Member Review
Review by
Tara H, Media/Journalist
A clever way to retell a classic tale
One way to know if I enjoyed a book that’s the first of a series is whether I’ll want to read the next one. In the case of Wolves and Roses, I definitely want to read the next one. This is not a typical Sleeping Beauty retelling, so it’s refreshing to see a new take on how to retell a classic story, especially when that take includes deep irony in the idea of “templates.” Without revealing any spoilers, Christina Bauer handled the idea of a “sleeping beauty” very cleverly in the book, with a sort of narrative double intendre that could have flopped but instead worked.
The relationship between Bryar Rose and her best friend was just as enjoyable — if not more — than the Bryar’s growing relationship with Knox, and the snarky, sarcastic attitude of Bryar and her best friend hit all the right notes. Prince Philpot is a bit overly flat, but I suppose that’s somewhat the point in the story, and the evil that we discover did feel a bit hokey, but it was also fun in its own way. I wouldn’t say the book blew me away, but I definitely enjoyed it enough to continue reading the saga and recommend it to others, and the audio version’s narrators did a great job of representing the characters.
This review is based on reading a complimentary advance reader copy of this book from NetGalley.
One way to know if I enjoyed a book that’s the first of a series is whether I’ll want to read the next one. In the case of Wolves and Roses, I definitely want to read the next one. This is not a typical Sleeping Beauty retelling, so it’s refreshing to see a new take on how to retell a classic story, especially when that take includes deep irony in the idea of “templates.” Without revealing any spoilers, Christina Bauer handled the idea of a “sleeping beauty” very cleverly in the book, with a sort of narrative double intendre that could have flopped but instead worked.
The relationship between Bryar Rose and her best friend was just as enjoyable — if not more — than the Bryar’s growing relationship with Knox, and the snarky, sarcastic attitude of Bryar and her best friend hit all the right notes. Prince Philpot is a bit overly flat, but I suppose that’s somewhat the point in the story, and the evil that we discover did feel a bit hokey, but it was also fun in its own way. I wouldn’t say the book blew me away, but I definitely enjoyed it enough to continue reading the saga and recommend it to others, and the audio version’s narrators did a great job of representing the characters.
This review is based on reading a complimentary advance reader copy of this book from NetGalley.
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