This debut novel offers a unique blend of fantasy elements, combining aspects of The Hunger Games, Harry Potter, and ACOTAR. The dual POV of Hope and Lenna works surprisingly well, creating suspense as their storylines gradually intertwine. The world-building and magic system are impressive, though at times a bit overwhelming with the amount of information to absorb. While I wish there was more spice and LGBTQIA+ representation, the characters are engaging, and the political intrigue adds depth. Overall, it's a strong start, and I’m excited to see where the series goes.

I read Petals for Vicious Secrets in one poolside weekend and had the best time. I loved the unique magic system, strong female characters, and seeing how all of the characters paths were woven to combine at the end. This was such a solid romantasy debut, and I can’t wait to see where the series goes and how the characters and their relationships develop!

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

This was a fun slightly spicy romantasy that's world-building and magic system really shone through! Told from 2 POVs, both strong women embarking on separate journeys that eventually meet, Lenna's tough and opinionated, she's part of the nobility but sees the injustices around her and wants to change the world, Hope is pure-hearted and strong, she's loyal and protective to those she loves! There is a lot of found family, morally grey men, forced proximity, and some enemies to lovers, all you want in a romantasy! It's mostly slow burn but there are steamy chapters that were great and as the series goes on I think it'll just get spicier!

Thank you NetGalley for this e-ARC of Petals for Vicious Secrets, in exchange for my honest opinion and review.

I REALLY wanted to love this one. The premise was very intriguing - especially given that in the synopsis we are told this is perfect for lovers of greater works such as ACOTAR, FBAA, CC, The Serpent and the Wings of Night, etc. Can we PLEASE not make it the new norm to click bait readers into trying new works by making comparisons that aren't realistic.

The reality was that the writing style simply was not developed enough. I was distracted by weird verbiage to describe things - which can be a major ick for a lot of readers. I think that this one had a great potential to be outstanding, it just didn't hit the mark for me personally. I will give this author another try in the future to see if this is something they change.

I will say that the magical system was pretty unique - hence stating I think this one did have the potential to be outstanding. IF you can get over the verbiage issues, this one may be for you.

What a ride!

I am so sad this book is over! I just wanted to keep going with the story so bad!

Petals for Vicious Secrets was such a good book. This gave me Hunger Game vibes, but better! The unique world and characters were so good and made the story stand out. The plot twists were so, so, good! I didn't see some of them coming at all! It made the book so much better being thrown off like that.

I really loved the dual POV between Lenna and Hope. Both women are strong female leads, and I loved how they come from two totally different worlds with different personalities and are pretty badass.

I'm excited to see what comes next! With relationships growing and new twists and turns, I just can't wait for the next installment!!

I am so glad I found this book and was able to
receive an advance review copy through NetGalley to review.

Epic fantasy? Definitely I love everything that involves magic and plot okay? So that was perfect, I have nothing to complain, the slow burn was good, the story amazing, magic system very well done, but the end?? Why???

Petals for Vicious Secrets by Martha Monteval was exactly what I needed! I absolutely loved the dual point of view, and the strong female main characters. This book left me sitting on the edge of my seat and counting down days for Book 2 of the Pan0m Saga.
Hope's story reveals her bravery, as she uncovers truths about her family that she must now avenge. While Lenna's is focused on fighting injustices, with her fierce determination. Both Hope and Lenna's POV came together nicely, I really enjoyed both their stories equally. But the magic system was quite unique and unlike anything I have read. The Romance was slow, not too spicy, but definitely worth the wait.
My only complaints were that I didn't really love the title, though it is clear why it was chosen, And how do I get a physical copy for my shelf? I have been able to recommend it on the Kindle, but I need one for my shelf. Looking forward to book 2,
Thank you Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Loved the magic system! I had a hard time getting into the book, maybe just because I'm not already used to the magic system. I really enjoyed the characters, The MMCs were amazing and the world building in itself was amazing!
The character development was a bit shallow for my taste and was just very long at the beginning. Overall a good book tho, I would recommend it to some of my friends!

Wow just wow.
Very unique stories loved the characters and the banter. I will buy it in physical copy.
Highly recommend.

