Julie Soto's Rose in Chains isn't your typical fantasy romance. Forget the triumphant hero and the quick victory; this story plunges you into a world where evil has unequivocally won. The hero is dead, the light extinguished, and the survivors are left to pick up the shattered pieces of their lives. It's a bold and compelling premise that immediately grabs your attention and refuses to let go.
The story centers on Briony Rosewood, the princess of Evermore, whose capture after her kingdom falls marks the beginning of a harrowing journey. Stripped of her magic and forced into slavery, Briony's journey is one of resilience and quiet defiance in the face of unimaginable oppression. Soto masterfully captures the emotional toll of Briony's loss – the loss of her kingdom, her freedom, and her very identity. Her forced participation in the auction scene is particularly gut-wrenching, highlighting the vulnerability and degradation of the conquered.
The tension begins when Briony is bought by Toven Hearst, the heir to a family notorious for their cruelty. This is where the book truly shines. Soto expertly crafts a complex dynamic between Briony and Toven. He is everything she despises, a symbol of the oppressive regime that has destroyed her world. Yet, the glimpses of something more beneath his hardened exterior offer a glimmer of hope amidst the despair. This inherent conflict, the push and pull between hatred and a possible, albeit unlikely, connection, forms the captivating core of the narrative.
Overall, Julie Soto has crafted a world that is both brutal and beautiful, populated with characters that are flawed, compelling, and ultimately, undeniably human. If you're looking for a fantasy romance that dares to explore the darker side of victory, and the resilience of the human spirit in the face of unspeakable oppression, then Rose in Chains is a must-read.

I sat on this review for over a week because I'm not sure how my own words can do the experience that is Rose in Chains justice.

Truly so captivating, addicting, and enthralling, I could NOT put Rose in Chains down. This was everything I want in a romantasy book -- darkness, mystery, strong female characters, a tension filled slow burn, and just enough crumbs to keep you on the edge of your seat the entire time and begging on your hands and knees for the completed series already.

You definitely do NOT want to miss this one because at this point Julie Soto NEVERRR misses.

🥀 dark romantasy
🥀 political intrigue
🥀 enemies to lovers
🥀 forced proximity
🥀 slow burn
🥀 flashbacks
🥀 rival kingdoms
🥀 yearning, pining, chemistry, and banter
🥀 omg just DO IT ALREADYYYYYY

The opening / framing are full of SA (mostly off-page), and I am very much not a Dramione shipper, but Julie Soto isn’t my favorite romance novelist for nothing: the FMC/MMC dynamics were full of delicious tension. I enjoyed this a lot more once I stopped trying to figure out the HP parallels and got some distance from the rough opening. Fingers crossed both of those aspects are less prominent in the next two books. Just be warned the CWs abound in this one.

Thank you to ForeverPub and Hachette for the gifted ebook via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

JULIE!!! This book left me in such a bad book hangover that the only thing that could fix it was rereading the rest of The Auction followed by all of the fics linked that also take place in the Rights and Wrongs universe 😩 considering this book isn’t even out yet - HOW are we supposed to wait for two more books to come out 🥲

I say this with my full chest: this book is everything I want in a romantasy. Mystery, some darkness, strong female characters, and plot that leave you wondering how on earth will everything get fixed???? And on top of it all one of my favorite slow burns - the kind where he obviously pines for her and she’s completely oblivious to it.

Julie I love you. You did it again. You have FED the people and we are forever grateful.

***** OMG! Love Julie Soto's writing in her other books and wasn’t sure with the genre change. But she can write! This book was amazing. Great world building and a variety of characters. Enemies to lovers, magic, dragons. If you love Thorne of Glass, ACOTAR, Fourth Wing this is your next read. Reminded me of The Handmaids Tale as well. Cringey at parts but I couldn’t put it down. Binge read all night!

This was so exciting to read!! Being a fan of this author during her fan fiction days, it was so interesting and cool to see how she adapted the fan fiction and really made it into her own work! I think my only critique is, I think if I didn’t read the fan fiction, I would have been a little confused with the setting and world building of this book. I’m curious to see if this was on purpose and maybe we will be seeing more world building and explanation into this new world and magic system with the rest of the books of the series!
Overall, I loved both of the characters and their complexity! Even tho there is a substantial amount of side characters that we are introduced, I didn’t find myself being confused on each character!
The slow burn romance was so exciting and the tension between the two main characters made everything worth the wait!!
Can’t wait for the rest of this series!

This is definitely one of the easiest five-star ratings I’ve given this year. I can’t wait for everyone to dive into the fantasy world Julie has created because it is PER. FECT.

First, she did an amazing job recreating this world in her own way while still giving a nod to the original fanfic readers. She’s such a gem for doing that, and I love her even more now.

Second, the story is fantastic, and she made it even better with this traditional publication. The characters, storyline, world-building, and progression of the plot are all gold. I adore Brioney and Toven so much, and I can’t believe I have to wait so long for book two *sobs as I open another Dramione fanfic to soothe my soul*

Finally, a quick recap of what to expect: The story begins at the end of a war, where the villain emerges victorious. Those who fought against the villain are captured and sold at an auction to the villain’s followers. The bidders are encouraged to drain the captives’ powers for their own gain. But what happens when Brioney is purchased by the love interest she’s had since childhood? And what was his true motive for bidding on her in the first place?

