Another great and quick fantasy!

A badass, strong and independent princess who knows her way around a weapon. Dragons. Unwanted suitors. And a whole lot of drama and politics between kingdoms.

I really loved these characters, they were so fun, funny and I really enjoyed the dynamics between them. And how those changed and developed as the story went on. And that really does make me excited to continue reading the series.

This book has really unique dragon lore (and I love when I find unique lore and backgrounds for a rather common thing you'd find in a genre).

Kas is such a golden retriever, soft cinnamon roll kind of character (AND HE'S BOOKISH), so he was so instantly loveable. That's the way to make me love a book and to instantly get connected to it - make me immediately fall in love with a character.

Highly recommend!

Thanks to NetGalley for the e-ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review! My Goodreads review is up and my TikTok (Zoe_Lipman) review will be up at the end of the month with my monthly reading wrap up.

This book was exactly the wholesome read I needed and absolutely fantastic. I laughed, I cried and I devoured it in a little less than 2 days.

Nesrin is a strong, lovable and fun character and it is easy to fall in love with her. Additional, her counterpart Kas, the bookish prince, is the sweetest love interest I have read about it a long time.

Holly’s take on Dragons, their troves and their Knights is absolutely stunning. The princess being her own knight, not a damsel and but a capable, independent human being, was everything I have always wanted in a knights tale.
Forget mortally grey men. I want a sweet, kind, smart and strong man like Kas.

Their love story, in my opinion, is the best one I have read in a long time. Definitely in 2024.

The pining, tension, adventure, the world building and the way Holly weaves her story is absolutely stunning.

It’s a MUST read for me. Coming out on the 8th of October 2024.

I can’t wait to see this blow up!

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. The world - building was intriguing and the action in the book had me glued to the book from page one.
It's a very intense book perfect for fans of the Crowns of Nyaxia series as it really ticks all the boxes that we're looking for in modern fantasy novels: romance, action, violence, a wee bit of spice because why not - and that tension as we immerse ourselves in a new world.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC

I really had a fun time reading this romantasy! I enjoyed the characters and their relationships. I especially enjoyed the dragons (more of their stories would be amazing).
The FMC is a strong and independent princess who is basically sick of suitors attempting to “rescue” her, and the MMC is a prince who is a chaste monk. Their relationship development was really enjoyable to read, and I loved how they both shared a respect and love for animals. Their journey together and the story overall was so much fun to read-definitely looking forward to the next books in this series!

I’ve been enchanted by The knight of the trove, an Arc sent to me via NetGalley and I have been pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it.
The book itself was well written with lots of wit and banter which I personally love!! There were many moments that made me smile and giggle! That monkey scene had me chuckling to myself…

The story itself follows a young maiden sacrificed to a dragon who is then made a knight to protect the dragons trove…. She battles suitors and finds herself on a quest with an unlikely Monk as her companion.

This was such a fun, lighthearted read filled with so many likeable tropes;

* Grumpy meets sunshine
* One bed
* Slow burn
* Forbidden love

I highly recommend this to anyone who’s favourite reads are fluffy romances and easy to follow fantasy/romantasy books.
The plot flowed all the way through, it was an all round enjoyable adventure from start to finish. P.S I think I need a monk in my life.

I think my book shocked me because the electric chemistry between our main characters whas coming off the page for REAL.. I ATE this book up. Not only was the chemistry unreal, the action was incredible, the writing took a show-not-tell stanse on world-building and to top it all off, I never found myself getting glazed over eyes or feelng bored. I can't wait to see what Holly Rose puts out next!

Sadly this book was a DNF for me. I was so hooked on the blurb, so excited to be an ARC reader. And I really believe that the story has so much potential but I just could not go on with the book after about 30%.
What bothered me:
- the pacing was really odd, incredibly slow at times and then other times just blink here we are
- the backstory was not established too well imo and dropped rather unnatural into conversations or thoughts
- I could not care for the characters and a lot about them did not make sense, including the dragon. So how does the dragon get people into the trove to train the princess? Does she bed the princes that come by to rescue her and then these guys just leave? Like that does not sound like something a guy who thinks himself great enough to fight a dragon would do.
- the way the story was established, how the MCs meet and then deal with each other. Who asks after a few hours "When will you trust me?" Sorry but nobody nowhere at any time would just trust a stranger, be it monk or no monk.

