michellemm85's review against another edition
2.0
2/6
A fine(?) book. It's one of those YA books that's all about revolution and the MC is different and special, very similar to other books published around the same time. Unfortunately for this series, this story felt complete enough without me reading the sequels. I don't particularly care about her family back in England, or how the various Circles will try to punish Anna for breaking the Binding and giving those filthy commoners magic.
To be honest, the only two characters that were slightly interesting to me were Hunger and The Lady lol
I haven't read the synopsis for the other books, but I'm feeling like a trilogy is too much. This book was 400 pages. I think a duology would have been enough. But I'll never know! lol Unless I can get the 2nd and 3rd books for a dollar a piece (I found this one at the dollar tree years ago lol)
A fine(?) book. It's one of those YA books that's all about revolution and the MC is different and special, very similar to other books published around the same time. Unfortunately for this series, this story felt complete enough without me reading the sequels. I don't particularly care about her family back in England, or how the various Circles will try to punish Anna for breaking the Binding and giving those filthy commoners magic.
To be honest, the only two characters that were slightly interesting to me were Hunger and The Lady lol
I haven't read the synopsis for the other books, but I'm feeling like a trilogy is too much. This book was 400 pages. I think a duology would have been enough. But I'll never know! lol Unless I can get the 2nd and 3rd books for a dollar a piece (I found this one at the dollar tree years ago lol)
luna_rondo's review against another edition
2.0
Man, I wanted to like this, but it was just so boring and info-dumpy. I'd be curious to read the sequel and see if it gets better.
skyzinnia's review against another edition
3.5
This book is extremely slow. Nothing too big happens until past page 300 - in a 400-page book - and the main fight doesn't happen until roughly 15 pages before it ends. If you don't like VERY slow-burn romance and SUPER slow-burn action, this is not the book for you.
That being said, it wasn't necessarily bad, just so, so much narrative almost exclusively.
This is Austria-Hungary in the mid-1800s, and I think Eves did an excellent job of staying accurate. Sometimes a bit too accurate, lol. There was a vizsla dog, correct languages, correct places, and correct representation of everything going on there at that time. The only weird part was how much she kisses her cousin. I know it's the 1800s, and they are nobles, and it's how it was, but it was still a little off-putting.
I really enjoyed the fight scenes, however few they were. They were thought out and described well and even that kept up with what weapons they would have had and how they were being used. It made me appreciate the loss and destruction caused by a battle like that.
I also liked how Anna develops. She goes from being worse than useless to what she is today. I look forward to seeing how her and Gábor continue on with their journey and what they'll do next!
That being said, it wasn't necessarily bad, just so, so much narrative almost exclusively.
This is Austria-Hungary in the mid-1800s, and I think Eves did an excellent job of staying accurate. Sometimes a bit too accurate, lol. There was a vizsla dog, correct languages, correct places, and correct representation of everything going on there at that time. The only weird part was how much she kisses her cousin. I know it's the 1800s, and they are nobles, and it's how it was, but it was still a little off-putting.
I really enjoyed the fight scenes, however few they were. They were thought out and described well and even that kept up with what weapons they would have had and how they were being used. It made me appreciate the loss and destruction caused by a battle like that.
I also liked how Anna develops. She goes from being worse than useless to what she is today. I look forward to seeing how her and Gábor continue on with their journey and what they'll do next!
bellatap's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
3.0
I felt like it was slow and the author kept focusing on details I didn’t care about
moirwyn's review against another edition
4.0
This review originally appeared on my blog, Books Without Any Pictures:
http://bookswithoutanypictures.com/2017/03/27/blood-rose-rebellion-by-rosalyn-eves/
Blood Rose Rebellion by Rosalyn Eves is a young adult dystopian/alt-history novel set in the mid-1800s. Anna Arden is born into high British society. In this book, magic is also tied to social class. The upper class, the Luminates, receive the ability to perform magic at their Confirmation as a child. But Anna is barren of magic, and feels like an outcast. Society will never accept her. But Anna has a secret: she isn’t just barren of magic, but she can break magic. And that power makes her dangerous. There’s a spell called the Binding that restricts magic so that only the Luminates can use it. It’s managed by a group of nobles known as the Circle. And if Anna breaks the binding, then power will be taken from the Luminates and restored to the people, so that anyone can have the opportunity to do magic. It could unravel the very fabric of society.
Anna’s power to destroy magic accidentally ruins her sister’s debut, and to cover up the scandal, Anna and her grandmother go on a trip to Hungary. Hungary is not what Anna expected, and even though society there is also pretty hierarchical, there’s more of an opportunity for Anna to encounter people who aren’t like herself. She starts to fall in love with a Romani named Gabor, and that’s where things get interesting, because Anna is an upper-class girl who has good intentions but is horribly naive. And she keeps trying to help, but she’s self-centered in part because of her upbringing and keeps making mistakes that make life worse for everyone around her. Anna struggles with wanting to determine her own fate, but then keeps making decisions that determine the fate of others. And then she realizes it, accepts it, learns from it, and course corrects. It’s the story of a woman of privilege realizing her privilege and working toward a more equitable society, and even though she doesn’t always get it right, she keeps trying. And that message seemed really important–that you can learn from your mistakes, change your worldview, and become a better person.
