Thanks to @MacmillanAudio and NetGalley for the advance listener copy of Never the Roses by Jennifer K. Lambert!

I was completely pulled into this story from the start. The writing is sharp, immersive, and full of emotional depth. I especially appreciated that the main characters were older—it’s refreshing to see protagonists with real life experience instead of yet another early-20s lead. Both narrators did an excellent job bringing the characters to life and were perfectly cast. The only thing that would’ve made it better is if it had been a duet narration rather than alternating.

The magic system was unique and intriguing, though I found myself wanting a bit more explanation. There were some elements I didn’t fully understand, and I hope they’ll be expanded in future installments. Some of the action was told after the fact rather than shown in real time, but the author still managed to weave those moments into the plot smoothly.

The ending was heartbreakingly emotional and ended on a bit of a cliffhanger, so I’m really hoping this means a sequel is on the way. If so, I’ll absolutely be reading it. This book is a beautiful blend of fantasy, love, and loss—with characters you’ll root for and a world you’ll want to understand more deeply.

3.5⭐️ Is heartbreaking love a thing? It is now that I’ve read Never the Roses. 🥀 What an intriguing love story. While this is being heavily marketed as an epic fantasy there really isn’t a plot to the world outside Oniera’s wards. Her exploration of herself outside the war is what this story is. It has a very slow start and it wasn’t until around 75% that I settled in to accepting what this book was not. The epilogue made me round up. It was a heartbreaking ending. Dual narration was so satisfying.

This book had no right to be this amazingly heartbreaking and beautiful. Let me just go curl in a ball and sob into my mountain of pillows. Is this a standalone will there be a second? I don’t know, I’m blown away. I just had to navigate the crowded Friday night store while silently sobbing.

The characters, the world building, the descriptions in this book were amazing. And then the ending? I.. I’m so sad but it was so freaking beautiful. This is an absolute masterpiece.

Lambert- ARC
Audiobook End of chapter 15 glitched. And I think a chapter before did as well.

First, I can’t say enough how refreshing it was that the story starts with older main characters that are retired or close to retirement. The MFC is NOT your typical fantasy character that is 19 years old and somehow trained assassin. Oniera is a middle aged sorceress retired from being a weapon for her Queen and country. Her magic is very interesting and is related to dreams. I am still a little confused by the overall magic system, but that didn’t deter me for enjoying the story. The MMC is a sorcerer named Stearnos, who knows what he wants and he wants the Oniera. I love that he isn’t torn or doubting and grows slowly.
The love story was sweet and I wished we had more of them courting each other.
Spice levels are low and could have been more.
The ending is was also a bit confusing to me. I understood that Oniera was fine with the killing and war. But I didn’t understand how one more death, a death of a sexist war hungry man lead her to her last choice. I will say the ending was very tragic but it was also odd that Stearnos would also choose to end his life since Oniera used her last murder to set him free. What was the purpose of her killing the prince and setting him free for them to both die?

Overall, I would recommend this book and enjoyed the audiobook version.

The premise really intrigued me and it’s a beautiful book. I didn’t love the narrators but they were ok. The beginning is so difficult to get into. It feels like an info dump and slow. I understand this is because the FMC is isolated. I enjoyed the story and appreciated how the author handled such topics as grief and trauma. The pacing was a bit slow and I struggled a bit with the POV format. Overall, I think you’re either going to love this book or not care for it at all.

This really surprised me! Never the Roses is a slow, lyrical narrative that captured my attention immediately. I fell in love with our main character Oneira, who has to rediscover who she is and who she wants to be. This book has tension and humor but also cozy, soft, tender moments. The audiobook is wonderful and coveys the tone of the story perfectly; it made reading the book that much more of a cozy, magical experience.

I'm glad this is getting an edition with a book box because I'm not sure I would have picked this up otherwise. This will absolutely be on my best books of the year list and I'm excited for what the author writes next.

This book was slow to start, but that is because the world building was immense, and the FMC was isolated, so it was mainly just her thoughts. The book then began to pick up and became an enjoyable tale about secret visits and a slow and tender romance. This was the slow burn I didn't even know I needed! Thank you, Macmillian Audio and Netgalley, for approving my request for the audiobook.

3.5 stars! I think I would consider this a cozy, fantasy romance above anything else. The FMC, Oneara, is a retired sorceress/warrior and the MMC is the FMC's past rival (sort of?) though they'd never met prior to this stories events. Oneara is essentially a dreamwalker with the ability to travel and even take/create things from dreams, and she winds up at Stearanos' home and steals one of his books from his extensive library, thus beginning their journey with one another. I truly liked both main characters and was excited to see what would happen with them, but I do feel it was a bit insta-lovey. I wish there had been more build up once they actually met. The atmosphere of this book had such a dreamlike quality and I could easily envision how it would look. This is told via third person, which is not my favorite format - I think first person would've made it a more immersive experience. However, I still enjoyed this story and would be interested in reading book 2 if there will be one. I also really loved the narrators - they did an incredible job. Thank you Netgalley for the ARC!

“By recklessly stealing a book from him, Oneira inadvertently initiates a forbidden correspondence. Taunting notes and clever retorts reveal a connection neither has found—nor could ever find—in any other.”

