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Garden of the Cursed #1
Garden of the Cursed
In this thrilling YA fantasy/mystery duology from award-winning author Katy Pool, cursebreaker Marlow Briggs reluctantly pretends to be in love with one of the most powerful nobles in Caraza City to gain entry into an illustrious—and deadly—society that holds clues to her mother's disappearance. Perfect for fans of Veronica Mars, These Violent Delights, and Chain of Iron.
Since fleeing the gilded halls of Evergarden for the muck-filled canals of the Marshes, Marlow Briggs has made a name for herself as the best godsdamn cursebreaker in Caraza City. But no matter how many cases she solves, she is still haunted by the mystery of her mother’s disappearance.
When Adrius Falcrest, Marlow's old friend and scion of one of Caraza's most affluent spell-making families, asks her to help break a life-threatening curse, Marlow wants nothing to do with the boy who spurned her a year ago. But a new lead in her mother’s case makes Marlow realize that the only way to get the answers she desperately seeks is to help Adrius and return to Evergarden society—even if it means suffering through a fake love affair with him to avoid drawing suspicion from the conniving Five Families.
As the investigation draws Marlow into a web of deadly secrets and powerful enemies, a shocking truth emerges: Adrius’s curse and her mother’s disappearance may just be clues to an even larger mystery, one that could unravel the very foundations of Caraza and magic itself.
Since fleeing the gilded halls of Evergarden for the muck-filled canals of the Marshes, Marlow Briggs has made a name for herself as the best godsdamn cursebreaker in Caraza City. But no matter how many cases she solves, she is still haunted by the mystery of her mother’s disappearance.
When Adrius Falcrest, Marlow's old friend and scion of one of Caraza's most affluent spell-making families, asks her to help break a life-threatening curse, Marlow wants nothing to do with the boy who spurned her a year ago. But a new lead in her mother’s case makes Marlow realize that the only way to get the answers she desperately seeks is to help Adrius and return to Evergarden society—even if it means suffering through a fake love affair with him to avoid drawing suspicion from the conniving Five Families.
As the investigation draws Marlow into a web of deadly secrets and powerful enemies, a shocking truth emerges: Adrius’s curse and her mother’s disappearance may just be clues to an even larger mystery, one that could unravel the very foundations of Caraza and magic itself.
347 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 20, 2023
285 people are currently reading
39800 people want to read
About the author
Katy Rose Pool
7 books1,183 followersKaty is a writer living in Berkeley, California. She grew up in Los Angeles, where her screenwriter father taught her about three act structure, characterization, and inciting incidents all before she could tie her shoes. Katy studied history and English at UC Berkeley. She enjoys breakfast sandwiches, fancy cocktails, rooting for the Golden State Warriors, and books that set her on fire.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 924 reviews
January 26, 2023
Ugh, this was so good. I almost want to reread it immediately.
Read
July 27, 2024DNF at 38%. I was telling my partner how I wasn’t liking this book so much and I kept putting it down and he said : « Why are you forcing yourself to read it? » and that was the only push I needed lol
By all means this isn’t a bad book but I feel like I’ve read something extremely similar and I’m bored and underwhelmed
—-•
Pre read : I’ve been wanting to read this one for a little while. That cover is so pretty 🥹
By all means this isn’t a bad book but I feel like I’ve read something extremely similar and I’m bored and underwhelmed
—-•
Pre read : I’ve been wanting to read this one for a little while. That cover is so pretty 🥹
Want to read
September 9, 2023EXCUSE ME??? THAT COVER?!😍😍I WANT.
October 3, 2023
3.25 Stars
This was really entertaining for the most part. Somewhere in the middle it dragged a little and I felt the plot got a bit lost which had my mind drifting and losing interest but it picks back up. Overall, I liked it - total cliffhanger at the end.
ִ ࣪𖤐Breaking Curses
ִ ࣪𖤐Casting Curses
ִ ࣪𖤐Fake Dating
ִ ࣪𖤐Magic
🐈⬛A Cat Named Toad
ִ ࣪𖤐High Society
ִ ࣪𖤐Friends to Enemies to Lovers
*ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚*ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚*ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚*ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚*ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚*ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚
"In this thrilling YA fantasy/mystery duology from award-winning author Katy Pool, cursebreaker Marlow Briggs reluctantly pretends to be in love with one of the most powerful nobles in Caraza City to gain entry into an illustrious—and deadly—society that holds clues to her mother's disappearance. Perfect for fans of Veronica Mars, These Violent Delights, and Chain of Iron."
While I haven't read any of the books mentioned, it started off really good -
This was really entertaining for the most part. Somewhere in the middle it dragged a little and I felt the plot got a bit lost which had my mind drifting and losing interest but it picks back up. Overall, I liked it - total cliffhanger at the end.
ִ ࣪𖤐Breaking Curses
ִ ࣪𖤐Casting Curses
ִ ࣪𖤐Fake Dating
ִ ࣪𖤐Magic
🐈⬛A Cat Named Toad
ִ ࣪𖤐High Society
ִ ࣪𖤐Friends to Enemies to Lovers
*ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚*ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚*ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚*ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚*ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚*ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚
"In this thrilling YA fantasy/mystery duology from award-winning author Katy Pool, cursebreaker Marlow Briggs reluctantly pretends to be in love with one of the most powerful nobles in Caraza City to gain entry into an illustrious—and deadly—society that holds clues to her mother's disappearance. Perfect for fans of Veronica Mars, These Violent Delights, and Chain of Iron."
While I haven't read any of the books mentioned, it started off really good -
Read
July 8, 2023DNF
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾
August 4, 2023
Garden of the Cursed by Katy Rose Pearl
Book #1 in the series by the same name. YA fantasy with romance.
Marlow Briggs desperately wants to find her mother who disappeared a year ago. When Adrius Falcresrt bargains to hire her to break a curse, she agrees knowing she will be able to search for clues to find her mother in the Evergarden society. Though posing as his once-again lover after he spurned her is not how she expected to be walking among the elite again. Someone else knows why she’s there and about the curse on Adrius and consequences of talking to the wrong person could be deadly for them both.
Intriguing magic setup where the magic and curses are stored or held on cards. The relationship between Marlow and Adrius is convoluted as it’s revealed and covered with lies. The deadly and dangerous underworld is mixed in with high society back rooms where secrets are traded.
Marlow refers to herself as a teenager in at least one scene, yet the situations and text reads older. Without those statements or it stated everywhere as “YA”, I would have thought mid 20’s.
A slow start that ramps up to compelling and ends with questions yet to be answered. A duology that does not end here.
4.5
I received a copy of this book from the publisher. Opinions are my own.
Book #1 in the series by the same name. YA fantasy with romance.
Marlow Briggs desperately wants to find her mother who disappeared a year ago. When Adrius Falcresrt bargains to hire her to break a curse, she agrees knowing she will be able to search for clues to find her mother in the Evergarden society. Though posing as his once-again lover after he spurned her is not how she expected to be walking among the elite again. Someone else knows why she’s there and about the curse on Adrius and consequences of talking to the wrong person could be deadly for them both.
Intriguing magic setup where the magic and curses are stored or held on cards. The relationship between Marlow and Adrius is convoluted as it’s revealed and covered with lies. The deadly and dangerous underworld is mixed in with high society back rooms where secrets are traded.
Marlow refers to herself as a teenager in at least one scene, yet the situations and text reads older. Without those statements or it stated everywhere as “YA”, I would have thought mid 20’s.