It’s so good, you guys! Add this to the top of your TBR for July!

The emotional reck this book left me in is crazy. I couldn’t put it down!! I have got all my friends to preorder it so I can have someone to talk to about. Honestly a masterpiece and I can’t wait for book 2 to come out!

5 billion stars, BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR!!!!!!

This was the greatest slow burn of ALL TIME. You guys there’s no spice in this. None. It is ALL GLORIOUS PLOT and the best world building!!!!! Julie did such a good job making this unique and separating it from HP. I am on a mission to read her entire backlog now. The writing was SO. GOOD.

This was pretty dark though so definitely check your triggers!!! I was upset a few times 😢 but I appreciate that it wad realistic and Julie wasn’t afraid to talk about the hard stuff that comes along with a war like this.

I’m obsessed. Actually obsessed. What do you do when you’ve read the best book in existence?!

This romantasy deserves to take over the world in a similar fashion to Fourth Wing imo. It was truly one of the greatest books I’ve ever read. Idk that I’ve ever been so sucked into a book like this before.

Thank you netgalley for the arc but omg it doesn’t even come out till July and now I have to suffer for an eternity to read book 2. I’m so upset.

I am everything. I’m dejected. Devastated. Giddy. Bordering hysterical. What am I supposed to do now? Am I supposed to just put this book down and go live life like the whole world hasn’t fully shifted its axis without me?

I am deeply familiar with the origins of this story and somehow…. I felt like every page was something brand new and wholly unexpected. A few scenes or sentences felt like being wrapped in the warmth of an old friend but by far and large I am shocked by the richness of the story building. The heartspring thread that’s woven through this story is an absolutely delightful shift from a lot of the currently popular trope (fated mates, forced bonds, etc). Briony and Toven are my Roman Empire and I love how flashbacks are interwoven to build future scenes.
The burn is SLOOOOOOOOW but the lap practice? Sweet mother of the water hold me it’s glorious.
I will die on the hill of this trilogy unseating ACOTAR and TOG as the love child of the BookTok world. Sliiiiiiiide over Sarah J because my girl Julie has arrived.

This was amazing?? I went in very blind to what the story was about and I’m so glad I did. I loved the characters and the story was so different and interesting. The world building was so well done and not confusing at all. Briony was a great main character who was very well crafted and complex and I’m really excited to follow her through the rest of the series. Toven, my man, I love him and thought his character was ALSO super well done with making him secretly good and his family is so nuanced. Even though it was originally a fanfic, I can see where the characters stemmed from but the plot is SO different and better in my opinion. I will be screaming about this book until it comes out and beyond then too.

Rose in Chains is a captivating and immersive fantasy that blends dark, high stakes romance with a complex world of magic and betrayal.

Briony Rosewood is a heroine who is both vulnerable and strong, and her journey from captive to player in a game of political and magical intrigue is truly engaging. After her kingdom is overtaken and her life turned upside down, Briony’s resilience shines through as she faces both external enemies and internal struggles. The world-building is fantastic, with the distinct magical systems of Mind and Heart Magic adding layers of depth to the story.

The romance between Briony and Toven is filled with emotional conflict and a mix of attraction, frustration, and forbidden tension. AND BOY IS THIS A SLOW BURN IF IVE EVER READ ONE.

The only reason it's not 5 stars is due to the fact it felt repetitive at times and possibly slightly dragged in the middle, although I appreciate the scene has to be set and the world and magic and politics explained, especially as this is the first book in a series. I will be intrigued to pick up book 2 to see where this story goes as I think this was a GREAT set up but things are going to start getting juicy in the next books.

I've read the fic that is based on but whoa Julie Soto, I am DYING. The tension was perfect, the angst, I just can't stop raving about this book. The world building could be a bit stronger but everything else makes up for it. FIVE STARS.

Wow!! I devoured this book in just a few short days ( lost lots of sleep over it but so worth it )

Rose in Chains by Julie Soto is an amazing book!! I thought I knew what to expect since this is based off of The Auction - but Julie did such an amazing job with her writing and made this story so original! She did an amazing job keeping what we all loved from The Auction, but scaling back and refining some of the scenes that were redundant or not needed.

I loved that she included flashbacks! This made the chemistry between Briony and Tovan make so much more sense! I loved the romance/tension! Loved that he is so respectful and protective towards her!

I also loved Tovan's parents! I can't wait to read more and will be counting down the days until the next book!

Thank you so much Netgalley and readforever for this eARC!

Briony Rosewood's brother and heir to the thrown of Evermore is dead and she has been captured. They have loss the war and there is nothing she can do about it. Stripped of her magic and sent into auction Briony tries to keep her head high for the other survivors. However, during the intense auction Briony is sold to Toven Hearst, a former classmate known for his family's cruelty. Just as all hope seems lost she begins to find beacons of hope and rebellion all around her. A fire is reignited in her to fight this dictatorship from the inside, and her allies may be closer than she ever imagined...

