I wasn't the type of girl who believed in fairytales, much less tales about faeries, but that changed the day the fae walked into my life.

Not sure what to say about this one. The writing is decent, the story is interesting albeit not overly original (imagine Twilight but Edward is Fae and hes in love with a Lady Jacob), but something is just... Not right about it.

I had a whole review ready to go about how the author needed to utilize beta readers so that her details were more believable, but then in the postword she thanked her beta reader.

The thing is, this book revolves around a fictional Indigenous American tribe, and the lead is one of the last remaining descendants of the tribe... But she feels white and everything about the book screams "a white woman wrote this".

Unfortunately, the language choices also scream "a woman who's never been to Michigan wrote this" because much of it comes across like it was written in a language other than English and then put through Google translate. A teenager who grew up in Michigan just wouldn't make the language choices this lead makes.

I didn't like that she was 19 and the love interests were all in their mid 20s (sorry, mid 120s...immortals you know). Given that she is supposedly a med student far enough along in her education to be looking for hospital internships, there is no reason for the lead to not also be in her 20s.

It's good that the author used a beta reader, but I think she could have used a few more. Like one who grew up in a small town in Michigan for those details, and one who is an Indigenous American for sensitivity to the cultures she appropriates for her storytelling.

As always Olivia Wildstein has captivated me with a story of tremendous growth and captivated me in the worlds between reality and the supernatural. I am thoroughly impressed by everything I have read of hers and will continue to read any book with her name on it. This story was not a cookie-cutter design but a beautiful story of tragedy and realization. The main character may have suffered strife and now has to face a world unlike what she knows but it is worth every moment.

I can’t wait for the next one! I really enjoyed this and right when it ended I wanted more! I feel like it just starting picking up towards the end which is typical with fantasy series like these and they always make you want to read the next one before it’s even written!

Very confusing start to the story and I really felt that description of the setting was lacking.
Characters could have been developed a little bit better- just all of the sudden there would be an unloading of information and then nothing else to learn about the character for a while. I know it is YA, but I just felt like the writing was lacking what a true fantasy book typically entails. Maybe it would be a good introductory book for younger kids learning about fae's? I felt that they were really trying to force up the insta-love storyline at the beginning of the book, killed off her bestie too soon, and people could be easily hypnotized?

I didn't hate the book, but I really didn't love it and probably will not seek out the sequel.

The narrator did great and was appropriate with her tone and inflection. The storyline however had me wanting a little more. You could feel the emotion that Kat was experiencing and the hurt that she suffered with the death and betrayal of each character and action, but I wanted a little more from it. What I felt was missing hasn't really stood out to me. The jump from feeling close to the fey to the hunters does seem appropriate for her characters age so I'll likely continue on through the series and see where it goes. The audiobook is an easy listen while on the train and performing house chores.

Rose Petal Graves tells the story of a young woman discovering her family's long-buried fantastical secrets after the tragic death of her mother. Set against the backdrop of small town Michigan, the story aims to be one part Twilight, one part The Mortal Instruments.

However, in my opinion, it lacks compelling elements that make it comparable to either. The book's opening feels like the long tail of the literary legacy of Twilight: one among many books like it, I'm sure. Written by someone outside of the culture, the narrative centers a northern U.S. native woman and features a hodgepodge of whitewashed Native American traditions shoved haphazardly into a story about mythical creatures from European esotericism, tinged with a love triangle arc.

In addition, I found the plot a slog. I’d expected less unrelenting tragedy and more adventure. Certainly traumatic events that surround the “I’m not like other girls” protagonist and their effects on her should be explored, but the fact that those events happen in the first place make the story’s tone at odds with its fantastical milieu. It’s not a fun, frothy fantasy read - which is fine for those looking for a good cry: but the disconnection I felt in regards to the characters meant that that never happened for me, either.

Between tragedies, the plot gets bogged down by either exposition that should have stayed in back story notes, or in daily minutiae such as entering a bathroom, washing one’s hands. It’s never a good sign when an audiobook makes one nod off. I can only assume that all this set up is required to set up a series, but it is one that did not start with a hooky bang.

Finally, I found that a lot of the descriptive language came across as pure cringe that needed another round of ruthless editing to kill the darlings. “A tear fell into my mouth, it was salty like his chips,” is one such example that springs to mind.