A slow start that ramps up to compelling and ends with questions yet to be answered. A duology that does not end here.
4.5
I received a copy of this book from the publisher. Opinions are my own.
April 5, 2023
Tatiana at Macmillan you are my HERO for sending me this eARC, thank you!!! All opinions are my own.
This absolutely SKYROCKETED to my favorite books of the year list. WHAT A FRICKIN’ RIDE! I hoped this book would be good after reading the synopsis but holy CRAP it somehow exceeded my expectations.
This has everything I could ever want in a book plus some things I didn’t even know I wanted. Katy Rose Pool put SOMETHING in this bc I’m losing my entire mind.
Just SOME of the highlights:
-breaking curses
-Marlow Briggs the woman that u are
-high society families
-ex friends to FAKE DATING like come ON
-a cat!! named Toad!!!!
-amazing side friendships
-Adrius Falcrest u beautiful dummy
-magic and hexes and secrets
-one of the most agonizing love confessions I’ve ever read in my LIFE
Truly not gonna shut up about this one. It is SO MUCH FUN. I will be preordering immediately and literally counting down the seconds until the sequel is in my hands, in my brain, in my bloodstream
This absolutely SKYROCKETED to my favorite books of the year list. WHAT A FRICKIN’ RIDE! I hoped this book would be good after reading the synopsis but holy CRAP it somehow exceeded my expectations.
This has everything I could ever want in a book plus some things I didn’t even know I wanted. Katy Rose Pool put SOMETHING in this bc I’m losing my entire mind.
Just SOME of the highlights:
-breaking curses
-Marlow Briggs the woman that u are
-high society families
-ex friends to FAKE DATING like come ON
-a cat!! named Toad!!!!
-amazing side friendships
-Adrius Falcrest u beautiful dummy
-magic and hexes and secrets
-one of the most agonizing love confessions I’ve ever read in my LIFE
Truly not gonna shut up about this one. It is SO MUCH FUN. I will be preordering immediately and literally counting down the seconds until the sequel is in my hands, in my brain, in my bloodstream
August 7, 2023
Having just skimmed past oodles of five stars (and a bunch of fours) on GR I clearly read a different book than everyone else. And for that I'm glad because I was really bummed about this and I'm glad it seems to be an isolated incident.
Full disclosure, I only requested this because of the author as I had really enjoyed Pool's debut duology and expected something equally creative and compelling. The fact that I also saw reference to a Veronica Mars comp mashed up with fantasy made it even more appealing. Yet I really struggled with the worldbuilding and being able to picture this world, not to mention the weird Magic the Gathering-esque magic style, which was strike one(probably multiple strikes, really, but roll with it). Strike two was the fact that things felt very predictable and, unfortunately, almost too Veronica Mars-y for me. And third.. I just didn't care for the characters or the mystery or.. anything. All the flashbacks, all this imagined angst to attempt to invest us in the present-day unknowns and romance, nothing was drawing me in, and everything felt way too surface-level and I just kept bouncing right off it all.
Also, final nitpick, why is the cover art of a redhead when Marlow is supposed to be blonde?
Anyway, it was at least a quick read but sadly that's about all that I can recommend it for at this point. Having said that, I will read book two because the investment to blitz one more book and get to the end is fairly low. But I'm also maybe holding out a little hope that Pool will dazzle me and I'll feel some of that previously-felt magic again. Here's hoping!
** I received an ARC from the publisher (thank you!) in exchange for an honest review. **
---
This review can also be found at A Take From Two Cities.
Full disclosure, I only requested this because of the author as I had really enjoyed Pool's debut duology and expected something equally creative and compelling. The fact that I also saw reference to a Veronica Mars comp mashed up with fantasy made it even more appealing. Yet I really struggled with the worldbuilding and being able to picture this world, not to mention the weird Magic the Gathering-esque magic style, which was strike one(probably multiple strikes, really, but roll with it). Strike two was the fact that things felt very predictable and, unfortunately, almost too Veronica Mars-y for me. And third.. I just didn't care for the characters or the mystery or.. anything. All the flashbacks, all this imagined angst to attempt to invest us in the present-day unknowns and romance, nothing was drawing me in, and everything felt way too surface-level and I just kept bouncing right off it all.
Also, final nitpick, why is the cover art of a redhead when Marlow is supposed to be blonde?
Anyway, it was at least a quick read but sadly that's about all that I can recommend it for at this point. Having said that, I will read book two because the investment to blitz one more book and get to the end is fairly low. But I'm also maybe holding out a little hope that Pool will dazzle me and I'll feel some of that previously-felt magic again. Here's hoping!
** I received an ARC from the publisher (thank you!) in exchange for an honest review. **
---
This review can also be found at A Take From Two Cities.
June 10, 2023
This book was amazing. I’ll admit I wasn’t sure after the first chapter, but the more I got into the story the more I needed to read. I need part two immediately. Marlow Briggs is a cursebreaker living in the poor part of the city. She and her mother used to live in the rich part and she even went to school with the elite who will be the next generation power. When she is hired by Adrius, one of those elite, to break a curse that was placed on him she has to pretend to be in a relationship with him to do it. While she is back in the city she uses the opportunity to search for her mother who disappeared a year ago without a trace. But there are powers Marlow couldn’t have imagined and the loner she and Adrius pretend to be together the more danger she seems to stumble into. But they don’t have a lot of time to figure out who cursed Adrius and how to reverse the curse.
July 6, 2023
5/5 stars, this was absolutely incredible
Thank you to Macmillan Children's Publishing Group, Henry Holt & Company, and Katy Rose Pool for the arc through netgalley in exchange for an honest review!
When the author Katy Rose Pool reached out to me via my bookstagram account asking if I wanted an advanced reader's copy of this book because of my support of her other books, I immediately said yes. Her Age of Darkness series is so well done and has such an amazing cast that I was so excited to see what her next book had in store, even if she mentioned that it was built for a different sort of audience. It turns out, this story was built exactly for my tastes as well.
This book opens in a speakeasy with magic cards, and I knew immediately that I was going to adore this book. One of my favorite time periods to read about is the roaring 20s and this book gave off those vibes, especially with The Marshes and all the counterfeit spells and more. Not to mention I've always loved the idea of spell cards, or magic cards that can do different things since my friend played a character that relied on that in one of our dnd campaigns. It was incredibly cool and so when I learned that this book had both curses and magic cards, I was even more excited.
One amazing thing I found in this story was the plot, it was always quickly moving and there were always new twists that kept me interested. Katy did such a good job balancing the underworld events with the high society events, there was just enough of both where I never got bored with too much of one or the other. There were so many wheels behind the scenes turning as well for the mysteries in this book and undoubtedly there's still so much more to uncover in the next book. I think the mystery aspect of this book was done very well, even if there were a few things I managed to guess, it was easy to fall into the story and get carried away.
The cast of characters was perfectly built for this type of story too, with Marlow an excellent main character even if she had her flaws. It just allowed her to stand out to people around her and made her very good at her job. She's cocky sometimes, but a good actress and excellent at finding out what really happens behind closed doors. Adrius, I was skeptical about him at first, in the beginning pages I didn't really like him but oh boy did I end up loving him. Now? He's my favorite character and I just need more of him, he's for sure book boyfriend material. But even the side characters like the upper society's groups, the gangs in the Marshes, and Marlow's best friend Swift was such great character. I cannot wait to see some new ones in the next book especially how this story ended off, but getting to learn about all the characters here was an amazing experience.
