Week 35 Review: Rose in Chains

From Goodreads:

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

Captured as her castle is overrun by the enemy, the world as Briony Rosewood knows it is changed forever. Evil has won, and her people face imminent servitude, imprisonment, or death.

​Stripped of her Magic and her freedom, Briony and the other survivors are quickly sold off to the highest bidders in an auction—and as Evermore's princess, she fetches the highest price. After a fierce bidding war, she's sold to none other than Toven Hearst, scion of a family known for their cruelty.

Yet despite the horrors of her new world and the role she must learn to play within it, all is not lost. Help—and hope—may yet arise in the most unlikely of places…

My Review:
I had such a great time reading this book! I went in basically blind, with just the synopsis, and only later found out it was a fanfic Hermione/Draco, I think that followed the premise of what if the Dark Lord won. Which is what happens in this book, but it's it's own world and I think the characters are new and different, so it's grown from it's fanfiction roots.

I really enjoyed the back and forth, of her present and her past, with the horrible situation that she and her people were in, and the events that lead to this, of the growing tension between the two countries, and between her and Toven.

Getting to know this world, and these characters, as they dealt with the war, and how the magic worked, I had to know more! That she was sold as if she was something instead of someone...so infuriating. That she ended up with someone who she did have a crush on, even as they clashed was complicated. 

That he's a semi-decent guy, and doesn't want to be dealing with her like this, I really enjoyed that. Their dynamics were so interesting to read, what with their past, and feelings. With the events of this book, I'm excited to see how things are going to go from there for them, and for the world! 

Loved reading this book and I can't wait for book 2! 

Author: Julie Soto
Series: The Evermore Trilogy #1
Read: August 25th, 2025
Source: NetGalley/Bought 
Reason Why: Sounded really good, and it's a Prequel & Sequel Challenge 2025 Book!
Publisher: Hachette Audio
Published: July 8th 2025

5/5 Hearts

5/5 Books

5/5 Stars