3.5 stars/5 stars

First of all, I did not expected the multiple POV with very different stories for a good part of this book. I feel like Lenna carried the story for a good while, until she become very whiny and annoying and I don't understand where did that change come from? Like, even when you lose something really important for you, you don't suddenly transform into a bitch, especially since the first part of the book underlines how unfair she finds the world to be and how much she dislikes the way royals behave. On the other hand, for some time Hope's story was really bland and I expected more from her mother tbh. When the stories finally merged together, it was okay.

The story is a lot about friendship and how people can achieve great things when working together, but it's a bit messy, which downgrades it for me. There is an interesting magic system that is explained pretty well during the training. There is also a romantic subplot with booktok's favourite troupe.

All in all, it feels more like YA with a few adult elements and it can be an interesting story, but I feel like the writing could be better.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. You're thrown straight into action with characters fighting for their life! We follow two strong female leads who's paths cross, and their morally grey male love interests. The book has great banter and the best tension and slow burn romances. Martha writes amazingly immersive world building, and a fantastic magic system.
I did, however, have a few struggles at the very beginning with identifying characters and their descriptions being repetitive, but this did rectify later in the book. The ending was a little predictable but great. This was a fun start to the series, I can't wait for book 2!

⭐️⭐️⭐️.5/5

I absolutely loved this book it gave me everything that I needed. I was able to escape reality and immerse myself into another world. I really couldn’t put it down and would highly recommend you buy this book, expect to have a day free as you won’t be able to stop

Thank you for this opportunity to read this book. I really enjoyed it! This book has a unique magic system with dual FMC POV who meet later in the book. There is a lot of world building but it def adds to the book. If you love a slow burn, he falls first and sassy banter, this one is for you!

I really liked the blurb and the cover for this book, but the writing failed to deliver for me. The intro was so convoluted and basically written in the third person but was from a POV. It was very secretive about main character’s first name, which I found bizarre. Hope's story line was what dragged the book down for me, Lenna's was a lot more interesting. Author spells minute things out that don't need to be spelled out. Lastly, I think the description needs to be updated to reflect that it is a multi POV story, because it only has Hope in the blurb. I received an ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Also formatting problems in kindle, the pages were gray with black text, could not figure out how to change it.

Petals for Vicious Secrets definitely delivers on its promise of a unique romantasy and original magic system, however unfortunately it was a bit of a hit or miss for me.

The story follows 2 young women, Lena and Hope as we see their storylines unravel simultaneously. While the book did pick up after around 50%, I have to admit I struggled at the beginning to get into it.

What I definitely loved was the unique magic system! I feel like it’s very difficult to create a truly special and original world and the author did a great job. The world building was interesting and I got truly invested into these character’s world.

I also enjoyed the found family trope and the idea of two strong FMC that are complete opposites of each other.

What I struggled with was the writing. Often, it felt a bit clunky and some phrases sounded quite unnatural making the book difficult to follow at the beginning. I know it’s a debut novel though so I definitely believe the author has a lot of potential.

Another thing I struggled with was the “depth” of the characters. The idea of two FMCs in their mid 20s, that are as different as one can be is a good concept but the execution fell a bit flat. I feel like the characters were quite one sided with only a few very specific traits to describe them, which made it a bit difficult for me to connect to them.

Overall, I think it’s a good debut and I will follow the authors work in the future. However, this book wasn’t truly for me and I don’t know if I’ll continue the series.

It’s definitely worth a try though, especially if you’re a fan of:

✨ unique magic systems
✨ slow burn romance
✨ enemies to lovers
✨epic fantasy
✨ found family

Not going to lie, this book did take me a minute to get into. It was quite slow for a while, but the second half of the book did pick up and get more interesting, and I was able to immerse myself into the book a bit more. I did appreciate the fact that even though there were separate story lines, they eventually converged into one story. Unfortunately, because of the pacing, I don't think I was able to love this as much as I wanted to. However, for a debut novel, it is still a really good book.

