This was not for me. I tend to like Sci Fi & Fantasy but this book was just way too slow to keep my attention.

I tried to fast forward to see if it would keep me interest but it didn't. So I had to DNF it.

Oneira is a retired sorceress who is a dream walker. She decides to dream walk into the library of rival sorcerer Stearanos and borrow a book which puts into motion a chain of forbidden correspondence between the two. This is a duel narration audio book and I found both of the narrators voices to be pleasant .While I enjoyed the writing I found the overall pacing of the story to be too slow for my liking. It just didn’t keep my attention. I ended up DNFing this one 40% of the way in.

Thank you to NetGalley and MacMillan Audio for the opportunity to review the ARC audio for Never the roses.

This is the story that I feel never gets told. What happens to the most impactful people after the war is over? How do they deal with what they’ve done? I almost imagine this story as what would’ve happened at the end of the War of Lost Hearts trilogy if Max and Tisaanah had never met. This was just such an amazing story of two people recovering and finding their way to one another after suffering for so long, and of course, the banter was amazing. If this never has a sequel, I’ll be content with the ending. However, I would love to know what happens next. Step into this new world filled with unique magic and wonderful characters to find out why “never the roses”

Sadly this is a DNF for me. It’s a case of “it’s me, not you.” I need to learn that adult romantasy just isn’t my thing. I just did not care what was going to happen in this story, and I was not connected to these characters at all. The only thing that kept me listening for as long as I did was the narrators. They were both fantastic. Thank you for the opportunity to listen to the ALC, unfortunately it’s not the story for me.

As soon as Owlcrate announced, Never The Roses, was their adult fantasy pick for the month of July. I knew I had to immediately devour this. I mean come on even the standard edition is stunning. However, you should never judge a book by its cover. Because sadly, the synopsis that captivated me wasn’t executed out in the story.

As a small disclaimer I listened to Never The Roses as a ALC. And I wanted to give a big thumbs up to our narrators Chloe Campbell & Shane East. Even though sadly the story wasn’t my favorite. The two of them did a great job of bringing the characters to life. They honestly were the biggest reason I kept listening and didn’t DNF. The banter between them throughout the entire story was definitely my favorite moment of this journey.

Besides that the rest is just a downhill slope. The pacing was ungodly slow. I kept waiting for anything to happen but literally happens the entire book. So if you’re looking for drama, magic, action then this is not the book. The characters are frustrating and un-relatable. The most personality they have is that they are all horny. And no I didn’t mistype that. God I wish I did. But sadly that’s what we had to work with.

Overall, even though the narrators were great it wasn’t enough to redeem the story for me. So sadly I can’t recommend this one. Which breaks my heart because I had such high hopes for this. Lastly Thank you NetGalley, Macmillan Audio and Jennifer K. Lambert for the ALC of Never the Rose.

This one was a slow burn for me - emphasis on slow. For most of the book, I had a hard time getting into it and I honestly wasn’t sure I’d finish. But I’m really glad I stuck with it because once it finally clicked, I couldn’t put it down.

Never the Roses is a unique blend of romance and fantasy and it stands out for doing things a little differently. It captured the enemies to lovers dynamic in a way that felt fresh, with a later in life romance that added depth and realism. The characters had layers, the magic felt grounded, and the emotional payoff snuck up on me in the best way. And the ending? Not your typical neat bow - something I actually appreciated.

Overall it took patience but I’d absolutely read the second book. This story definitely grew on me.

Thank you NetGalley and MacMillan Audio for an audiobook ARC of Never The Roses.

As a whole, I enjoyed this story. The writing was beautiful and the premise was interesting. I loved the magical creatures and the creative world building. I think my two biggest issues were the third person narration and the pace being painfully slow. I didn’t really become truly invested into the story until I was about 2/3s of the way in. All in all I enjoyed it and might reread the physical copy this fall.

I would like to thank the publisher for sending me an audio-arc in exchange for an honest review through NetGalley.

