Tuesday, January 9, 2018

Wednesday #Review - Wolves and Roses by Christina Bauer #YALit #Fantasy

Series: Fairy Tales of the Magicorum # 1
Format: E-Book, 292 pages
Release Date: October 31, 2017
Publisher: Monster House Books
Source: Edelweiss
Genre: Young Adult / Fantasy / Dark Fantasy

Seventeen-year-old Bryar Rose has a problem. She’s descended from one of the three magical races—shifters, fairies, or witches. That makes her one of the Magicorum, and Magicorum always follow a fairy tale life template. In Bryar’s case, that template should be Sleeping Beauty.

“Should” being the key word. 

Trouble is, Bryar is nowhere near the Sleeping Beauty life template. Not even close. She doesn’t like birds or woodland creatures. She can’t sing. And she certainly can’t stand Prince Philpot, the so-called “His Highness of Hedge Funds” that her aunties want her to marry. 

Even worse, Bryar finds herself attracted to a hottie werewolf named Knox and is under attack by evil mummy-zombies. If Bryar can’t figure out who—or what—she really is, it might cost both her and Knox their lives… as well as jeopardize the very nature of magic itself.





Christina Bauer's Wolves and Roses is the first installment in the Fairy Tales of Malecorum series. Protagonist Bryar Rose wants to attend a regular high school with normal humans. But, she's anything but normal. Her world is filled with three main magical races; shifters, fairies, witches/warlocks. Raised by three fairy aunts, placed under a curse by Colonel Mallory the Magnificent, all she has to do is keep her head down until her 18th birthday while also ignoring the unwanted advances of Philpot to finally gain her freedom.

But that plan gets turned upside down when Bryar Rose meets Knox, the bad boy who’s literally from her dreams. Knox is a powerful werewolf, and his presence in her life changes everything, and not just because he makes her knees turn into Jell-O. 
It's because something inside of her also seems to want to be with Knox. If Bryar can’t figure out who—or what—she really is, it might cost both her and Knox their lives… as well as jeopardize the very nature of magic itself.

In this world, those like Bryar Rose have a scheduled life they are supposed to follow. In Bri's case, her's is that of Sleeping Beauty. She is even cursed to fall asleep if things get to intense in her life. Bri's best friend and sometimes partner in crime is Elle aka Cinderella and there is also a Scarlett, aka Red Riding Hood. Bri and Elle occasionally break in the LeCharme Building where Bri is collecting special papyri that are linked to a ancient book of magic which was said to have been lost several thousand years ago.

I dare say that this is a unique story in the whole living out your life as a fairy tale character. I've read so many books, that I can't remember an author who chose to take this sort of chance with famous fairy tales. This story is filled with snark, and humor, as well as very twisted villains whom the author calls Denarii. One could say that Bri is on her own path to happiness that just happens to get entangled with not only Knox, and Elle, but Alec LeCharme as well. 

There are several friendship angles that actually work. Bri and Elle have each others back, no matter what little secrets they might be holding back. I do hope we get more of a broader look into Elle's life and background soon. Same with Alex and Knox. Best friends since childhood, they are two peas in a pod. Alec and Knox are two of the three Wardens in charge of their respective magical race. 

For the record, the author doesn't just focus on Bryar Rose's story. There are chapters from Knox's narrative plus his inner wolf which were interesting to read. His wolf does not have much in the way of dialogue but I love his tenacity for knowing what he wants. As this is the first story in the series, I was expecting certain story lines not to be wrapped up all at once and I was correct in my assumption. The next installment is called Shifters and Glyph's which will release in the fall of 2018.  




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