I've read multiple books by Olivia Wildenstein already and I feel like I always really enjoy them! When I saw this audiobook on Netgalley, I knew that I wanted to listen to it. I just finished listening to the two Quatrefoil Books, which Olivia Wildenstein has written with Katie Hayoz, so I was definitely excited to jump into this series!



Pros
Excited: You know it's a good book if you're excited to start listening every time you get into the car! I could easily focus as well, which is sometimes a bit of a problem for me when listening to Audiobooks. But I do know, when I CAN focus, the story is fun! I even took my phone out every now and then to listen while doing chores.
Lot is happening: A lot is happening in this book. Important characters actually DIE. Like wtf are u doing to me?! It takes ballz to kill of LIKED characters. Sometimes I did feel like Catori made certain events feel worse than they would've been to me, but the book is so fast paced that I could easily overlook that small point.
Loss: Loss is a really big part of this book and I could relate with Catori so well. The way it was described was so spot on that I had a connection with the main character right from the start.


Cons
Connection: In this book we have some love and romance happening, but I didn't feel the connection at all. I felt more of a connection with other characters. Then there was more romance and other connections and some of the relationships just felt a bit weird. I wasn't convinced all the way. Mabye I have such high hopes, because of other books by Wildenstein. 😉
Catori: Catori sometimes says really harsh things to loved ones that made me like her a little less. She also has some sort of mood swings, she can exaggerate thing sometimes. So where I did feel a connection, I was also a bit annoyed by her sometimes. Maybe a bit like a younger sister? Lol.

Overall
Wildenstein is so good in writing different ways of magic, fantasy, romance and YA books. I've read (I think) 3 different series by her and its really fun to see how creative she is. I'm definitely going to continue this series. I saw that it's a long one, so as long as there are Audiobooks; I'm in!

I have this book a chance because it was an audiobook in NetGalley and I’m SO happy that I did! 4.5 stars! There was a lot of world building and backstory, but it didn’t seem like too much. It had a CW show kinda vibe to it for me, and I was all about it. Lots of mysterious characters, and twists and turns that made me not want to walk away from it for you long. I will definitely be continuing this series to find out what happens next. Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to this.

4.5 Unique macabre story it went one way then changed I loved the journey of this book and hope to pick up the next one soon.

Native American roots, fae and magic. I've got to admit that I was excited to get an audio version of this novel. Catori comes home after her mother's unexpected death. When strange people start arriving pieces surrounding the mysterious death start coming together.

I enjoyed the narrative tone and cadence of the audiobook read by Stephanie Fritz. Good voice connection with the MC. I do feel the overall plot goes pretty fast. The love interests are bouncy and just like the plot, they move fast too until the end. There are some loose plot points that I'm hoping get sorted in the next book surrounding the Fae, the hunters and how exactly what was dug up in the yard fits certain areas.

I would also personally love more details on the heritage front too. Native American aspects are always a touch close to the heart for me. I adore seeing aspects in the novels I read.

Fast paced, enjoyable and easy to listen too. This was a fun first novel in the Lost Clan series that left me curious for the next novel. Thank you too the author and Netgalley for making this ALC available.

(Thank you NetGalley for giving me the chance to review this audiobook)

I'm not sure if I would have enjoyed this novel better in print or not, but as an audiobook, it just didn't do it for me. I found myself not really being drawn into the story as much as I would have liked, and even found myself walking away while it played instead of taking my phone with me. To give the narrator credit, she did a decent job; she varied her intonation and pace, and used various voices for each of the characters. She also did a great job depicting emotions of the characters.

The story has all the makings of a good storyline: After Catori's mother passes away after digging up a grave in the backyard, Catori rushes home for the funeral. After arriving, she begins noticing things about people and events that other people don't see. Catori ends up finding out that when her mother opened up the casket full of rose petals, she had reborn a long feud between the fae and the hunters. Much of the story is then about Catori learning about strengths and weaknesses, stories/legends, and a love/hate relationship between her and some characters. I can't put my finger on exactly where, or how, this story fell short-- other than to say it was underwhelming. If I were to recommend this to someone, I would suggest grabbing the book in lieu of the audiobook; perhaps it would be a better experience.

⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
(review will also posted on IG @slowerlowerliving and Goodreads soon)

I didn't like this book, the story was so convoluted and messy and I couldn't stand the characters. The romances were a bit fast-paced, and I didn't really like any of the romances. There were multiple love interests, and that made it hard to root for any of them.

It was not a book for me but I can recommend this if you like something about Faeries, Fae hunters, and if you are looking to read something new.

Rose Petal Graves, follows a young woman who returns back home in a quiet lakeside hometown, after her mom unexpectedly passed away. She wanted nothing to with her mothers superstitions and above she didn't believe about faeries or magic. That all changed when a handsome young man walked into her life and it changed it forever.

Olivia Wildenstein book is fast paced and the writing style is enjoyable. I was drawn in immediately and listened to the entire audiobook in one day.

Most characters were likeable, but at times the interactions between them were predictable. All of them had potential but they weren't developed enough. Specifically, the main love interest definitely shows a lot of promise and as this is only the first book of the series there is room for development.

Other than that, Wildenstein, built an interesting world for her characters and a masterful plot. I'm looking forward in seeing what else she has to offer in the next books of the series.

I don't know what exactly I expected, but this was boring and far fetched. I DNF'd about 20% in, because I couldn't get over the fact that the MC wanted to watch her mother's autopsy which happened in their home by a "hot" coroner. Plus she's in medical school at age 19. Make it make sense.

Olivia always has the best stories, and this one is no exception! As usual, I think the plot is interesting and promising.
I am not usually a fan of audiobook but I found this one ok and easy to follow.

I went in to this excited to “read” ( audiobook) a book on fairies and fairy hunters. I thought the main character lacked a little something. I can’t quite put my finger on it. She is a 19-year-old college student in med school which I thought was weird considering she’s so young probably just graduated high school. Her mom dies right away when she dug up a grave that started a war between the hunters and the Fae.

I was not quite sure in what direction the author was trying to go with the main character in the love interest. At the beginning it makes it sound like she is going to have feelings or fall for one of the fairies. As she is a hunter with Fas blood in her. But she ends up falling for a completely different character. I normally love books like these, but I am not 100% for or against it. It over all was an easy listen.

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for the ARC.

ROSE PETAL GRAVES (THE LOST CLAN BOOK ONE)

Release Date: 07/13/17
Stand-alone: [ ]YES [X]NO
Length: 9 hrs and 3 mins
Unabridged Audiobook
Author: Olivia Wildenstein
Narrated by: Stephanie Fritz
Publisher: Olivia Abittan Wildenstein
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
POV: Single, first person
Genres: Romance; fantasy

Review:

The fantasy aspect in this book was interesting. The legends, supernatural creatures, there was a lot of things happening, but in a small period of time. Cat’s mother, her discoveries about her heritage, her doubts about who was the real enemy. The main character was young, so it’s normal she was reckless and unwise most of the time. It was ok in the beginning and then it started to annoy me. I also didn’t see why she would have so many love interests, didn’t seem plausible (and I was reading a fantasy book). Overall, the story was entertaining.

I was sucked into this audio book from the first chapter. A really interesting and fresh fantasy story.
Kat is a strong lead, there are some times when you feel like shouting 'what are you doing?!' But she redeems herself.
I'm keen to see where this story goes!

Story with an original angle, namely a combination of a native tribe and faeries. It's refreshing to encounter such a combination that you don't see often. It was nice to read how there is a whole language and mythological background to each of the two groups. That gives a bit more depth to the story and makes the story experience more immersive too. The narrator of the audiobook also manages very well to imitate the voices of the different characters. This, in combination with being able to hear words in a language you do not know, instead of reading them without knowing how they are pronounced, makes the audiobook a real added value to do the story justice.

However, the story was rather predictable, I often saw the revelations and plottwists coming from afar. Cat's behaviour towards the male characters also really annoyed me, I don't understand how she can fall for someone so quickly and a few chapters later be completely under the spell of another person she hardly knows. I also found it a bit strange that so few questions were asked by bystanders about what was going on. It was as if they thought it was all normal though it absolutely isn't.

So all in all, it was a book that was easy to read and listen to, with some original ideas behind it, but I'm not immediately tempted to want to read the rest of the series as well, because it was a bit too predictable and I didn't really get attached to the characters. But maybe I'll read the rest of the series another time. 3/5 ⭐