Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an eARC. This is a spoiler free review.
The Everlasting Rose
Written by Dhonielle Clayton
Written by Dhonielle Clayton
Genre: Young Adult/Fantasy
Publisher: Freeform
Release Date: March 8, 2019
Pages: 344
Source: eARC from NetGalley and the Publisher
Source: eARC from NetGalley and the Publisher
Places to Get this Book: Amazon Barnes and Noble Book Depository
Recommended Age: 13 and up!
Summary:
In this sequel to the instant New York Times bestseller, Camellia, her sister Edel, and her guard and new love Remy must race against time to find Princess Charlotte. Sophia's Imperial forces will stop at nothing to keep the rebels from returning Charlotte to the castle and her rightful place as queen. With the help of an underground resistance movement called The Iron Ladies-a society that rejects beauty treatments entirely-and the backing of alternative newspaper The Spider's Web, Camellia uses her powers, her connections and her cunning to outwit her greatest nemesis, Sophia, and restore peace to Orleans.
(Summary from Goodreads)
Review:
As you might recall, I requested an eARC of the first book, The Belles, when it came out last year and I really enjoyed it. I was very excited when I got approved to read an ARC of the second book and I'm glad I enjoyed it.
In this sequel to the instant New York Times bestseller, Camellia, her sister Edel, and her guard and new love Remy must race against time to find Princess Charlotte. Sophia's Imperial forces will stop at nothing to keep the rebels from returning Charlotte to the castle and her rightful place as queen. With the help of an underground resistance movement called The Iron Ladies-a society that rejects beauty treatments entirely-and the backing of alternative newspaper The Spider's Web, Camellia uses her powers, her connections and her cunning to outwit her greatest nemesis, Sophia, and restore peace to Orleans.
(Summary from Goodreads)
Review:
COVER
The covers of this series are just gorgeous and I love how they have Camille on the cover who is a woman of color! I also love how it shows the element of beauty on the cover which is a huge part of this series.
The covers of this series are just gorgeous and I love how they have Camille on the cover who is a woman of color! I also love how it shows the element of beauty on the cover which is a huge part of this series.
WORLD-BUILDING
We got to see a lot more of Orleans (the world in The Belles series) in this book which I really enjoyed. In the first book, it set up the fictional world of Orleans where a small number of girls "aka Belles" are able to create beautiful/ugly looks according to the desire of the paying customer. In Orleans, everyone is born grey and color can only be given to them by the Belles. The Belles also are forbidden to associate with men beyond a professional capacity and they can't engage in consensual relationships. The world is a blend of 18th century France with futuristic like tech. I liked learning more about different places and how people who are not the Belles live their lives in Orleans.
Then there are the characters.
CAMELLIA
Camellia is our main character who was working at the palace in order to compete to become the favorite that will serve the Queen of Orleans, however everything goes terribly wrong. I love Camellia as a main character as she's passionate as well as determined. She's knows what she wants and what she needs to do and isn't afraid to make it happen. She also is very ambitious and headstrong but I really liked both of those characteristics about her. I also like how she makes her decisions based on her feelings which sometimes might seem like a flaw but I think that really makes her special.
EDEL
Edel is Camellia's sister and I really liked how much more we learned about her in this book. She had many similarities and differences to Camellia. For instance, she was very sweet and kind though she didn't want to take as many risks as Camellia, however she was still a very strong female character. I liked learning more about her powers as a Belle and how much she supported her sister.
We got to see a lot more of Orleans (the world in The Belles series) in this book which I really enjoyed. In the first book, it set up the fictional world of Orleans where a small number of girls "aka Belles" are able to create beautiful/ugly looks according to the desire of the paying customer. In Orleans, everyone is born grey and color can only be given to them by the Belles. The Belles also are forbidden to associate with men beyond a professional capacity and they can't engage in consensual relationships. The world is a blend of 18th century France with futuristic like tech. I liked learning more about different places and how people who are not the Belles live their lives in Orleans.
Then there are the characters.