Adrius and Marlow might actually kill me, their story is so complex and I love both of them so much. Everything about their dynamic is great to read about, and perfect for anyone looking for enemies to lovers' angst. And I mean, lots, and lots of angst. Based on what happened at the end I'm really not sure where they stand but I am incredibly desperate for their interactions in the second book and for Adrius to call her "minnow" again. If you know you know.
[TW: knives, blood and gore, alcohol and drunk people, death of a loved one, murder]
Thank you to Macmillan Children's Publishing Group, Henry Holt & Company, and Katy Rose Pool for the arc through netgalley in exchange for an honest review!
When the author Katy Rose Pool reached out to me via my bookstagram account asking if I wanted an advanced reader's copy of this book because of my support of her other books, I immediately said yes. Her Age of Darkness series is so well done and has such an amazing cast that I was so excited to see what her next book had in store, even if she mentioned that it was built for a different sort of audience. It turns out, this story was built exactly for my tastes as well.
This book opens in a speakeasy with magic cards, and I knew immediately that I was going to adore this book. One of my favorite time periods to read about is the roaring 20s and this book gave off those vibes, especially with The Marshes and all the counterfeit spells and more. Not to mention I've always loved the idea of spell cards, or magic cards that can do different things since my friend played a character that relied on that in one of our dnd campaigns. It was incredibly cool and so when I learned that this book had both curses and magic cards, I was even more excited.
One amazing thing I found in this story was the plot, it was always quickly moving and there were always new twists that kept me interested. Katy did such a good job balancing the underworld events with the high society events, there was just enough of both where I never got bored with too much of one or the other. There were so many wheels behind the scenes turning as well for the mysteries in this book and undoubtedly there's still so much more to uncover in the next book. I think the mystery aspect of this book was done very well, even if there were a few things I managed to guess, it was easy to fall into the story and get carried away.
The cast of characters was perfectly built for this type of story too, with Marlow an excellent main character even if she had her flaws. It just allowed her to stand out to people around her and made her very good at her job. She's cocky sometimes, but a good actress and excellent at finding out what really happens behind closed doors. Adrius, I was skeptical about him at first, in the beginning pages I didn't really like him but oh boy did I end up loving him. Now? He's my favorite character and I just need more of him, he's for sure book boyfriend material. But even the side characters like the upper society's groups, the gangs in the Marshes, and Marlow's best friend Swift was such great character. I cannot wait to see some new ones in the next book especially how this story ended off, but getting to learn about all the characters here was an amazing experience.
Adrius and Marlow might actually kill me, their story is so complex and I love both of them so much. Everything about their dynamic is great to read about, and perfect for anyone looking for enemies to lovers' angst. And I mean, lots, and lots of angst. Based on what happened at the end I'm really not sure where they stand but I am incredibly desperate for their interactions in the second book and for Adrius to call her "minnow" again. If you know you know.
[TW: knives, blood and gore, alcohol and drunk people, death of a loved one, murder]
April 30, 2024
I needed more magic, both figuratively and literally
*Still might read the next, maybe
*Still might read the next, maybe
June 7, 2023
4.5*
So I was a little underwhelmed with the first few chapters, I will admit this. Not that I didn't like it necessarily, I just wasn't invested yet? But! When I did begin to become invested, I was all in. So if you aren't feeling it at the very start, give it a second, because it was very much worth it for me!
I absolutely adored Marlow! She is wonderfully imperfect, and certainly has a lot of issues going on in her own life. Her mom is missing, for one, which is obviously not ideal. And she has a hard time letting people in in general, because she was hurt in the past. Frankly, she's rather curmudgeonly, but in an empathetic and likable way.
I adored her rapport with Adrius. They are both really well developed, so it genuinely felt like two former friends trading barbs. But you can also tell that behind the banter are some serious mixed and hurt feelings, on both sides. I loved getting to explore that dynamic.
I also enjoyed the cursebreaking aspect, which is saying a lot because magic systems and I are hit or miss. But this one was a hit. I liked that it took not just magic, but a lot of intelligence and sleuthing to figure these curses out. And Marlow certainly has her hands full! In addition, it seems like a very scant number of people in this world are to be trusted- and that isn't just Marlow's jaded outlook, it just is the truth. So I loved getting to try to figure out who Marlow should trust at the same time that she is trying to decipher the same thing.
Bottom Line: Loved the characters, loved the plot, and am so glad I gave this one a full chance!
You can find the full review and all the fancy and/or randomness that accompanies it at It Starts at Midnight
So I was a little underwhelmed with the first few chapters, I will admit this. Not that I didn't like it necessarily, I just wasn't invested yet? But! When I did begin to become invested, I was all in. So if you aren't feeling it at the very start, give it a second, because it was very much worth it for me!
I absolutely adored Marlow! She is wonderfully imperfect, and certainly has a lot of issues going on in her own life. Her mom is missing, for one, which is obviously not ideal. And she has a hard time letting people in in general, because she was hurt in the past. Frankly, she's rather curmudgeonly, but in an empathetic and likable way.
I adored her rapport with Adrius. They are both really well developed, so it genuinely felt like two former friends trading barbs. But you can also tell that behind the banter are some serious mixed and hurt feelings, on both sides. I loved getting to explore that dynamic.
I also enjoyed the cursebreaking aspect, which is saying a lot because magic systems and I are hit or miss. But this one was a hit. I liked that it took not just magic, but a lot of intelligence and sleuthing to figure these curses out. And Marlow certainly has her hands full! In addition, it seems like a very scant number of people in this world are to be trusted- and that isn't just Marlow's jaded outlook, it just is the truth. So I loved getting to try to figure out who Marlow should trust at the same time that she is trying to decipher the same thing.
Bottom Line: Loved the characters, loved the plot, and am so glad I gave this one a full chance!
You can find the full review and all the fancy and/or randomness that accompanies it at It Starts at Midnight
July 28, 2023
Garden of the Cursed was an entertaining YA fantasy romance. This is my first book by the author and the cover definitely intrigued me and got me to pick it up. The pacing felt slow at times even with all of the fighting/action, but the mystery of Adrius’s curse and Marlow’s mother kept me listening. Some of the twists were predictable, but I thought the plot threads came together pretty well.
I’m not 100% sold on the second chance-ish friends to enemies to lovers romance between Marlow and Adrius and I felt more frustrated than anything with them most of the time. I tried to keep in mind that they’re just teenagers, but it became increasingly difficult since they never talked to each other and the same miscommunication kept happening over and over again. The book ends with an interesting reveal and cliffhanger, but it’s not a cliffhanger that will leave you feeling gutted.
The narration by Jennifer Blom was enjoyable and I thought she did a wonderful job as Marlow. Some of the characters were voiced similarly though and there were times when it was challenging to distinguish between characters.
Audiobook Review
Overall 4 stars
Performance 4 stars
Story 3.5-4 stars
CW: disappearance of parent (past), gang activity, bullying, classism, fighting/violence, death of parent (past)
I’m not 100% sold on the second chance-ish friends to enemies to lovers romance between Marlow and Adrius and I felt more frustrated than anything with them most of the time. I tried to keep in mind that they’re just teenagers, but it became increasingly difficult since they never talked to each other and the same miscommunication kept happening over and over again. The book ends with an interesting reveal and cliffhanger, but it’s not a cliffhanger that will leave you feeling gutted.
