and HarperCollins for these eARC in exchange for my honest review.

I adore Sasha Peyton Smith’s writing (her first duology is one of my all-time favorites) so I jumped at the opportunity to read an ARC of The Rose Bargain as soon as it dropped in my inbox. Impossible to put down, The Rose Bargain is compulsively readable and felt like a coming home to my teenage self. It’s literally pitched as The Cruel Prince meets The Selection which couldn’t be more on brand with my interests if it tried.

In an alternative regency England, a Faerie Queen sits on the throne, granting bargains to her subjects while taking something from them in return. As her debut season begins, Lady Ivy Benton has one goal in mind; save her family from looming destitution. She plans to petition the Queen to right her older sister’s disastrous bargain and gain back her family’s standing. Only, when Ivy arrives to the palace, the Queen announces that her son and heir Prince Bram plans to take a wife. Any eligible debutant may compete to win his hand and so Ivy, backed by Bram’s roguish brother Emmett, enters the competition. Nothing is as it seems though, and Ivy must face dangerous trials at the whims of the Fae Queen in order to gain the Prince’s favor, all while attempting to subdue her growing feelings for his captivating brother.

I can’t get enough of this story and I predict that my obsession will continue for the foreseeable future! Smith skillfully combines historical fiction and fantasy to create a dark fairytale with a meringue-soaked facade. The faerie bargains are proof of the sinister undertones at play in this universe and the consequences they bore were incredibly imaginative. I loved this element of the magic system and felt like it was crafted in such an innovative way.

Ivy is exactly the type of heroine I gravitate towards, earning my admiration with her sensitive yet clever approach. She is formidable without sacrificing what she believes in and despite being caught in a web of other’s fancies, she refuses to become tangled. I turned into putty during every one of her and Emmett’s exchanges and couldn’t get enough of their dynamic. The intoxicating love triangle between Ivy, Emmett, and Bram is reminiscent of classic Young Adult literature but as is expected, there is more to these characters than meets the eye. The same can be said about Ivy’s fellow contestants, a group of five other girls who each shone in their own right. I loved the interludes from their POV’s and really got to understand them on a deeper level through their own lens.

Sasha Peyton Smith does duplicity expertly. I should have been prepared considering the twists that The Witch Haven put us through, but nothing prepped me for the jaw dropping cliffhanger at the end of The Rose Bargain. I know it isn’t even out yet, but I will be counting down the days until The Rose Bargain’s sequel arrives on shelves. Until then, you are not going to want to miss Sasha Peyton Smith’s exciting new addition to the romantasy zeitgeist, an homage to magic seekers and fairytale adventures.

Thank you HarperCollins Children’s Books for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I don’t usually share my fantasy reads but I had to share this one! I’m so thankful to have read this ARC! The Rose Bargain comes out 2/4 and you’ll WANT to read it!

The Selection 🤝🏻 Fae

I had NO CLUE how it would work for everyone in the end and this author seriously surprised me!

In this story, Ivy, a girl who’s always been obsessed with the Otherworld of fae and magic finds that her English high society family is outcast after the disappearance of her sister Lydia. With her coming out season, the Queen, who is fae in the human world, allows one bargain to be made for a price and Ivy’s bargain decision was easy (it’s not what you think). But her coming out season takes a turn when the queen’s son, Prince Bram, decides to take a wife and now 6 girls are pitted against each other for the Prince’s affections. But Prince Bram has a brother who has other plans up his sleeve.

I thoroughly enjoyed this original plot and VERY original take on fae and magic. The characters were flawed and very enjoyable. The pacing was fantastic and this was such an easy read with small, necessary details sprinkled throughout. This read was quick and such a page-turner!

And I’m DYING for book two! I can’t wait!

Thank you so much Harper Collins and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC!

Big thank you NetGalley and to the publisher for the chance to review this book pre-release. The Rose Bargain was my first five star read of 2025. It was everything I wanted, and more. I loved the backdrop, the love triangle, and BOTH of the princes, and that twist at the end????? DID NOT SEE THAT COMING. Review posted on my TT and IG, and currently I am foaming at the mouth waiting to get my hands on a physical copy, AND of the next book in the duology!!!

