Fair Rosaline

What if Romeo wasn't really a Romeo?

This is a story of seduction and gaslighting, of power and manipulation. But it is also about women taking back control in a very interesting (and intense) historical setting. Love, family and revenge... I loved it.

This is Romeo and Juliet like you've never seen it before!

Okay, listen. The roses? The bees? Rosaline? This book may honestly have been cherry-picked especially for me. Romeo and Juliet is was the first Shakespeare play I ever encountered and I have now read, watched, and experienced countless iterations of it. My favourite movie of all time, even still, is the 1996 Romeo + Juliet (yes. the Leo DiCaprio/Claire Danes one that you either hate or love). I've read the original (is there such a thing as an original Shakespeare play? No. Let's not get into that here.) endless times. So now that I've bragged about my credentials, let's see what Fair Rosaline had in store for us. I'm honestly not sure I was ready for what Fair Rosaline did, but boy did I enjoy it. Rosaline being a grieving girl who just lost her mother and is now being sent to a convent? Romeo being the ultimate fuckboy? Juliet, ever innocent, at less than fourteen? Honestly, this book took the few lines we get about Rosaline and made her the main catalyst of the play. When it comes to retelling the lesser-developed characters in an established piece of work, it can become tricky to balance their involvement with the story we know and the new story being told, but Solomons did an incredible job at finding just the right part for Rosaline to play in the fate of our well-known tragic lovers. I won't spoil anything, of course, but just know that rooting for Rosaline becomes damn near inevitable towards the middle of this book. Not only is she a multifaceted character, both naïve and bold, but she is a product of her time and of this time combined. It was lovely to see Solomons including values of our time and values of the time the book is set and seemlessly blend the two. And as for Romeo... Well let's just say I've never seen a Romeo portrayed quite as much as a player and – let's be honest – a creep as in this. It was a refreshing take and still very believable considering the source material. When I tell you I was kicking and screaming about the marzipan rose...
I would not be doing my due diligence in this review if I did not mention the narration of the audiobook that was kindly provided for me. Sheila Atim does a great job at capturing the voice of each character, of Rosaline in particular, and of the story itself. Her gentle cadence is one I truly enjoyed (even at my usual 2.5x speed!) and took care to listen to. I particularly liked her line deliverance on some of the more intense chapter endings – they left me wanting more. Let's just say taking out my headphones was my least favourite time of day while this was playing. All in all, Dear Rosaline by Natasha Solomons deserves a high praise from this retelling-enthusiast and it takes an invaluable place in the many Romeo and Juliet​ retellings out there.

This was a slow start for me, but once it got going I really enjoyed this untelling.

We all know the story of Romeo & Juliet, but what happens in Fair Rosaline flips it on it's head in the most fantastic manner. This is a love story, but not between Romeo & Rosaline, or even Romeo & Juliet, it is the love Rosaline has for her family & lengths she'll go to to protect them. It is a story of women undone by men, fighting back subtly in the only way they can.

Here Natasha Solomans reimagines the 'romantic tragedy' casting a vastly different light on the well loved tale, utilising the lyrical language of Romeo & Juliet in a clever, subversive manner. How many times has Romeo delivered those polished lines? Can true love be donned & shed as easily as one would a coat?
The narration was really well done & I found myself with a lump in my throat from emotion a few times, which for me means I've been fully engaged with a story.

I particularly loved the interview between narrator & author at the end of the audio. It's always interesting to hear where & how ideas developed & to reflect on what you've just read.

I read romeo and juliet when I was in school. Everyone fell in love with romeo but I just found him creepy! Finally someone who agrees with me!

This prequel paints romeo as a controlling, abusive love rat. Set in the weeks leading up to his first meeting with Juliet. It's throughly enjoyable and well worth a read. That ending...........wow

"Revenge was not sweet, it was rotten"

This is a feminist untelling of epic proportions - I've never experienced such a well known tale to be turned on its head so drastically.

We all know Rosaline as the girl Romeo ditches for Juliet - but in this version, Rosaline is won over by Romeo's charms due to a chance meeting at a party, and facing a future in a nunnery decides to take a chance on love.

As time goes on (and there is a lot of world building and lounging around in a very hot summer in Verona which felt as oppressive to read as it must have felt before the action gets going), Rosaline realises that her older suitor is a predator taking advantage of much younger girls, and her young cousin Juliet is in his sights.

What is chilling and also probably fairly accurate for Rennaisance Italy was how much men of power and those that served them were complicit in Romeo's actions, and how women were powerless to intervene through formal channels.

The last part of the story in particular was gripping, and I enjoyed Solomons' twists and turns as Rosaline races to save Juliet. I also really enjoyed how the source material was woven into the story and how Solomons kept Shakespeare's voice throughout in the prose.

