I loved this book. It took me a moment to really get into the story, but once I did, I couldn't put it down. I found the family dynamics particularly well-done. Those sometimes get ignored in favor of the romance. There was romance too, don't get me wrong, but not at the expense of exploring other, complicated relationships.

I DNFed this one at the beginning of chapter 19. I'm not exactly sure how far that is - I think around the half-way point? Anyway, this had a really interesting premise, and I liked the first few chapters, but it started going downhill really, really quickly after that. The main character was totally clueless, which was getting more and more annoying. The Romani supporting characters were really not treated well. It might have improved in the second half - the main character seemed to be putting in some effort to get past her many problematic views, but I just was not interested enough to see. I'm also not even sure what the plot was - the point that the book was heading towards seemed to change so many times that I wasn't sure who wanted what or what anyone was aiming for anymore. I just decided that it wasn't worth my time. (For those of you who don't know my reading habits: I've DNFed ten books in my entire life. I have to have pretty strong feelings to do it.)

The first book in a new historical fantasy series begins in London in 1847. Luminates, highborn magicians, rule Europe and a spell known as the binding restricts the use of magic to those of noble blood. Anna Arden, a 16-year-old of noble birth, can’t cast spells, thus will never be accepted into Luminate society. However, when it is revealed that she can break spells she is courted by rebels who hope to break the Binding. She and her grandmother flee to Hungary where a class war is brewing, and Anna must decide whether to play it safer or risk everything for a change to change the world.

DNF @ 12%

The sad truth is that I'm just not interested in continuing this book. I think part of the issue is that I started this on my lunch break at work, so I read only a little bit of it at a time. Because there's nothing inherently bad about it or the characters, but I'm bored. The beginning did not captivate me and it had also felt a bit too similar to other fantasy stories I've read in the past. I'd like to try it again at a later point, but I won't be rushing to do that. So I'm marking it as a DNF and moving on.

Set in an alternate, magical version of nineteenth century England and Hungary, Blood Rose Rebellion features a heroine with the power to undo spells who soon finds herself caught in the middle of a dangerous rebellion and a dark, enchanted realm where she just might be their only hope for freedom.

Blood Red Rebellion introduces readers to the protagonist Anna Arden, who after inadvertently dismantling her sister elaborate spellwork for her "debut" ball, finds herself being sent away from England to her family's estate in Hungary.

This introductory part felt a bit sluggish and took the longest to read through. England just did not capture my attention like Hungary did and I was happy for Anna to be whisked away to it.

Right away I knew Anna was a bit of a rebel and hothead.

Although she doesn't wield magic in the traditional sense, she sometimes, by accident, breaks spells causing mishaps and mischief while garnering the attention of the dangerous, magical group known as The Circle.

Starry-eyed, passionate, and even reckless, Anna lets us follow her as she goes from a naive young girl to one on the brink of a powerful and magical self-discovery. I'm often drawn to heroines who bravely wear their faults while they're mastering them. This is definitely a heroine who experiences some positive growth.

The standout feature in Blood Red Rebellion for me was the unique in-between world created, one full of mythological and folkloric creatures, trapped by a spell called "the binding."

Anna discovers this realm while with her grandmother in her native Hungary. It is here that Anna learns more about the nature of the powerful Luminates and their control on magic. It is also here where we meet her cousins and a handsome Romani boy.

Rebellion, folklore, and ancient magic mix in an enticing way.

I wish we could have spent the majority of the book exploring this enchanted realm caused by "the Binding", as it was completely fascinating to me.

The romance brewing between Anna and a certain Romani boy was sweet, though not epic. Anna ended up kissing more than just one boy before figuring out just who made her heart beat faster.

Overall, Blood Red Rebellion created a fascinating setting and cast of characters to follow and a series that is just beginning to reveal a unique and magical world. With a big ending, I'm curious to see where Rosalyn Eves takes this story next.

3.5 stars

I liked the story. It dragged on a bit and Anna had moments of self pity that could irritate, but overall it was good. I wanted more of the relationship building between Anna and her cousins. Maybe with the next book we'll see if that happens.

I found this incredibly difficult to get through, sadly. I wanted to like it, but there were just so many things about it that made it hard to push forward and finish. It was a very....typical YA fantasy book. The magic system was complicated and the main character was a typical teenager who was just too easy to dislike. The setting was cool, however, and the magic system did have a few interesting aspects to it but I just found it too complex to really get into, personally. This was an anticipated release for me, but it was unfortunately a flop.