DNF at 10%. May revisit
* Note, I may not have finished this, but based on what I did read, I think this book would be great for fans of the Selection, Fragile Enchantment, & Crimson Moth. The concept and ideas were great, I just personally didn’t mesh with the writing style.
I wanted to like this so bad. Regency meets faerie bargains. And the prologue was so cool. Like the faerie queen was so intriguing. Chapter 1 though, immediate and steep decline. The prose is short and choppy that I couldn’t sink into the story. Then it would change topics with little to no transition. Like it doesn’t flow. It feels like sentences take sharp 90 degree turns. Then the narrator came across as much younger than she was. It didn’t help in my case that she also is my least favorite kind of FMC that dominates in YA and NA fantasies/romantsies; the girl trying to be a badass but only comes across as rude. Like she’s trying to be cool and aloof and instead comes across as a high school mean girl. But I kept going, hoping it was just chapter one growing pains. Even though it also hit another trope I hate. The one where the FMC meets the Prince “by chance” before the games/trials. Their dialogue was cringe. Still I kept going.
It didn’t get any better. There was wayyyyyyyy too much telling for my liking. I didn’t feel like I got to experience any emotions or feel grounded in the story. It continued to rush past like it was the side effects portion of a medicine/drug ad.
Then I did what I normally do when I’m not sure I’m going to like a book, I checked out the reviews. Both good and bad. And well, even the good said it was entertaining but went downhill halfway through. I wasn’t even enjoying the beginning. Then some of the lower reviews hit on things I hate. Like YA books that sound and act more on the younger side but have older character and have rather graphic sex. These stories make it so hard for me to market. Like I don’t feel comfortable recommending this to a younger audience that would fit the tone of voice of this story. Nor do I think older readers will enjoy this younger tone of voice with the mature content. However, I acknowledge I also didn’t reach far enough to read these scenes to personally comment. But based on this and my feelings around this, I feel like I can say, if you liked the Crimson Moth, you’ll like this.
I’m also sad cause there were nuggets in what I read that was cool and intriguing. I think I could’ve really liked this if the narrative voice was older and it cut down severely on all the telling.
Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins for providing an advance reader copy of this book for my honest review.

I was told that this was a mix of The Selection, ACOTAR, and the Cruel Prince. I could see why, but I did not end up enjoying this book.I have a hard time liking books with the trope of guys/brothers where one is nice and the other is a bad boy type and the FMC always chooses the bad boy type. It is very overused, especially when I am team nice guy. I feel very bamboozled. I kept getting annoyed that the FMC was more intrigued by the womanizer instead of the nice interested one. Boy was I wrong 😳 now I’m considering reading the next book just to find out how all of this plays out. I do think the best parts of this book are the bargains, the selection type characteristics, and the otherworld king.

Thank you to the author, HarperCollins Children’s, and NetGalley for this e-ARC.

The story had a strong start, but it lost its way as it went on. I even thought about putting it down but decided to push through, hoping something would catch my interest (didn’t happen).
My biggest problem was with the love interest, I didn’t find them likable at all, I also hated the love triangle, it’s wasn’t really necessary. On the other hand, I really enjoyed the other girls in the story.
I think a lot of readers will enjoy this, and I’m sure it’ll generate buzz when it’s released. Unfortunately, it just didn’t live up to my expectations.

2.5-2.75 ⭐️s

I desperately wanted to love this book. I love historical fantasy and regency era romance is probably some of my favorite plain romance to read if I’m looking for a fun time. This book definitely delivered on its “Bridgerton” vibes and fae elements but the rest just fell flat for me. I did appreciate the fast pacing of this book even if it felt rushed/disjointed at times. I did really enjoy the Queen as a character and would have loved more on her.

My biggest complaints were:
-the lack of transitions from one scene/activity to the next
-the love triangle
-the trials were so boring and had no true stakes
-this book read way younger (13-15ish) than the main characters who are 18-19 in this book. I love a good YA. I love a solid romance with non-explicit spice or fade to black. But the age this book felt written for just did not vibe with the themes or the main characters IMO.
-the 15 or so percent of the book that happens after the plot twist felt like I was reading a whole different author or book.

Will I pick up the second book of this duology? Probably. Will I be in a rush to read it? Definitely not.

3.5 ⭐️

I think I would have enjoyed this book a lot more if I had read it when I was like, 12-15 years old. Much like tween-teenage me, this book struggles to figure out its identity.