The narration by Jennifer Blom was enjoyable and I thought she did a wonderful job as Marlow. Some of the characters were voiced similarly though and there were times when it was challenging to distinguish between characters.
Audiobook Review
Overall 4 stars
Performance 4 stars
Story 3.5-4 stars
CW: disappearance of parent (past), gang activity, bullying, classism, fighting/violence, death of parent (past)
July 1, 2023
Yay Happy Publication on June 20th! This still is on my top fave for this year and I can't wait for the sequel ❤️❤️❤️
5 🌟
This book was straight up brilliant. The characters, plot, and world building was so strong and incredible.. I can't recommend it enough for others to read it.
This is such a unique YA story and wasn't like others I have read before. Marlow and Adrius are such strong characters, that I instantly fell in love with. The magician system also isn't something I have seen yet in books. It was an interesting twist on magic with the more political power you gave the more access you have to it.
This was a fantasy novel but also read as a mystery/detective novel. Marlow specializes with in breaking curses. In order to do this she must determine who made the curse to begin with. We follow Marlow as she retires to help her ex friend Adrius (a scion) break a curse that everyone thought was banished from the world.
I don't want to give too much away about this romance. But I loved it, it was slow burn for sure. The characters make it 100% worth it. Their banter and interactions are genuine.
The hard part now is waiting until likely 2024 to come back this world. I can't wait to see where this goes.
So many thanks to NetGalley and MacMillan for this advanced reader copy. My review is voluntarily my own.
I will be posting my review at my Instagram page the.Floofs.booknook and retailers near or on publication date.
5 🌟
This book was straight up brilliant. The characters, plot, and world building was so strong and incredible.. I can't recommend it enough for others to read it.
This is such a unique YA story and wasn't like others I have read before. Marlow and Adrius are such strong characters, that I instantly fell in love with. The magician system also isn't something I have seen yet in books. It was an interesting twist on magic with the more political power you gave the more access you have to it.
This was a fantasy novel but also read as a mystery/detective novel. Marlow specializes with in breaking curses. In order to do this she must determine who made the curse to begin with. We follow Marlow as she retires to help her ex friend Adrius (a scion) break a curse that everyone thought was banished from the world.
I don't want to give too much away about this romance. But I loved it, it was slow burn for sure. The characters make it 100% worth it. Their banter and interactions are genuine.
The hard part now is waiting until likely 2024 to come back this world. I can't wait to see where this goes.
So many thanks to NetGalley and MacMillan for this advanced reader copy. My review is voluntarily my own.
I will be posting my review at my Instagram page the.Floofs.booknook and retailers near or on publication date.
December 19, 2022
Thank you to NetGalley and MacMillian's Children Publishing for the advanced copy! All thoughts and opinions are my own.
This book had all the makings to be a fantastic start to a new series, but a lack of world-building and cookie-cutter characters removed the fun from this book.
After Marlow's fall from the elite of society, she forges her path by becoming a curse-breaker. A year into her new life, an old friend, now a new enemy, comes to her door asking for help. She reluctantly agrees and finds herself tangled up in the lies of high society, and a case that has haunted her for the past year...
The plot was interesting. Pool did a good job of weaving together Marlow's mother's disappearance and Adrius' curse. While the two weren't necessarily connected, several people pop up in both cases as suspects, which was fun. The pacing was consistent, and the story never really stalled. We were constantly in a new place in the world, or the case. All these little discoveries at well-time intervals saved this book.
I could not stand the characters in this book, for one of two reasons. Either they were super cookie-cutter, to the point it was almost comical, or they were just horrible. Marlow was fine, even though there was nothing that stood out about her. Her whole identity is wrapped up in her mother's, so we didn't get to know her. I could not stand Adrius. He was incredibly self-centered and hurtful to others. He looks down on others of a lower social class and was only friends with Marlow when none of his other friends were around. Even though he treated others poorly, he still expected to be treated the best and was hurt over things he had no right to be upset about. Marlow and Adrius are in a fake relationship, yet he would lead Marlow on, only to say he was kidding, or gaslight her into being embarrassed. Yet, when Marlow played the part, he acted like a petulant child since she told him, upfront, that it was not real to her. Because he was horrible, I liked them as enemies, even when Marlow was growing attracted to him. To be convinced that they could be lovers, I need leaps and bounds of growth in Adrius's character. He was annoying from start to finish.
The rest of the characters were laughably stereotypical. Marius has a gay best friend who always shows up at the perfect time. There is a gang who said such cliche lines I would have to put the book down and take a second to breathe. (As this is just an arc, I sincerely hope some of those lines get edited out.) Also, the antagonist of the novel was pretty easy to guess from the beginning. Even the little old mean women who just happened to own just what they need in a crisis? Overbearing fathers, a trio of mean girls (yes you read that right), the scorned lover, and the list just goes on. There were no side characters that actually stood out and carried the plot forward.
Hopefully, we get more world-building in the second book. In the beginning, we learn that spells and curses are carried in playing cards. Such a unique concept, but it was never expanded on. About halfway through the book, we learn that bullets can carry hexes as well. So, what decides what can carry a curse? Why can bullets carry hexes, when nothing else in the book is able to do so? They talk about spell casting, so can wizards carry wands? There was no expansion on this idea, which was frustrating. This could have been such a good selling point for the book. As for the rest of the world, there's nothing new. It reads like any other sci-fi/dystopian world, with the poor sector and the rich one.
This book had the potential but did not follow through. Hopefully, the second book will have more growth.
This book had all the makings to be a fantastic start to a new series, but a lack of world-building and cookie-cutter characters removed the fun from this book.
After Marlow's fall from the elite of society, she forges her path by becoming a curse-breaker. A year into her new life, an old friend, now a new enemy, comes to her door asking for help. She reluctantly agrees and finds herself tangled up in the lies of high society, and a case that has haunted her for the past year...
The plot was interesting. Pool did a good job of weaving together Marlow's mother's disappearance and Adrius' curse. While the two weren't necessarily connected, several people pop up in both cases as suspects, which was fun. The pacing was consistent, and the story never really stalled. We were constantly in a new place in the world, or the case. All these little discoveries at well-time intervals saved this book.
I could not stand the characters in this book, for one of two reasons. Either they were super cookie-cutter, to the point it was almost comical, or they were just horrible. Marlow was fine, even though there was nothing that stood out about her. Her whole identity is wrapped up in her mother's, so we didn't get to know her. I could not stand Adrius. He was incredibly self-centered and hurtful to others. He looks down on others of a lower social class and was only friends with Marlow when none of his other friends were around. Even though he treated others poorly, he still expected to be treated the best and was hurt over things he had no right to be upset about. Marlow and Adrius are in a fake relationship, yet he would lead Marlow on, only to say he was kidding, or gaslight her into being embarrassed. Yet, when Marlow played the part, he acted like a petulant child since she told him, upfront, that it was not real to her. Because he was horrible, I liked them as enemies, even when Marlow was growing attracted to him. To be convinced that they could be lovers, I need leaps and bounds of growth in Adrius's character. He was annoying from start to finish.
The rest of the characters were laughably stereotypical. Marius has a gay best friend who always shows up at the perfect time. There is a gang who said such cliche lines I would have to put the book down and take a second to breathe. (As this is just an arc, I sincerely hope some of those lines get edited out.) Also, the antagonist of the novel was pretty easy to guess from the beginning. Even the little old mean women who just happened to own just what they need in a crisis? Overbearing fathers, a trio of mean girls (yes you read that right), the scorned lover, and the list just goes on. There were no side characters that actually stood out and carried the plot forward.
