A Reader's Guide to Books and Reviews

Rose in Chains (The Evermore Trilogy #1) by Julie Soto

Genre:
Fantasy Romance, Romantasy, Enemies to Lovers, Dark Romance, Dark Academia, Magical Realism, Spicy Romance

Publication Date:
July 8, 2025

Page Numbers:
464

Read/Finished Date:
October 25th, 2025 -

Rating:
4.5/5

Premise:

The war is over, the dark forces have won, and the hero who was supposed to save them is dead.

Captured as her castle is overrun by the enemy, Briony Rosewood knows that the world as she knows it is changed forever. The dark forces of Bomard have won and her people, the Eversuns, face imminent servitude, imprisonment or death. Her brother, fated to be heir twice over and unite the warring kingdoms, is dead.

Stripped of her Mind Magic and her freedom, Briony and the other survivors are quickly auctioned off to the highest bidders in an auction – and as the heir-apparent’s sister, she fetches the highest price.

After a fierce bidding war, she’s sold to none other than Toven a high ranking Bomardsun – and her long-time and ill-fated infatuation. Scion of a family known for their cruel control of Heart Magic, the Hearsts are ruthlessly ambitious, and Briony knows they will use her however they can to further their own interests.

Yet despite the horrors of her new world and the role she must learn to play within it, all is not lost. Help – and hope – may yet arise in the most unlikely of places…

Review:

Okay, hear me out: I have never read The Auction (haven't been in the Harry Potter universe for a loooong time) and went into this story blind. I wanted my expectations to be high, and it delivered what I was hoping for.

Briony's (Hermione's) world is shattered when her castle is captured and her twin is killed. Sold to the highest bidder, she is taken to Hearst Manor, where she will become Toven's (Draco's) heartspring, but all hope is not lost; it may just be on the horizon.

I literally devoured this book in a scant few hours. I had time on my hands, and this book had been plaguing me to read it. I was going blindly into this story. It had been based on a Harry Potter fanfiction named The Auction. I will be honest: I had not read it, as I had stopped being part of the HP universe years ago, but I loved Dramione and wanted to try it. From what I had gathered, the premise was the same as the fanfic itself, but it was changed and freshened for the mainstream public.

I LOVED the magical system. I don't want to give too much away about it, especially to those who have not yet read the book, but you will find the system interesting and want to learn more about it. But there is also a prophecy that may sound a bit familiar to you.

The only thing I had against the novel was that some parts seemed to slow down, and I nearly considered dropping the novel, but I wanted to press on...wanted to know what happened toward the end.

And what the hell!? THAT ENDING SHOULD BE CRIMINAL! Now I am going to have to wait til next year (?) before the second book comes out.