Book Review: Withering Rose

 

Title: Withering Rose 

Author: Kaitlyn Davis

Genre: Young Adult, Fairy Tale, Fantasy

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Whew am I glad that is over! Withering Rose and I did not get along. Book 1, Gathering Frost, was sooo much better than this one. 

I think the issue with Withering Rose is that it stuck too close to its Beauty and the Beast roots at times (and at other times when I wanted it to stick to the original story it didn't). For example, when you have the opportunity to describe one of the most famous fictional libraries ever don't you exploit it?! Apparently not, as Kathryn Davis decided not to... 

There was a lot of random babbling in this book, less focus and with no scenery changes (everything happens in the castle) it got dull fast. It didn't help that some passages were just annoying.

"Glimmering silver. Stormy gray. Sharp steel."

I get it, his eyes are grey. Moving on... 

Oddly I'm still excited to read the next book when it comes out because I love the smashed together worlds Davis has created for this series. In this book as learn more about how magic works, why some have it and others don't, as well as get some exposure to "natural" magic versus "stolen" magic. Very interesting and I can see the complexities of the magic system really starting to build. 

All in all I would say read/skim this one just to get through it (assuming when book 3 comes out it's as good as book 1). It wasn't bad enough that I want to ditch the series or author; it was just missing something (action, plot, adventure, characters, engaging dialogue...) that made book 1 so memorable and enjoyable. 

Please note: I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. This is an honest and unbiased review.