Well shit. That was SO good.

The plot was incredible and the ending was such a cliff hanger I am extremely grateful to have had the second book already downloaded. The characters were great, theres only so much you can do with Fae but I think that Briar Boleyn did an excellent job. I loved the slow burn and I’m really excited to see how it develops in the second book. The scene towards the end in the Fae city (I won’t say too much so I don’t spoil it), was so well written I could see the creatures so vividly in my mind. The descriptions were incredible.

rated this 3.5 stars. The author painted an enchanting world with vivid descriptions that truly transported me. It’s a first-person, single-point-of-view narrative. While the story's pace was a bit leisurely, the slow-burn romance, complete with a love triangle, added an intriguing layer. The finale brought a satisfying blend of action and unexpected twists. I'm eagerly anticipating more character development for the main character in the next installment, especially after glimpsing her newfound strength in the final chapters.

Thank you NetGalley, publishers, and author for the e-ARC.
"Queen of Roses" by Briar Boleyn introduces Morgan Pendragon, a half-fae protagonist with enchanting royal lineage. Boleyn's exceptional world-building seamlessly combines fae magic and Arthurian legends, immersing readers in a vividly described fantasy realm. The landscapes and courtly life are richly depicted, drawing readers into the heart of the story. Notably, the enigmatic Kairos Draven adds intrigue, with the author skillfully maintaining a mysterious atmosphere, leading to a compelling cliffhanger.

However, despite Morgan's unique attributes, her portrayal falls short at times. Her innocence in critical moments feels inconsistent with her established depth. A more subtle approach could enhance Morgan's character development. Despite these flaws, "Queen of Roses" remains engaging for fans of Arthurian retellings and fae fiction.

Some readers, however, may find the story less appealing. The lack of a satisfying romantic element, particularly between the main characters, may disappoint those expecting a slow-burn romance. Additionally, the inclusion of graphic animal deaths without adequate warnings may be distressing for certain readers. The last 20% of the book delivers a significant character transformation and an interesting conclusion.

This book. THIS. BOOK.

Queen of Roses is definitely one of my favourites of the year. It is a slow-burn Romantasy that is written as an Arthurian inspired tale with a fae mix.

This book completely transported me to a new world, and I could not put it down. The story follows our FMC Morgan Pendragon who is part fae-part human and the true heir to the throne of Camelot. Because of the fae blood in her veins her father gives the crown to her half brother, Arthur instead and promises Morgan to the three Goddesses.

She spends her free time learning to fight and helping the people of Camelot as much as she can with the time she has left of her freedom. When Arthur sends her on a quest with Kairos Draven to find the legendary fae artifact Excalibur, she has to put their differences aside and do everything in her power to save her brother Kaye and the people of Camelot.

I absolutely loved the character development and how Kairos always stood up for Morgan. This story involves magic, fae, mythical creatures, adventure, self discovery, love, betrayal, and friendships. It involves various tropes including who did this to you, forced proximity, enemies to lovers, and a sprinkle of touch her and die. I cannot wait to see where their adventure takes them, especially with that ending!!!

Thank you to Victory Editing, Net Galley and Briar Boleyn for giving me the opportunity to read this.

My review has already been posted on Goodreads and Amazon. I will most likely do a TikTok video once I have finished book 2

4 stars
🌟🌟🌟🌟
A wonderfully original and unique look at canelot, King Arthur, Morgana and excalibar. Add in the mix, fae, corruption, God worship and sedition. Its just so good.
The book is written from Morgans POV and she is overlooked as heir to the throne due to being half Fae and essentially promised to a nunnery but as the head of it, where there is also magic. Arthur is King and not a good one. Not good at Al, with another brother as the Heir spare, Kaye.
The book touches on sexuality in a wonderful way, it looks at openness of loving whomever you love regardless of sex, and the flip side, those whom are in high powered positions finding it disturbing and ready to do something about it. Very interesting as it's close to our ow societal problems right now. Where we are facing many problems, unable to freely love is a sad place to live.
It's just so good. You must read it.
Morgan is badass but also downtrodden, fragile, vulnerable. A woman apart despite having friends and relations with people, she must stay reserved for reasons that are clear in the book. She is sent on a mission to find a powerful Fae weapon, Excalibar. There's a mission, adventure and smoldering tension. Label this a Must Read full of great twists and turns.

