REVIEW💕
AUTHOR: Hailey Jade
GENRE: Fantasy
RATING ⭐️⭐️⭐️

"They called me the Whore Queen. Some even called me the Evil Queen. But they could call me whatever they wanted. I was still queen."

One thing you need to know about me is that I'm a sucker for retellings. So when I came across one about the evil queen, I was all in. I really wanted to like this story, because it hooked me quickly, but in the end I feel that it lacks something and I'm disappointed.

Rhiandra a maisera who suffers an accident that ruins her life is offered a chance to change her future, but at a great cost. Honestly, her character disappointed me, she felt like a weak woman trying to pretend she was strong - the whole book she is being pushed around by Draven. Rather than a queen she is a puppet who solves all her problems too easily.

I love the originality of the Evil Queen's story, the magic and curses were surprising twists that kept me reading. I love the way the mirror and the apples were introduced into the story.

I'm still conflicted if I liked the story, I liked the idea but at least to me it felt incomplete with a lot of unnecessary characters that didn't add much.

This one I really struggled with reading. Normally, I can devour a book in a day, but for some reason, this one didn't fire on all cylinders for me.

3.5 stars
Snow White retelling that’s got me rooting for the villain!! Such a good twist on the fairytale that kept me engaged the whole time. Definitely NOT a YA book. The sexual tension in this 🥵🔥🌶!! 2 total spicy scenes. What a great way to send off the first book in this series than with the spicy scene I’ve been waiting for!

Check content warnings- this has some dark material. 18+

Special thanks to Netgalley for this digital ARC.

Currently available on Kindle Unlimited (9-8-22).

This just wasn't for me. I tried multiple times to get into it, and I just couldn't. The beginning was slow and the characters were flat, in my opinion. I DNF about 30% in, and I haven't though twice about it. Not a fiber in my being wonders how this turns out. Not the worst thing I've ever read, but not good enough to "stick it out"

"They called me the Whore Queen. Some even called me the Evil Queen.
But they could call me whatever they wanted. I was still queen."

Rhiandra Tiercelin hungers for power and her charm has always been her sharpest weapon in hunting it. So when a brutal attack leaves her physically scarred, desperation drives her to make a deal with Draven, a magic-wielding stranger who is inexplicably compelling and definitely dangerous. She knows she can’t trust him, but when he offers to make her a queen, the temptation is too enticing to resist.

Armed with a glamoured face and an enchanted apple, Rhiandra is determined to scheme her way into a crown, even if it means risking the deadly punishment for unsanctioned magic use. But Draven is playing a bigger game, and she is just one piece on the board.

Can she keep her wits about her long enough to uncover his secrets, or will he lure her down a path she will come to regret?

Her Dark Reflection is the first book in a new dark romantic fantasy series perfect for fans of Raven Kennedy, Jennifer Armentrout and Sarah A. Parker. If you like cunning, ambitious heroines, morally ambiguous men and romance that toes the line between love and hate, then you’ll love Hailey Jade’s dark reimagining of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves.

Trigger Warnings: this book explores dark themes and may contain content that is inappropriate or triggering for some readers, including explicit sex scenes and depictions of sexual assault. Please see author website for a full list of triggers.

This was amazing and I can’t wait to read the next book. There was great intrigue, politics, a fantastic dark romance and tons of morally grey characters. They was a great darker fantasy and I can’t wait to see what happens next.

I just finished this book and wholly cow am I DESPERATE for the next instalment! Talk about a morally grey heroine, who has been through it and is making some rather intense choices (to say the least).
I love complex female characters and Rhiandra is one of the best I've read in a long time!

Now what can I say about Draven? He's insanely sexy, he'll have you melting and he is even more morally grey than Rhiandra. Do we know his intentions? Nope. Am I obsessed with him? Yes.

An origin story of the Evil Queen? Yes, please!
This was a fun read, and I NEED to know what happens in book 2! I will say there was a bit of a lull in the middle but still enjoyable. Our Evil Queen isn’t so evil in this tale, but is a survivor. Rhiandra has lived a tough life, but never gives up on what she wants. So she is relatable, even with her loose morals! I would have liked to see the relationship between Rhiandra and Draven build more; but some their interactions were pretty steamy.

I made it about 25% through this book before I finally decided not to finish it. I like the idea of the story, but am not a huge fan of the execution or the writing style of the author. I usually read young adult fantasy, so this felt very complex. I was pulled in at the start, but it couldn't carry that excitement through for me.