Originally Reviewed At: Mother/Gamer/Writer
Rating: 2 out of 5 Controllers
Review Source: NetGalley
Reviewer: Ariel

Blood Rose Rebellion is the first in a new series by Rosalyn Eves, but after finishing it, I honestly don’t know where the rest of the series would go. I wanted to love this story. The cover is pretty, the plot seemed interesting, I was prepared to love this book and I just couldn’t.


The story takes place in a world where the high borns, referred to as Luminate, run things. The Luminate are the only ones who have access to magic, and there are five different types of magic one can specialize in (to be honest, I don’t remember what any of them are called). Anna Arden comes from a Luminate family, but there’s one problem. She’s completely Barren, unable to cast any sort of magic. Although she is Barren, weird things seem to happen to other people’s magic while she’s around. After accidentally ruining her sister’s debut ball, Anna gets sent to Hungary to stay with her grandma. Soon, Anna finds herself caught up in a plan to overthrow The Circle, the Luminates who are in charge, and give everyone, common or otherwise, access to magic.


Sounds super interesting, right? Well, kind of. All Luminate children go through something called the Binding, which gives them access to their magic. But since magic tends to go haywire around Anna, many rebels think she holds the power to breaking the Binding and therefore, releasing The Circle’s hold on who can and cannot have access to magic. So the story builds itself around who does and does not want Anna to break the Binding, does Anna want to break the Binding, what would even happen if she DOES break the Binding, etc. The whole book felt really really slow, and then the last 10-20% felt completely rushed and left me wondering what the rest of the series is going to be about.


Also, because it’s a YA novel, Anna had herself a few love interests. Which I normally don’t mind, young love is wonderful and new and makes me feel warm and fuzzy on the inside, but there just wasn’t a place for it in this novel, I didn’t think. There are just so many other important things happening, and I feel like Anna is struggling so much with her own identity, that the romance just felt like it was thrown in for funsies.


My favorite character, by far, was Anna’s cousin Noemi. She’s pretty nasty to Anna when Anna first arrives in Hungary, mostly because Anna’s family is much better off than Noemi’s, but she turns out to be very sweet and powerful in her own right.


All in all, the magic stuff was cool, and I enjoyed the Hungary setting, but I found reading this more of a chore than I wanted it to be. 2 out of 5, probably will not continue with the series, but don’t completely regret reading it. I just wish I would have enjoyed it more.

I really wanted to love this book, however I just couldn't get into it. I couldn't connect to the main character, or any of the characters really, which is a disappointment. The synopsis made the book sound so good yet I just couldn't. I don't think the book is that bad at all, the writing is pretty great but I don't think it was the book for me.

An interesting alternative paranormal historical novel. This book retains elements of the time period in which it is set while altering the premise of society in that practitioners of magic are the elite and prevent others from accessing magic. Anna, the main character, is considered an embarrassment to her family (somewhat like a Muggle in the Harry Potter series) because she has no magic. It turns out though, that she has a different kind of magic and her trip to relatives in the Balkans and a romance with a Romani show her that she does indeed have a unique set of abilities.

So. I read this book in a cropped way. I did notread it super fast. I was doing an internship. That being said, don't be too infuenced by my review.

I was not invested on this book. It was tough to read because I felt like it lacked action. It progressed really slow (remember what I said in the beginning). I didn't realise it was completely historical fantasy. So. I would've definitely enjoyed it more if I had realised that early on.

If you enjoy reading history (European) with a fantasy perspective, this is for you.

I’m going to keep the main review of “Blood Rose Rebellion” short, because there are some other issues I’ve seen mentioned that I feel it’s important to give my opinions on.

This book has complex world-building, a fun romance, and quite a bit of action. It’s an enjoyable read for those who like historical fantasy. The characters are developed to a certain degree, with some mystery being left for the next book in the series. If you like those things, this book is worth a read.

Now for the heavy stuff. I’ve seen some complaints about there being racism in the book. Some people have not finished it. Yes, the word gypsy is used quite a bit. That’s because the story is set in mid-1800s Hungary. As the main character gets to know them, her opinions change and that is reflected in her attitude. In fact, the author introduces the term Romani at that point, even though historically it wasn’t in use at the time. There’s an entire section at the end written by the author about the treatment of the Romani during the time, along with a bibliography for more information.

