Repetitive info dumps, left field plot twists, and uncomfortable cousin kissing. Yeah, this book was a chore to read, to say the least, and it is easily the worst book I've read so far in 2017.

“Has no one told you, child, not to wander in unfamiliar woods? Have you not read your fairy tales?”

This is a historical fantasy novel, set in 19th century Hungary, with some Hungarian folklore. The author actually places real people from Hungarian history in her story, too, so I'll give her a little credit for a unique setting, but it didn't help the actual enjoyment of this book..

I think it is important to note that I am not Hungarian, but Lex's review is very important in terms of accurate representation, and is just amazing in general. If you are questioning the authenticity on certain elements of this book, her review is a must read.

At this point I feel like all the "new" YA fantasy is just the same. You can take your pick, if you've read one you've read them all, but Blood Rose Rebellion still feels a little worse for some reason, even with the more unique setting.

I didn't care about any of the characters, I felt no chemistry for any relationship, and I never believed in any of the friendships. This book reads cold and stoic.

The basic storyline is that our main protagonist, Anna, lives in a society where your worth is dependent on your magical ability. The trick of this statement is a powerful society, the Luminate, which her family is a part of, announce whether children have magical abilities or not.

Anna is deemed barren, yet everyone else's spells seem to break or backfire around her. After she ruins her sister's magical debutante party, and while doing so because they both have a crush on the same boy, the Luminates become much more interested in Anna.

After an offer to go to Hungary with her grandmother, Anna's parents force her to go in hopes that it will clear her sister's good name, so she can be married off like a proper lady, and that Anna can escape the radar of the Luminates. So off to Hungary Anna and her grandmother go.

And this wouldn't be a historical fiction novel if the highborn lady didn't fall in love with a Gypsy boy. So in Hungary, a weird sort of love triangle ensues, with sexual tension involving Anna's third cousin, along the "meat" of the story, which will be information dumping alongside mixed messages to confuse you constantly.

The author will then throw in twists to try to rationalize the story along. Then tragedy will strike to pull at your heartstrings, but the story has been so convoluted for so long that you won't even care who lives or who dies, you'll just want it to be over.

“I did not want to be remembered. I had only wanted to be loved.”

I'm sorry, I really am, but this book was one of the books I knew I should have DNFed, but I hate DNFing ARCs so here we are. Again, I never want to turn people away from trying a book, so I hope if you give this book a try that you will feel differently than I did.

I’d like to thank NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Rosalyn Eves weaves shadows and darkness into things with clawed hands and teeth that gnash, which pushed me to read every page faster. Eves brings Hungarian myths to life with such clarity and emotion that it has left me wanting to learn more about the culture. Blood Rose Rebellion is an alternative history mixed with fantasy.

Blood Rose Rebellion doesn’t deviate from the tried and true norm of a girl finding herself at odds with society, shunned for her differences only to eventually learn that she is the key to save that society. BUT what it does challenge you to figure out where you stand on the each issue the novel brings up.

Eves paints revolution in varying shades of gray. She uses Anna Arden to take us through each side’s argument for unleashing magic or for keeping it bound to a small elite group. There’s a list a mile long of pros and cons for both arguments, and Anna is caught in the middle. Anna learns that trusted companions can make or break you. She learns that there are fair weather revolutionaries. They’ll talk the talk, but not walk the walk when the tide turns and becomes a deadly force. There are some really good points that are brought up in this novel:

“Change is never without cost.” -Gábor

“People do terrible things when they are afraid.” –Anna

"You should not dismiss me because I am only a girl, Even a small dog can bite… a microorganism smaller than the head of a pin can kill a grown man.” –Anna

These three quotes are so applicable to the world we live in today, and it is important to remember that no matter if you are just one person, that you can still have an enormous effect on the world around you.

I have to say thank you for including a glossary. I love glossaries, especially in fantasies. There is no way I would have kept each magician order straight in my head without. Bless you!

If you’re a fan of Cassandra Clare’s The Infernal Devices series, I think you’ll enjoy Rosalyn Eves’s Blood Rose Rebellion.