3.5 ⭐️ I love Arthurian legend, I wasn’t aware before starting the book that it would have these elements. I liked the flip that lancelet and Merlin were strong female leads. Slow to start, but felt the book got stronger as it went on, started to enjoy it more once they were on the journey. Enough mystery as to what Morgan may be, hooked and invested in the characters enough that I will read the second one.

As a huge fan of anything Arthurian, I jumped at the chance to read this one, especially knowing it was the start of a trilogy.

It took me a little while to get used to the gender switches and Arthur being the villain. They worked; I just have other versions too ingrained.

Queen of Roses had a lot of potential, and was an interesting start to the series. I feel it set things up well and has paved the way for the rest of the trilogy to be stronger.

Morgan was a solid main character, but she doesn’t develop. While her technical skills appear, her thoughts and behaviour remain the same throughout. Magic aside, she doesn’t grow.

The almost-love-triangle was predictable. The steamier scenes came out of nowhere and the tone jarred with the rest: they were fast paced and full-on; the rest of the book, less so. Also predictable was the direction the relationship would take – partly due to the prologue – and the way it was executed felt repetitive to an earlier attack.

The pacing was slow. Morgan’s time at court sets up the world. With more characters at play, those scenes were more engaging. Once the journey starts, the endless travelling takes over. It’s hard to write a quest book without travelling scenes, but there either needed to be more world-building, or character/relationship development. The rules of the magic also would have benefitted from clearer explanation: magical arches to get a character into position felt convenient.

Overall, I enjoyed this. It has a lot of potential and the story kept me engaged. It’s an intriguing beginning and I look forward to reading the remaining books.

Morgan is half-fae princess overlooked by her father to be the next queen. Instead her fae-hating brother, Arthur becomes king. When Arthur sends her on a quest to retrieve Excalibur she must go with the new captain of the Royal Guard Draven leaving her best friends Lancelet and Galahad behind. After learning some things about Draven, she doesn’t know who to trust. Will she find Excalibur? Will her brother kill her first? Will she stop hating Draven? Will the overgrown cat eat them?

This book is compulsively readable. I had a hard time in the beginning with one of the plots due to some triggers (read the trigger warnings).

The writing is easy, the flow and plot moved at a good pace. I found it predictable in some ways; however, I still wanted to know what was going to happen!

Thank you NetGalley for the copy.

I loved the fierce Female main character. I highly enjoyed the world building and look forward to Briar's other books.

This book was exactly what I needed to shake off the book hangover from The Ashes and the Star Cursed King. It was a rollercoaster of twists and turns, keeping me on the edge with just the right mix of nerves and happy vibes. This new take on Camelot flips the script on the usual hero vibe we get from Arthur. Morgan, our main girl, is not your typical flawless heroine – she's relatable in both the good and the bad. If you're into Aelin and her crew, you're gonna love Morgan. She's fierce, loyal, and had me glued to the pages.

My heart went through the wringer – I cried, I laughed, and I couldn't put the darn book down. Now I'm itching to know what's next! I'm diving headfirst into Court of Claws as soon as I can. Bring it on!

Thank you to Net Galley for allowing me to read this book.

I truly think that the idea is great, but for me it just didn't have that banter and the plot had fallen flat a few times. It has taken me awhile to get through this book and I hate that becuase I truly did want to love it as it has been on my TBR for some time now.

I enjoyed reading this book. From fae, magical creatures, assassins, gods, some romance, and a dangerous mission, Queen of Roses gave a great mix of the Throne of Glass series with some King Arthur references. The world-building is fantastic Briar Boleyn did an excellent job of starting the series. I can imagine everything in my head, from how the places look to the character’s descriptions. The romance in the book is somewhat spicy (a 2.5/5), like TOG, as it mainly focuses on the characters and their mission. The main symbol, Morgan, is beautifully written. as it lets her character development easily take place throughout the series. I love that she is a strong female character and gives me, in some way, Aelin from TOG, my favorite character from that series. Like the TOG series, this series has a tyrant for a King who will do anything to get more power. The best twist is that it is her step-brother, Arthur.

I do not want to spoil anything in my reviews, as this is a series many should pick up. Especially, if you have read any of Sarah J. Mass’s books.

#QueenofRoses #NetGalley

Wow, I. Am. Obsessed. Queen of Roses is a great addition to the fantasy genre. I hadn’t personally read any spins on Camelot before this, so this was a really refreshing story for me!

The world building was honestly SO good, and I can’t wait to start the next book! I didn’t feel like there was any info dumping like sometimes happens in fantasy books. The world building was offered in very digestible bits and pieces. The pacing was really great as well.