This book was very hard to follow, I wanted to DNF within the first five pages, and I made it five chapters before deciding not to continue. The first few chapters with little dialogue could have been effective if the descriptors other than “the dark haired woman” and the “blue eyed man” were used to describe the other characters on the scene. It would’ve been much more effective to give the characters at the Trading Day nicknames like “pirate” and “granny” to draw the reader in. The dialogue read quite juvenile and stilted, the way tweens talk. A great idea but poor execution stopped me from continuing.

1.5 Stars, rounded up
This did not start off on a good note with me. I could immediately tell by the writing that this would be a flop. Everything is so clunky and stiff, with short, choppy sentences. Some of them don't even make sense.

Example:
"If there was such a thing as stealing on Trading Day." Definitely should have an 'as' at the beginning.
"There was a vast pile of clothes on her right side of the table, as high as a tall person." What kind of measurement unit is that??
"The woman kept kicking her legs with energy-" My god... kicking with energy... is the best we can get?

Every page is littered with lines like these. It was hard to pick just a few.

This book has split perspective, already a pet peeve of mine if done improperly. This was not done very well, in my opinion. I don't feel there's much difference between Hope and Lenna. Lenna is made to seem rash, tactless, and angry, while Hope is more gentle and kind, but thats it. I expected a stark difference between them, yet nothing really made them interesting to me. I think they're both incredibly shallow and needed to be developed further. Lenna's story was much more interesting than Hope's, and I hated every time I had to switch back and forth between the two.

Even the Trading Day action was lack-luster, with the stakes supposedly being high, and yet I was left feeling like it was border-line comical. It's like the Cornucopia scene from Hunger Games, yet with a lot of shoving.

The romance is fine, and normally a good romance can carry me through some of my toughest reads but this, yet again, fell flat. I wasn't swept away by the banter.

The magical system is very interesting, I will say at least. I loved that it had a purpose, and the powers all balanced one another. That's the one "win" I will give this book. Unfortunately, I won't be reading any more of this series.

Wow this book exceeded my expectations! Truly amazing. The magic system is the highlight of this book. Ingenious, beautiful, unique- I was obsessed!
Here is the review I gave on Goodreads+instagram.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6651287077
Wow! This book is pretty incredible considering it’s her first published novel! My favorite parts were the fantastic magic system, two POV, found family, seeing the storylines begin to weave together, and the overall world building and setting for the story.
As with many fantasy books, there were a few moments that felt unrealistic - but overall I couldn’t have been more happy reading this and I seriously plowed through it.
The story follows two perspectives of females with seemingly different upbringings, but throughout the book their stories become interwoven as lies are revealed, secrets discovered, and friendships/unexpected love with morally grey men bloom.
*I received an ARC for this book in exchange for my honest review.

Overall: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ / 🌶️🌶️

This has to be one of the most unique magic and power systems I've read as of late. In an oversaturated market where everything feels like a vague ripoff of ACOTAR, Harry Potter, LOTR, and Game of Thrones... Petals for Vicious Secrets really shines in its originality and magic systems. While a bit slow to start, I raced through the last 30% of the book and loved some of the twists at the end. That being said, there were some pacing issues and it would have likely been a 4 star read for me had it not been so difficult to get into at the beginning.

My detailed thoughts below...

What I loved about this book:

💖 Unique Magic System + World Building: Like I mentioned above, I loved how original the magic systems of this book were. It almost felt like Avatar the Last Airbender meets High Fantasy, where the magic systems must work symbiotically to maintain world harmony. There are 4 Petals (North, East, South, West) and the Organ Core (the force that unifies the 4 petals and rules over all of them). How the powers work is also incredibly original and cool, and I loved seeing how they were used in practical application throughout the latter half of the book, as well as how they could be modified, given, trained, and strengthened, with a focus on maintaining perfect internal balance/harmony. It was just a super cool angle and I'll probably be raving about it for a while tbh.

💖 Book Boyfriends: OH MY GOD I LOVED JAKE + CIARAN. Jake has my heart, and I will not be elaborating further. You'll just have to read it yourself.

💖 Spicy Scenes were HOT: Oh man, I loved the few spicy scenes we were granted. They were super 🌶️, and it was amazing to finally see where the tension of our characters led. It wasn't overly sudden and it felt very satisfying given how we had watched their relationship had evolved throughout the book.

