A Sleeping Beauty retelling, Malice takes readers to a new realm and reinvents the fairy tale with a compelling narrative and beautiful LGBTQ romance.

Great Storytelling
Malice stands apart from typical retellings, foremost with the world-building. Walter gives the story an engaging foundation, establishing three different races. There is the Fae, the humans, and the Vila, which is what Alyce is.

Alyce is called the Dark Grace, half-human and half-Vila, the dark counterpart of Fae. After the war that eradicated the Vila, the Fae gifted their human allies with magic, giving human girls what they call their Grace, turning their blood gold, and allowing them to provide the kingdom with magic and enhancements.

Nevertheless, of course, Alyce is taunted and ignored by her kingdom for being half Vila. They have no problem using her magic in private, but in public, the kingdom shuns her.

Walter does a great job of drawing illusions between the original fairy tale. However, Walter gives her story more history to built up the characterization, depth, and tension. Learning more and more about the Vila gives the story more dimension, luring in the reader.

Amazing Characterization & Development
Honestly, I loved the characterization above everything else. Malice is a character-driven story that follows Alyce and her relationship with Princess Aurora.

Walter does an incredible job of first establishing the friendship between these two incredibly. Aurora does not see Alyce as a monster, simply as another Grace used by her kingdom. Instead, Aurora seeks to break the curse without true love’s kiss so that she can lead her kingdom into a brighter future.

By building up the friendship between the characters, Walter is building up the characterization of these characters. Aurora is not a damsel in distress. She is an intelligent and formidable princess, rebellious while also being considerate. As for Alyce, she is not the monster everyone wants her to be. Alyce is just a woman who wants to be treated fairly and respected instead of scorned for her green blood.

There is an incredible amount of depth to these characters, even the minor ones, that make them relatable and complex. Furthermore, to see the relationship blossom between Alyce and Aurora is fantastic. It is true love and makes the reader eager to see them fight for their true love, rights, and kingdom.

Final Thoughts
Malice is incredible. Everything Walter has done with this novel, from the world-building and history, to the complexities and depth of the characters, will make this novel stand apart.

Look at this gorgeous cover. Look. At. It!

This is not your typical fairytale of good versus evil; there are lots of gray areas here. Although sometimes predictable and tropey, I could not put this down. Mean girls, awful men, a princess, and of course, the Graces, including our star, the Dark Grace. Despite a couple plot holes, this is a captivating debut. I can't wait to see book 2.

Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Almost DNF'd this at first because the beginning was just too twee and clumsy, but it rapidly spun out of control and got even darker than I'd hoped. I didn't realize this was a duology, so a lot of my confusion and disgruntledness about too many plotlines and not enough resolution will hopefully get wrapped up in the next book. Really unique worldbuilding and morally grey wlw, 5 stars!

I would recommend this to fans of YA fantasy and LGBTQ stories. Lots of attention to the world-building and I liked the f/f romance and both of their characters.

Aurora the princess is under a spell that she will die if she doesn't kiss her true love by the age of 21. Both of her sisters have died and she is the last hope to continue the crown. However, her family parades prince after prince to kiss her and it does not break the curse. Aurora meets Alyce who is does dark magic and befriends her. Alyce attempts to help Aurora break the curse and uncovers even more problems. First book of a duology.

Since I love Sleeping Beauty and the book Kissing the Witch with its queerly reimagined fairy tales, I knew I had to read Malice, and I loved it!
Malice tells the story of Alice, who lives in a house for graces, young women who have magic in their blood and prepare blends to make the nobility more beautiful for a living. But Alice's blood is green, she lives in pretty much the dungeon, and her elixirs actually make people uglier, so people only come to her for negative things and she is bullied and set up for failure by the other graces.
Alice's existence has major Sin Eater vibes, as no one really pays attention to her unless they need her, and she does her work mostly in secret. However, everything changes after Alice meets Princess Aurora and feels like someone finally sees her for who she is, and she starts to understand her own power. But could someone really love the dark grace, or is Alice just a green, mutant pawn in the larger plans of the kingdom?
I am excited for the next book!

Malice is a stunningly gorgeous retelling of Sleeping Beauty, one that turns the original fairytale on its head. I loved this book. I thought that Walter's writing was absolutely gorgeous and I was entranced by this story from the moment I picked up this book. Alyce is an amazing main character, one who is not all evil or all good, but somewhere in between, but not quite morally grey either. I was cheering for her the whole time as she began to claim her power and her identity with no remorse. I love the righteous and passionate fury that threads throughout this novel as Alyce grapples with her place in Briar and with Aurora. She's a imperfect antihero who you can't help but love. And this worldbuilding is just so perfect and refined. In a market saturated with the fae, Walter has managed to bring about a brand new iteration on them with the Graces and Etheria. Honestly, this book gripped me more than I thought it would, which is a fantastic surprise. And that ending was just amazing. Lush, dark and absolutely enchanting, Malice is a new adult fairytale for our modern time, one where one woman must embrace what makes her different in order to survive in a world that seeks to destroy her for her power. If you're looking for a powerful and inventive retelling of Sleeping Beauty, Malice is it!