━━ ˖°˖ ☾☆☽ ˖°˖ ━━ The Writing, Plot, & Worldbuilding ━━ ˖°˖ ☾☆☽ ˖°˖ ━━
Likening itself to the incredible Folk of the Air trilogy did this book no favors. There is hardly any actual “faerie political intrigue” until the eyebrow raising end. Until then, it is romance heavy and a whole lot of “today my lady in waiting put me in a tight corset and I went on a walk with a lacy parasol to go eat finger sandwiches. oh no! my propriety!”

The writing is very much tell-not-show and YA all around, but then there is also an open door sex scene that is explicit enough that any reader can discern what is happening. There are also random one-off chapters told from different POVs of various characters scattered throughout which occasionally threw off the pacing.

Because the world is set in regency era England, the author seems to assume the reader has already watched/read Bridgerton - another series it has likened itself to - and so there is little world building. There was a war, the current Faerie queen put an end to it by tricking people and now everyone lives in fear/awe of her. That's kind of it. Queen Mor and Bram hardly feel fae-like at all, except for the occasional reminder that they had pointy ears and "couldn't lie." The last several chapters felt as if the author suddenly remembered she was writing about faeries and dumped in as much "fae trickster" elements as she could to salvage the story.

₊˚ ✧ ‿︵‿୨୧‿︵‿ ✧ ₊˚ The Characters & Relationships ₊˚ ✧ ‿︵‿୨୧‿︵‿ ✧ ₊˚

The romantic relationship between Ivy and Emmett feels unearned. Upon his second time ever meeting her, Emmett dumps his seditious, treasonous plans onto Ivy and expects her to become his accomplice without so much as a “can you keep a secret?” Even though Ivy is inclined to dislike Emmett based on *gestures to various background reasons*, she still agrees to work with him. Then they're suddenly in love! They literally go from "no way I could be in love with you lmao" to "what is this tingly feeling" to "I love him" in the span of one day. I think I would have bawled my eyes out reading the angsty chapters at the end - and I really, <i>really</i> wanted to feel that angst - had I actually been invested in their relationship. The friendship developed between Ivy and the other contestants also felt a bit shallow but more fulfilling than the one she has with Emmett.

All in all, this book had a very interesting premise but a weak execution that suffered from tell-not-show writing.

Thank you to HarperCollins for the eARC via NetGalley! ⊹˚. ♡.𖥔 ݁ ˖

Ate this one up ngl. I love stories like this: romance, political intrigue, interesting characters !! I will be recommending this to everyone who asks for a book rec.

Imagine this: The bachelor but make it royal and sprinkle in a lil bit of magic.

For the most part, I enjoyed this novel. It was entertaining, easy to read, and gave off reality tv show vibes with all the drama packed in. I liked the concept of “what are you willing to give up for the thing you desire the most”. It made an interesting plot point and doubled as a way to keep the fae queen in power for so many years.

That being said, there were a few things that didn’t work for me. At around the 100 page mark, we started to get chapters set in the POV of other characters mentioned in the story. While I understand wanting to give a little more backstory on these characters, dedicating a whole chapter and randomly inserting it into the story felt out of place. I think there could have been a better way to incorporate these details whether it be through conversations or other interactions. The other reason I found that these multiple POVs didn’t work for me was because the voices weren’t distinct enough. I needed something more that would set each of these girls apart rather than just their different backstories.

I was also slightly disappointed in the romance of this book. I loved the idea of this love triangle between Ivy, Bram, and Emmett but the execution fell flat. It felt like there weren’t enough interactions or an emotional connection between Ivy and Bram to support their leg of the triangle. Had a stronger connection been built, I think the plot twist at the end would have packed an even bigger punch.

All in all, I think the way it ended will allow the reader to jump right into the action in the sequel, which I look forward to reading. For fans of the Selection series, this one would be right up your alley.

