4.5
AT FIRST I struggled. The world-building felt excessive and didn't quite gel, with too many characters that didn't contribute to the story. The pacing was slow, and I found myself waiting for something to happen. Even at the 40% mark, the main characters hadn't really interacted much, which was frustrating.

However, things took a dramatic turn for the better in Part 2, by Part 3, I completely fell in love with the book. I'm so glad I stuck with it, because now I'm eagerly anticipating Book 2.

The romance is beautifully written, and I'm invested in the slow burn. One of the highlights was the spilled whiskey scene - 🎬 smoking hot! 🥵 I'm also craving more of Tovin’s POV; I want to know what he's thinking. The payoff was worth the slow start, and I'm so happy I pushed through it.

Such a good romantasy. Any Dramione fans need to read this!

"The war is over, the dark forces have won, and the hero who was supposed to save them is dead."

Briony is captured after Heart Magicians take over her kingdom. She is stripped of her Mind Magic and auctioned off to the highest bidder. She ends up being sold to Toven, who is part of a powerful Heart Magic family known for their dark magic.

I loved reading this book! It was truly one I could just dive into, completely sucked into the world. I cannot wait for the next book in the series!

The audiobook was fairly well done, but I wasn't a huge fan of the narrator's male voices. I am already thinking I will reread with my eyeballs, rather than on audio.

Tropes:
* Enemies to Lovers
* Dramione vibes
* Magic
* Animal Familiars
* War Captives
* Rival Kingdoms
* Political Intrigue

5 stars!

Oh my goodness! This ALC was AMAZING. I didn't realize that Julie Soto was a "fan-fic girlie" before a fellow bookish friend shared that little piece of gold with me. This story was FULL of epic fantasy moments. The narrator's accent (and character's voices) really brought this story to LIFE. I'm still giddy at having an early copy of this audio. TEN of five stars! "You're not a gentleman, Tovan" sent me to giggles. My mouth dropped to the floor multiple times in awe and shock. This gal cannot wait for MORE BOOKS! Can you get them to me now?! Screaming from the rooftops in magic love and OG HP feels! Thank you Julie Soto, NetGalley and Hatchette audio for my very first ALC on NetGalley. I’m HOOKED!!

This was such a good book. I loved the story and the writing so much. The characters were great and the story flowed smoothly. Will definitely read more books by this author in the future.

Rose in Chains is mysterious and moody - a “can’t-put-it-down” kind of read.

Briony Rosewood has been captured, her twin brother and heir to the throne has been killed, and her magic taken away. To make it worse, she’s been taken captive by. . . her childhood crush! Play End Game by Taylor Swift because “Ooh, you and me, we'd be a big conversation” is the soundtrack of this book. His family has ambitious goals that might happen at Briony’s expense, but she’s no damsel in distress.

Julie Soto captures so much magic in this story and I think the audiobook adds another level.

The production is phenomenal and I can’t give enough kudos to the voice actress for the great work she did to bring this story to life. The narration illustrates the story without getting in the way of the author’s work, and I would definitely listen to other audiobooks read by this narrator in the future.

Thank you to Hachette Audio, Forever Publishing, Julie Soto, and NetGalley for the audio ARC in exchange for a review!

hands down one of my favorite books of the year so far! i really enjoyed this world & the magic system as well as the political intrigue! the tension was tensioning & i found myself giggling at multiple points! this story was just so unique for a romantasy & i cannot wait for the next installments! 🍇

thank you to netgalley & hachette audio for the early listener copy!

Wow. Inject this into my veins.

I was 30% in before I realized this is based on a Dramione fanfic bahaha. Honestly, that made it even better for me. I did not read the original fanfic which is called The Auction, but Julie Soto really rocked my world with this book. I loved the world-building, character development, and structure. I'm a Larissa stan so I really really hope she's on Briony's side. I'm always here for a redemption story.

Ella Lynch's narration was perfection - I listened to this in two days. I couldn't stop.

The epilogue - Julie, you're killing me. When's the next book, lady?

1000 thanks to NetGalley and Hachette Audio for the advanced audiobook copy!

Rose in Chains had all the pieces I usually love: a haunted hero, a strong heroine, and a moody setting, but it just didn’t click for me. The characters lacked chemistry and the story moved so slowly I kept waiting for something to really grab me. I wanted tension, heat, or even just emotional pull, but it never came. I didn’t hate it, but I didn’t enjoy it either.

I devoured this book! I was so excited to get the email saying I was approved for this arc and it definitely didn’t disappoint!

The flashbacks were PERFECT. Like legit flowed so well with the story giving you the tiniest snippet of information as you move through the story.

The magic system was a little confusing but I think I was able to get a handle on it by the end! The mind walking is definitely interesting!

Definitely excited for the next book and really looking forward to seeing how the story progresses with all the revisions between this and the original!

Thank you to NetGalley and Hachette Audio, for providing me with an ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review. All thoughts are my own and are in no way influenced by early access to this title.

I read this in two days.

I usually have an audiobook I listen to in the car and on walks and I abandoned all my other books to read only this one.

Like Julie… what have you done to me?

And now I want to reread?? 😅 my tbr cannot handle that ma’am. (Update: did the audio to reread and now I am content)

Now this one is dark so please check the content warnings.

Here is what you need to know:
The war between Evermore and Bomard ends with the Bomardi the victors and the prophecied hero dead. The Bomardi capture, kill, and enslave the Eversuns, including the now late king’s sister, Briony Rosewood. The captured Eversuns are imprisoned, stripped of their magic, and then sold to the highest bidder. All hope seems to be lost in this new world, but Briony and others start to find that they are not alone.

This is the 1st book in a trilogy and I am still shocked that I was able to read this early!
THANK YOU FOREVER AND NETGALLEY!

Audiobook review: thank you Hachette Audio for this!!
Ella Lynch did a wonderful job portraying not only Briony, but also the other characters. You could just feel how slimy some of the awful characters were (cough REIGHVEN cough) with her portrayal. The book is third person/Briony’s pov.

Also side note: as someone who read the ebook early and then got to listen to the audio, some of the minor things that were changed during editing definitely added to the story and it was cool to see behind the scenes of the editing process in a very minor way as the reader.

Thoughts:
The flashbacks were perfectly timed and kept the flow of the story moving forward and made me not want to put this book down. I was always left wanting more of their history and how it fit into the situation they were in currently in the book.

All in all I would recommend this book to most people, but some of the content could be hard for others, so again, check the CW to see if this book sounds like one for you.

Don’t mind me while I make this book my new personality, I devoured it in 2 days! Thank you Netgalley and Hachette Audio for the ARC!

While I can see the common plot threads of Dramione fanfics in the story the author did a great job transforming it to stand on its own making it a great read for any romantasy fan! The narrator of the audiobook was fantastic. I need book two ASAP!!!

Thank you for ALC!

I had such A Good Time™!!

The narrator, Ella Lynch, did a fantastic job! She had a way for differentiating characters well and also putting the right emotion in the voices for the heavy themes of this story.

That being said, this story has some heavier themes. Always check trigger warnings before reading.

Let’s begin:
Briony lives in a world of heart and mind magic, where she attends a magical school to learn its power. Her and her twin brother are prince and princess, but the group of darker magical people from Bomard have nefarious plans. They want to capture Briony and many other women of the Eversun line to drain them of their magic. The way to obtain this “bond” is demeaning and awful. Briony’s “master”, Toven, whom she knew from school, have a complicated relationship together in this current hellscape. He is protecting her from this horror? But why?!

Ended on a cliffhanger and I can’t wait to see where it goes from here!! Juli Soto never misses!!

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for providing me with this arc! 🫶🏼

I'm a little conflicted about the rating but I'm going with a 3,5 stars for now.

I was not aware of how dark of a romantasy this was going to be until after I got the arc and heard the trigger warnings. It usually isn't my thing personally but since I received the arc I decided to ignore my own preferences and read on. If you read the description and are okay with the TWs you might eat this up! It just wasn't for me.

Other than that I thought the overall plot and ending was really really good! But there were so many characters that I just gave up trying to remember who was who. Also I wanted a little more background on the war (hoping maybe in a next book we'll find out more about that).

On the second read, i love this book even more!

J. Soto's writing just does something to you - you get so hooked, completely consumed by the story and addicted to it all.

The plot was heavy, so many characters, so many things happened, and yet you feel like you're just there with them, going through the same pain (or happiness). And it's a veeeeeery slow burn, so be prepared for all the deliciousness of it.

Brilliant writing, captivating plot, amazing characters (whom I can't stop thinking about), I cannot wait till the next book comes out!

The narration is also great, loved it so much!

I could not finish. It starts off fast paced and interesting, the worls builsing was solid even if the characters seemed a bit flat. Sadly, the story then stutters and slows to a glacial pace and I felt as though I would be wasting a summer day finishing it. Though the book lists a tons of trigger warnings and is supposed to be very adult, the characters read very Young Adult. Also the language can be jarringly anachronistic, such as using the word fuck as an intensifier like "where the fuck is blah blah" which excuse my French, took me right the fuck outta the story.

The war is over and darkness has claimed victory. Briony Rosewood’s kingdom has collapsed and the hero who was meant to save them is gone. Stripped of her magic and freedom, she’s sold in a slave auction and becomes the prize of Toven Hearst, heir to a ruthless dynasty. What starts as chains and coercion might just spark something neither expects.

Spillin’ the Book Tea:
This story swings between past and present, teasing out the relationship between Briony and Toven in a slow burn that doesn’t shy away from heavy, immersive world‑ending stakes. One moment will gut you, the next will soften your heart with unexpected tenderness. I was hooked by the layered characters, main and secondary, and the tight bond forming between these two damaged souls. Fun fact: it spun out of Soto’s Harry Potter fanfic The Auction, which imagines Hermione and Draco in this slow‑burn enemies‑to‑lovers dance. I’ve got that original fanfic, unread until now, but after experiencing Rose in Chains, I’ll be diving into it immediately. Special thanks to NetGalley and Hachette Audio | Forever for the audiobook.