Hopefully, we get more world-building in the second book. In the beginning, we learn that spells and curses are carried in playing cards. Such a unique concept, but it was never expanded on. About halfway through the book, we learn that bullets can carry hexes as well. So, what decides what can carry a curse? Why can bullets carry hexes, when nothing else in the book is able to do so? They talk about spell casting, so can wizards carry wands? There was no expansion on this idea, which was frustrating. This could have been such a good selling point for the book. As for the rest of the world, there's nothing new. It reads like any other sci-fi/dystopian world, with the poor sector and the rich one.
This book had the potential but did not follow through. Hopefully, the second book will have more growth.
June 22, 2024
This is perfect for fans of gossip girl who also love YA fantasy! There is so much tea, so many lil scandals and it also features a romance you’ll want to ship. I’m eager to see how our FMC will navigate these waters moving forward… 😬!
3.75/5⭐️
3.75/5⭐️
October 14, 2024
Estuvo bien. Fue un juvenil de fantasía que cumplió, resultó entretenido, tuvo su dosis de romance, sus giros en la trama. No se me hizo nada especial, pero sí leería los siguientes.
Marlow vive en las Ciénagas trabajando como rompe maldiciones mientras intenta resolver el misterio de la desaparición de su madre. Sin embargo, cuando un examigo de Jardinperenne vaya a buscar su ayuda, no podrá negarse a ayudarlo frente a la posibilidad de encontrar información de su madre.
Creo que esta autora tiende a escribir primeros libros que no terminan de funcionar del todo. En mi opinión, un primer libro de saga debe funcionar casi como autoconclusivo de alguna manera, no que lo sea del todo, pero sí que tenga un inicio y final en su mini trama para que de una sensación de cierre. Siento que es una lógica que suele darse, por ejemplo, Los juegos del hambre nos mostró el inicio y fin de esos juegos, Divergente mostró un problema y lo resolvió ahí mismo, El imperio final nos muestra el fin del plan de Kelsier, etc. Sin embargo, este libro quedó en el aire, me dio cero sensación de cierre sino que quedé en el aire una vez que terminó. Siento que debió cerrar al menos un tema, la maldición de Adrius, quizá.
Fuera de eso, me pareció bastante interesante el mundo que presentó la autora. Siento que lo desarrolló a un nivel superficial que hizo que se viera más complejo de lo que de verdad debe serlo, y eso funcionó. En general, existían hechiceros que creaban cartas que contenían hechizos, y esto era todo un negocio, pues se compraban, vendían, y otros se dedicaban a romperlas, como Marlow. Ella estudió en la parte rica de la ciudad gracias al trabajo que tenía su madre, pero la verdad es que venía de la parte pobre, así que después de su desaparición volvió a las Ciénagas.
Marlow era esa chica dura con un muro a su alrededor debido a distintos motivos, con un humor algo seco, pero que en el fondo quería ser querida y ser una hechicera. Como suele pasar con estos libros, el verdadero personaje que se robó el libro fue el personaje masculino, Adrius. Era su mejor amigo cuando vivía en Jardinperenne pero se separaron en malos términos, pero aun así Marlow decidió ayudarlo. Fue divertida la dinámica entre ambos, me gustó el romance y lo tierno que era Adrius. Ese aspecto más juvenil del libro fue bastante entretenido y puede que sea lo que más disfruté.
Sobre la trama, la forma en que Marlow fue buscando pistas me funcionó gran parte del libro, siento que tuvo momentos en que era bastante lógico el cómo iba encontrando pistas y así. Un par de ocasiones sí que lo sentí sacado de la manga, pero en general se me hizo una evolución coherente. Eso sí, el giro final siento que era bastante evidente, no por el libro en sí, sino que porque era el clásico giro. De todos modos, creo que hará que la siguiente entrega sea mucho más interesante.
El libro fue super juvenil pues tuvo el clásico tono de Cenicienta, pues todos los chicos ricos de Jardinperenne miraban mal a Marlow, creían que era una arribista y que debía de quedarse en la Ciénaga. La verdad es que se sintió muy clásico y cliché, la odiaban por ser pobre, solo eso. Creo que simplificó un poco la sitación social de la ciudad a: eres rico o pobre, cuando podría haber sido un poco más complejo. Pudo relacionarse quizá al tema de la academia, a los hechizos, a las capacidades y que estas capacidades sí estuvieran conectadas al poder económico, no sé. Se me hizo demasiado simplón toda esa antipatía gratuita a Marlow por eso.
El jardín de los malditos fue una primera entrega que dejó todo en el aire, le faltó una sensación leve de cierre a pesar de que fuera una saga. Fuera de eso, fue un libro entretenido que cumplió en todos los aspectos de un juvenil de fantasía con un final que promete mucho más para la siguiente entrega.
Marlow vive en las Ciénagas trabajando como rompe maldiciones mientras intenta resolver el misterio de la desaparición de su madre. Sin embargo, cuando un examigo de Jardinperenne vaya a buscar su ayuda, no podrá negarse a ayudarlo frente a la posibilidad de encontrar información de su madre.
Creo que esta autora tiende a escribir primeros libros que no terminan de funcionar del todo. En mi opinión, un primer libro de saga debe funcionar casi como autoconclusivo de alguna manera, no que lo sea del todo, pero sí que tenga un inicio y final en su mini trama para que de una sensación de cierre. Siento que es una lógica que suele darse, por ejemplo, Los juegos del hambre nos mostró el inicio y fin de esos juegos, Divergente mostró un problema y lo resolvió ahí mismo, El imperio final nos muestra el fin del plan de Kelsier, etc. Sin embargo, este libro quedó en el aire, me dio cero sensación de cierre sino que quedé en el aire una vez que terminó. Siento que debió cerrar al menos un tema, la maldición de Adrius, quizá.
"Marlow sabía por experiencia que la verdad solo salía a la luz si la desenterrabas con tus propias manos".
Fuera de eso, me pareció bastante interesante el mundo que presentó la autora. Siento que lo desarrolló a un nivel superficial que hizo que se viera más complejo de lo que de verdad debe serlo, y eso funcionó. En general, existían hechiceros que creaban cartas que contenían hechizos, y esto era todo un negocio, pues se compraban, vendían, y otros se dedicaban a romperlas, como Marlow. Ella estudió en la parte rica de la ciudad gracias al trabajo que tenía su madre, pero la verdad es que venía de la parte pobre, así que después de su desaparición volvió a las Ciénagas.
Marlow era esa chica dura con un muro a su alrededor debido a distintos motivos, con un humor algo seco, pero que en el fondo quería ser querida y ser una hechicera. Como suele pasar con estos libros, el verdadero personaje que se robó el libro fue el personaje masculino, Adrius. Era su mejor amigo cuando vivía en Jardinperenne pero se separaron en malos términos, pero aun así Marlow decidió ayudarlo. Fue divertida la dinámica entre ambos, me gustó el romance y lo tierno que era Adrius. Ese aspecto más juvenil del libro fue bastante entretenido y puede que sea lo que más disfruté.
