This one failed on all accounts to be amazing. The characters were very one sided and cookie cutter. The world building was a mess, and the book was just hard to read and understand. I wanted to love this one but it really didn't work out at all.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I am DEAD. I need the next book yesterday.

This exceeded all my expectations and I loved it. Marlow is a great protagonist. I love that she’s like, “I’m a great cursebreaker,” and she actually is. She actually goes to solve the crime, unlike many other books where answers land in the MC’s lap. She’s flawed in a very human way and I felt for her. I still liked her when she made mistakes, even though some of them were rough (looking at that love confession).

I was guessing who cursed Adrius until the very end. Even with all the prospects Marlow had eliminated, I was still shocked.

I loved the relationships throughout, particularly Marlow and Swift’s. Marlow and Adrius had a BIG slow burn going, but it wasn’t the type where I was rolling my eyes because they were obviously in love and dragging it out for the sake of the story. I am VERY curious to see how Adrius forgives Marlow for breaking her promise.

Adrius’s curse also connects to Marlow’s mother’s disappearance, and I loved that Marlow discovers Cassandra is dead. That’s horrible for Marlow, obviously, but for story purposes I really respect when authors are like, this character is dead, and they don’t bring them back.

AGH anyway I need the next book.

So I was a little underwhelmed with the first few chapters, I will admit this. Not that I didn’t like it necessarily, I just wasn’t invested yet? But! When I did begin to become invested, I was all in. So if you aren’t feeling it at the very start, give it a second, because it was very much worth it for me!

I absolutely adored Marlow! She is wonderfully imperfect, and certainly has a lot of issues going on in her own life. Her mom is missing, for one, which is obviously not ideal. And she has a hard time letting people in in general, because she was hurt in the past. Frankly, she’s rather curmudgeonly, but in an empathetic and likable way.

I adored her rapport with Adrius. They are both really well developed, so it genuinely felt like two former friends trading barbs. But you can also tell that behind the banter are some serious mixed and hurt feelings, on both sides. I loved getting to explore that dynamic.

I also enjoyed the cursebreaking aspect, which is saying a lot because magic systems and I are hit or miss. But this one was a hit. I liked that it took not just magic, but a lot of intelligence and sleuthing to figure these curses out. And Marlow certainly has her hands full! In addition, it seems like a very scant number of people in this world are to be trusted- and that isn’t just Marlow’s jaded outlook, it just is the truth. So I loved getting to try to figure out who Marlow should trust at the same time that she is trying to decipher the same thing.

Bottom Line: Loved the characters, loved the plot, and am so glad I gave this one a full chance!

Series Info/Source: This is the first book in the Garden of the Cursed duology. I got an eGalley of this book from NetGalley to review.

Thoughts: I wanted to give this author another shot. I DNF'd "There Will Come a Darkness", so I never continued on with that series. This started a bit slow for me but I ended up liking it. It's a pretty typical YA fantasy. It's got that whole girl who was ousted from upper society meets upper society boy who used to be her best friend...but now they're older theme. Circumstances force them to pretend to be a couple and they fall in love. It's a pretty typical YA fantasy trope. It also has the whole trying to rebel to take magic from high society and make it available to the general populace thing going on.

Despite this feeling a lot like many other YA fantasies I've read before, I liked some of the twists at the end. The writing is decent. It felt like the writing quality got better as the book went on, but that may have been me just getting used to Pool's writing style.

I finished it, I liked it fine. I did feel like there were some plot points that just didn't quite make sense. For example, the main character, Marlow, always seems to have curses to fling around even though they are supposed to be super expensive and hard to get? Also some things are just wrapped up a bit too conveniently. Like the secret around Marlow's father...saw that one coming from a mile away. I think I can probably tell you how book 2 is going to go plot-wise as well.

Will I read, the second book in the duology? Maybe? I am on the fence right now. This was fine but I thought there were things that could be improved. Given my history with Pool's first book, I may just not really sync with her writing style well.