💖 Matriarchical Society Enslaved by Patriarchical Ideas: One thing to note about the magic system is how it's built upon a matriarchical foundation, where the founding ideals have largely been discarded in favor of male domination. It felt all too relatable in the world we live in today, and it was amazing to read a novel where the entire premise begins with the power of women.

💖 Metasocial Commentary: One thing I think this book did particularly well was weave in metasocial commentary, particularly how poorer citizens are treated and how being forced into an environment where there are not enough resources for everyone, forces people into a desperate mode of self preservation. There was a lot of really intelligent sub-discourse, particularly with the trading table concept that I really loved.

What I didn't love about this book:

😞 Shallow Character Development + Unclear Character Motivations: One thing that I felt really took away a star from this book was how shallow the characters felt at times, and how little we really got to know them (even the 2 main FMC's from whose perspective the story was told).

Reading the book at times felt a little bit like (?) because the character motivations were unclear. One example being Hope in the early chapters, who, for all her life had intentionally stayed away from other humans out of self preservation, suddenly felt a desperate need to protect Nina (even after she had rescued her from the woods). Another was Lenna's incessant desire for Theon, when they really had very little pre-established chemistry in the beginning chapters. Her desperation for his friendship made absolutely no sense.

I also felt that some of the characters themselves mirrored ACOTAR characters. Theon + Lenna gave Cassian/Nesta vibes, Ciaran was like a hybrid of Lucien + Azriel (with a bionic arm to boot), and one of Ciaran's friends was described exactly how Amren was described (short black hair, red lips, kept referring to the main character as 'girl').

The dialogue also felt a bit unnatural at times and I wish the author had read some of these lines out loud so they felt less like a movie script and more like natural human language.

😞 Excessive Swearing: For how original the book and the world building was, the excessive amounts of modern day swear words included completely took me out of the story. I found it SUPERRRRRRRRR distracting, and it felt SO out of place for the pseudo-modern medieval society they lived in that still had the equivalents of royal courts and courtrades etc. PLEASE MARTHA, PLEASE use less modern day slang. You made up your own TIME SYSTEM and panom equivalent of saying "Oh My God" -> "By the Cardinals". I know there has to be better words to use. I repeat: this book does not need modern day swear words. It just really detracts from the immersiveness of the story.

😞 Slow Start: My main gripe with this book is that the beginning was incredibly slow, and didn't begin to pick up until I was literally 65% way through the book. Lenna's story was compelling and kept me interested, but Hope's story felt like it dragged through the entire first half of the book. I also felt like some of the revelations about Hope's lineage could have been revealed much more dramatically-- instead they were just kind of said out loud and it felt really anticlimactic.

😞 Excessive Terminologies Introduced at Beginning: One thing I found to also be somewhat confusing in the beginning was the many different terms introduced with very little explanation. I felt like I needed a glossary to understand the difference between Cardinals and Rulers, and I didn't understand who or what the Cardinals truly were until I was 70% done with the book. Along with these terms were The Roix, Roix Reigner, Discarded People, Panom, Trading Day / Trading Table, etc. It just felt like a lot of concepts whereas I wish they were somewhat explained more gradually with each new term that was introduced.

😞 Queerbaiting: My last major concern of this novel was the absolute queerbaiting. The relationship with Nina and Hope felt MUCH more than platonic for the entirety of the book and at the very end a MMC was introduced with the clear intention of being a love interest for Hope. Hope LITERALLY was willing to forsake the safety of the entire life she knew to help a random girl she saved in the woods find her brother in the most guarded military city in their universe? Without having an inkling of feelings? I don't buy it. This felt like a huge plot hole in the story and Hope's motivations here were poorly explained. There were also certain moments between the two characters that definitely hinted at something more.

Overall, I LOVED the concept and world of this book but felt the execution was a miss in certain areas. The book ended on a major cliffhanger, so I'm hopeful the second novel is paced a tad better with deeper exploration into our main group of characters.

Thank you to NetGalley & Martha Monteval for the ARC copy to review!