This book confused me. I didn't really understand the title, and while it seemed like it desperately want to be Fantasy, it was stuck in the real world. I also couldn't tell how much of the book was supposed to really be taken seriously. How much logic from the real world had been thrown out, and how much was the fantasy side? The book wasn't bad, but it just didn't move fast enough for me to get completely invested in it. I liked the minor characters better than the major ones, and while Anna was a pretty good protagonist, I wanted more of some of the others as well. Overall, I probably wouldn't buy this book, but I would sit down in a library and read it.

Ruby is seventeen years old and she is a Fireblood. What is a Fireblood? Fireblood is a person who has a power of heat and flame and in her world, Firebloods are illegals, so Ruby has spent her entire life concealing her power and hiding from the Frostblood ruling class. But when her mother is killed trying to protect her, and rebel Frostbloods demand her help to overthrow their king, she agrees to help them in order to have her revenge.

Ruby starts training with the rebels even with the annoying and infuriating Arcus, she doesn't know what his problem is, and he is just as cold as his powers. Before the rebels and Ruby can go through with their plan, Ruby is capture and brought to the king, where he makes her compete in his tournaments where Firebloods prisoners fight against Frostblood champions. With each win, Ruby gets closer to destroy the crazy ruler who has taken everything from her, but will she be able to do it?
Ruby is stubborn and her desperation for revenge makes you cheer for her throughout the whole book. But what really makes this book different is how this book is written and it makes the characters real and you feel what they feel and you just connect with them. Yes, Ruby is courageous and a freaking weapon with her powers, but when she is about to fight or even when she is fighting, she tells you what she is feeling and many times she says that she doesn't think she is going to be able to survive and she feels weak and that's make this character and book more amazing.

I totally, totally recommend this book, once I picked it up, I couldn't put it down. 5 out 5 stars

In a world full of magic, Anna has been ruled Barren by the Luminate, the powerful, governing body of magic. After accidentally breaking her sister's debutante spell, Anna is sent to Hungary with her grandmother. While there Anna learns that not everything is as it seems and she is the only one who can bring about the change many desperately want.

I thought this book had great potential, but found it to be quite dull. I didn't like the era it was set in; I felt that a more modern, dystopian setting would've added more action and excitement as opposed to hearing about Anna's dirty gloves and too tight corset every few pages.

All in all it was a decent read, but not something I would be interested in picking up again.

I received a copy through NetGalley.

I was initially excited having read the synopsis, it had everything lined up to be a really good series, but I quickly found myself disappointed.
I felt that it was both under written, and very slow and vague when it came to the plot comping together. We meet Anna Arden, a seemingly untalented member of the aristocracy of the Luminate, a magical high society that operates just below the kings and queens of their countries, through a high assembly known as The Circle. It's a class society, decided solely on magical talent, and through a ritual called a "Binding" which allows one through The Circle to control your magic, to Confirm you in society, which only belongs to Luminate. Making them the only ones to be allowed to use magic. Everyone else falls below them and are subject to their law and rules, and any use of magic illegal.
Anna is the shame of her family, hidden away and brushed aside, she's the only one to have gone through the Binding and not have the ritual take, thus she lacks the physical brand that marks the skin of those who are confirmed. She is a pariah of high society, unable to utilize magic and scorned by her peers known as a Barren.
Without magic her only saving grace would be to find herself a willing husband within the Luminate, but as a Barren none want her. After a disastrous incident at her sister's debut, she is sent away to visit distant family in Hungary.

While I wanted to find this interesting and drawn in, the writing really didn't lend it's self to the kind of fantasy lull it could have easily had, It was slow and formal and very stiffly written. It was all there, and could have been so much better easily. But I really didn't like the voice of the story. And it dragged and snagged in so many places. And I found Anna submissive and infuriating, so willing to just go along, there's wasn't much in the way of inner depth to her character. It all fell flat.

I would not recommend this series.