My Summary (4/5): Overall this was a decent YA fantasy read, full of typical YA tropes that readers know and love. I did enjoy some of the plot twists torward the end of the book but also felt like the plot was fairly predictable. I don't seem to mesh very well with Pool's writing style since I didn't love "There Will Come a Darkness" either. This is a solid YA fantasy book that revisits the tropes of forbidden love and stealing magic from the rich. If that's what you are looking for you might enjoy this. I am not sure if I will read the second book in the duology.

I wasn't sure what to expect when I got approved for this novel. I did read the authors first book, but I had a hard time connecting with the story. Once I picked up this book, I could not put it down! I immediately fell in love with the world and the characters and the pacing kept me on the edge of my seat. This was just a joy to read and one of my new favorites of the year. There may have been a bit of unbelievable parts, but I just loved this one so much that I'll be rounding up my 4.5 stars. I cannot wait to read the sequel!

Garden of the Cursed is a fantastic and original fantasy with a dynamic protagonist, a unique plot, vivid world-building, and a chemistry-laden enemies-to-lovers romance!

Marlow is a fierce and brave protagonist. Smart, snarky, and a bit antagonistic, she’s determined to find out what happened to her mother who disappeared a year ago. But when Adrius comes to her for help, she finds it hard to say no to the male who broke her heart all those months ago. I love Adrius too, though his character is more difficult to understand, as he remains an enigma for much of the story. He definitely has the broody, moody bad-boy attitude that I love in a MMC. Other characters, including Marlow’s best friend and Adrius’s friends and family, are also quite compelling, and I’m excited to see where their stories lead.

As Marlow works to break a curse that plagues Adrius, she learns of ties to her mother’s disappearance, and Marlow isn’t sure who she can trust. With Adrius’s life at risk, old feelings resurfacing, conflicts with friends, and a ton of political turmoil, Marlow must use all of her guile to figure out how everything connects. It’s such an interesting and layered plot, filled with intense and unexpected twists and revelations. Power, control, secrets, manipulations, political intrigue, betrayal, and more plague the characters, especially Marlow as she tries to find out more about her mother, break Adrius’s curse, and avoid the gang issues that seem tied to everything.

Adrius and Marlow have amazing chemistry, and I adored their enemies-to-lovers romance. It’s clear there are unresolved feelings between them, but both characters are so walled off, and vulnerability is difficult for both. This isn’t shocking considering the lives they both lead and the people and events that have affected them. Marlow runs away from her feelings and from the people who make her feel, especially Adrius. But it definitely says something that Adrius came to Marlow when he needed help the most. She is the only person he trusts even after what transpired between them. I like how we slowly learn about their past relationship and how it affected them both. It’s also interesting to see how each deals with so many conflicting and confusing feelings.

The world-building is also great, and I love the unique and intriguing world the author created. Speaking of the author, what an immersive writing style. I was so easily drawn into the story and became engrossed with the layered characters and plot. The author definitely has a gift for storytelling because I found it hard to put the book down. And after that fantastic ending, I can’t wait to read the next book in the series!

Special thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and Turn the Page Tours for providing me with a copy of the book. All thoughts are my own.

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. While the premise was interesting I didn’t connect with the characters or the story in a meaningful manner. Some books just aren’t for us, and that’s alright.

One of the main reasons I gave this rating, was due to the use of colloquial dialogue in a fantasy/sci-fi space. If it isn’t set in our world, it shouldn’t use colloquial phrases that have become popular via TikTok/social media. It’s the mental equivalent of stepping on a Lego. It shatters the “reality” of their invented worlds and comes across as lazy writing. Instead of spending time on editing, they chose to use shortcuts for dialogue that instantly ages the series. It tells me the book wasn’t ready and was published early to meet some imaginary deadline. I urge writers and publishers to stop pushing books like this out when they’re not ready.

I really enjoyed this! I liked the world-building a lot, and thought that the beginning really hooked me and I could really visualize where we were. The magic-system is also really interesting and fleshed out well. The characters, while nothing particularly special, were all well-done and compelling to read about, especially the MC. I think that the plot twists and winds in an interesting way, too, where there are a few different threads of mystery all being pulled simultaneously. I think that the romance was good--I have no real complaints--but I do wish that there was a little bit more depth to it. However, with how well-done the entire story was I don't even know if that is a valid critique, haha. I also can't believe they did me like that in the ending, though--I need the next book before I go crazy!