Sobre la trama, la forma en que Marlow fue buscando pistas me funcionó gran parte del libro, siento que tuvo momentos en que era bastante lógico el cómo iba encontrando pistas y así. Un par de ocasiones sí que lo sentí sacado de la manga, pero en general se me hizo una evolución coherente. Eso sí, el giro final siento que era bastante evidente, no por el libro en sí, sino que porque era el clásico giro. De todos modos, creo que hará que la siguiente entrega sea mucho más interesante.
"Tal vez el amor consistía en eso. En tender un cuchillo a la otra persona y confiar en que no te rajara la garganta".
El libro fue super juvenil pues tuvo el clásico tono de Cenicienta, pues todos los chicos ricos de Jardinperenne miraban mal a Marlow, creían que era una arribista y que debía de quedarse en la Ciénaga. La verdad es que se sintió muy clásico y cliché, la odiaban por ser pobre, solo eso. Creo que simplificó un poco la sitación social de la ciudad a: eres rico o pobre, cuando podría haber sido un poco más complejo. Pudo relacionarse quizá al tema de la academia, a los hechizos, a las capacidades y que estas capacidades sí estuvieran conectadas al poder económico, no sé. Se me hizo demasiado simplón toda esa antipatía gratuita a Marlow por eso.
El jardín de los malditos fue una primera entrega que dejó todo en el aire, le faltó una sensación leve de cierre a pesar de que fuera una saga. Fuera de eso, fue un libro entretenido que cumplió en todos los aspectos de un juvenil de fantasía con un final que promete mucho más para la siguiente entrega.
August 19, 2024
No os hacéis una idea de lo que me ha gustado este libro. Contexto:
Obsesionada por la desaparición de su madre, Marlow, se dedica a romper maldiciones de la ciudad. Un día un antiguo amigo, hijo de una de las familias más peligrosas va a pedirle ayuda con su maldición y pese a que al principio se niega, finalmente accede a ayudarle a cambio de que le ayude en la investigación de la desaparición de su madre. Para eso tendrán que fingir ser pareja. YA ESTABA DENTRO.
Una de las cosas que más me han gustado es que es una historia súper dinámica. La autora, Katy, logra mantener un ritmo ágil, lleno de giros inesperados que me mantuvieron enganchada en todo momento. La habilidad de Katy para equilibrar los eventos de la magia con los de la alta sociedad es admirable; nunca hay un exceso de uno sobre el otro, lo que permite que la historia fluya de manera natural. A medida que se desenvuelven los misterios, se siente que hay muchas más capas por descubrir, lo que deja al lector ansioso por la continuación de la saga.
Los personajes son otro punto fuerte de la novela. Marlow, la protagonista, es un personaje bien construido, con defectos que la hacen más humana. Su arrogancia y habilidades como actriz la convierten en una investigadora astuta, capaz de desentrañar los secretos que se esconden tras las puertas cerradas. Por otro lado, Adrius es un personaje que evoluciona a lo largo de la historia. Aunque al principio no me caía especialmente bien, su desarrollo lo convirtió en uno de mis favoritos gracias a su carisma que lo hace irresistible. La química entre Marlow y Adrius es palpable, y su relación se convierte en el eje central de la narrativa.
La dinámica entre Marlow y Adrius es un viaje emocional que abarca desde la enemistad hasta la amistad, pasando por el anhelo y el juego de roles. La tensión entre ellos es intensa y está llena de emoción, lo que resulta en una experiencia de lectura apasionante para aquellos que disfrutan de las historias de "enemies to lovers". ¡NECESITO EL SIGUIENTE LIBRO!
Obsesionada por la desaparición de su madre, Marlow, se dedica a romper maldiciones de la ciudad. Un día un antiguo amigo, hijo de una de las familias más peligrosas va a pedirle ayuda con su maldición y pese a que al principio se niega, finalmente accede a ayudarle a cambio de que le ayude en la investigación de la desaparición de su madre. Para eso tendrán que fingir ser pareja. YA ESTABA DENTRO.
Una de las cosas que más me han gustado es que es una historia súper dinámica. La autora, Katy, logra mantener un ritmo ágil, lleno de giros inesperados que me mantuvieron enganchada en todo momento. La habilidad de Katy para equilibrar los eventos de la magia con los de la alta sociedad es admirable; nunca hay un exceso de uno sobre el otro, lo que permite que la historia fluya de manera natural. A medida que se desenvuelven los misterios, se siente que hay muchas más capas por descubrir, lo que deja al lector ansioso por la continuación de la saga.
Los personajes son otro punto fuerte de la novela. Marlow, la protagonista, es un personaje bien construido, con defectos que la hacen más humana. Su arrogancia y habilidades como actriz la convierten en una investigadora astuta, capaz de desentrañar los secretos que se esconden tras las puertas cerradas. Por otro lado, Adrius es un personaje que evoluciona a lo largo de la historia. Aunque al principio no me caía especialmente bien, su desarrollo lo convirtió en uno de mis favoritos gracias a su carisma que lo hace irresistible. La química entre Marlow y Adrius es palpable, y su relación se convierte en el eje central de la narrativa.
La dinámica entre Marlow y Adrius es un viaje emocional que abarca desde la enemistad hasta la amistad, pasando por el anhelo y el juego de roles. La tensión entre ellos es intensa y está llena de emoción, lo que resulta en una experiencia de lectura apasionante para aquellos que disfrutan de las historias de "enemies to lovers". ¡NECESITO EL SIGUIENTE LIBRO!
February 25, 2025
Das Buch von Katy Rose Pool entführt uns in die faszinierende Welt von Caraza City, wo Magie und Intrigen den Alltag bestimmen. Im Mittelpunkt steht Marlow, die eine talentierte Fluchbrecherin ist und die nach dem mysteriösen Verschwinden ihrer Mutter gezwungen ist, sich in den gefährlichen Gassen der Stadt durchzuschlagen. Als sie den Auftrag erhält, einen mächtigen Fluch zu brechen, der auf ihrem einstigen Schwarm Adrius lieg, sieht sie die Chance, Hinweise auf das Schicksal ihrer Mutter zu finden. Außerdem kann Marlow nur schwer Nein sagen, wenn jemand ihre Hilfe braucht.
Der Schreibstil ist wunderschön, besticht durch seine bildhafte Sprache und die detaillierte Darstellung dieser magischen Welt mit vielen, verliebten Details. Die Atmosphäre der Stadt war lebendig und zieht einen so richtig in den Bann. Die Handlung ist gepickt mit unerwarteten Wendungen und hält die Spannung aufrecht.
Nun kommt leider das große ABER: ich hatte große Schwierigkeiten, eine Verbindung zu Marlow aufzubauen. Sie wirkte oft eher distanziert, und ihre Beweggründe waren mir stellenweise unklar. Auch die Beziehung zwischen ihr und Adrius entwickelt sich für meinen Geschmack mit zu viel Hin und Her und lässt die Tiefe vermissen, die ich mir gewünscht hätte. Die Nebenfiguren bleiben ebenfalls blass und tragen wenig zur emotionalen Tiefe der Geschichte bei. Und ja, leider war Marlow mir etwas zu selbstgerecht und wertend gegenüber anderen, hat aber nie ihre eigenen Handlungen unter die Lupe genommen. Besonders zu Adrius war sie gemein und manchmal konnte ich diesen ganzen Stimmungsschwankungen nicht folgen. Unnötiges Drama. Leider. :/
Generell bietet die Story eine beeindruckenden Welt und einer packenden Grundidee, die jedoch in der Charakterentwicklung Schwächen aufweist, daher meine 3,5 Punkte. Für Leser, die Wert auf eine tolle Atmosphäre und spannende Plottwists legen. Wer jedoch eine tiefe emotionale Bindung zu den Protagonisten sucht, könnte hier enttäuscht werden.