Unfortunately, it does follow a lot of YA tropes, like the main character who is a special snowflake with a power that’s unlike anyone else’s, insta-love, etc., but it’s forgivable. There are scenes that could have used a little more depth, and the character development was a bit lacking. But at the same time, it had a timely message, and was fast-paced and dark. And (thankfully) it doesn’t do that cliffhanger ending thing that is so popular in YA lately, which means that I can read the book, say “yay, that was a fun read” and then wait for the next one without getting angry and wanting to throw things because the next book doesn’t come out in forever. So that’s a plus.
Blood Rose Rebellion was a good light read. It’s kind of like a mashup between something by Stephanie Burgis and a book like The Jewel—all the danger and magic of a traditional dystopia, but with a historical vibe to it as well. If you don’t go in expecting high literature, you’ll enjoy it.
http://bookswithoutanypictures.com/2017/03/27/blood-rose-rebellion-by-rosalyn-eves/
Blood Rose Rebellion by Rosalyn Eves is a young adult dystopian/alt-history novel set in the mid-1800s. Anna Arden is born into high British society. In this book, magic is also tied to social class. The upper class, the Luminates, receive the ability to perform magic at their Confirmation as a child. But Anna is barren of magic, and feels like an outcast. Society will never accept her. But Anna has a secret: she isn’t just barren of magic, but she can break magic. And that power makes her dangerous. There’s a spell called the Binding that restricts magic so that only the Luminates can use it. It’s managed by a group of nobles known as the Circle. And if Anna breaks the binding, then power will be taken from the Luminates and restored to the people, so that anyone can have the opportunity to do magic. It could unravel the very fabric of society.
Anna’s power to destroy magic accidentally ruins her sister’s debut, and to cover up the scandal, Anna and her grandmother go on a trip to Hungary. Hungary is not what Anna expected, and even though society there is also pretty hierarchical, there’s more of an opportunity for Anna to encounter people who aren’t like herself. She starts to fall in love with a Romani named Gabor, and that’s where things get interesting, because Anna is an upper-class girl who has good intentions but is horribly naive. And she keeps trying to help, but she’s self-centered in part because of her upbringing and keeps making mistakes that make life worse for everyone around her. Anna struggles with wanting to determine her own fate, but then keeps making decisions that determine the fate of others. And then she realizes it, accepts it, learns from it, and course corrects. It’s the story of a woman of privilege realizing her privilege and working toward a more equitable society, and even though she doesn’t always get it right, she keeps trying. And that message seemed really important–that you can learn from your mistakes, change your worldview, and become a better person.
Unfortunately, it does follow a lot of YA tropes, like the main character who is a special snowflake with a power that’s unlike anyone else’s, insta-love, etc., but it’s forgivable. There are scenes that could have used a little more depth, and the character development was a bit lacking. But at the same time, it had a timely message, and was fast-paced and dark. And (thankfully) it doesn’t do that cliffhanger ending thing that is so popular in YA lately, which means that I can read the book, say “yay, that was a fun read” and then wait for the next one without getting angry and wanting to throw things because the next book doesn’t come out in forever. So that’s a plus.
Blood Rose Rebellion was a good light read. It’s kind of like a mashup between something by Stephanie Burgis and a book like The Jewel—all the danger and magic of a traditional dystopia, but with a historical vibe to it as well. If you don’t go in expecting high literature, you’ll enjoy it.
alyram4's review against another edition
I almost never do this, but...
1.5/5 stars
Since about chapter 3 onward, I could not stand this book. The first 2 chapters were actually kinda promising, but unfortunately instead of taking off it just lagged behind. An excrutiatingly slow book, with bland characters, unfocused -and unneeded- romance, and some very weird dialogue. The only thing that remotely interested me in this was the actual revolution itself. Hell, even some of the magic was interesting, but just not enough to save it. I found this to just be unenjoyable, which is really such a shame since the premise held so much opportunity. This book could have been so much better, but it really fell flat for me. Sadly, I won't be continuing with this trilogy. This is definitely a lot it or hate it type of book. There really is no in-between.
1.5/5 stars
Since about chapter 3 onward, I could not stand this book. The first 2 chapters were actually kinda promising, but unfortunately instead of taking off it just lagged behind. An excrutiatingly slow book, with bland characters, unfocused -and unneeded- romance, and some very weird dialogue. The only thing that remotely interested me in this was the actual revolution itself. Hell, even some of the magic was interesting, but just not enough to save it. I found this to just be unenjoyable, which is really such a shame since the premise held so much opportunity. This book could have been so much better, but it really fell flat for me. Sadly, I won't be continuing with this trilogy. This is definitely a lot it or hate it type of book. There really is no in-between.
annsbibliotherapy's review against another edition
4.0
A beautiful blending of YA romance and fantasy, Anna and her family/friends had me hooked from the first couple pages. There were times the story was so engrossing I forgot it was fantasy but then magic would show up and remind me this was more than just a story about a girl coming into herself. I was glad I did a combo of listening/reading on this one because of the Hungarian names/words but really it just led to the story. I cant wait to read the next one.
aidnoah's review against another edition
2.0
The only saving grace for this disaster of a book to not get 1 star from me is that I at least liked the way Eves set up scenes and described scenery on a whole. Everything else... well, I’m not to sanguine about it getting any better in the sequels, and probably won’t bother.