As far as characters go, I really enjoyed Morgan and Draven’s dynamic with one another. Even from their first meeting, I was sucked in to their relationship. The snarkiness they have with one another is just *chef’s kiss*. I really can’t wait to see how their relationship with one another grows and inevitably evolves after the events of the last chapter of Queen of Roses. Also, Vesper grossed me out right from the jump, and that’s all I have to say about that. 😂 I’m excited to learn more about some of the side characters, like Merlin. Especially after the reveals about her later in the book. I honestly didn’t think I would like her character at first, given the way Morgan had spoken about her in the early chapters, but I found that I actually started to like her even before Morgan set off on her journey with Draven.

Overall, I think the Blood of a Fae series has really strong potential to become a favorite of mine. I can’t wait to dive in to Court of Claws next!

Thank you so much to Briar Boleyn and NetGalley for the copy of Queen of Roses in exchange for an honest review! All thoughts and opinions in this review are my own!

Book review time!!
Queen of Roses by Briar Boleyn
This was such a good read!! It was somewhat a retelling of king Arthur and Camelot but with a twist. I loved how the author completely turned the character of Arthur around. Arthur has always been portrayed as this hero and even romanticized, except in this book Arthur is portrayed as cold and wicked. The author also did such a good job of provoking emotions. There were times where I was grinning between conversations with certain characters, scowling and grumbling with actions of some characters, and then to gasping. Loved how descriptive the world building and characters were. Except I will say that I did not like several characters (which I think was intended.) Especially Vesper! I got the ick as soon as he showed up. The plot was just muah 🤌. And Draven... I was already falling for him as soon as he was introduced.
Overall 4 stars
Spice 🌶

Queen of Roses is exceptional. I was an skeptical about another King Arthur retelling. However, I must admit I was blown away. The mystery,, world building and storytelling is so well done I am completely blown away. This book was sooooo good I am definitely diving right into book two m! If you haven’t already read this book get it now you won’t be disappointed. I highly recommend it.

Thank you Netgalley and Briar for this ARC for an honest review.

This was a Solid 4.5⭐️
I really really really enjoyed it’s probably one of the first ARCs I’ve really fallen in love with.

I live the whole Camelot retelling in a fae/human world I think that given such a great edge.
The plot so far is really good
The characters all compliment each other so well.
One gripe, Vespa!!!!! all I’m going to say without spoilers is……. REALLY!!!!
When your rooting for one person then that happens and then the other thing happens it’s like GRRRRRRR!!! What are you doing to my emotions Briar 😂
(Sorry if you don’t get that but everyone who has read this book will understand me)

And the cliffhanger, like what the actual F !!!!!

If I didn’t have the 2nd book waiting for me as a ARC I would of purchased the next book for sure.
So excited to follow the journey.
Well done Briar!

I have never found a reimagining of Camelot until now and it did not disappoint! This was a book I did not know I needed, it was so exciting and creative. Oh how it left me NEEDING book 2!!!

Skip this book if animal cruelty is a trigger.
Content Warning: domestic violence (verbal, physical, cheating, m*rdering spouse), child of domestic violence, child watches m*rder of mother, graphic execution of child, graphic slaughtering of wild boar, FMC dr*gged and tied to bed then has word cut into her skin, stalker/unhealthy obsession, assault, attempted r*pe, strong language, explicit dream, deceased plague children attacking the living, unaliving said children, betrayal, s*x under false pretenses, animal cruelty (Ch 15- mother cat/lion and cubs m*rdered senselessly, mother's head mounted to tree separated from body; Ch 17- m*rdering a horse in cold blood, throat slit)

Book reminded me of Jennifer Armemount style fantasy but with Victoria Aveyard flair of graphic writing.

Tha k you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC of this book. This review is voluntarily written, and the thoughts and opinions contained in this review are my own.

A solid fantasy! I enjoyed the characters, although the plot dragged a little at some points. I don't think I'll be immediately reading the rest of the series, but I still enjoyed my time reading this one. The writing was easy to get into and the story itself was interesting.

I was originally drawn to this book because I saw a review saying how this book gave the same feels as From Blood and Ash and while I do have to disagree, that's not to say that Briar Boleyn does not gives us an enticing and enjoyable story from start to finish!

I loved the pacing of this book and was engaged the whole way through! It wasn't quite unputdownable but it was close! This is only the second Arthurian fantasy I have truly finished and I can say that it definitely changed my mind about the retellings in general.

ALSO, the slow burn was just :))))