I was hesitant to read this book because you can hear the similarities to Red Queen, this book was honestly better than I was expecting. I do wish that this story was a little more original that it was (I know that it's hard to do in YA) but I felt there were too many similarities to Red Queen. Regardless of this I do feel that overall it was a pretty great book, it does take those similarities and makes it's own spin on it. I can't wait until others get the opportunity to read this amazing story.

**I Received this book for free, Via Netgalley, in exchange of an honest review.**

*I give this book 2.5 out of 5 stars**

First off, let me say. Anyone reading this book, needs to read the glossary, The character guide, and possibly the Author's Note, before reading the actual book.

I did not do it that way, and I was terribly disappointed with this book. I wanted to love it, I really did. But I just cannot. Maybe had I read the above mentioned sections first, I would have felt differently. This book would have been truly fascinating, without the magic part of the story. What this book is based on historically, would have made for such an incredible read.

Anna kissed a lot of boys, and cared deeply for a lot of boys. I could not warm up to her character, at all, nor could I warm up to the boys that she kissed. Her parents were terrible, her sister was horrible, the only family she had with any redeeming qualities was her brother, who is barely mentioned.

This is book one of a series, that is released on March 28th. Unfortunately, I will not be continuing with the story. Ultimately this book was just not the right fit for me. But I believe it will be enjoyed by others.

I went into this book with the expectations that this might be a veiled repeat of what every YA fantasy is. Honestly, I wasn't that inaccurate in the prediction department.

This book follows a "Barren" girl, Anna who goes to Hungary with her grandmother who originated from there. Her family is part of the Luminate, a powerful and rich group in society who is controlled by the "Circle," an elite group of magic-holders. The time-frame of this is set during an uprising revolution, where Anna must choose which side to fight on and how she's going to use what she has to help those in need.

The best parts of the story, was the setting which was Hungary. I personally found it to be very refreshing, as I've never seen a book written in this place before. I would have liked the author to expand a little bit more on the historical impact and circumstances which lead to this actually happening, but you can't have everything.

All of the character absolutely fell flat for me, there was no life, no personality, no flair to make them who they are. I was very disappointed to see yet another cardboard cutout of any average white girl, who is portrayed as a "special snowflake" with "special powers", and acts like the chosen one is in town.

There was an insta-love element, and the main character literally kisses every boy that she meets and she finds even mildly attractive. I am honestly not trying to be slut-shaming at all here, but I just find it disconcerting that she flits from one guy to another, when her sister literally has an almost arranged marriage to marry for money and power. The chemistry wasn't in there with any of the many love interests that she has, I just couldn't and didn't ship them in anyway whatsoever; therefore I didn't care what happened to them as a unit.

**Disclaimer: I don't identify with this group of marginalized folks that I am going to be talking about in this bit below.**

My big problem was problematic rep. that was shown towards the "gypsy" (a slur which if offensive) people, who are called Romani as well in this book. Let me just show you some direct quotes from the test about what I mean. So some background, which may be a contain spoilers. Our MC love interest in Romani, and treated horrible by the members of the Circle. Anna has several encounters with the Romani people, where I feel like she is racist towards them stereotypes them. Here are just a couple of excerpts :

"A spark of indignation lit me, warning me in the evening air. How dare this Gypsy accuse me of being unclean?"

'His words were educated--eloquent, even-- not something I'd expected from a Gypsy."

"I have met an astoundingly attractive man. He is, unfortunately Gypsy and penniless..."

"Do I suprise you? You think because I am a Gypsy I am illiterate and ignorant of science?
'No', I-- I stopped. That was precisely what I had been thinking."

"Were he not Gypsy-no, Romani- I thought we might be friends."

"A couple of children spotted me and came running. They tugged at my sleeve and laughed and held out small brown hands. My first instinct was to pull back, as if they might pollute me."