CAMELLIA
Camellia is our main character who was working at the palace in order to compete to become the favorite that will serve the Queen of Orleans, however everything goes terribly wrong. I love Camellia as a main character as she's passionate as well as determined. She's knows what she wants and what she needs to do and isn't afraid to make it happen. She also is very ambitious and headstrong but I really liked both of those characteristics about her. I also like how she makes her decisions based on her feelings which sometimes might seem like a flaw but I think that really makes her special.
EDEL
Edel is Camellia's sister and I really liked how much more we learned about her in this book. She had many similarities and differences to Camellia. For instance, she was very sweet and kind though she didn't want to take as many risks as Camellia, however she was still a very strong female character. I liked learning more about her powers as a Belle and how much she supported her sister.
FRIENDSHIP/FAMILY
We explored Camellia's relationship with her sisters a lot more in this book and I really enjoyed that aspect because while we got some of that in the first book, we didn't get to see them outside of their Belle roles. Edel and Camellia are very sweet siblings and have a sweet sister relationship. (I don't want to say too much as I really don't want to spoil things that happen in the second book.)
We explored Camellia's relationship with her sisters a lot more in this book and I really enjoyed that aspect because while we got some of that in the first book, we didn't get to see them outside of their Belle roles. Edel and Camellia are very sweet siblings and have a sweet sister relationship. (I don't want to say too much as I really don't want to spoil things that happen in the second book.)
PLOT
The Everlasting Rose is the sequel to The Belles, which I reviewed previously and really enjoyed! The plot was a little slower in this book especially at the beginning as it took awhile for things to happen which made it a little slower to read and get into as well. We got introduced to more characters and things in this book such as the Iron Ladies who were so interesting. They are rebellion leaders who are against Belle culture and they help Camellia on her journey to get rid of Sophia. I also liked how we got to learn about Belle lore (which was super dark) through the eyes of other Belles and people who aren't part of the Belles. Overall, I liked the plot even though sometimes it lagged.
The Everlasting Rose is the sequel to The Belles, which I reviewed previously and really enjoyed! The plot was a little slower in this book especially at the beginning as it took awhile for things to happen which made it a little slower to read and get into as well. We got introduced to more characters and things in this book such as the Iron Ladies who were so interesting. They are rebellion leaders who are against Belle culture and they help Camellia on her journey to get rid of Sophia. I also liked how we got to learn about Belle lore (which was super dark) through the eyes of other Belles and people who aren't part of the Belles. Overall, I liked the plot even though sometimes it lagged.
ROMANCE
The romance was one of the things that I was a little iffy about. I think it was a little fast but not quite insta love which was good. I preferred the romance in the first book. I did, however, like how the romance still took a backseat to the plot and the world which was nice as it allowed me to enjoy the book without feeling like the romance was filling up the whole thing.
WRITING
Dhonielle Clayton's writing is so beautiful and immersive and really helps me feel as if I'm actually in the book and experiencing everything with the characters. The descriptions are also very in depth and lyrical and I love how she is able to differentiate between the good and beauty with the darker undertones.
The romance was one of the things that I was a little iffy about. I think it was a little fast but not quite insta love which was good. I preferred the romance in the first book. I did, however, like how the romance still took a backseat to the plot and the world which was nice as it allowed me to enjoy the book without feeling like the romance was filling up the whole thing.
WRITING
Dhonielle Clayton's writing is so beautiful and immersive and really helps me feel as if I'm actually in the book and experiencing everything with the characters. The descriptions are also very in depth and lyrical and I love how she is able to differentiate between the good and beauty with the darker undertones.
FINAL THOUGHTS
I think The Everlasting Rose was a good sequel as even though it was slow going, it picked up pace later and really immersed me back in the world. I liked learning a lot more about Orleans and Belle culture throughout the book. I really recommend this series!
Quotes from the Book:
“The world is vaster and more beautiful than she ever described. Each corner of it feels different and unique, part of a puzzle with disparate pieces that somehow fit together.”
I think The Everlasting Rose was a good sequel as even though it was slow going, it picked up pace later and really immersed me back in the world. I liked learning a lot more about Orleans and Belle culture throughout the book. I really recommend this series!
Quotes from the Book:
“The world is vaster and more beautiful than she ever described. Each corner of it feels different and unique, part of a puzzle with disparate pieces that somehow fit together.”
My Rating: 4 out of 5 Crowns