Oneira has officially retired, having bought out her debt to the queen, and she is tired. Fighting war after war in the name of the people who have owned her, she is ready to just call it quits. And so she creates a home for herself and prepares to just fade away. But as mythical animals start showing up at her door, and she finds herself not so alone anymore, she realizes she is bored. And so she takes a trip through the dreams of people until she comes across her rival, entering his dream and exiting into his home. There she decides to raid his legendary library, stealing a book and making her escape. Stearanos wakes up and realizes somebody has been in his house and has touched one of his books. Angry that he finds another book in its place, he writes a letter to the thief and thus begins a correspondence between Oneira and her rival. But Stearanos is bound to a rival King who wants to wage war now that Oneira is no longer fighting for the queen. As the two of them continue with their correspondence and they grow closer to one another, it becomes clear that they will be on opposite sides of a coming war. Will they stay away from each other? Or will they allow themselves just a few moment of happiness.

This book crushed me and I really hope there's going to be a book two because that ending left a lot to be desired -- it was bittersweet and did not fulfill me in the way that I needed it to. I absolutely loved this idea of the Dread Sorceress Oneira up in her beautiful home completely secluded and just dream walking and messing with this powerful sorcerer because she can. There are a lot of cozy vibes because not much happens outside of the romance between Oneira and Stearanos -- with the exception of talks of the upcoming war and Oneira trying to heal her broken self. However, this was very dark and full of pain and you feel that hopelessness that she feels. And when you find out how she was able to buy out her own contract it is absolutely devastating. The two of them are so broken and so perfect for one another in that they bring that spark back, and then for that ending... let's just say I sat here sobbing because it's just not fair.

I wanted enemies to lovers but got insta-love instead. Tristan annoyed the hell out of me from the moment he was introduced. There was not nearly enough build up to her falling for Tristan OR for her falling for Stearanos. The love story didn’t make sense for either the sorcerer or the sorceress. The magic system is unique but definitely needs more fleshing out. I really liked the idea of the story but again, it needs work. It seemed like the author knew where they wanted the story to end up but is really struggling with how it got there. I feel like this needs way more than another round of edits. The plot needs completely rewritten.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the ALC.

I was drawn into this book by the cover and the enticing blurb about it and it did not disappoint. I listened to this one via audiobook (Thank you, Netgalley for the arc!) and couldn’t be more pleased with the narrators. They truly brought this magical story to life!

Oneira and Stearanos are lovely. Their rivalry and chemistry makes for a fun read but also leaves you wanting to have had more.

The magic in this world is a little different and interesting.

I have mixed feelings about this book. Like it was good, but just felt like something was missing.

I feel like I didn't really know where things were going for a large part of the book, but also didn't feel like it picked up until ⅔ through and then it was maybe just a but anticlimactic?

*Also this is not a HEA, which I wanted so badly, but also ends in a way that allows you to believe there could be one.

I was given the ALC by NetGalley, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

This audiobook had a cozy vibes but with a bit higher stakes than the typical cozy fantasy. I liked the pacing and world building, the characters were intriguing and a strong start to the series.

Oneira is the FMC, and a formidable sorcerer in her own right. However she has worked hard to be free of the contract that held her at the mercy of the Queen she served, and is finally retired. Slowly building up her own fortress of solitude and peace.

Stearanos is the MMC, and is the only sorcerer in the realm that is equally as powerful as Oneira and forced to serve a king he cannot escape from.

Through letters and Stearanos’ extensive library, they learn about each other and meet…their connection strong and swift.

Things progress quickly from there, trying to find ways to prevent their rulers from achieving their goals…ultimately leading to one making the ultimate sacrifice..

Jennifer K Lambert has truly woven a beautiful tale. Between the magical use of words and the narrators this story was brought to life, and kept me utterly captured.

3 stars

Issue with audiobook chapter 15 cuts off before finishing chapter.

This book was ridiculous. the plot was like a fart in the wind. I didn’t like any of the characters. the fmc felt childish even she’s supposed to be 300 yrs old. I did find myself drawn and compelled into finishing. but i didn’t have a good time.

