whisperingchapters's Review of Roseblood

by A. G. Howard

This YA novel from New York Times bestselling author A. G. Howard marks the beginning of a new era for fans of the Splintered series. Rune Germain moves to a boarding school outside of Paris, only to discover that at this opera-house-turned-music-conservatory, phantoms really do exist. RoseBlood is a Phantom of the Opera–inspired retelling in which Rune’s biggest talent—her voice—is also her biggest curse. Fans of Daughter of Smoke and Bone and the Splintered series will find themselves captivated by this pulse-pounding spin on a classic tale. Rune, whose voice has been compared to that of an angel, has a mysterious affliction linked to her talent that leaves her sick and drained at the end of every performance. Convinced creative direction will cure her, her mother ships her off to a French boarding school for the arts, rumored to have a haunted past. Shortly after arriving at RoseBlood conservatory, Rune starts to believe something otherworldly is indeed afoot. The mystery boy she’s seen frequenting the graveyard beside the opera house doesn’t have any classes at the school, and vanishes almost as quickly as he appears. When Rune begins to develop a secret friendship with the elusive Thorn, who dresses in clothing straight out of the 19th century, she realizes that in his presence she feels cured. Thorn may be falling for Rune, but the phantom haunting RoseBlood wants her for a very specific and dangerous purpose. As their love continues to grow, Thorn is faced with an impossible choice: lead Rune to her destruction, or save her and face the wrath of the phantom, the only father he’s ever known. A. G. Howard brings the romantic storytelling that Splintered fans adore to France—and an entirely new world filled with lavish romance and intrigue—in a retelling inspired by a story that has captivated generations. Fans of both the Phantom of the Opera musical and novel, as well as YA retellings such as Marissa Meyer’s Cinder, will devour RoseBlood.

This review was originally posted on Latte Nights Reviews.

A Phantom of the Opera retelling? *grabby hands* I went crazy for this book's cover and then the synopsis! I was all for it, you guys! But then... I started reading the actual book and... I got bored. It was a snooze-fest for me. I tried and tried to keep reading, but it was impossible. Finally, I admitted defeat and marked it was DNF.

When I started the book, I was actually very intrigued by Rune and what she could do when she would hear some type of melody from anything. I wanted to learn more about her and her voice so I kept reading. When Thorn was introduced, I was all giddy, waiting for them to meet. Well, I couldn't even get to them meeting because everything moved at an extremely slow pace. I kept drowsing off, confusing the characters because I couldn't care for any of them. I simply wasn't liking anything. Nothing held my interest.

I got to the 29% and I was planning on reading some more to see if it could get better, but a blogger saved me from wasting my time! She shared her thoughts on her blog and I immediately read the review, which pretty much said what I thought: I wasn't going to get any better.

One thing that bothered me was that until the 29% mark, there was barely any dialogue! It was mostly just reading Rune's thoughts. I love when I get to spend time reading a character's thoughts but this took it to a whole other level. I haven't read any other book by this author, but I've heard this is her writing style, and it's definitely not for me. Maybe it could be a perfect read for you, though!

Overall, RoseBlood really disappointed me. I was looking forward to reading this retelling, but it kept boring me to no end.

I received an eARC from the publisher for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.This review was originally posted on Latte Nights Reviews.

Roseblood

by A. G. Howard

Reviewed by whisperingchapters on Jan 12, 2017

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