Soto has created an intense and dark world full of secrets, power plays and deception; I hung on to every word. Briony while a captive never lost her strength nor her fight. She does not need a dark cloaked prince to save her. She is intelligent, witty and so lovable. I throughly enjoyed her character development as bits of her history were revealed. Toven Hearst is determined, cunning and intentional. He has set expectations, plans and does what he thinks is best for those he loves. Together they are a powerhouse, but this isn't just a romance, it's not even mostly a romance. This is the story of two characters who are fighting for those they love and for what they believe in. I am so excited to see where their story goes next, I already know this will be put on my re-read shelf.

Hello??? I loved this. This book was so dark and twisty, totally not what I expected or knew I was in for. I read this whole thing in an afternoon. I just needed to know how it would end.

This was one of my most anticipated reads of 2025, and it did not disappoint!

I called off work because I was up all night devouring this and haven’t been able to stop thinking about it. This is one of those books where as soon as you start you can't stop because of how quickly the story sucks you in.

This story is a rework of one of the classic Dramione fanfics, The Auction. As someone who read the fanfic and absolutely loved it, I was a little nervous about how this book would hold up. But let me tell you, this book was everything I loved about the fanfic and so much more. Plus, there are so many little call backs to the fanfic that you’ll see within the story that made it even more exciting to read.

Julie did an absolutely fantastic job at taking the fanfic and using it as a foundation to build and create such a unique fantasy world with so much depth, with the characters, storylines, political aspects, and even the magic system. Speaking of which, the magic system was one of my favorite things, especially with the different kinds and how they are used and intertwined with one another. It’s interesting the divide that the magic causes between Evermore and Bomard and their ideas of how the magic should be used and by who.

This is a darker story, so make sure you are checking your trigger warnings. But with that said, Briony and Toven have some of the best chemistry and banter I’ve ever read. They are very much the slow burn, enemies to lovers pairing, so if you enjoy that along with a lot of sexual tension, trauma, and witty banter, this is the perfect book for you!

The only downside of this book for me is that in the beginning, there are a lot of names and characters being brought up. At first, it was a little challenging to remember who was succeeded by who, which place in line they were, which territory they belonged to, and so forth. There is a guide that helps, and I did have to refer to it a few different times, but by the middle of the story, it got a lot easier to place and follow where each person was from and where/who their loyalties lie with.

Overall, this is the perfect story for anyone who enjoys a darker, more suspenseful fantasy book that is full of tension, slow-burn romance, political intrigue, dragons, a unique magic system, royalty, and so much more!

This has easily become one of my most favorite reads of this year and will be one that I re-read over and over again while waiting for book two!

I never thought I would be lucky enough to have received an ARC for this and I almost fell out of bed when I saw the email.

Thank you so much to NetGalley & Forever for this eARC!

This book was a journey! Overall, this was a really interesting book. This is apparently related to another book The Auction which I haven’t heard of or read. I was seeing a lot of hype surrounding this so I naturally had to jump on the chance to read it. The world and the characters were pretty incredible.

This is pretty intense at times and kind of dark. It’s got a very heavy human traffíckíng vibe. For this review to make sense the jist is the FMC is being sold at an auction to the highest bidder. In my opinion it’s kind of a Romantasy/fantasy/dark Romantasy vibe. This is different from anything I’ve read and I really appreciated that aspect. The entire book is pretty action packed and exciting with a lot of things happening. The only thing negative I have to say an out his book is the chapters seemed long and it took me 3 weeks to read(I was sick). I predict this is being a very popular book!

⚠️possible trigger warnings

Thank you to @readforeverpub for giving me the opportunity to read this ARC!

This is going to be one of my favorite Romantasy series, I already know after just the first book. How you may ask? Well I read the initial fanfic that inspired the book, and it became my entire personality from that point forward. To this day, it has been a benchmark story for me.

I honestly loved everything about this book, the pacing, the magic system Soto created, the romance, the banter, the stress..... honestly I'm annoyed with myself fangirling. My only complaint, in quite the Michael Scott fashion, is that it wasn't long enough (because it needed to be broken up into a multi-part book).

But seriously, Juli Soto's writing is so enjoyable. The flow of the book felt really natural and understanding her magic system wasn't overly difficult, which for me can happen often with fantasy novels. The romantic tension between the main characters was literally palpable, I was giggling and kicking my feet every time Toven tried to save Briony, or when Briony would try and practice the physical aspect their facade and he would push her away - literally ferallllll,

I want to immediately re-read it, so I'm going to be doing that very soon. Have I already re-read the entire fanfic universe this is based on? Yes.

Thank you to Julie Soto and Forever for an eARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this book. As someone who read it in its original fanfic format, I was super excited! I loved Briony and loved the romance part of this story. However, I felt that the world-building felt flat. It is hard to translate a fanfic based on multiple books into this. It felt condensed and I really could not get into the world as much as I have in other romance/fantasy, and wanted more from it. If Soto had given more time on world-building, not to try to trace the original fanfic, it would have been far more convincing for me.

Still, Soto is a talented writer that continues to impress.