All this just accumulated and the read was such a drag. Im might be willing to give it another try in the future, especially since other reviewers seemed rather happy with the story. But right now I just cant.

1 star because DNF

Thank you to Holly Rose for the ARC of The Knight of the Trove. I enjoyed reading this epic quest as the characters embark on a journey to find specific hidden artifacts that are needed to save the world. The storyline flips what we normally see by having the young princess, Nesrin, be the dragon’s knight and Kas (the MMC) be a kind, soft and unavailable monk. Surprisingly, Nesrin is the grumpy and brooding character…not Kas...Nesrin is the one protecting Kas…who is so soft-hearted, he won’t even ride his elderly donkey.

Tropes-
Banter
Magic spells
Dragons
Slow burn
Forbidden romance
Strong FMC
She protects him
Bookish MMC

Rating: 3🌟
Captivating storyline: 3 🌎
Favorite character: Kas
Favorite side character: Adydorrstea
Spice: 1/5 🌶️
Favorite quote:
"The sight of blood doesn't bother me. The sight of your blood spilled by that monster bothers me"

The writing is more juvenile than I am used to, but that means that it is fast-paced and easy to read.

from the very beginning, I found myself OBSESSED with these characters and the whole “I don’t need a man to save me, I saved myself” theme was perfect. I loved the slow burn tension between the main characters and the forbidden romance between them was executed flawlessly,

4.5/ 5 stars
——————————————————————
What a fun adventure! Nesrin and Kas embark on an adventure together to save the kingdom. If you love dragons, knights, and a little mystery, this book is for you! Nesrin, our strong female fighter falls for the gentle monk (who has some secrets of his own!). The tension was *chefs kiss*, broken by the right amount of humor.

The plot features plenty of twists and unexpected details to stay engaged throughout. I enjoyed the discoveries the pair made, their growth, and their love. Ady, the dragon, comes with her own surprises.

Please read the author’s CWs before proceeding with the book! There are a few scenes with animal death, graphic injury, and graphic people death.

I enjoyed Holly Rose’s writing style. The chemistry built slowly and by the time I got to the end, I wasn’t ready for their story to be over! This book could have gone on another 200 pages and I would have kept happily reading.

I’m taking away a half-star for a lack of CWs and for some plot holes. The CW is vague and doesn’t mention any triggering themes and I wish some of them were. Readers don’t get to understand Kas’s heritage mentioned at the end, about which I was VERY curious. There’s also the mention of missing magpies (messenger birds) in the story but no clarification is given as to why other than a guess that they were being intercepted. Also, no mention of Father Ramdar. I hope these are all addressed in the next books because these felt like important details to the plot that didn’t get answered.

Overall, not at all disappointed and I will read the next one when she’s ready to do another round of ARCs. Loved the romance and adventure of this book.

“…our shadows always follow us, no matter how hard we try to stay in the light.”

“The Knight of the Trove,” by Holly Rose

What I loved:
-The traditional damsel in distress fairytale story with princes going to a castle protected by a dragon to save the princess trapped inside but this princess doesn’t need saving because she isn’t trapped at all.
-The Arabian setting, I’ve noticed a lot of books being written in the setting of a desert and I’m here for it. The perfect imagery and also unique difference when the traditional fairytale isn’t even in the traditional type of place.
-Tension between the love interest because he is a monk and trying not to break his vows despite him never wanting to be a monk at all.
-Strong FMC X Soft MMC
-The trauma in the past of the main characters. These characters were written so well and solid and felt everything they felt.

There was nothing I would’ve changed in the book. 5 out of 5 stars. Can’t wait for the next book in The Knights of Mellora series.

-Dragons
-Arabian
-Strong FMC X Soft MMC
-Monk X Princess
-SA Trauma

Thank you for the ARC, Netgalley.

“Why were there so many different ways to be controlled by your family?”

I'm unsure on this one.
I wanted it to be like, Emily Wilde or similar, with regency flavours, and I think it kinda tries to have that, but also tries to be fantasy with a capital F and also romantasy, and I feel it all got muddled somewhere and just became incohesive.
I stopped reading about 60%. It's not like, BAD.
I just didn't care about any of the characters and they all seem pretty one dimensional.
Maybe it would suit a younger audience? I'd try something else of the authors, but feel tighter editing and plotting of motivations would be of benefit.
It feels like a pale imitator of Toad Words by T Kingfisher.