First, readers should know that Garden of the Cursed is a different sort of book than the Age of Darkness series. Don't go in expecting a sweeping, "globe" trotting epic. In stead, settle in for a thoroughly enjoyable, intimate, magical mystery. The world-building here is top-notch from a fully realized magic system--equipped with realistic, understandable limitations--to the gilded halls and gritty streets of Caraza City. The setting will suck you right in, and the plot will keep you there. There's more than one mystery to unravel, as events from the past intertwine with the present, and Marlowe is more than equipped to face her challenges head on. (Most of them, at least. Fake dating her ex-best friend may be easier said than done.) I think most people will really enjoy the romance here. I liked it well enough but found myself wanting more from it. I think the fact that so much of the past is told rather shown negatively impacted by attachment to them. But, eh, the trope is solid. Overall, a great read. I will be highly anticipating the sequel. (Did I mention this ends with an excruciating cliff hanger? I NEED the next book NOW!) ARC provided by NetGalley.

Awesome start! Garden of the cursed centers around Marlow as she searches to find out what happened to her mother when she disappeared a year ago. In order to survive Marlow has become a very skilled curse breaker. Although Marlow lives in the Marshes, she lived and went to school in Evergarden. Having ties to both the upper and lower class is a very interesting dynamic to the story, and also reveals some interesting relationships. One relationship in particular comes back to life when Marlow is asked for help breaking a curse. There is some really great storyline and world building that happens throughout the story. The rival gangs in the Marshes may not even be the biggest enemy that Marlow and her companions face.
There are a lot of really great and exciting things going on with this book. I love the curses and spell work and how everything is manifested. I like the potential group of people who are trying to take away power from the rich. I also like frenemies to lovers plot and the relationship between Marlow and both old and new friends. The twists are exciting but also very numerous. Marlow practically accuses every single person of being the cursing culprit. For being such a great curse breaker she takes so many shots in the dark. I realize that there is a time limit for her to crack the case, but the blind accusations and decision making make her character a little annoying, brash and immature. I also don’t like the cliffhanger, but what a great plot twist…I get it. I can’t wait for the next book to see what happens next for Marlow, Adrius and the rest of the gang. I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving a free copy.

I absolutely love this book. The characters, the world building and plot were all incredible. I wasn't sure how I would like going into but after the first chapter my mind was blown away.

"Since fleeing the gilded halls of Evergarden for the muck-filled canals of the Marshes, Marlow Briggs has made a name for herself as the best cursebreaker in Caraza City. But no matter how many cases she solves, she is still haunted by the mystery of her mother's disappearance.

When Adrius Falcrest, Marlow's old friend and scion of one of Caraza's most affluent spell-making families, asks her to help break a life-threatening curse, Marlow wants nothing to do with the boy who spurned her a year ago. But a new lead in her mother's case makes Marlow realize that the only way to get the answers she desperately seeks is to help Adrius and return to Evergarden society - even if it means suffering through a fake love affair with him to avoid drawing suspicion from the conniving Five Families.

As the investigation draws Marlow into a web of deadly secrets and powerful enemies, a shocking truth emerges: Adrius's curse and her mother's disappearance may just be clues to an even larger mystery, one that could unravel the very foundations of Caraza and magic itself."

Damn, that cover, it's seriously amazing.

★ 4.25 / 5

"Maybe that's all love was. Handing someone a knife and trusting that they wouldn't cut your throat."

Katy Rose Pool's books never let me down. I'll admit—I've been putting off reading Into the Dying Light for a variety of reasons, but Garden of the Cursed reminded me of why I loved Katy's books so much. Her writing is addictive, and it brings me back to the early to mid 2010's when I was devouring dystopian YA books left and right. Obviously, GOTC is not dystopian, but the fact that it tugs on my nostalgia strings is a definite win.

"Everyone wants to feel in control. But that feeling isn't real. None of us are in control, not really. So I say, stop pretending and embrace it. If I can't control my life, then at least I'm going to have a damn good time living it."