Gabor, the love interest, tries to educate her and talk to her about who his people are, what their traditions are, yet she still treats him inferiority. Refers to him being a "gypsy" behind his back, and doesn't think of him as being capable of helping her succeed. These injustices and internalized prejudice is addressed by the author in the author's note and sporadically the character witness these crimes (and does nothing to help or step in, only cares about saving her love interest). Here is a sentence from the author's note:

I choose to use "Romani" to acknowledge this preference and to reflect the different between the way Gabor views his family and friends (and the way Anna comes to) and outsider perspectives. Where "Gypsy" is used, it refers strictly to outsiders' perspectives of Romani life.


This author note in itself is really confusing because I thought that Anna an outsider's perspective...she's by no means an insider into the culture, so I don't understand what type of distinction this author is trying to create.

Here's another scene, where Gabor feels like's he's being portrayed as helpless, and I found this interaction to be so frustrating.

"You cannot help with this." His lips tightened. "I may be Romani, but I am not helpless."


That's my whole rant that I've got to say about this book. I was honestly expecting better, but was sorely disappointed by the elements that were found in this story.

**Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing with an ARC in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.**

I loved this book. The world building was so good with it being set in Victorian Hungary. I've not read many based in that country so it was refreshing to get to know a new place, one I've never seen before. I also really liked the magic system. The different types of magics made it really interesting and I especially liked that not everyone in the same family had the same type of magic. My absolute favorite part of the book was the Lore. I love lore and fairy tales so much! I thought Rosalyn did an amazing job at mixing in the lore with what was really happening and that the connections were made between the two. I'm so excited to find out what happens in the next books in regards to the choices both the monsters and people choose to make now that the binding has broken and magic is restored to the rest of society. The sociological breakdowns between the hierarchy was fascinating as well and I think Rosalyn did an amazing job of portraying the disparities and civil unrest between the lower and upper classes. Overall amazing job with this one! I can't wait for more!!

Miss Anna Arden is Barren. And how does an unmarried teenager in Victorian England know such a thing? Well, she's not barren in the reproductive sense. This is much worse. In the world of Blood Rose Rebellion, Barren women can't do magic, which is the only proof of a noble's heritage and worthiness. Only those who please the crown and the Circle--the gatekeepers of magical access--have magic, but for Anna, something just didn't take. And when she ruins her sister's magical debut, the Circle begins to wonder if she isn't an active problem, rather than a sad mishap. Frightened, her parents send her to their native Hungary, where she learns more about magic than she ever bargained for.

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How she goes about learning these things makes this book flicker between chore and delight. The underlying ideas are good, setting up a universe of diverse powers and sinister agendas, but Rosalyn Eves doesn't quite shore up that potential with enough detail (and perhaps insufficient research, although her afterword does imply otherwise). Anna herself is a mediocre researcher, trying to learn magic but not trying to find out more about the mysterious creatures that may be figments of her imagination or that may be terribly real. Her situation excuses some of it--there aren't that many books in a backwater estate, especially for ladies of quality--but not all of it. And we the readers suffer for it. Hungarian myths are not as familiar as, say, Greek or Norse myths, and I would have dearly loved any and all details about them. But we get scant color from that rich history, instead focusing on Anna's very English upbringing.
Her interactions pay homage to Austen and the Brontes, and have a superficial resemblance to Victorian manners. The inflated idea of civility extends to those more powerful than Anna as well. They ask her to join their causes but exert little pressure beyond imposing themselves on her social calendar, their mere presence deemed sufficiently persuasive or threatening. No actual threats are made, even though I am certain that someone as potentially dangerous as Anna would have been far more closely guarded, with or without her consent. The pressure does ramp up toward the end, but clumsily, veering into supervillainy rather than political reality.

That's the illusion of the Victorians. Our misplaced nostalgia for pretty heroines who follow their hearts erases the reality not only of abuse but of venality. Rosalyn Eves is getting at it when she forces us to look at the knee-jerkprejudice against the serfs and gypsies (Romani) and the injustices of class, but Anna's world is still mannered. Still so very English, even when we get to Hungary.