What I’m saying is please don’t let accusations of racism scare you away from “Blood Rose Rebellion.” Ignoring the harsh realities of history is a disservice to everyone, and I applaud the author for being brave enough to tackle it.

This is a stellar entry into the field of historical fantasy. Set in the Victorian era but imbued with the magical and mysterious, this tale will enchant readers.

"Some rebels are made, not born"

I went into this book completely blind. So when it turned out to be about powers I was very surprised, a good surprise though.

Anna feels like she is the disappointment of the family, due to her big sister always being the best at everything. Plus she feels guilty for something that happened to her little brother that has now made him be weaker than most boys his age. Between the guilt she feels and always being second best compared to her sister, she ends up making some questionable decisions on a big night for her sister. Choices that while understandable when looking at things from her point of view, but also wrong when looking at them from her families point of view.

Overall I did find this book enjoyable, and I do want to continue on with the series to see what Anna and her family/friends get up to next. Anna does really act her age, this isn't one of those stories where the young teenager acts like she knows everything or has a real understanding of how things work in her world. Anna really is innocent and still has a lot to learn not only about how her magical world works, but the non-magical world as well.
The friendships she makes and the family she learns about were very enjoyable to read as well. Her part in the rebellion did seem a little sudden and not really explained very well at times.
I did have a slight problem with how her family was acting towards her about powers and saying she's a disgrace, etc. I'm not going to lie though this book did remind me at times of the These Vicious Masks trilogy (In a good way), but it was very different as well.

I do hope something are explained better in the second book.

I enjoyed this book! I was immediately intrigued by the secret societies and magic promised by the blurb, but what hooked me the most was the promise of Hungarian characters and culture. As someone with Hungarian ancestry, I've always love learning more about the culture and history - and in a historical fantasy with magic?! Even better! I also liked the idea of Anna not having access to magic, when magic is so deeply rooted in her family's elitist society and the Luminate. I was a little turned off by the cousin romance, and at times I struggled with the slow pace of the story. However, I think this one is full of intrigue and I enjoyed the culture and the ending. I look forward to reading the sequel.

Unfortunately I gave up on this one at 55%.

I actually loved the beginning of the book and really enjoyed everything up until the point where Anna left home. Learning about the magic system and seeing it in use was super interesting to me and I was actually excited about the book. And then a third of the way in it totally changed directions and got really slow and really boring. I wasn't a fan of the writing and it felt difficult to read because of how flowery the author tried to make it. I was either rolling my eyes at the metaphors or re-reading passages to try and figure out what was going on. Sadly, this was not the book for me.

I'm sorry; I didn't get a chance to download this before it was archived.

BLOOD ROSE REBELLION by Rosalyn Eves is a debut fantasy novel set in 1847 London. The main character is a young woman of noble birth who, unlike others of her class, has no magical powers other than being able to break spells. Her "gift" contributes to the ruin of her sister's debut and Anna Arden is exiled to Hungary with her grandmother. There, she discovers Romani magic and has to decide if she wants to develop her power and support rebellion by granting more magic abilities to all.

There are elements of Austrian-Hungarian history, classism, and even sexism in this fantasy story, but the appeal will most likely be to younger (middle school and early high school) readers due to the immaturity of the character, her flirtatious romance and presence of magical creatures. BLOOD ROSE REBELLION is part of a planned trilogy – learn more at the author's website which is here: http://www.rosalyneves.com/books/

This book was one I was highly anticipating, I thought the setting and plot sounded like the next great fantasy, but alas, I was disappointed again.

While the plot WAS compelling, and the setting was one I haven't read much of, the info-dumping and all of the accents on all of the names was way too much.
I'm all for accenting, but when I open a page and it looks like someone sprinkled dirt on it... that's too much.
I did, however, enjoy the story, and when I listened to it on audiobook versus reading it, I enjoyed it even more without the accents!

DNF. I couldn't do it. The premise was interesting but it was just SO MUCH. I'm 40% of the way through and there still isn't really a plot. I hate the MC because I find her to have absolutely no agency or any actual motivation. The characters are flat and underdeveloped. Like I get the idea Eves is going for and I really think the premise is strong but I just can't get through the execution. I just forced myself to finish another galley I really didn't like and trying to force myself through this one too is just not good for my soul. Sorry :(