This was an amazing, dark retelling of Snow Whole from the stepmothers perspective. So inventive and creative! Seductive and mesmerizing. Rhiandra is beautiful, a maisera. She’s popular and confident, headed toward a better future for herself. But she insults the wrong person and he hurts her, forever assuring her future. Draven, a handsome, mysterious stranger offers her a deal. He can restore her beauty and make her queen. All she has to do is trust him and give the king this red apple. It’s a hard deal to turn down. But who is Dracen and what does he ultimately want?

I loved this story and I’m eagerly waiting for the next installment.

I'll preface my review by saying I somehow completely missed the content warnings (my trigger finger probably pressed "request" as soon as I saw "Snow White retelling,) but I would've given Her Dark Reflection a pass if I'd seen the bit about the explicit content because that's not really my style. (To Hailey Jade's credit, it does play a relatively minor role in the story and is pretty easy to skip past.) I also am not the biggest fan of villain origin stories and probably need to stop trying to find one I'll enjoy as much as Heartless. All this to say, I'm not really the target audience for Her Dark Reflection.

Her Dark Reflection isn't so much a story as it is a long, convoluted, unnecessary prequel.

The book is ostensibly about a power-hungry girl who glamours and beguiles her way into becoming the Evil Queen from Snow White but in actuality is made up of a bunch of loose threads that are never woven together to create a cohesive story. There's nothing to hold the pieces together--and there certainly isn't a plot--that all just kind of float around. The main problem is that nothing really happens throughout the book. After the initial scarring event, there aren't really any substantial scenes or moments to justify 27 chapters-worth of writing. Characters are introduced and then never heard of until Jade suddenly remembers she needs them for Plot Reasons, and plot points are sporadically thrown in to break up long meandering passages about, well, I'm not really sure, actually. I honestly can't tell you what this book is about because a whole lot of nothing happens. Even the seemingly important events are loosely connected by the thinnest of threads. It feels like the whole book is held together by string and the hope that the watered-down "romance" will be a sufficient substitute for an actual plot.

Her Dark Reflection is pitched as "the first book in a new dark fantasy series perfect for fans ... cunning, ambitious heroines, morally ambiguous men and slow burn romance that toes the line between love and hate," and I thought I'd walk through the blurb step-by-step.

1. Cunning, Ambitious Heroines
This is probably the most accurate piece of the pitch. It's painfully obvious how cunning and ambitious Rhiandra is. If anything else, the fact that Rhiandra is a protagonist trying to seek and secure power is repeated throughout the book. Unfortunately, it's done in a rather heavy-handed way, and I feel like I spent a majority of my reading experience having this fact shoved down my throat. She's a flat character and doesn't have much in way of motivation. I mean, she wants beauty and she wants power, but it lacks any kind of depth. Her character is never really developed in any meaningful way, so I spent most of the book trying to figure out how I should care about her and why. And then I got to the end of the book and realized I truly don't care about her one way or another.

2. Morally Ambiguous Men
One could argue Draven is a morally ambiguous man, but we don't actually spend enough time with him to find out. It's pretty obvious Jade wants us to see him as a morally grey character, but she doesn't actually do anything to make us believe it. Like the rest of the side characters, he pops in and out of the story, but when he does appear, his sole purpose is to serve as the Tall, Dark and Mysterious benefactor who makes Rhiandra quiver with desire.

3. Slow Burn Romance
The romance, if you could call it that, certainly is...slow. But a lot of it really is Rhiandra forcing us to listen to her talk about how he sends her heart fluttering, nerves tingling, body wanting and wanting and wanting 🙄 It's insta-lust at its finest.

The books ends abruptly, leaving the reader with more questions than answers. I don't even know if I can call it a cliffhanger because the story just drops off after a random chapter. It almost feels like someone ripped out the remaining chapters and handed the reader an incomplete book. A part of me wants to know what happens next if only to justify the ridiculous carrot dangling I had to endure, but there's no way I'm putting myself through another round of torture. The writing style is awkward--sometimes stilted and formal, sometimes almost laughably colloquial--and the storytelling is disjointed and chaotic. The one high point is the reinterpretation of Snow White and the Huntsman (at least the beginning of it,) but it's really not worth reading an entire book for an interesting paragraph or two. I'd ask someone to read Her Cold Deception and tell me what happens, but I'm not cruel enough to do that.

Thank you to the publisher for an early digital galley in exchange for an honest review.