The novel really shone when showing us Hungarian culture. The details of its degraded glory, its subjugation to Austria, and its cafe patriots were all quite intriguing. YA and fantasy both have been dying for an influx of new voices, and it is 19th century Hungary and Eastern Europe that provide some much-needed relief from the glut of English steampunk. Anna is meant to be our entrypoint into this unfamiliar world, since she has had a sheltered English upbringing, but her participation is a bit too unbelievable.

The forbidden romance between Anna and the Romani Gabor is intriguing but not scintillating. To be fair, it's a hard task Eves has set herself, since she must make the romance realistic (and therefore staggered with the racism and classism of the time) but also appealing to modern sensibilities. I was not entirely convinced. The prose did not convince me of any unbearable passion (although Eves was on to something in focusing on the eroticism of small gestures--the touch of a hand without a glove, the exposure of the throat, the indecency of ankles. Intimacy arises as much from the forbidden as from the shared familiar), nor did their shared narrative of exclusion from their cultures particularly resonate. It lacked an emotional depth because, despite her assertions that she was wild, Anna was relatively obedient. She snuck around, but was not openly defiant or curious in the presence of those she was supposedly rebelling against. She did not demand answers; consequently, our curiosity as readers shrivels up and dies after dozens of chapters without explanations.

Which isn't to say there isn't action. There's plenty, but so much of it doesn't really tell us about Anna or the Hungarian cause. It mostly revolves around Anna's frustrations--most of which are her own fault--and sentimentality. The full first half of the book is too concerned with making sure we know that Anna is a not-like-the-other-girls kind of gal and doesn't set up any of the later surprises very well, making them obvious or random.

Still, I was glad to see genuine engagement with Romani culture that neither romanticized nor villainized this ethnic group. Similarly, it was well done to paint the revolutionaries as fractious and imperfect. The realism of their competing ideologies and methods was more pronounced toward the end, really making the last quarter of the book a breathless triumph. It's unfortunate that Anna had to hesitate her way through the rest of the book to get there, but I still think it's worth the uneven ride.

Will not be posted until March 21. geeklinc.com/blood-rose-rebellion-hungarian-uprising

Thank you, Netgalley, for an ARC of this book. My views are entirely my own.

A little bit Historical Fantasy, a little bit Pride and Prejudice. If you're a fan of A Shadow Bright and Burning, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, or even the Dark Days Club, you will love this book.

Debut author Rosalyn Eves does a great job building up an entirely unique world and fitting it so perfectly in to the real world, painting the settings with lush descriptions and the characters with morals so fitting for their times. As an anthropologist, I always appreciate heroines/heroes that fit into their times, and aren't cardboard ideals of how we WISH they would behave. Like a true 16 year old Debutante, Anna is both a teensy bit rebellious and a teensy bit high-strung, which is how I envision most women were during that time.

Eves also paints an eclectic cast of characters that lift both the story and the setting, fitting perfectly into the magical time and place (Hungarian Revolution!!!!!!)

Though there were some issues I hope the publisher will resolve prior to publication, I definitely recommend this book to any fans of Historical Fantasy! The world of Rosalyn Eves is worth a dabble!

In a world where some people - mostly rich white people - have magic and some don't - mostly people of color and those who are poor - a girl is born without magic. Those with magic - the Luminate - control everything while those without magic wish for a change. This girl, a Barren Luminate, has the chance to break the all magical Binding and release magic to all.

Now, if this seems like the plot of about 800 other dystopian young adult literature books that have been published in the last five years or so, you'd be right.

Blood Rose Rebellion brings an interesting historical take on this trope, though it still doesn't really distinguish itself from the other novels that have been published. I do applaud Eves for doing her research - the novel is set in the 1840s and she does a great job of respecting both the time period and the people. Anyone who refers to Romani as Romani and not "gypsies" gets a point in my book.

Anna is your typical young adult heroine - stubborn, trying to do the right thing even though everyone is trying to tell her not to. Again, nothing really special, though Anna does have some charming one-liners. She also seems to avoid a love triangle, which is a boon to the story.

