Listen, I love a morally gray twin-swapping assassination plot as much as the next unhinged fantasy reader, but Grave Flowers takes that chaos and waters it with blood-soaked petals until it blossoms into full-on courtly carnage. Princess Madalina has flower magic, a family who treats her like compost, and a twin sister stuck in a hell dimension. So naturally, she’s got to impersonate her sister, marry a prince, and then kill him. You know, for diplomacy. It’s giving Hamlet with a body count. It’s giving “what if the sad plant girl was also a knife girl.” If you’re into dark royalcore, arranged marriage plots where the arranged part is secondary to the political murder part, and enemies-to-lovers with an unhealthy dose of emotional ruin, welcome home.

Deeply atmospheric and the prose was lush and rich without being too flowery and over bearing, characters felt authentic and i was invested, overall an immserive read that I struggled to put down!

This e-Arc was unfortunately inaccessible to me. I cannot process books when reading on my phone or computer screens, and I am only able to read and process E-Books through my Kindle (even then, sometimes I struggle). I requested this arc as I think this book sounds very up my alley, and I didn't realize this version is not available for Kindle download. I will absolutely be reading this at some point, but I fear it won't be soon unless I am able to download to Kindle or obtain a physical ARC.

I really adored this one. the writing was sooo immersive and the character building was top notch. I just felt like I was best friends with all the characters are their little quirks! the banter was everythingggg

I will happily review this once it releases and I'm able to read this on Kindle. I'll come back and fix this upon release. Sorry but I am unable to read without hurting my eyes and I'm unable to change the font size via shelf app and it's hard on me to read. My apologies.

This book drew me into a beautifully dark world where the corners of grief and hope intertwine. The heroine’s journey through mourning and memory is handled with such tenderness it felt real and raw. Her bond with allies and the slow burn romance that unfolds from shared loss and loyalty hit me in the heart. The prose is hauntingly poetic every scene felt like a living painting edged with emotion. The pacing is deliberate but never drags, leading to moments that made my breath catch.

If you’re drawn to stories of love growing from grief, gothic atmosphere, and characters who find beauty in brokenness, this one will linger with you.

Wow. What a gorgeous, meaningful haunt of a story. Grave Flowers completely enchanted me—from its spellbinding magic to its aching, tender themes. The grave flowers themselves were such a unique and beautiful concept, and the entire book felt wrapped in velvet-dark atmosphere and emotional resonance.

Madelina is the kind of heroine who quietly wrecks you. A princess caught in the grip of others’ expectations, she’s been told her kindness is weakness—and has started to believe it. She doesn’t think she is lovable and it absolutely breaks my heart because she doesn’t know me, but I adore her in all her complexity.

And Aeric? Absolutely, devastatingly perfect. A tortured soul hardened by betrayal, knowing Madelina might a chess piece be used against him—but still wishing he could love her. Watching both of them flinch at the possibility of love, and hope anyway, was such a rewarding emotional journey.

The romance is swoony, slow-burn, and sweet (no spice—just longing and lovely kisses). The prose? Stunning. Autumn Krause is an extraordinary wordsmith—her writing is some of the most beautiful I’ve read all year. I will read anything she writes.

What elevated this story most was its theme: the courage to be a transitional character—the one who breaks the cycle of generational pain. The exploration of family trauma, tradition, resilience, and healing was powerful and timely. It spoke right to my heart.

There are mature topics, but nothing gratuitous or glamorized. It’s definitely best suited for older YA readers and fans of darker, fairytale-inspired fantasy. (Think Gilded by Marissa Meyer with a bit more emotional depth and haunting flair.)

I’m genuinely sad the book is over. It was marvelous. Poetic, haunting, healing. One I’ll be thinking about for a long time.

The dark royalcore, flower threaded horror novel of my heart. Once again Autumn Krause has written a moody, rich, delicious story with heart and humor, fashion and florals. I was not expecting how horror and frightening this would get but it was the best surprise and edition to the story. I loved the Boleyn family and Hamlet vibes, and it was so interesting to see how they played out. Some good twists, a nice bit of romance, and a satisfying ending.

Thank you so much for the opportunity to read the arc of this beautiful book! The world was lush and had a darkness that I thoroughly enjoyed. The characters were amazing and the plot sucked me in from the very beginning! The writing was beautiful and easy to follow. I had so much fun reading this book and found the story immersive and engaging. This story has the perfect balance of romance and suspense. A gothic atmosphere that feels like you are in the story!

Another absolutely stunning read from this author! It was so creative and I really loved all of the different, poisonous, flowers. A huge thank you to NetGalley for this ARC!

First off, thank you so much for the opportunity to read this hauntingly beautiful story early. Grave Flowers had me hooked from the first chapter and never let go. I mean it, I was flipping pages like my life depended on it. The atmosphere is dark and lush in all the best ways, with court politics, danger around every corner, and secrets that felt alive and deadly.

As someone who’s been obsessed with Tudor history (specifically Anne Boleyn) for as long as I can remember, and who has a deep love for Shakespeare’s tragedies, I ate this story up. You can feel the echoes of that history threaded through the plot... the political tension, the impossible choices, the weight of legacy and betrayal. There’s something deeply theatrical about it all, and I mean that in the best possible way.

Madalina’s inner conflict, the unraveling of her world piece by piece, it all hit. She’s a layered and emotional character, and I found myself rooting for her even when she didn’t know which way was up. The world itself was beautifully built. The botanical magic especially stood out, eerie, elegant, and terrifying. Everything felt dangerous and enchanted, like the story could turn on you at any second. (And boy did it!)

A few things to note. There were some noticeable spelling, repeated sentences and grammatical hiccups scattered throughout. They didn’t ruin the experience for me, but they were a bit distracting at times. But I'm sure final editing will take care of that quickly. And while I loved the story overall, the pacing near the end felt a little rushed. There were a few things that happened, especially involving the prince, that didn’t totally land for me. I had a couple of lingering questions that could use just a bit more clarity or expansion. Nothing major, just a few frayed threads that I would’ve loved to see tied up a little tighter.

That being said, the voice of this story is strong. The tone is sharp and haunting, the stakes are high, and the world Autumn Krause has built feels unique in a genre that’s often overcrowded. Readers who crave dark fantasy with political intrigue, historical nods, and heroines who refuse to back down, are going to fall hard for this one.

Thank you again for the chance to read it early. I’m really looking forward to seeing the final version out in the world, and on my shelf. 😉

What a wonderfully vivid and beautiful world Autumn Krause has created with Grave Flowers! You'll love this book if you love court politics, political intrigue, a hint of mystery, and a good douse of the hate to love trope. Madalina was such a great FMC - her internal turmoil at trying to not fight against the hardness and backstabbing nature of her home court and trying to shun her more soft nature was so well written, it felt like I truly understood her pain. There also is such a unique world here that was incredibly fleshed out, and the use of flowers throughout was so capitvating.

This was really more like a 4.5 star for me. The only place where this loses points in my book is the fact that while the world-building is immersive, there are some areas that felt like they weren't as parsed out as others, and when they came back as plot points in later sections of the book, it was difficult to remember their significance. There is a whole lot of lore here, and while that is super interesting to read, I think there could have been a bit more balance here. The paranormal mystery plot here was also very interesting, but I will say the ending to it did come a bit abruptly - but maybe that's the point.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for the eARC!

This book completely swept me off my feet. The way the author paints the world is haunting and beautiful all at once. I’m already counting the moments until I can dive back into this world. It’s a fierce, beautiful story about love, loyalty, and fighting for your own path, and it grabbed me by the heart in a way few books do.

This book felt like slipping into something deliciously wicked and unexpectedly tender at the same time. The writing is steeped in this rich, poetic darkness that pulls you in immediately, but what truly broke me in the best way was how much heart beats underneath it all. It’s intimate. It’s raw. It’s dangerous. It’s everything I want from enemies to lovers. It makes you feel the weight of legacy, the burden of duty, and the haunting ache of what it means to want something more than survival. It is angry and tender, brutal and soft, and I absolutely adored it. I want more books that feel like this. I want more stories that let their heroines be made of both thorns and longing. This one is going on my forever shelf. I loved it so much.

I absolutely adored this one! Autumn Krause’s writing is so immersive—I just wanted to crawl inside this magical, deadly world of enchanted blooms, family secrets, and eerie floral lore. The grave flowers experiment field notes sprinkled throughout were such a unique and chilling touch; I genuinely looked forward to every one of them as it was so fascinating to learn more about these deadly flowers and their powers and I generally just laughed out loud at what a ridiculous character the King was.

Autumn knows how to craft characters like no one else, each one bursting with personality, quirks, and motivations that feel so real. From the banter to the betrayals, the twisted family ties, and (sometimes literal) backstabbing had me fully hooked. I loved watching the dynamics shift and unravel as the story unfolded.

At the heart of it all is Madalina’s emotional tug-of-war between her heart and family expectations. Her journey of uncovering the hidden sides of her lineage and deciding who she wants to be was handled so thoughtfully and so beautifully. A mystical, banter-filled twist on Hamlet and Anne Boleyn, this one has just the right balance of suspense, danger, and swoon!