Thank you Sasha Peyton Smith, HarperCollins, and NetGalley for an e-ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Sasha Peyton Smith weaves a magical Regency tale reminding us of the dangers of the fae in The Rose Bargain. The book starts right at the beginning of the Season, which Ivy is not excited to join. She's more concerned about where her sister Lydia has been, especially when she reemerges dirtied and bloodied with no recollection of where she's been. This Season is a little different though. Queen Mor, the fae Queen of England, announces her son, Prince Bram, will be joining the marriage hunt and gives the debutantes the opportunity to pursue marriage with the prince as part of a competition. There are cruel games and secret plots with a stellar cliffhanger ending. I really enjoyed how this story was written, interspersing a few chapters from different POVs, and how the whole thing wove together at the end, but now I need to know when we're going to get the rest of the story. I'd maybe even be willing to bargain for it...

I rated this a 4.5 rounded up. Thanks to HarperCollins and NetGalley for the advanced reader's copy!

THAT ENDING MADE MY JAW DROP. Wow!! I have no words, that was absolutely amazing and I will most definitely be reading the sequel as that ending was not at all what I expected in a million years! I truly applaud the author for those twists, because really it was done so well and my mind is still reeling from all the reveals!

Read this if you like:
- Bold FMC and Tortured and Sweet MMC
- "There's only one bed!!"
- Found Family
- Competitive Trials
- A Unique Love Triangle
- Fae and Cruel Magic

Thank you HarperCollins for gifting me an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

The Rose Bargain by Sasha Peyton Smith is a first person multi-POV YA fantasy romance set in an alternative history Regency England. When Fairy Queen Mor takes the throne at the end of the War of the Roses, she creates a structure of bargains where citizens receive what they desire but for a price, such as a tooth or a cherished memory. As Ivy’s season opens and Crown Prince Bram is slated to be engaged that year, she competes with other young women for his hand. But it’s his brother, Emmett, that she’s drawn to and her real desire is to take down Queen Mor.

I’m a huge fan of Regency romance so you best believe that I requested it the second that I saw it. The ton, the fashion, and the seasons that are such strong markers of the time period are all present. Fairies here are a lot closer to the original Irish fairies than they are to the fae that have become popular in Romantasy in the past few years. The bargains, fairy weaknesses, the fairy realm (the Otherworld), and several other details make it feel more like a world impacted by the cruelty of fairies rather than a peaceful coexistence.

One thing I really liked was that even though Ivy is competing with other young women for Bram’s hand, the core group of six do eventually become friends and support each other. I love that so much. What really sold it was the individual POV chapters from other girls that show up between Ivy’s chapters and give backstory and insight into why each girl is competing. I want a whole book from Marion’s and Emmy’s POVs because I loved being their heads. Marion’s reaction to learning that she could never take a husband if she lost the competition was perfection while I just love Emmy’s interactions with everyone else.

Emmett and Ivy’s relationship has a lot of barriers. It’s more than Ivy trying to become Bram’s wife for her family’s social status or her own—her older sister Lydia has been extremely withdrawn since she came back two weeks after disappearing without a trace and the only way to find out what happened to her sister is for her to take down Queen Mor. Meanwhile, Emmett also wants to take his step-mother down and put Bram on the throne with Ivy as Bram’s queen. With all of those things, there’s so much push and pull between Emmett and Ivy and their personal desires vs the needs and plans of others. It’s great fodder for yearning and I was here for it.

I would recommend this to fans of Regency romance and fantasy romance and readers looking for a YA fantasy that has more traditional fairies

I devoured this book, but it devoured my soul. 😮‍💨

“𝑰 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖. 𝑰 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖. 𝑰 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖.”

I read this in ONE sitting. If you know me, I tend to squirrel. Often. 😅 I was sucked in IMMEDIATELY. This is The Cruel Prince meets Bridgerton meets The Selection.

⭐️ 𝗥𝗲𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆 𝗘𝗿𝗮 𝗟𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗼𝗻
⭐️ 𝗙𝗼𝗿𝗯𝗶𝗱𝗱𝗲𝗻 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲 💕
⭐️ 𝗙𝗼𝗿𝗰𝗲𝗱 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝘅𝗶𝗺𝗶𝘁𝘆
⭐️ 𝗣𝗼𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗴𝘂𝗲
⭐️ 𝗕𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗮𝗶𝗻𝘀 🧚🏼
⭐️ 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗲𝘁𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗲 👑
⭐️ 𝗖𝗿𝘂𝗲𝗹 𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗮𝗹𝘀
⭐️ 𝗢𝗻𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝗱 🛏️
⭐️ 𝗧𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗸𝗶𝘀𝘀 💋
⭐️ 𝗙𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗱𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽
⭐️ 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗙𝗠𝗖 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗱𝗼 𝗮𝗻𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗳𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗹𝘆

This book just wouldn’t quit. It hit right out of the gate, and never slowed down.
𝕀. 𝔸𝕥𝕖. 𝕀𝕥. 𝕌𝕡.
The world feels tangible, but otherworldly at the same time. The themes of family, and friendship really shined through, and although it was primarily a romance, it FELT like so much more.