Never the Roses
by Jennifer K. Lambert
Read as: Audiobook

I went into this book blind and was pleasantly surprised. It's a rather unique story and I really could not predict where it was going (that's a good thing). We finally get a magic system that hasn't been seen multiple times already - FMC is a oneiramancer (dream magic). The book isn't fast paced and at times it didn't seem like much was happening (because there wasn't) but if you're looking for a more cozy-ish read this may be right for you.

Oneria, our FMC, retires and goes into self-imposed seclusion. She gardens, she learns how to cook, reads, gains some animal companions, and then realizes she's bored. So she goes and 'sneaks' into her rival sorcerer's, Stearanos' (MMC), famed library to find something new to read. This starts a slow burn flirtation/friendship between the two. Neither trusted the other at first, but they eventually got over it and become friends and then more.

The pacing does pick up about 75% of the way through the book and to be honest the end seemed rather sudden. There wasn't much build up to resolving the "problem" they faced at the end and in this case, I wasn't a big fan of the way our FMC decided to resolve it. You could argue that it made sense as she had indicated that she was working towards that kind of ending since the beginning of the book, but it feels a bit like a cop-out. The epilogue was sweet, but I like a nice closed ending to my standalone books, which we didn't really get.

I'm not usually an audiobook person, so this was very different for me. That being said, I did enjoy it in this format. The narrators read in a way that was easy to focus and their inflections and pacing were great. As the book has a dual POV it was really nice that we had dual narrators as well.

Definitely will read this again, only next time with book in hand.

Thank you NetGalley and MacMillian for sending me this book (audiobook) for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

Never The Roses was an interesting, yet incredibly slow-paced story.
The story was entirely character driven with a very minimal focus on plot...or anything. The romance was slow-burn, but sweet. The mystical characters were there, but only in tiny tidbits. There was more internal dialogue than anything else.

There was potential for more plot with hints of betrayal, espionage, war, and forbidden love, but it never materialized.
It feels like the prequal for something more exciting to come. I do not know if this is meant to be a standalone or a series, but it could have some redemption if some action came in the next book. The end wasn't a complete wrap up, so it does seem possible that there is more to the story.

The narrators for the audio did a really good job for keeping me engaged even when it was a bit dull of a story.

This book took me by surprise. I normally go for more action packed books, and by comparison this book was much much slower, but somehow still incredibly engaging. The fact that the first 20% of the book was the FMC just describing her retirement and solitude should have bored me but I found myself engaged by the writing and lyrical descriptions. Then of course, once she decided to sneak into her nemesis’s library, I was hooked to the mischievous nature and banter that followed. I loved that this book had such a different vibe from my usual book and that the writing was so strong that I was kept enthralled. The audio was a perfect compliment to the characters as well, fitting the tone of their description and adding additional dynamics to their interactions.

Never the Roses had a good premise with the world building (loved how the dream powers were portrayed) and the different characters, but I feel like nothing much happened in the book. The characters's feelings towards each others seemed a bit forced as they barely knew each other and then were madly in love.

Also, SPOILERS, but the fact that Oneira did not even suspect Tristan one bit and led him into her home, with all of his weird entitled behavior (like he assumed he had a right to touch her whenever?!) really annoyed me. I cannot believe that an highly intelligent and competent sorceress would have tolerated such a behevior.

Thank you to NetGalley and MacMillan Audio for the ALC.

This was a cute read, it not something I would normally go for but I couldn’t pass up the ALC chance. The plot was good, it was definitely a slow book to get in to, and it I still might not be able to remember everything about it. But definitely a fantasy read!

This was honestly refreshing to read. At first, I was a little hesitant because there was so much internal dialogue at the beginning (20% of the beginning, yikes!) but that definitely helped to understand the fmc story and a bit about her magic and what she’s gone through.
After that the story was so interesting and I loved the mmc so much. He is the definition of a grumpy sunshine.
This made me want a back story of the war and the roles they both played. I think that would be wonderful as we learned of different magic users that kept being brought up.
I really thought this story was well written and the audiobook was done well with the perfect narrators. I look forward to adding this copy to my shelf.
Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan audio for the ALC.