I received an audiobook ARC for an unbiased review and have to give Sheila Atim the narrator and actress such high praise. A really enjoyable listen and I thought it was perfect for the "dark skinned and moorish featured" Rosaline to be voiced by such an accomplished Black Shakespearean actress!

I will post on socials the week before release.

A feisty, modern, feminine retelling of Romeo and Juliet, which really shows a darker, quite sinister side to the story we all know. Gosh what a nasty piece of work Romeo is! And what terrible norms existed back then regarding marrying off young girls in their early teens. This is almost a ‘Me Too’ version of the story, with a courageous Rosaline understanding the immorality of the situation and determining to protect her cousin.
I enjoyed listening to this audiobook and thought the production was very good. The narrator kept the pace going for me and brought the characters to life. I gasped many a time as I was listening and willed good to triumph over evil.
With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher Bonnier UK Audio for a copy of this audiobook in exchange for a review.

Romeo and Juliet is one of my least favourite Shakespeare plays. There's a lot of things playing into this, but one of them is how terrible I find the "romance" - there are so many red flags for me that makes me find it coercive and predatory. I was therefore very happy to find a book that looks at the play this way.

Romeo is an predator, going after young girls. The play states Juliet is 13 but never gives his age, and this book leans into that, placing him potentially in his 30s. It's an immediate red flag, first with Rosaline who's 15/6, and sets the stage for what's to come. He is smooth and wants things from the girls, and I appreciated that it showed how he pressured her into things she didn't want to do - and then used it against her or conveniently forgot about it, using these things for the next girl.

I also really liked the scenes from the play retold with an unexpected twist, seeing them through Rosaline's eyes with the perspective of her trying to save those she loves. They are fun subversions of the well known play, giving more agency to the characters - and more revenge.

Sheila Atim narrates, bringing the drama of the world to life. I also really liked the interview between her and the author at the end talking about the book, its inspiration, and what it means to adapt Shakespeare.

Thank you for letting me listen to this audiobook. I very much enjoyed listening to this story. I do enjoy when characters from classics get a more elaborate story. Esspecialy Characters that are onely mentioned in the original stories.

⭐⭐⭐⭐
Fair Rosaline by Natasha Solomons an audiobook narrated by Natasha Solomons and Sheila Atim is a retelling of Romeo and Juliet. At the same time, this book isn't about Romeo and Juliet, it is about Rosaline!
I enjoyed this book, I enjoyed the language they used and both narrators were amazing! The voices fit the story so perfectly! I loved the storyline and the angle it was presented, I loved how Rosaline was presented as naïve at the same time capable of using her judgment and listening to her mind not just her heart!

It's weird how it's presented that an adult man marrying a 13 or 15-year-old is the norm but yes in this story Romeo is a manipulative adult and Juliet is a naïve 13-year-old who believes in everything, just not common sense.

Romeo whose only interest is rich girls uses his charm and good looks to wrap them in his web or promises. He knows how to make them lose their mind and Rosaline is no exception. Rosaline is absolutely in love and ready to do anything that Romeo says. Rosaline believes that they are destined for each other. Things go wrong the moment when she starts to realize that she is not the only one. Once she starts to ask questions Romeo turns his back and is up to the next victim.

Thank you, NetGalley and Bonnier UK Audio for this copy!

This was such a surprising read. We all know the story of Romeo and Juliet and yet this was a new and fresh take. It really showed Romeo in a new and villainous light and I really enjoyed this portrayal. Rosaline has a really strong character arc and I loved seeing her growth. She blooms from a young and naïve love interest to a fierce woman hell bent on opening the eyes of the other characters and avenging the women that Romeo has wronged. It was true enough to the source material and yet Solomons still created something new and addicting. I would love to read more from this author!

Romeo and Juliet retelling from the perspective of Rosalind, who was the one Romeo apparently loved in the first scenes of the play and then "forgot" once he met Juliet.

I always enjoy a retelling. The audio conversation with the author (in the interview at the end of the audiobook) describes this more as an unselling and I think that description is apt. The story follows the general shape of Shakespeare's story, even borrowing direct language at times for Romeo (in an ironic and very effective way) and similar scenes throughout but with a very different undercurrent and outcome.

This is a darker and grittier version. The Romeo we see here is not the Romeo we know from Shakespeare, or Zeffirelli, or Luhrmann. It paints him in a far different light and not one that does him any favors.

Rosaline has a great narrative voice and protagonist. It is fascinating to the see Verona through her eyes: the restrictions on the women, the ravages of the plague, the animosities that seethe throughout the city, the vivid sights and sounds of Verona at that time.