I received a copy of this book for a fair and honest review. Once I started this book I could not put it down. It is a world that was so well put together that I almost believe that if I looked hard enough I could find it. I do have to say the book did start a little slow passed. It did pick up and move at a bit of an intense pace after that. I like the characters Aurora and Alyce. I am not going to tell the ending but it was a bit much and I am wondering who it will all get wrapped up in book two since that will be the last one. I did want to see what else I can find by this author I love the writing style and pictures I saw in my mind while reading.

For peeps who love: Slytherin girls, character focused books, F/F romance/rep + lots of inner dialogue.

I am <i>still</i> making googly eyes at this book.

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I just...was so surprised by the nuance and thought put into the backstory of Malificent. I felt her pain and struggle; kind of reminded me a little bit of El from The Scholomance; my two Slytherin girls about to kick ass and take names. I think I love this type of character, the one everybody immediately classifies as being evil, I mean they may have an attitude problem (being rude, sassy, giving peeps the evil eye), but they are most often than not a better person than their peers.

To top it all off, it is an F/F retelling, and the relationship between the princess and Alice is *chef's kiss* It is complicated, nuanced, layered... a love story they definitely have to fight outside forces for, but also their own prejudices. But it is not all about them, it is all about Alice, the way she is treated by the peers who love to use her power but don't accept her. Her "sisters" in the house she grew up, lots of them shallow, but some of them might surprise you. She also gets to discover a lot more about her powers through a mentor from the dark side.

I did really like being inside Alice's head, the book is 470 pages and I loved the entire thing... the only thing that put me off a bit was the ending because it honestly felt a bit rushed and like it needed another go ahead. I am glad to know it has a sequel, because I AM SO GETTING IT.

This book was dark, twisty and fascinating. I loved Walter's take on such a well known fairytale, and the fact that it was still able to surprise me.

Once upon a time, an evil fairy cursed a princess to die. The only way to break the curse is with true love's kiss.

This is marketed as a Sleeping Beauty re-telling and it is to the core, but the beginning feels like it is in someway also a Cinderella retelling. Alyce very much feels like a Cinderella archetype in the beginning. Though this fades completely by about half-way through the book.

The best way I can think to pitch this book is Maleficent but instead of only being a short triste with motives. This book explicitly makes them clear. While also depicting a gorgeous world and vast magic system.

This book is viscous from beginning to end. This book is Gay and it SLAPS so hard you will have a concussion.

I was so stoked about this book and I wasn’t completely let down but I just feel like the end was too much. Especially too much to tie up neatly into a second book without really giving time to each issue. I rooted for the main girl until she destroyed her whole future like literally not a hint of hope for a better way forward. I get why and everything but I just can’t imaging how this can have even a slightly happy ending. Im still going to re-read it and wait impatiently for the sequel.

Malice is a game changer in the world of fairy tale retellings. Not only in its beautiful and touching LGBT+ representation, but also in its bold take on the classic “Sleeping Beauty” villain. Alyce’s transformation from her downtrodden, “Cinderella”-esque beginnings to full-fledged yet still misunderstood villain, all in the name of true love, was more gripping than I’ve experienced in a novel in a long time. The romance was mesmerizing, and the plot kept me guessing every step of the way. The magic system was also vivid and unique. Overall, I loved this book, and I can’t wait to read the author’s next work!

Some book reviews are really easy to complete. Perhaps it's the euphoria from finishing a book that's not like anything else you've read in a while. I found myself transported to a different time, a different place, and a different culture with this book. In the back of my mind, was a voice asking if this was a retelling of Cinderella, or Wicked, and then I re-read the synopsis which was what enticed me into reading the book in the first place. It has elements of those tales plus Sleeping Beauty which is why I found it so successful. Walter did a great job at making this a truly unique story.

The story has some bullying elements, but it also shows what can happen when women give up their power too easily. I was thoroughly captivated from beginning to end. Alyce is an "other" because she doesn't fit the mold of the other Graces in the land. The Graces use blood magic to create their temporary enchantments. Her blood is a different color and offers the opposite magic of theirs - instead of graceful dance moves, wonderous voices, and beautiful faces, her potions offer boils, itchy skin, clumsiness, and so on to be used against romantic competition. The magic that flows in the Graces blood only lasts for a limited amount of time. When the magic fades, they are placed into retirement and become matrons overseeing the care of Graces. Alyce's newfound friendship outside of the city walls reveals to her more uses for her magic.

Another twist is the expected heterosexual romance. There are rumors at least one princess found her true love with a woman but married a man because that was the expectation. The romance between Alyce and Aurora is a slow one, with some of the usual misunderstandings that come from miscommunications or withheld information to be found in romance novels.

This is a planned duology and I can't wait to read the sequel to find out if true love conquers all.

To be published 7/7/2021 at 10am at http://www.amberstults.com/?p=5147

I received a copy of this story from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I NEED MORE NOW.

This was so good! I love new takes on fairy tales. I also love "villains" and their origin stories so this was an obvious choice for me. It is so well-crafted that I want to shout about it from the rooftops.

