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A review by mspilesofpaper
The Rose Bargain by Sasha Peyton Smith
adventurous
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
What if the Wars of the Roses didn't end as we know it but with an immortal fae queen becoming Queen of England? The Rose Bargain plays exactly with that line of thought and is set several decades after the prologue. By now, everyone in the English ton bargains with their fae queen to increase their status. Of course, each bargain comes at a cost but Ivy Benton is prepared to pay everything to undo her sister's bargain with the queen. Yet, her debut arrives with a shocking twist: the Queen's son, Prince Bram, is set to marry, and Ivy sees her chance to save her family from ruin. Yet, every bargain comes at a cost and not all that glitters is not gold.
✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*
The Rose Bargain is an alternative history romantasy and the first book in a duology (which is something that I didn't know when I bought the book, so the book's end hit me over the head). It plays after the Wars of Roses in the 1800s, which puts it in the Regency Era/Victorian Era (well, or it would be in those eras if the connecting kings and queens had ruled instead of Queen Mor). It lends the book a Bridgerton vibe though. It's a relatively quick and fun read, in my opinion.
Ivy Benton is the female main character and the love interest of the princes. Yes, princes. There's Prince Bram and his human brother Prince Emmett. She's rather headstrong and cunning for a 17/18-year-old girl but often enough equally stupid as well, which makes her a rather realistic teenager. She believes that she is the only one who can save her family by making a good match (and is realistic enough to know that she won't be able to make one due to her family's downfall), so she goes into the competition for Prince Bram with open eyes. And while she loves her family - she equally struggles with them as well because of their internal relationships and her family's bargains with the Queen. This is especially true for her sister Lydia whom she loves and hates at the same time because Lydia is the cause of the family's downfall since she vanished after her unsuccessful season, and came back in tatters and ruins. While I don't have a sister, I have two brothers and I have to say: the relationship between Ivy and Lydia is rather realistic for a sibling relationship.
Prince Emmett is - more or less - the male main character and Ivy's love interest. He's portrayed as the typical princely rogue who flirts with every beautiful young woman and has flings with them. As the story continues, Ivy (and the reader) learns that there's more to him. Occasionally though, he's a bit underdeveloped as a character but I have the feeling that there's more going to happen with him in the second book. Prince Bram, his Fae brother, is the other male main character but he's rarely in scenes and when he appears, he's all charm and manners. A bit of a rake as well but by far more underdeveloped than his brother. Granted, there's a reason for it but I wished that the author would've put a bit more effort into him.
Then there are the other girls in the competition and most get their own POV for one chapter, which helps a lot in fleshing them out as characters. Of course, they are a bit flatter than Ivy but well enough developed for side characters. Especially in comparison to Ivy's family because I still don't know what to think about Lydia who is lethargic for the majority of the novel until there's one chapter from her POV.
Unfortunately, I found the romance utterly rushed and it lacked the deeper development that would have made Ivy's emotional journey more compelling. It is a sweet romance (very YA-esque aside from the detailed spice) but it could have benefitted from a few more scenes. The banter between Ivy and Emmett is very funny though. Occasionally, extremely modern as well.
My biggest issue with the book is the competition itself. It is central to the plot but technically, only three scenes are truly competition. Everything else is "and they went out to the ball of Duke/Lord/Count/..." or some sports event, which feeds into the Bridgerton vibes but doesn't add too much to the competition itself. The only saving grace of the competition is the growing bond between the six girls. With each chapter, they grow closer to each other and realise how fucked up the Queen's game is. In the end, I would consider them as friends. Overall, it falls into the "girls supporting girls" movement, which we always need.
✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*
TWs & CWs: sexual content, blood, mention of suicide, kidnapping, abuse by Fae (the Fae are the typical "beautiful but cruel" ones), general physical and emotional abuse/torture of young women (by the Queen), mentions of hunting
Trope(s): marriage competition, fae bargains, forbidden love
Genre: Alternative Historical Fiction, Romantic Fantasy
Diversity: 2x BIPOC female side characters (Japanese and Ghanian-English), bisexual & lesbian female side characters
Heat/Spice: 1.5 🌶️(it is fully detailed smut, which is utterly weird because it's supposed to be YA)
✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*
The Rose Bargain is an alternative history romantasy and the first book in a duology (which is something that I didn't know when I bought the book, so the book's end hit me over the head). It plays after the Wars of Roses in the 1800s, which puts it in the Regency Era/Victorian Era (well, or it would be in those eras if the connecting kings and queens had ruled instead of Queen Mor). It lends the book a Bridgerton vibe though. It's a relatively quick and fun read, in my opinion.
Ivy Benton is the female main character and the love interest of the princes. Yes, princes. There's Prince Bram and his human brother Prince Emmett. She's rather headstrong and cunning for a 17/18-year-old girl but often enough equally stupid as well, which makes her a rather realistic teenager. She believes that she is the only one who can save her family by making a good match (and is realistic enough to know that she won't be able to make one due to her family's downfall), so she goes into the competition for Prince Bram with open eyes. And while she loves her family - she equally struggles with them as well because of their internal relationships and her family's bargains with the Queen. This is especially true for her sister Lydia whom she loves and hates at the same time because Lydia is the cause of the family's downfall since she vanished after her unsuccessful season, and came back in tatters and ruins. While I don't have a sister, I have two brothers and I have to say: the relationship between Ivy and Lydia is rather realistic for a sibling relationship.
Prince Emmett is - more or less - the male main character and Ivy's love interest. He's portrayed as the typical princely rogue who flirts with every beautiful young woman and has flings with them. As the story continues, Ivy (and the reader) learns that there's more to him. Occasionally though, he's a bit underdeveloped as a character but I have the feeling that there's more going to happen with him in the second book. Prince Bram, his Fae brother, is the other male main character but he's rarely in scenes and when he appears, he's all charm and manners. A bit of a rake as well but by far more underdeveloped than his brother. Granted, there's a reason for it but I wished that the author would've put a bit more effort into him.
Then there are the other girls in the competition and most get their own POV for one chapter, which helps a lot in fleshing them out as characters. Of course, they are a bit flatter than Ivy but well enough developed for side characters. Especially in comparison to Ivy's family because I still don't know what to think about Lydia who is lethargic for the majority of the novel until there's one chapter from her POV.
Unfortunately, I found the romance utterly rushed and it lacked the deeper development that would have made Ivy's emotional journey more compelling. It is a sweet romance (very YA-esque aside from the detailed spice) but it could have benefitted from a few more scenes. The banter between Ivy and Emmett is very funny though. Occasionally, extremely modern as well.
My biggest issue with the book is the competition itself. It is central to the plot but technically, only three scenes are truly competition. Everything else is "and they went out to the ball of Duke/Lord/Count/..." or some sports event, which feeds into the Bridgerton vibes but doesn't add too much to the competition itself. The only saving grace of the competition is the growing bond between the six girls. With each chapter, they grow closer to each other and realise how fucked up the Queen's game is. In the end, I would consider them as friends. Overall, it falls into the "girls supporting girls" movement, which we always need.
✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*
TWs & CWs: sexual content, blood, mention of suicide, kidnapping, abuse by Fae (the Fae are the typical "beautiful but cruel" ones), general physical and emotional abuse/torture of young women (by the Queen), mentions of hunting
Trope(s): marriage competition, fae bargains, forbidden love
Genre: Alternative Historical Fiction, Romantic Fantasy
Diversity: 2x BIPOC female side characters (Japanese and Ghanian-English), bisexual & lesbian female side characters
Heat/Spice: 1.5 🌶️(it is fully detailed smut, which is utterly weird because it's supposed to be YA)