There have been many reimaginings of classic stories over the years., including many told from the perspective of the villain. Here we return to the story of Snow White where it's told from the point of view of the evil stepmother. Rhiandra is definitely no innocent but she does start out as a good character. As the story unfolds, her character becomes morally grey.

In this version of the story, Rhiandra suffers a physical trauma that leaves her face deformed. Along comes Draven, some sort of magic user, who offers to improve her life if she will help him. Honestly, getting into a deal with Draven seems like such a bad idea right from the start. Draven is a huge mystery throughout the book and it might have been good to tease the reader more about his character than was done. Rhiandra is a feminist character from the start and I like the fact this continues throughout so that the evil is more about her seeking some equality in the world than any evil deeds she might have done.

Overall this was a good read and I am interested to know what happens next. I give this 3.5 stars. Thank you to Netgalley and Hailey Jade for giving me this advanced reader copy. I have provided this review voluntarily.

#HerDarkReflection #NetGalley

Definitely a new, morally-ambiguous take on Snow White and a read that leaves me thinking of the complexities of individuals. A truly fierce and driven Queen with multiple human layers that gives the reader a clear indication of how she became who she is.

So curious to where Rhiandra Tiercelin's story will lead.

This is a gorgeously dark tale about how the Evil Queen from Snow White became the Evil Queen through some shady magic dealings with a Picture of Dorian Grey twist. I actually didn't realize that until the name of the daughter was given as Snow White, but once that detail was revealed I devoured this book.

The main character tries her hardest to be a good person but is honestly out for herself the whole time because she can't afford to fail. She proceeds to fuck around and find out from the first chapter to the last. I don't want to spoil too much of the book because honestly there are just so many good twists and turns. This was just so good and anyone who likes them some morally grey characters? This one is for you.

Thank you, NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read Her Dark Reflection by Hailey Jade in exchange for an honest review!!

I loved this book! If you like a dark romance that is a fairytale retelling, this is the book for you. If you are looking for a strong female protagonist, grab this book! This book is technically from the point of view from the villian. I have been looking for a book like this, and I'm glad I stumbled upon it on NetGalley. I cannot wait for the second book to come out!

This is a loose retelling of Snow White from the queens point of view. This story humanizes the Queen more and makes her side more understandable. It is an adult telling , the Queen starts off in a brothel. I read this book very fast because the story is very compelling! A great read!

Her Dark Reflection is the story of Rhiandra who hungers for power and her charm has always been her greatest weapon when gaining it. After a brutal attack leaves her physically scarred, jobless, and homeless, desperation forced her to make a deal with Draven. Draven wields magic and is a completely dangerous stranger to Rhiandra. She can’t trust him, but when he offers magic to heal her scars and make her queen, she finds a deal too enticing to resist.

Her Dark Reflection is a slow burn, dark romance novel that is told from the villains POV. This is a reimagining of Snow White & The Seven Dwarves. This was such a fun take on the fairytale, and I absolutely LOVED that it’s in the villains POV. Rhiandra is assertive in her ways of thinking and goes for what she wants, and I appreciate that about a female MC. Draven is dark and mysterious. This book ends on a cliff hanger and I am honestly excited for the second book. Such a good read!

Thank you NetGalley for the eBook ARC of this book!

I like the cover very much. It is simple, but fits the content very well. It made me curious right away. I find the saying especially fitting and interesting.
I had to get used to the writing style first. At the beginning, I had a little trouble getting into the story and following the plot. But after a few chapters I was totally captivated and couldn't put the book down. I immediately fell in love with the protagonists. I was totally moved by their fate and felt so much sympathy for them. I was so hoping that she would get a happy ending. Her antagonist is her lover, so to speak, which I also find very interesting. He's mysterious and inscrutable. It's hard to see through him and uncover his motives. Unfortunately, he made far too few appearances and the relationship between Draven and Rhiandra couldn't really grow. I hope that this will change in the second volume and that we will learn more about Draven.
In summary, I absolutely recommend this book. The retelling of Snow White from the stepmother's point of view is incredibly interesting and innovative.

I really enjoyed reading Her Dark Reflection. I don't read many books that is from the "villians" perspective and I thoroughly enjoyed read from Rhiandras'. I love a good retelling and this was a great one of Snow White. I loved the characters interactions and the incredible world building.

This was good, entertaining and highly intriguing read for me. I really liked the word building and the plot line, also the characters were fun and entertaining too. Now, I'm excited to see where this series goes.