I thought this was going to skew towards young-adult and it did, a little. But that only made the story more accessible to more people! I'm sure everyone can identify with Alyce or Aurora or Laurel or even Rose. There is such a humanity here, such a depth of character that I really appreciated. I feel like I got to know Alyce and Aurora and the Graces. The mythology of this world felt rich and intriguing; I most definitely want to read their history books.

At times it felt slow. At times it was repetitive in its description of things. But then there were times when the story actually made me laugh or gasp or exclaim "WHAT!" in the middle of a crowded room. I cannot wait to read more.

The LGBTQIA+ aspect was great, too. It makes sense and I appreciated it. Representation is important.

I'd happily recommend this to everyone (and I've already started doing so)!

I am a sucker for a fairy tale retelling. So a sapphic take on Sleeping Beauty was all I needed to know. And I was not disappointed.

A retelling from the villain’s POV is difficult to pull off, and Malice really succeeds here. The things that Alyce has to deal with from the microaggressions from her fellow Graces to the institutional constraints placed on her because of her magic, we see and sympathize as Alyce suffers. We watch as she tries so hard to not be the person that the entire realm believes her to be. One thing especially that I appreciated in this is that while we learn of the cruelties and abuse she endured as a child, we are never forced to witness that explicitly. It’s usually in vague remembrances and flashbacks.

The magic system is absolutely fascinating. And I love the world building, although we got a little info dump heavy in the first half of the book with a lot of backstory. Which, while interesting, wasn’t totally necessary. Each background story, while fleshing out the world, could have stood on their own, as little appendices or novellas. And nothing would have really been lost.

And the ending! Wow! Fast paced and intense! And while I managed to predict one thing, I actually was surprised by another. But the bits and pieces are all there for me to have picked up on.

I am thoroughly looking forward to the sequel.

Amazing book! Rich characters. Beautiful scenery. Complete reimagining of a once family tale. I loved trying to guess where the story would parallel the original and where it would diverge completely.

This was so good! I was hooked throughout the entire story. What a fantastic fairytale retelling. It felt like a retelling of Cinderella land Sleeping Beauty, but then also a villain origin story. I love Alyce! Both when she’s kind and honorable, but also when her claws came out. A truly morally gray character that I completely fell in love with and rooted for.

Also the slow burn romance was chef’s kiss. Aurora came off really privileged and selfish in the beginning. She kind of bulldozed over Alyce without considering how certain actions she wanted Alyce to do would be very dangerous for Alyce because she doesn’t have the same privileges as Aurora. But Aurora did grow on me and I’m excited to get to know her more.

Apparently this is a duology? I read it thinking it was a standalone. I’ll say it does end on kind of a cliffhanger where there’s a lot of action and with an open ending, but I also think it works as a standalone because of the strong fairytale vibes. I would have been fine without having a sequel. I will definitely continue though because I loved the story, characters, and the author’s writing!

A beautifully written, captivating book. It took me a long time to read it, but I figured June was the best time - looking forward to everything else the author puts forward, including the second book. I love stories that re-shape the villian for the reader, and this was CRAFTFULLY done. I will be reviewing on Goodreads.

Review: 4.5 Stars

I picked up a review copy of Malice because I knew it was a Sleeping Beauty retelling from the point of view of the villain. I didn’t really have any expectations, so I was blown away by how much I wound up loving Malice. This book was so well written and grabbed my attention right away. I really loved everything about this book. If you’re like I was and you’re on the fence trying to decide if this book is for you I recommend you do yourself a favor and give it a shot.

Alyce is hated by all of the other Graces because she is half Vila. She is painted as a villain because of her blood, she is lonely and she is bullied. I found it really easy to empathize with Alyce. She is a bit morally grey, but with how everyone treated her it was easy to see where her bitterness came from. The character development in this book is done incredibly well. I was able to connect with Alyce so well that I felt all of the emotions she was going through. I hated everyone who was cruel to her and loved any tiny bit of kindness that came her way. This was an incredible villain origin story because as a reader you were able to connect with Alyce and it wasnt until the very end that I started to disagree with some of her morally grey choices.

The world built in this story is fascinating. The history of the Vila and how the Graces came to be is given to the reader slowly and it was never overwhelming. I felt like it was really well done because you could see how the history and the world affected different people. You could see how prejudices against Vila shaped Alyce’s whole life and how Grace powers and limitations affected the Graces. The world felt so complete and vivid. The magic system was pretty cool and it was also clear and defined, so I never felt confused while reading.

The romance was absolutely amazing. I really loved Aurora and Alyce together. I was so emotionally invested in Alyce’s story and it was easy to see why she fell for Aurora. It was a great slow burn romance that built up over time and through friendship so it felt very authentic. There was a lot of chemistry between Aurora and Alyce and I was rooting for their forbidden romance throughout the entire story.

I loved this villain origin story. The characters are done so well and had me so emotionally invested in their journeys. I thought this was a really original take on Sleeping Beauty and I loved every minute of this book. The world building was fantastic, the characters were well developed and the plot was an emotional roller coaster. I’d recommend this book for fans of retellings, morally grey characters and forbidden romance. Do yourself a favor and get your hands on a copy of Malice ASAP.