GOTC is a blend of fantasy and mystery, but it also leans into a slight detective vibe too. Marlow is a cursebreaker in Caraza, an extremely successful one at that, until her ex-best friend Adrius comes to her cursed asking for help. He is a member of the elite in Caraza, specifically the Five Families, who are the most powerful people in this world because they horde the secrets via creating spellscards and curses. Now being cursed wouldn't be so bad for Adrius if not for: 1. him being a Falcrest aka the most powerful of the Five Families, 2. his curse being a Compulsion curse which aren't supposed to exist anymore, 3. curses become permanent after two moon cycles. Yeah, I'd say pretty dire circumstances. Anyway, GOTC follows Marlow as she digs deeper into who cursed Adrius, but she's also forced to confront the reasons why their friendship ended nearly a year ago... and maybe that her feelings are a bit stronger than merely friendship.

"When lightning crackles across the sky and the air gets thick enough to chew, it means trouble isn't far behind."

While Adrius and Marlow aren't besties anymore at the start of this book, Katy certainly gives us other friendships to indulge over. Honestly, Katy always does friendships right—true friendship at that. Swift and Marlow were two peas in a pod, and their banter was one of the shining lights of this book. But Swift also calls Marlow out on her mistakes and bad decisions. Multiple times Marlow puts Swift in a life threatening and triggering position. He's essentially forced to help her because of his love for her, but once it's done, he confronts her and lets her have it. I find a lot of friendships in books shy away from this very real reality. Friendships are just as flawed as any other relationship; romantic relationships aren't the only ones that exist. It was refreshing to see this dynamic between friends in a YA book. You can tell Swift is a full character and was given tons of thought.

"...as long as there were curses, she would go on breaking them."

In terms of the world building, I was fascinated by this modern fantasy setting that siphons magic into spellcards for good or bad purposes. We only get crumbs when it comes to this magic system, which I assume is because the second book will lean more into it, but the Falcrest library scene, in particular, was my favorite. The multiple illusions engulfing the exterior of the library was fascinating, and I loved the details that it made Marlow a bit sick to her stomach due to all the distortion and movement. It felt overwhelming, and I couldn't even see it. Then, the fact that the library is spelled to be larger inside to accommodate for all the space... Genius! I wish we could've had more than two chapters in that location, so here's to hoping for more in the sequel. Pretty much every setting was great though. From the Evergarden parties to the swampy Marshes back at Marlow's apartment, the city felt like a real major city. I've been really into fantasy books that lean into modernity, specifically big cities, so it was a treat to find such a stunning world.

"The trick to pulling off a con,,, is that some part of you has to believe it, too. Just enough to make it real—but not so much that you forget yourself."

My main critique of this book was the rushed ending, akin to whiplash at times. The pacing was perfect until those final 50ish pages when chaos was unfurling left and right. It leaned into plot info-dump territory, which isn't my favorite way to end a book, especially one I was enjoying so much. Also, in those final 50ish pages I was pretty much fed up with the miscommunication between Adrius and Marlow. It didn't actually bug me until the end, but it went on waaay to long in my opinion. Overall, these aren't big critiques; they just disrupted the flow and pulled me out of the story.

"Caraza was a city built on a swamp, and swamps bred mosquitos. And mosquitos fed on blood."

Thank you to Katy Rose Pool for DM-ing me personally with an offering of this NetGalley eARC. Thank you also to Fierce Reads and NetGalley for the opportunity to review this book. I think I'm going to have to pick up Into the Dying Light ASAP to continue on with Katy's wonderful writing.

I hadn’t read a book by this author yet and this one really caught my eye. The cover is very interesting! I also liked how the blurb talked about a mystery and I am a sucker for one of those.

The book is told from one point-of-view and it comes from Marlow Briggs, although there are two chapters that have a different point-of-view. I won’t say who they come from because of spoilers! Marlow has a unique job of breaking curses. She is basically a detective while doing it because she has to hunt the person who did it and that can take a lot of work! She hasn’t had the best life either, especially after her mother disappeared. She has a close friend that she can rely on and I really liked their friendship. All of this makes her really strong, but also leads her to make poor decisions.

There is a bit of romance in the book but I had a hard time believing it. A lot of it felt forced which technically that is for a good reason but even when it becomes a bit more I just didn’t feel the romance between them. He is an interesting character though.