Der Schreibstil ist wunderschön, besticht durch seine bildhafte Sprache und die detaillierte Darstellung dieser magischen Welt mit vielen, verliebten Details. Die Atmosphäre der Stadt war lebendig und zieht einen so richtig in den Bann. Die Handlung ist gepickt mit unerwarteten Wendungen und hält die Spannung aufrecht.
Nun kommt leider das große ABER: ich hatte große Schwierigkeiten, eine Verbindung zu Marlow aufzubauen. Sie wirkte oft eher distanziert, und ihre Beweggründe waren mir stellenweise unklar. Auch die Beziehung zwischen ihr und Adrius entwickelt sich für meinen Geschmack mit zu viel Hin und Her und lässt die Tiefe vermissen, die ich mir gewünscht hätte. Die Nebenfiguren bleiben ebenfalls blass und tragen wenig zur emotionalen Tiefe der Geschichte bei. Und ja, leider war Marlow mir etwas zu selbstgerecht und wertend gegenüber anderen, hat aber nie ihre eigenen Handlungen unter die Lupe genommen. Besonders zu Adrius war sie gemein und manchmal konnte ich diesen ganzen Stimmungsschwankungen nicht folgen. Unnötiges Drama. Leider. :/
Generell bietet die Story eine beeindruckenden Welt und einer packenden Grundidee, die jedoch in der Charakterentwicklung Schwächen aufweist, daher meine 3,5 Punkte. Für Leser, die Wert auf eine tolle Atmosphäre und spannende Plottwists legen. Wer jedoch eine tiefe emotionale Bindung zu den Protagonisten sucht, könnte hier enttäuscht werden.
April 20, 2024
I think this is a good example of what a difference a cover can make. I wouldn't consider myself someone who judges books by their cover, but something about the first edition's cover was most definitely not speaking to me. I mean, it had this 90s paranormal Buffy the Vampire Slayer meets Yu-Gi-Oh vibe going on, and, in the hands of the right author, this could quite possibly be a brilliant story or it might be exactly what some people are looking for. Alas, it definitely wasn't something I would have normally picked up and I would have looked the other way had OwlCrate not brought around its shiny purple edition. Now I love purple, and this cover was giving me dark fairy tale feelings. The blurb was intriguing enough for me to give it a chance so off onto my TBR pile it went.
By the time I actually got around to reading it, I had entire forgotten what the blurb was about and went into this wholly blind beyond a vague memory of cards being involved (the Yu-Gi-Oh-esque cover clearly left an impression after all). I confess that I wasn't even expecting anything great out of this, and after the first chapter or two, I was mostly confused. I wasn't entirely sure what setting this book was aiming for, there was initially quite little world building and I wasn't sure if this was meant to be a traditional high fantasy-esque setting or something more modern [it didn't help that the OwlCrate illustrations, while gorgeous, were a little conflicting in that the characters looked like they were from something more akin to a regency setting whereas our main character looked dressed for a modern day setting]. Based on the characters' mannerisms and just the general flow of the story, I started to lean more towards fantasy of manners until they brought out the guns and zeppelins; at that point I was very much convinced that this was more of a steam punk setting and I actually really liked that. Whether or not that was what the author was aiming for I do not know, but that's the feeling I was getting out of it and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
The confusion around the setting aside, the best way to describe my reading experience with this book is simply saying: it was fun. This was just such a really, really fun book to read. I enjoyed the characters and the at first glance light-hearted banter and relationships. The story moves along at a good pace and simply put me in a good mood despite the darker undertones which became more apparent the further the story progressed. I thought it was a fun magic system and the curses don't seem all that bad at first but they become quite cruel once you stop to think about it. I quite enjoyed how that reflected in the story as well - the characters playing around with them a little and then coming to terms with how bad some of these curses actually are. I also thought it was really well handled in terms of writing. The main curse of the plot is quite a simple and straight forward one yet it is something the characters can quite easily slip up with and I think it is something the writer can also easily slip up on and would have had to pay constant attention to.
With that being said, this was my first time reading a book by Katy Rose Pool and I'm really positively surprised. The writing was well done from the pacing, twists and reveals and character development. I loved that attention was given to multiple kinds of relationships and not just the romance, although I really enjoyed the main romance in this book and am looking forward to see how things play out in the sequel. I also have a very strong inclination to seek out Katy Rose Pool's previous works after liking Garden of the Cursed so much.
To add some final thoughts, I may not have liked the original cover but that is clearly a subjective opinion and it may very well appeal to others. I am nevertheless glad to see that this book now seems to be getting an additional cover which I believe suits the series more and might attract more readers who felt similarly about the original cover.
November 20, 2024
I really enjoyed this! And feel like it’s a super underrated young adult fantasy. RTC
July 11, 2023
book grabbed me from the first few pages. I love when a story feels like something I haven’t read before.
Garden of the Cursed deals with magic kept in curse cards, a missing mother, and a fake dating…we used to be friends but now I don’t trust you kind of trope!
I loved the juxtaposition between the lower class marsh lands with the upper class garden society. It adds a gritty tang to the toxic polish.
The magic system is really fun and I can’t wait to dive deeper into its machinations in the next book. I think the possibilities are endless. When magic is controlled by an elitist society, the underbelly is trying everything it can to bring them down. Gang rivalry, black market societies. It’s all here.
Last but not least there’s a really angsty YA romance element I loved. Sure there’s miscommunication and drama but I was in it to win it. I can’t wait to see where it goes. I’m a sucker for this kind of trope. I need more! ❤️
All in all this was a solid start to a series with a great cliffhanger. A fun diverse cast, lots of growing room for future books, and just enough reveals to keep you guessing!
I really liked it! And I will 100% be reading book 2 next year. A book that totally took me by surprise.
Thank you @turnthepagetours and @katyrosepool @mackidsbooks @henryholtbooks for the fun tour opportunity!
Garden of the Cursed deals with magic kept in curse cards, a missing mother, and a fake dating…we used to be friends but now I don’t trust you kind of trope!
I loved the juxtaposition between the lower class marsh lands with the upper class garden society. It adds a gritty tang to the toxic polish.
The magic system is really fun and I can’t wait to dive deeper into its machinations in the next book. I think the possibilities are endless. When magic is controlled by an elitist society, the underbelly is trying everything it can to bring them down. Gang rivalry, black market societies. It’s all here.
Last but not least there’s a really angsty YA romance element I loved. Sure there’s miscommunication and drama but I was in it to win it. I can’t wait to see where it goes. I’m a sucker for this kind of trope. I need more! ❤️
All in all this was a solid start to a series with a great cliffhanger. A fun diverse cast, lots of growing room for future books, and just enough reveals to keep you guessing!
I really liked it! And I will 100% be reading book 2 next year. A book that totally took me by surprise.
Thank you @turnthepagetours and @katyrosepool @mackidsbooks @henryholtbooks for the fun tour opportunity!
June 21, 2023
Garden of the Cursed is a fantastic and original fantasy with a dynamic protagonist, a unique plot, vivid world-building, and a chemistry-laden enemies-to-lovers romance!