“𝑰 𝒄𝒍𝒐𝒔𝒆 𝒎𝒚 𝒆𝒚𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒈𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒎𝒚𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒑𝒂𝒄𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒂 𝒃𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒉 𝒕𝒐 𝒎𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒏 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒎𝒚 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒓 𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒇. 𝑰’𝒎 𝒔𝒐𝒓𝒓𝒚, 𝑰 𝒘𝒉𝒊𝒔𝒑𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉 𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒆, 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒅𝒊𝒅𝒏’𝒕 𝒈𝒆𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒆.”

The trials were insane! At one point it was like The Chamber of Secrets and Under the Mountain (𝗶𝘆𝗸𝘆𝗸) had a baby.

“𝑰 𝒃𝒆𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒘𝒊𝒔𝒉 𝑰 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒔𝒆𝒅𝒖𝒄𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒓𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒏𝒐𝒘”

The romance is wonderfully done, although it comes across as a triangle situation, it’s done differently. Trust the process. 🙏🏼 It’s not what you’d expect, and I’d really urge you to give it a chance even if you’re not normally a fan of love triangles.

“𝑱𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒐𝒏𝒄𝒆.”

🌶️ This is YA, however there is one mildly steamy sex scene. I’d describe it as very polite spice. 🤣

“𝑰 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝒎𝒚 𝒘𝒂𝒚 𝒂𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅 𝒂 𝒄𝒐𝒓𝒔𝒆𝒕, 𝑰𝒗𝒚.”

The ending has me RAVENOUS. I need book 2 yesterday! 😫
There is a cliff hanger. Hang on for dear life my friends. 🧗

𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗯𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗬𝗔 𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗼𝗳 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟱. 🗣️ 𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗶𝘁 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁.

Thank you to Netgalley, and the publisher, for sending me an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

4.25/5 stars
0.5/5 spice

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins for providing me with an eARC of The Rose Bargain by Sasha Peyton Smith in exchange for an honest review.

The Rose Bargain is absolutely destined to be a 2025 YA Romantasy hit! Giving off Bridgerton meets The Cruel Prince vibes, we’re thrown into a Regency-Era England with a twist, the Queen is Fae. I LOVED the premise of bargaining away something you don’t “need” for something you really want. Girls would ask for beautiful hair, or prodigal piano abilities, in exchange for one of their toes or their ability to turn left. Such a fun and unique premise. Though I haven’t read it, it also models ‘The Selection’ as there is a competition to marry the (Fae) Prince.

Our main character is Ivy Benton, who is in her debut season. After her sister’s bargain led their family to ruin, it’s up to Ivy to fix their reputation and secure their future. Of course, the best way to do this would be to marry the Prince of England. We do get a touch of a love triangle, but it’s not obnoxious and certainly never bothered me. There is also both a competitive, cattiness between the competitors, but also the growth of a sisterhood between them, which I really enjoyed.

This book was absolutely a page-turner. There are a few chapters from side characters here-and-there that didn’t really add much to my engagement, but they weren’t necessarily hurting the story. The end was a fast-paced wild ride and it does end on a cliffhanger! I use Goodreads as a guide to knowing whether a book is a standalone or not and it didn’t have The Rose Bargain listed as being part of a series so imagine my shock when I found out it’s a duology! (Definitely my fault for not scrolling and reading the description stating that fact on Goodreads). I had a pretty strong feeling it was more than a standalone throughout the book because it felt like it wouldn’t all be able to be wrapped up in one book, but I’ve been surprised before. So, the worst part about this book is knowing that it’ll probably be at least a year before the next one comes out! Cannot wait to get my hands on the second book.

Note: Spice is subjective but I would personally give it 0.5 to 1 chili pepper. One on-page, fairly non-descriptive sex scene. So, some may argue that the book could fall closer to NA but I do think it is just upper YA.

