I sat down to read the first chapter or two of Dragon Rose, by Christine Pope, and ended up being unable to put it down until I had reached the end. I’m one of those people who can’t get enough Beauty and the Beast retellings, and Pope’s draconic twist was a unique take on the tale. Despite being very familiar with the Beauty and the Beast structure, there were many times when I was left in doubt as to what would come next.

The story’s heroine is Rhianne, who has the practicality and kindness expected of an eldest daughter, but she has a dreamy side, as evidenced by her artistic nature. These traits come together to bring her to Black’s Keep, as the latest Bride to the cursed dragon lord who lives there. Though initially sure that she’s destined to be eaten, her new husband, Theran Blackmoor, proves to be similarly kind, witty, and thoughtful.

But in this tale, a nice husband and true love aren’t enough to break a centuries old curse, and Rhianne may be running out of time to find the real key to their freedom.

I cannot explain to you exactly how much I loved this story. The characters were sympathetic and interesting, the descriptions were lush, without being overdone and the world and culture were compelling enough that I’m looking forward to reading the other books in the Tales of Latter Kingdoms series (though it should be noted that these are standalone works).

Fans of fairy tale fantasy, such as Robin McKinley’s novels, are going to love this one.

Note: I received a free copy of this book through the LibraryThing Member Giveaway program. This has no bearing on the content of my review. ( )

Similar concept to [b:Uprooted|25068467|Uprooted|Naomi Novik|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1444646784s/25068467.jpg|41876730]. A retelling of Beauty and the Beast. I would've rated the first 80% of the book 4 stars but I felt the ending spoiled what was otherwise a good story. For me, it was just too easy - the curse was broken without fanfare and I felt that ruined the story a bit. Still I doubt that would be a concern for most people, especially if you are just looking for a bit of romance and are focused less on the fantasy aspects. But I felt it necessary to deduct a star - probably only really half a star but since no half-stars I have to stick to a 3 star rating rather than 3.5. ( )

DNF.

A fun fantasy novel that’s set some where in the Renaissance era( I think?). I binge read this book as well because it was so enticing that I couldn’t put it down. Rhianne, the main protagonist, is a smart young romance with much bravado. She enjoys the art of painting which is forbidden, since are men in her society accustomed to trades such as that while women tend to the home. When she goes away to the Dragon Lord’s castle she has no idea to expect and while she is at first enamored with unlimited time to paint, she soon becomes depressed by her new solitary life.

I really liked this novel and I enjoyed the relationship between her and the Dragon Lord. The whole novel is basically a retelling of the beloved tale, Beauty and the Beast. Overall it was moderately paced and the romance is sweet and fairytale-like. I’ve never read any book in this series before, but it reads like a standalone. I’d be interested in reading other novels in the series. ( )

Rhianne Menyon is just months away from her 20th birthday and as the eldest sister, she is due to marry. Rhianne however is far more interested in painting in her fathers pottery shop despite the fact that isn't suitable work for a woman than tying herself to a man.

Marriage as it turns out is the least of Rhianne's worries. One night she dreams that the dragon who rules the castle high in the mountains has put out a banner signalling that it is now the duty of the town to provide him with a wife. Given that there will be 100 young women in the lottery, Rhianne believes that the odds of not being selected are in her favor. When Rhianne's engaged best friend is selected in the lottery, given her lack of prospects, Rhianne decides to take her friends place. This could very well be a death sentence but the 1000 gold coins that will be paid to her family will keep them in comfort, even if it does land her in a cold grave.

I'm all for fairy tale re-tellings because the good ones are creative and add something new to a story that a reader is overly familiar with. As you may have guessed, Dragon Rose is a version of Beauty and the Beast. Unfortunately however, Pope adds very little to the story to distinguish it from the original . There isn't a tea cup named chip or excessive singing but it's just as saccharine as the Disney version. The changes are so insignificant, it's enough to make me wonder why Pope bothered at all. Obviously, Rhianne is now dealing with a dragon instead of a beast; however, this change adds nothing to the story and feels random for the sake of random.

Theran (the dragon) acquired this condition because he told a young woman that he wasn't into her and she responded by taking her life. What Theran didn't know is that the young woman's father was a mage. The mage decided to punish Theran by turning him into a dragon until he could find a woman who could see through the horror of his being to who he truly is. What is the moral here? In the original, the Beast was turned into a beast because of his mean and horrible behaviour; it was a teaching lesson. What exactly did Theran learn from being turned into a dragon for five hundred years? Theran's mistake was simply not being into someone, that's it.

You would think that given the boring way in which Theran became a dragon that we would at least have an interesting reveal but you would be wrong. Pope drops it all in the last few pages of the novel, once he is cured by seeing Rhianne's painting of his pre-cursed self. This is particularly irksome after Theran went on a big rant about how they aren't living in a fairytale and that Rhianne cannot simply change him back with a kiss.

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