The Everlasting Rose by Dhonielle Clayton
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
**3.5 stars rounded up**
We can’t expect one person — or even two — to take the entire burden of resisting on their shoulders. We all have to stand up and say no.
Attention:
If you have not read The Belles this review may provide little tid-bits that could possibly spoil you for some of the events in that book. Proceed with caution.
The evil Princess Sophia is set to rise to the throne. She claims her sister, Charlotte, is dead. She has sinister plans in mind for all the Belles and the future of beauty work throughout Orleans.
Camellia, the once favorite, is on the run. Forced to flee the kingdom, she now finds herself on the outside looking in. Pairing up with some old favorites from Book 1, including handsome savior, Remy, Camellia begins to set her sights on taking Sophia down. The task is made more difficult however since Sophia wants her found, making her the ‘most wanted’ person in all the land.
Discovering an underground movement of rebels also planning to revolutionize the kingdom, Camellia finds a place were she feels she can be of good use. But can she trust them?
This book picks up directly where Book 1 leaves off. There is a lot more action in the plot as the world has previously been built for you, we spend less time on those details. However, although there is more action, I still felt the pacing was a bit off for me.
There were times when I was really enjoying it, speeding along, and other times where I had to force myself to pick it up. This being said, Clayton’s writing feels lovely to me. Each word she chooses seems to add beauty to the text but at the same time, things can become very one dimensional.
I liked the scifi bits that were sprinkled through here. The way the Belles are ‘grown’ and Sophia’s plans for them seemed something more out of a dystopian novel than a fantasy. I did enjoy those elements and personally, I wish there had been a bit more of them.
That may seem odd but I couldn’t help but wish those ideas would have been expanded upon more. The origin of the Belles. We heard the mythological tale of where they came from but how much of that was true?
I did also enjoy the commentary about standing up to old-fashioned systems that need to be changed. Systems that take advantage of, literally USE, some individuals for the sheer pleasure of the better off within the society. This was an interesting examination of the concept of beauty, as well, and the negative effects of a strong societal emphasis on beauty.
The Everlasting Rose leaves off in a very interesting place. Is there going to be another book? I would definitely be interested in continuing on in this world. The events that take place at the end of this leaves a lot to be explored. I am crossing my fingers for a Book 3!!!
Thank you so much to the publisher, Disney Book Group, for providing me with a copy to read and review. As always, I appreciate the opportunity and look forward to hearing other reader’s thoughts on this one!