Out of the characters there were a couple I liked more than others and I think it’s because there was just more to them. A lot of the characters felt one dimensional.

Another complaint I had was the setting and world building. I am still not quite sure how everything works and felt like I still had so many questions after the book ended. I am sure more will be discussed in the coming sequel but I shouldn’t have to wait until then to understand.

The mystery was a thrilling one and I had no idea who could have did it! I was very surprised and it made for an exciting cliffhanger.

Overall, this was good. It could have been better in some areas though.

The only regret I have with this book is that I read it before part two was out! This was an amazing read with twists at every turn. I was constantly gripped and didn’t want to put this book down. Every time I thought I had it all figured out I was wrong and extremely happy to be wrong, there was so much depth in the mystery and you can tell this book was written with careful consideration. All the characters were written with an amazing depth to them that made you feel for them both in good and bad ways. The writing style was absolutely incredible and I very much enjoyed that no character was written as inherently good or bad. I will wait impatiently be waiting for book two!

This was so much better than I expected of this. I went in with some very mediocre expectations, and this was nothing like what I imagined.

This is very crime noir, warring gangs, and a little Downton Abbey type society. So wild, and so much fun.

I have no criticism. I just loved it.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a digital copy of this book for review.

Cool af magic system & fake dating trope?! Yes, please.

Spells/curses in playing cards that can be thrown at enemies, seriously such a coo ideal. I do wish there would have been a deeper dive into the world building, but overall I really loved this.

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

4.5 stars. I really enjoyed this! And after that ending I would like the next one now please lol.

Whooooo eeeeee... this book was Awesome with a capital A! It exceeded my expectations and grabbed my attention straight out of the gate. It also had me anxiously hoping for more pages to mysteriously appear by the end. Why the accolades, you might ask? Easy, I'm gushing because of how soundly it owned what I call the Trifecta of Awesomeness (Quality of Writing + Background Detail + How Robust the Chatacters Are).

- The writing was succinct yet gripping. It was highly descriptive yet not in an overpowering way. The story had a few twisty turns, and even though some were easily sussed out ahead of time, not all were... so there's that to look forward to. It drew me in and seriously put a choke hold on my attention and time management.

- The background was lush, gritty, tactile, and expertly woven. It was so rich that I felt like I was there amongst the sludge and ghetto fabulousness of the Marshes as well as the frippery and the regal elegance of Evergarden. You'll see... it's both resplendent and repugnant.

- The characters... oh, these characters. I, for one, am a firm believer that in order to have a successful story, it must be populated with complex/oft times morally sketchy/ loveable-loatheable /humanly flawed characters.... they're the lifeblood of any good tale. And this here tale is definitely better than good. The FMC, Marlow, kicks butt! Is she stubborn? Heck yes, BUT she is also relentless in the pursuit of the Truth. Does she make extremely questionable life choices in that pursuit? Also yes BUT, with the help of some strong secondary and even tertiary characters, she finds a way to make things work... even if the workaround is dirty. Was this groundbreaking? No, BUT it was an addictive/immersive/wholesome/fun read, AND honestly, can you think of a better way to spend your time? Wellll... maybe you can, but for this hopless bibliophile, there's almost nothing better.


Overall:
This book was well written, the backdrop was detailed, and the characters were the stars... as they should be. There were often times when I found myself screaming, uselessly, at my e-reader and I even wanted to shake some sense into the FMC... just to make her see reason... but alas, I am not violent and she is not real soooo I had to settle on some very menacing side-eyeing at my tablet.

My final 2 cents:
I really enjoyed this book and I found myself wishing there was more... loads and heaps and bushels more! I'm super excited to see where the series goes. Book #2 can't get here soon enough!

~ Enjoy

*** I received an advance review copy for free from NetGalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. ***

YA fantasy with magic and a fake dating trope!

Loved the magic system, it was simple but creative. Spells and curses are carried in playing cards and thrown at enemies. I wish she would have delved more into world building and the magic system but it was still a lot of fun to read. I wish Adrius' character had more redeeming qualities. He needed to win Marlow over and not have so many tantrums.

I received a free copy from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions in the review are my own.