Nesrin, after being sacrificed to a dragon in her youth, became the Knight of a dragon’s trove. Kas, a vestal monk, has been sent to find a magical artifact, what it contains and where it is located no one knows. This artifact may be the key to stopping a war from raging and destroying many, but can they find the artifact and save the kingdoms, or will it fall into the wrong hands and chaos bring destruction?

At first the book felt slow for me, but then with a whirlwind I felt caught up in the plot and the characters. I loved that Holly Rose broke some stereotypical things we see in fantasy books, especially related to the main characters. Nesrin wasn’t described as fragile but yet incredibly strong or a perfect fighter, in fact she repeatedly makes mistakes in fights that land her in trouble or with injuries. She has trauma and it’s clear that it impacts her actions and reactions, and I really appreciate that reality to a character. Kas, is the definition of a good guy and I love it in every sense!

Even if I didn’t connect to Nesrin, I felt complete buy-in on the plot and the premise of this story. I enjoyed the epic quest, the search for things lost and hidden, the betrayals, and the unfolding of small puzzle pieces all together. All while tying up the book, so that even though additional books are planned, you can have a nice tied up ending for the novel. I’m very excited to read the next in the series!

The only thing I wish I would have gotten more of from this book is more of the action and fighting scenes described in particular near the end of the book. I think there were some opportunities for good tension and stress to be built as fights were described whether had by the main characters or them watching fights unfold by some of the important supporting ones. I also wanted a little more venom from Galter, to really give me that I hate you cause my friend hates you feeling.

Overall this was a great read and I give it 4.5 stars but rounded up to 5!

Thank you to NetGalley and Star Siren Press for the opportunity to read this ARC, it was amazing!

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC of this book. I really enjoyed this quick read and it was my first by Holly Rose. Overall, it has a HEA and FMC and MMC who quickly fall in love. The story at times did feel a bit rushed but other times had some good detail and background information. I loved that their roles were reversed and the male was being supported by the female. Additionally, the fresh take on dragons was refreshing and I literally was LOLing at times at what Ady had to say. Overall, if you are looking for a quick, light, cute read- this book is for you!

This review will be published on Goodreads and Amazon!

It started out okay but at about the 30% mark it fell flat. Kinda boring and I wasn't expecting a whole epic story or romance. The characters were meh and I couldn't connect with them in anyway.

I LOVED this book. The pacing was great, and I loved the slow burn, tortured forbidden love story. The storytelling was amazing and there were a couple of twists I didn’t see coming. Highly, highly recommend!

DNF @25%.

This was not a reflection on the author's ability to write, but at roughly this point, something with the story just wasn't working for me, and I wasn't sure what it was. I think it was some of the pacing, or some of the story mechanics -- I'm uncertain. I hope this book has every bit the success it deserves, as it has such an interesting premise.

Overall, I think this book is a solid 4/5!

First of all, I feel like there are not as many books now with a solid green flag character, and I LOVED Kas for that. Even his "big secret" at the end was not anything he actually lied about, and so I truly enjoyed reading something that had a male character that wasn't deceitful for any reason. This book was also filled with a lot of twists and turns and some of them were predictable but some of them were very much shocking when reading it! The Author did a great job with setting all the scenes and really making you feel like you were in the space. I only wish I got a little bit more at the end before the epilogue or what happened with some of the other people post the big ending, but it is set up perfectly for another one if that is the next step! Such a great book and definitely recommend!

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. (via Netgalley)

Actual review somewhere around 3.75 stars

This was a quick and easy read. The pacing was good, as was the world building. I loved the personality of Ady. I also liked the not needing to be rescued angle.

Where it loses me a little is despite enjoying them as a couple (and that they weren't instalove!), it felt that they moved a little fast from ignoring their feelings for each other to love. There is one spice scene which tbh, felt a little out of place to me since this generally read as the younger side of YA.

I very much enjoyed The Knight of the Trove. I thought the characters were fresh and really appreciated Nesrin being a Knight. Also loved Kas and all the quests they went on. Overall a fun, quick read. I can't wait for more Holly Rose books to come. I do wish to see more plot development and more tension throughout the series.

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC.