Week 19 Reviews: The Grimrose Girls, The Wicked Remain

From Goodreads:

Once Upon a Time meets Pretty little liars.

Four troubled friends, One murdered girl... and a dark fate that may leave them all doomed.

After the mysterious death of their best friend, Ella, Yuki, and Rory are the talk of their elite school, Grimrose Académie. The police ruled it a suicide, but the trio are determined to find out what really happened.

When Nani Eszes arrives as their newest roommate, it sets into motion a series of events they couldn't have imagined. As the girls retrace their friend's last steps, they uncover dark secrets about themselves and their destinies, discovering they're all cursed to repeat the brutal and gruesome endings to their stories until they can break the cycle.

This contemporary take on classic fairytales reimagines heroines as friends attending the same school. While investigating the murder of their best friend, they uncover connections to their ancient fairytale curses and attempt to forge their own fate before it's too late.

From Goodreads:

At Grimrose Académie, the fairy-tale deaths continue. And unless the curse is broken, one of the girls could be next.

Nani, Yuki, Ella, and Rory have discovered the truth about the curse that's left a trail of dead bodies at Grimrose. But the four still know nothing of its origins, or how to stop the cycle of doomed fates.

Each girl harbors her own secret. One is learning why she was brought to the school. One struggles to keep her new and deadly power under control. One knows exactly how much time she has left.

And one, trying to escape her dark destiny, will come even closer to fulfilling it.

Can the girls change their own stories and break the curse? Or must one of them die to end it forever?

My Review:
I loved reading these books! I loved these story about this group of friends, who are dealing with their circumstances, learning more about what was going on, and investigating this mystery, it was all so great to read! 

We did rotate around with all the girls' perspectives, which was both good and bad in helping to distinguish each one from the other, of which details went with which girl. That it turns out that they're modern day versions of these various fairy tales, that helped solidify each girl separately in my mind. 

These are the darker versions of the tales, given that their friend, the one who had Ariel's story, died, was a pretty good indication, as well as the atmosphere. I couldn't get enough, and I had to know what was going to happen next!

And with all that they learned in the first book, they still had to deal with the curse that the were under in the second. And I had a really great time watching them deal with it in their own ways, and how things eventually wrapped up! 

These were both really fantastic reads, and I can't wait to read more by Laura Pohl! 

Author: Laura Pohl
Series: Grimrose Girls #1, 2
Read: May 12th, 12th, 2023
Source: Library/NetGalley, NetGalley
Reason Why: Sounded really great, and they're 2023 Retelling Reading Challenge Books and Prequel & Sequel Challenge 2023 Books! And The Wicked Remain is a End of Series 2023 Book! 

Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Published: October 26th 2021, November 1st 2022

The Grimrose Girls:

5/5 Hearts

5/5 Books

5/5 Stars

The Wicked Remain: 

5/5 Hearts

5/5 Books

5/5 Stars