I think what I loved most about this story was the version of Tybalt we have here. I could have read more of him. He was so sympathetically written and so dear. His fate hurt even more than it ever did in the original. I also liked the nuns and was so curious to know more about their apparent joy and freedom behind their cloistered walls.

my thanks to net galley and the publisher for this audio ARC. This is my personal opinion.

🎧Audio Book Review🎧

Fair Rosaline
Natasha Solomons

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Over the last year or so, I've really got into reading re-tellings and have so far only really ventured into that of myths/legends and gods etc.
So this book really appealed to me as something a little bit different.

This is (as the author says in the interview at the end) not a re-telling as such, more of an un-telling.
This tells the story of Romeo and Juliet - the classic Shakespeare story we've all at least heard of, read or watched over the years.
What makes this different is that we see Romeo before he meets Juliet - his actions and behaviour and the events which lead up to their meeting - plus, with a few twists along the way, including the end too!

I loved the way this skillfully combines the original Shakespeare that we all know and love, with a modern twist and some great fiction of the time too.
As we read through, it was great to recognise some of the classic lines from the play, but sometimes used with different people or in a different scene or context even.

This book really does paint Romeo in a far different light than I'd ever imagined - I know a lot of my thoughts stem from what we're all taught in school - but that made sense at the time.
Now seeing this different view - this whole new personality and fiction really does work and the story flows beautifully from the events before, to the scenes with Juliet.

I loved Rosaline as a character.
Her relationship with Tybalt was so full of fun, love and loyalty.
Although disobeying her father's wishes - it was great to see her making the most of the days she has left before heading to the nunnery.
I also really enjoyed our visit to the nunnery in this book - we so often hear this threatened or spoken about in the plays, but never actually get to see that as a scene - especially as this scene was a much nicer view than has been depicted or suggested in the past.

A brilliant read which was beautifully and skillfully written.




💕Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for my ARC copy - this is my honest review 💕

I listened to this on audiobook. The narrator was excellent. In the original Romeo and Juliet, Rosalind is only a very small character, but in this version of the story Juliets cousin is the main protagonist. It tells the story about how Romeo really is, and is written really well.
A very enjoyable and unexpected story. Thank you to Net Galley for an advanced copy.

"I cannot think of love or life, surrounded by and mocked by death on every side. It makes me see the end, before we've even begun."

A subversive, conceptual retelling of one of the most iconic stories of all time. Fair Rosaline invokes the true nature of the tale of R&J, the tragedy and pain that was meant to be the focal point of a story misconstrued as a romantic fairy-tale.

Giving a powerful, echoing voice to the voiceless Rosaline, this reimagining is a dark, electrifying tale with the poetic beauty of a classic but the cinematic intensity of a thriller. Rosaline was everything I wanted in a truly strong leading woman — she is unapologetic and fiercely loving, risking everything to protect her young cousin from a predator that could ruin her life. Young and naïve in some ways, but strong enough to fight with everything she has against a patriarchal world that she doesn’t believe in. It delves into dark, uncomfortable things that made me want to look away but I couldn’t put this story down until I’d read the whole thing.

As a main character, Rosaline starts slowly building up the world and climate of Verona at the time, and the personal tragedies she’s lived through. Her storytelling was emotional, raw but clear — she’d go on tangents but it never felt like info-dumping or filler. As we move along, she begins to question why she’s a possession, why she’s treated so differently to the boys and men — and realises she cannot tolerate them to hurt Juliet too as she tries to unravel the Gordian Knot that has started to tighten around her. Her language was reminiscent of a classic Shakespearean but with a more accessible, readable style and beautiful subtle references to the original tale. And the narration brilliantly captured the language in this story; expressive and emotive but still very clear and a pleasure to listen to.

The setting was rich and vivid, transporting us to another place and time with cultures and superstitions from years gone by on the page for all to see. Telling a twisted version of a famous story is always risky — but this paid off. Fair Rosaline is a triumphant reimagination that is a classic of it's own in the making.

I recently delved into an unconventional audio experience, opting for a retelling of the classic tale of Romeo and Juliet. While not my usual audio preference, this rendition proved to be a captivating journey into the depths of love and tragedy.

The retelling skillfully maintained the essence of Shakespeare's masterpiece, delivering a poignant narrative that tugged at the heartstrings. The tragedy, although expected, unfolded with a fresh perspective, keeping me on the edge of my seat.

What stood out most were the strong characters that breathed life into the story. Their depth and complexity added layers to the familiar tale, making me empathize with their joys and sorrows. The protagonists, in particular, exhibited a strength that resonated, making their inevitable fate all the more heartbreaking.

Despite the somber undertones, the audio experience left a lasting impression, showcasing the enduring power of a well-crafted narrative. Whether you're a seasoned fan of Romeo and Juliet or a newcomer to the timeless tale, this retelling offers a captivating exploration of love, loss, and the strength of the human spirit