This story felt like coming home to some of my favorite tropes and stories, while still having a fresh spin! The Selection X Bridgerton and this book meets every expectation I had for this crossover. The author does an excellent job of sticking to the jargon and expectations of the time. The stakes were high and very engaging!

Unfortunately, the area I felt was lacking was the actual romance. I felt that it was disjointed and didn’t flow as naturally as I would have liked. Along with that, I wasn’t completely crazy about the ending and found myself skimming in some areas.

I couldn’t put The Rose Bargain down! Sasha Peyton Smith has crafted a dazzling romantasy that feels like The Bachelor meets Bridgerton with a dark, fae-infused twist. Set in a Victorian-inspired world ruled by a cunning fae queen, this book had everything I love—courtly intrigue, high-stakes trials, forbidden romance, and a heroine you can’t help but root for. Ivy’s journey from desperation to power kept me hooked, and the chemistry between her and Prince Emmett was absolutely electric. The glittering balls and sharp faerie bargains are as enchanting as they are dangerous, and the twists kept me guessing until the final page. I devoured this book and am already counting down the days until the sequel!

As someone who isn’t a regular reader of fantasy and generally isn’t into fae books, I was shocked by how much I liked this! Not even only good in the latter half when any books inevitably starts to pick up, it sucks you in on the first page. That prologue of how Queen Moryen took the throne of England, that reeled me in immediately. This kind of book will appeal to fantasy lovers and non fantasy lovers alike because while it is fantasy, it isn’t overboard, confusing, or oversaturated with magic. I usually write off fae books, but that Selection-esque plot is what pulled me in, because I love that bachelor style, winning the heart of the Prince in a competition trope. If you liked the Selection, you’ll likely enjoy this too (though the romance in the Selection is incomparably better). And to think I almost didn’t read this one thinking it wasn’t my thing, when it very much was!

This book was like an alternate universe version of England, where during the Season, the debutantes line up in front of the immortal Queen Moryen who grants them a bargain of their choosing.

“Lords and ladies of London high society mingle in their tails and silks, draped in diamonds and wearing hats piled high with organza flowers. It’s a Pact Parade tradition, this garden party. The ton gather to drink champagne and wait for the girls of the season to emerge and show off their new bargains.”

Every citizen of England gets one bargain, either when they come of age or they can wait until adulthood. But for girls with money and titles, they’re expected to make their bargains on the same day they come out to society. These women are expected to make “rose bargains”, bargains for things like shinier hair, things that make them more beautiful and sweet, like an English rose. It isn’t without sacrifice though, to get their bargains, each must give up something which could be anything from the loss of a toe to giving up all of their childhood memories.

There’s also the mystery of what Ivy’s older sister Lydia’s bargain was. She returned from the throne room with no memory of her bargain, and no one was able to discern what her gift was. She later goes missing, is found by the constable and returned, and the first thing she says is to tell her sister that the bargain she made wasn’t worth it. Since then, she lives as a recluse, without any of her family knowing the truth of what happened to her. Since then, the Benton name has been tainted with scandal because of Lydia, something that affects the whole family.

When Queen Moryen announces a competition for the hand of her son, Prince Bram, the debutantes are welcome to enter, but with a catch. If they are not selected and don’t win the hand of the prince, they vow to never marry, which is something catastrophic for a woman in regency times. Unmarried women in that time period would not have the financial and social freedom that men would, and most would have no options outside of marriage. Ivy is the first to join the competition despite this, because by entering, she will have to be invited to social events, despite her family’s shame from Lydia’s scandal. She sees this as her ticket in to get her family back into society’s good graces, and enters for the sake of her parents and sister. 24 women choose to risk it and compete for Prince Bram’s hand in marriage, meaning 23 women will walk away with nothing. A big risk for a woman living in regency England.

If you’re a fan of regency, princesses or high society ladies competing for the hand of a prince type stories, you would probably enjoy this. This technically is categorized as fantasy but it’s fantasy while barely being fantasy, which is a big reason why I liked it so much. 4 stars because it does lack originality and there’s nothing in this I haven’t read some version of at some point, but I really enjoyed it and want to read book 2!

Thank you to Netgalley and HarperCollins for sending me an advanced copy in return for my honest review.