The Vibes It Brings:
🌑 dark enemies‑to‑lovers
⏳ slow burn emotional tension
⚔️ dual timeline, world‑ending stakes
💔 heartbreak meets hope
🤝 complex characters all around
🔮 underground magic, political intrigue

Narration:
Ella Lynch nails Briony’s arc with a pitch‑perfect British accent that lends the heroine a spoiled‑princess but resilient edge. She shifts into the darker, tenser moments beautifully and even puts emotion into Toven’s male voice. Lynch's narration pushed me through the complex plot

TL;DR:
A dark, slow‑burn romantasy with high stakes, complex characters, and narratively rich tension. Ella Lynch’s narration elevates every scene... emotional, fiery, and impossible to forget. Rose in Chains delivers depth without apology. It’s a brutal yet tender journey into captured souls and unexpected love. The pacing demands patience but rewards it with intensity, character development, and chemistry. If you can handle some darkness this one hits hard.

I already adored the book, so naturally I jumped at the chance to listen to the audio as well, and my God-- what are words?

Ella Lynch was the PERFECT narrator for Briony Rosewood. The emotions in her voice, the way she made every single word sound like poetry. I'm actually, legitimately obsessed. How she made Toven's voice so unbearably hot!? The small distinction between the past and present? This was a breathtaking experience. I cannot recommend both the audio and the book enough. The last three-ish hours are especially magical.

Finding out it was a reworked Dramione fan fiction AFTER I requested it was rough because if I had known that going in I probably wouldn't have requested it in the first place.

That said I have a lot of feelings about this book and I've done my best to fairly judge it outside of the original IP and author.

I had low expectations for this book going in after finding out it was based on fan fiction but I decided I would still try to give it a chance. The overall vibe of the book was higher than 2 stars for me in the sense that I was engaged and there were parts of it I enjoyed. I liked certain elements of the story and the way the author took what was obviously based on a magical world someone else created and then transitioned them into her own magical system. However, I think that also meant the magical system was sort of weak. There wasn't much explanation of how things worked or why it was just a quick cover up for figuring out a way to make the system its own thing.

There were characters I liked, though looking back I don't know if it was on Julie Soto's merit as a writer or because these characters were based on characters I previously loved from the other series. My biggest problem with characters is one 1 dimensional the villains were. Their motivations, their desires, the way they treated each other and the women in the story. There didn't seem to be much nuance where anyone was concerned, even the Hearst family.

My biggest beef with this was the slavery element. I don't get the appeal of including that in a romantasy. Maybe dark romantasy novels aren't for me because there's nothing I found appealing about any of the romance elements of this book given the scenarios the characters were in.

2 / 5 stars because there was some enjoyment here for me but overall I had a hard time getting over a lot of the tropes and how unbelievable I found some of the story.

4 / 5 stars on the audiobook narration, however. There were some aspects of it that were grating, one character's voice in particular, but I think that was the point.

Thanks to Hachette Audio and NetGalley for this ARC.

Well first off I didn’t know this book inspired by The Auction by Elci North(or that is what I’m seeing from other reviews), so now I want to read that book.

Anyways, this book was fine. I think that if you love romantasy you will LOVE this because it is mainly romance with aspects of fantasy throughout the book. If you already struggle with romantasy then I wouldn’t recommend this one.

I was sold on this book originally because of the slow burn and I do agree to agree that it is a slow burn, but I wish we had more little moments throughout the book. It didn’t really feel believable and I had a hard time with Briony because she seemed to have these badass moments, but it felt like she couldn’t decide if she wanted to stand on business or not.

Toven is fine as a MMC. He is broody, grumpy, and there is alot on his shoulders that he refuses to share.

This book does have a lot of women being raped and while the author doesn’t go into crazy detail, make sure you take care of yourself while reading.

Idk. This book was fine. The narrator did a great job, but I never felt emotionally invested.

Thank you NetGalley and Hachette Audio for the ALC.

This wasn't anything that I thought it would be so I was a bit shocked when I started it, but I quickly became very invested and thought about it even when I wasn't reading it. I didn't know this story was about what it was, so I went in completely blind and I found out it was based on something else when I was about 75% in and it started making more sense.
I loved Briony. I loved the world building and the magic. I loved how strong she was and her friends and the other women that were around her. Was I rooting for Toven from page one? Absolutely I was. Did this book have me completely invested? Yes. Was I left with more questions than answers after this book ended? Also, yes. I will be reading the next book for sure. I wanted to sit with this review for a few days because I wasn't sure how to feel when I was done. Now that I have sat with it, I feel like I am still thinking about it and that has to say something.
The audio was fantastically done. 4.5 stars.
Thanks to Hachette, Netgalley and Julie Soto for an ALC.