The rest of the characters simply fill out the rest of the needed people: the love interest, the sister, the one who breaks the protagonist's heart... Etc. There is truly nothing special or remarkable about any of the characters and, honestly, as I read this book over a few days, I often found myself forgetting who was who and how they related to Anna.

While a quick read filled with historically-correct words and events, Blood Rose Rebellion is simply a "second-verse same as the first" when it comes to this literary genre.

Blood Rose Rebellion was one of my most anticipated reads of 2017, because, let us be honest, you can’t really dangle a YA fantasy with such a unique setting in front of me and expect me not to drool. I did drool over it, I did yearn for it, and I unexpectedly did get an ARC of it. Imagine my joy: huge, shiny, happy thing.
And now imagine that joy being shattered when I finally admitted to myself, when I was a little more than a quarter into the book, that I wasn’t enjoying it at all.

Blood Rose Rebellion is one of the slowest books I’ve ever read. Slow-paced novels usually are not a problem for me; strangely enough, I seem to enjoy them best that action-packed ones. The thing with this kind of books, however, is that for them to keep you hooked in spite of everything, the author must be very skilled and his storytelling nearly flawlessly compelling, and Rosalyn Eves’s, I’m afraid, is not. The novel is written in first person, and Anna’s voice (the MC) feels dry and bland more often than not. Which, as you can guess, was no incentive for me to care for her or any of the characters or even what was happening.

And speaking of Anna, I found her as annoying as they come. I usually don’t say this in such a concise manner, not even of fictional characters, but this is what it is: Anna is dumb. She keeps doing dumb thing after dumb thing and is surprised when the consequences of her actions fall on her. Surprise, surprise, my lady, welcome to real life. Especially at the beginning, moreover, she’s dreadfully full of prejudice and bias, even though (and she herself admits as much) she should know better, since she’s been looked down on by everyone for her entire life. It was really hard to put up with her.

Like any decent YA protagonist, Anna must have her flock of suitors too. The romance is naïve and completely unnecessary, and again, it only bothered me. Plus, it felt insta-lovish even though supposedly Anna and Favorite Suitor do spend much time together –which still doesn’t justify her sudden and unwarranted infatuation. It didn’t help that all her suitors are as bland as her; generally speaking, all of the characters lack edge, and it’s not easy to care for them.

The one true strength of this book is its unique setting, 19th-century Hungary. The author clearly put a lot of work in her historical research and in the study of Slavic folklore, and I think much could have been born of these two elements alone. For me, sadly, this set the stage for greater disappointment: I’m physically itching at the thought of all the potential gone to waste here.

In a nutshell, I was as excited for Blood Rose Rebellion as now I am sad to say that it proved to be nothing more than your perfectly average YA fantasy, and more boring than most at that. The characters are bland, the world-building had potential but didn't fully explore it; the one true merit it has is its setting, absolutely unique, even though I wasn't able to enjoy it properly given that the story failed to pick, let alone hold, my interest.
I still am unsure whether I’ll give the next instalment a chance; I guess we’ll see.



--- The review will be posted on my Goodreads page on March 14th, two weeks before the release date, as per instructions. Thank you for the opportunity to read this ARC.

Get on with it!
This book started off at a slow pace and… simmered out from there. Honestly, the entire book just dragged on and on and on. The main plot kept getting delayed by this thing or another and was then diverted by other characters and their introductions. It was like a book of 90% filler and only 10% actual plot.

Clipped and Jarring
This is likely just a writing style, meaning this author may not be for me, but I absolutely detested the way in which this book was written. Each chapter had multiple scenes within them, but the chapters were still of average YA length. In other words, the 4+ scenes per chapter were short, clipped, and lacked continuity. The story felt disjointed, which made it difficult to fully immerse myself and actually connect with anything that was going on.

Childish Narrative
The main character of the story, Anna, is sixteen and seventeen during this story. She’s a teenager and likely to make stupid decisions. That I can accept. However, when her voice in the story sounds more like a twelve-year-old than a teenager, I grow frustrated. I wasn’t expecting to read middle grade and, yet, that’s what much of the story felt like.