I love a bantering, slow burn romance. This book started out a slow, but picked up and was a fun read.

*potential spoilers*
I also looooove that the mfc dream walks and can take things from the dreams.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for this ARC!

3.5/5 stars rounded up to 4.

This book overall has a slower start to it, as Oneira is living alone after buying her freedom from her last job. She is able to live "off-grid" and vows to never kill again. While she still uses her magic she does try to go without for some things, like her roses.

Oneira dream walks to Stearanos library to "borrow" a book. Steraranos is a sorcerer like her but has different magic strength, but they are equal to each other. But with Oneira in retirement, Steraranos' king/prince try to wage a war against her kingdom. Which makes Oneira have to decide if she goes back to try and save her last kingdom or stay away.

I will say the ending is sad and we are left on a what happens next cliffhanger. Hopefully there will be a book two if not then may we all imagine a happy ending for our characters.

I do recommend the audio version. Chloe and Shane did an excellent job reading the book and kept me engaged throughout. I believe I would have put the book down had it not been for the audiobook, due to the slow start.

YA Fantasy
Necromancy
Enemies to Lovers
Spice level 1

I received an advance review copy audio version. Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio, for the opportunity to listen to this book. Jennifer K. Lambert this book was wonderful.

I have to say I am not a big fan of third person reads, and I'm thinking this one was. I kept spacing off and had to restart the first 15 min a few times. I was so excited for this one too. Maybe I'll just read this one. I am a fan of Shane East, but I wasn't even able to get to him because I kept having to start over. I appreciate the chance at the ALC, but I find this is another one not for me.

This book was really intriguing. From the cover to the plot, it had me intrigued the entire time.

It moves at a glacial pace in most spots, and if you're feeling it's slow, that's because it is. But despite that, I actually really started to love it when I hit about 45% of the way through. It was a sweet fantasy, that has some really deep moments, and good character growth in it. I definitely feel like it teeters the edge of YA and NA, although it has a good mix of both which was interesting as the reader to enjoy.

Such a great plot and premise!

Thank you NetGalley for an eARC!

I can’t believe how much I loved this. Romantasy can be so hit or miss for me, but wow was this a hit. I can’t believe this is a debut. It’s beautifully written, tightly plotted, and I could not love these characters more. The magic, the angst, the heat—and the library! I’m blown away. This was so good. I can’t wait to have the gorgeous finished copy in my hands.

Unfortunately this one is not for me. The beginning is so so so slow. I had a hard time continuing. I did eventually DNF as I just wasn’t liking much about it. The narrators did a good job, the story just was not for me.

Thank you for this ALC opportunity, always love to try something different even if it doesn’t work out for me.

If you love sprayed edges, run and preorder this! The sprayed edges are absolutely gorgeous!

This book was very hard for me to rate. The beginning of the book was a chore. I wanted to DNF this a few times but pushed through. I was very interested once some pranks started. Then it went downhill from there. The story is fine. It isn’t anything special, but it isn’t terrible. I would have loved a lot more world building and a lot less hearing the FMC beat herself up about everything. I could not stand the character Tristan.

I received the audio book. The narrators did a wonderful job!

A-M-A-Z-I-N-G romantansy! The story, plot, writing, action...all of it was just so good. This was everything I want in a well written and attention grabbing romantasy!

This was just okay for me.

I struggled to get invested in the characters for a really long time, I think it took until somewhere in the last 25-ish% of the book. The writing just dragged a lot for me and I felt like unimportant details were dwelled upon for much too long.

This is definitely a darker fantasy with a darker world, politics and magic. And I think that's cool and unique.

Our FMC is a bit standoffish, but she has some really cool magic. She can even walk amongst dreams, communicating with people through them. And the MMC is a warrior from a different kingdom. There's an itty bitty little bit of an enemies to lovers situation, but neither is really reluctant (hence why I said itty bitty). But it is definitely a slow-burn romance!

Thanks to NetGalley for the audiobook ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review! My Goodreads review is up and my TikTok (Zoe_Lipman) review will be up at the end of the month with my monthly reading wrap-up.

This story offered an unexpected take on fantasy that really stood out to me. It follows Oneira, a battle-worn sorceress who’s chosen to step away from war and spend her remaining years in peaceful solitude. I enjoyed being immersed in her quiet world and meeting her magical companions, as well as witnessing the growing relationship between her and Stearanos. While the ending wasn’t exactly what I’d hoped for, the overarching theme of forgiveness and striving to become a better version of yourself was beautifully done.

The narrators did an excellent job breathing life into both the story and its characters. Each one brought their own unique touch, adding depth and emotion that made it easier to connect with the narrative on a more personal level.

Oh man, this one was sooooo slow for me. I had to restart it like 5 times cause I’d be 20minutes in and have no idea what was going on and even after I finally started paying attention I just didn’t enjoy it.

I found the narrator was hard to listen to. I had a hard time following her unfortunately. This just wasn’t really for me all around.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own

I love this narrator! I originally read the earc and wasn't really getting pulled in as i'd hoped but once I got the alc there was no stopping me. I devoured it!