Oh look! A cliche…
Ugh! I can’t understand how cliches are still found in YA literature given the numerous debates and frustrations readers have about them, but I guess they sell and I guess people still enjoy them. I, however, do not. And I did not enjoy them in this book. I’m really over the whole: one of a kind, saves the world, all men love her, but all women hate her cliche. Like… can’t we get a new cliche, at least? Something a tad more original?

Oh, how little I care
I tried. I really did try to like this story, but I didn’t. Part of that was because of my dislike for the overly selfish, childish, idiotic main character. Unfortunately, because I cared little for Anna, it was difficult to care about anyone else, especially when she seemed to face every other person in the story with disdain. Thus, I can’t name a single character I cared about in this story and it’s only be sheer perseverance that I made it all the way through.

When I had first heard of this book, I was ecstatic. It had been given the label as another Red Queen, but that didn’t stop me from wanting to read it. However, I guess the mentioning of Red Queen should’ve been my first warning.
Labeling groups of people seem to be the thing nowadays in literature and in the real world. I understand it creates tension and an absurd amount of difficulties, but it has already been done. Multiple times. I guess what I’m getting at is that the concept of superiors and inferiors is starting to become a cliche.
Besides the separation, I liked the book. Eves’ writing takes you on a romantic, historical journey. At times, I loved it. It roped me into the story and the time period. I could easily picture the characters and the scene around them. But other times, the writing became tedious and laborious to muddle through. It may have been a lack of action or motivating in some scenes, but I found it happening quite a bit. I love historical time periods. But is it strange to say that I’m not a big fan of the writing style?
Overall, the characters were lackluster. I wasn’t compelled to like or hate a single one of them. I wasn’t a fan of the romance woven in. It felt forced and a ploy to get a specific audience’s attention. Honestly, I think the story could’ve done without a romance. But that is coming from someone who pretty much despises them.

◆The first and foremost merit of this book is its setting: 19th century Hungary. This novel is partly a historical fiction/alternative history and partly displays the real revolution that took place in Hungary in 1848. I highly appreciated the East Europe setting and believe we need more of such books in YA genre.

◆Slavic mythology: Rusalka (mermaid), fene (evil spirits), lidérc (succubus-like creature with goose feet) - fearful and alluring, they absolutely fascinated me in the story. I admit I am quite illiterate when it comes to Hungarian mythology and, though, some of these creature were well-known to me thanks to shared Slavic heritage with Russia, I still didn't recognized half of them, but after this book I want to know more! That's why I think we need more of such novels to acquaint readers and unveil these fascinating creatures to us.

◆ I enjoyed the concept of the book where Luminate society controls all magic with the help of a special binding ritual that allows only the chosen ones to use magic. My first reaction when I heard Luminate was something like: These guys are evil or these guys are evil! But surprisingly the guys weren't as evil as I imagined them to be. I like that there's gray areas and not everything is as obvious as it seems.

I would recommend this book if you are looking for a fresh East Europe settings and fascinating mythology.

The main character is interesting since I found myself on this odd threshold of not exactly loving her but not hating her either. She is full of a lot of YA stigmas but she is also relatable. The shining element of this book is the setting which the writing style brings to brilliant life and that is ultimately what is going to draw the imagination. Hungarian castles, folklore creatures, GYPSIES..... yes, please.

In her debut YA fantasy novel, author Rosalyn Eves shows great potential. She combines the real-life revolution in Victorian Era Hungary with a fictional main character, Anna, who seems to be the only member of her family born without magic. Eves provides vivid descriptions for several different types of magic throughout this tale. While the spell work is exciting, the dry writing prevents the book from being truly magical.

I voluntarily read a Review Copy of this book. All opinions stated are solely my own and no one else’s.

I really enjoyed this.It's such a nice change to see this sort of mythology, and I loved seeing this take on the historical events of the time. My own criticism is that is was obvious that she was going to end up breaking the binding, and so the constant waffling back and forth was irritating.