Marlow is a fierce and brave protagonist. Smart, snarky, and a bit antagonistic, she’s determined to find out what happened to her mother who disappeared a year ago. But when Adrius comes to her for help, she finds it hard to say no to the male who broke her heart all those months ago. I love Adrius too, though his character is more difficult to understand, as he remains an enigma for much of the story. He definitely has the broody, moody bad-boy attitude that I love in a MMC. Other characters, including Marlow’s best friend and Adrius’s friends and family, are also quite compelling, and I’m excited to see where their stories lead.
As Marlow works to break a curse that plagues Adrius, she learns of ties to her mother’s disappearance, and Marlow isn’t sure who she can trust. With Adrius’s life at risk, old feelings resurfacing, conflicts with friends, and a ton of political turmoil, Marlow must use all of her guile to figure out how everything connects. It’s such an interesting and layered plot, filled with intense and unexpected twists and revelations. Power, control, secrets, manipulations, political intrigue, betrayal, and more plague the characters, especially Marlow as she tries to find out more about her mother, break Adrius’s curse, and avoid the gang issues that seem tied to everything.
Adrius and Marlow have amazing chemistry, and I adored their enemies-to-lovers romance. It’s clear there are unresolved feelings between them, but both characters are so walled off, and vulnerability is difficult for both. This isn’t shocking considering the lives they both lead and the people and events that have affected them. Marlow runs away from her feelings and from the people who make her feel, especially Adrius. But it definitely says something that Adrius came to Marlow when he needed help the most. She is the only person he trusts even after what transpired between them. I like how we slowly learn about their past relationship and how it affected them both. It’s also interesting to see how each deals with so many conflicting and confusing feelings.
The world-building is also great, and I love the unique and intriguing world the author created. Speaking of the author, what an immersive writing style. I was so easily drawn into the story and became engrossed with the layered characters and plot. The author definitely has a gift for storytelling because I found it hard to put the book down. And after that fantastic ending, I can’t wait to read the next book in the series!
Special thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and Turn the Page Tours for providing me with a copy of the book. All thoughts are my own.
Marlow is a fierce and brave protagonist. Smart, snarky, and a bit antagonistic, she’s determined to find out what happened to her mother who disappeared a year ago. But when Adrius comes to her for help, she finds it hard to say no to the male who broke her heart all those months ago. I love Adrius too, though his character is more difficult to understand, as he remains an enigma for much of the story. He definitely has the broody, moody bad-boy attitude that I love in a MMC. Other characters, including Marlow’s best friend and Adrius’s friends and family, are also quite compelling, and I’m excited to see where their stories lead.
As Marlow works to break a curse that plagues Adrius, she learns of ties to her mother’s disappearance, and Marlow isn’t sure who she can trust. With Adrius’s life at risk, old feelings resurfacing, conflicts with friends, and a ton of political turmoil, Marlow must use all of her guile to figure out how everything connects. It’s such an interesting and layered plot, filled with intense and unexpected twists and revelations. Power, control, secrets, manipulations, political intrigue, betrayal, and more plague the characters, especially Marlow as she tries to find out more about her mother, break Adrius’s curse, and avoid the gang issues that seem tied to everything.
Adrius and Marlow have amazing chemistry, and I adored their enemies-to-lovers romance. It’s clear there are unresolved feelings between them, but both characters are so walled off, and vulnerability is difficult for both. This isn’t shocking considering the lives they both lead and the people and events that have affected them. Marlow runs away from her feelings and from the people who make her feel, especially Adrius. But it definitely says something that Adrius came to Marlow when he needed help the most. She is the only person he trusts even after what transpired between them. I like how we slowly learn about their past relationship and how it affected them both. It’s also interesting to see how each deals with so many conflicting and confusing feelings.
The world-building is also great, and I love the unique and intriguing world the author created. Speaking of the author, what an immersive writing style. I was so easily drawn into the story and became engrossed with the layered characters and plot. The author definitely has a gift for storytelling because I found it hard to put the book down. And after that fantastic ending, I can’t wait to read the next book in the series!
Special thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and Turn the Page Tours for providing me with a copy of the book. All thoughts are my own.
June 23, 2024
This was SOOOO good omg I’m so sad I put off this book for so long!! The Bridgerton x Arcane x Veronica Mars vibes were incredible. All my Logan x Veronica lovers need to pick this book up. The fantasy world and magic system were also so cool!
I need to start the second book immediately! 5 stars all around!
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I need to start the second book immediately! 5 stars all around!
Follow me on TikTok | Instagram | Twitter for more book reviews & recommendations!
August 28, 2023
the political intrigue and lovable characters, with the mystery and yearning romance, topped off with a cool magic system - chefs kiss 🤌🏼
February 5, 2024
3⭐️ this was okay, but it felt like something was missing
July 3, 2023
4.75 stars
This book was SO GOOD?!?!?!
I need more people to read this book. I loved Marlow as a main character. She was feisty and easy to connect with. The story was fast paced and twisty, and I loved the romance. I’m such a fan of when the MC and love interest have a history prior to the book. It just adds a whole other level to their interactions, and Pool executed that perfectly. Adrius had his faults, but he was lovable. and I couldn't help but root for him and Marlow.
Both the mystery and fantasy aspects were well balanced. Both were engaging on their own, but together they were an elevated reading experience.
And that's not to mention the ending! I am admittedly not always the best at guessing the twists and reveals in books, especially when you add fantasy elements to the mix. I had my suspicions, but I was still surprised when it all came to light--even though it was pretty much what I had guessed. The tension in those last couple chapters was immaculate. I was almost shaking with adrenaline, I was so invested. I absolutely cannot wait for book 2!
This book was SO GOOD?!?!?!
I need more people to read this book. I loved Marlow as a main character. She was feisty and easy to connect with. The story was fast paced and twisty, and I loved the romance. I’m such a fan of when the MC and love interest have a history prior to the book. It just adds a whole other level to their interactions, and Pool executed that perfectly. Adrius had his faults, but he was lovable. and I couldn't help but root for him and Marlow.
Both the mystery and fantasy aspects were well balanced. Both were engaging on their own, but together they were an elevated reading experience.
And that's not to mention the ending! I am admittedly not always the best at guessing the twists and reveals in books, especially when you add fantasy elements to the mix. I had my suspicions, but I was still surprised when it all came to light--even though it was pretty much what I had guessed. The tension in those last couple chapters was immaculate. I was almost shaking with adrenaline, I was so invested. I absolutely cannot wait for book 2!
June 22, 2023
Garden Of The Cursed is an excellent young adult high fantasy/mystery! This book was just shy of five stars for me. Garden Of The Cursed started out a bit slow and it took me a bit to get into it, but once I did I was hooked! This book follows Marlow, a cursebreaker, as she tries to figure out who cursed her old friend Adrius Falcreast. Marrow’s relationship with Adrius is complicated and it only gets worse when they start fake dating to help solve the mystery as to who cursed him. On top of trying to break Adrius’ curse, Marlow is searching for her mother who has been missing for a year.
Overall this was a wonderful, unique read and I loved how it combined two of my favorite genres, mystery and fantasy. I loved all the different characters, especially Marlow. This book was full of mystery and magic and I’ve never read anything quite like it. I can’t waist to see how the story continues in the next book!
Overall this was a wonderful, unique read and I loved how it combined two of my favorite genres, mystery and fantasy. I loved all the different characters, especially Marlow. This book was full of mystery and magic and I’ve never read anything quite like it. I can’t waist to see how the story continues in the next book!
January 23, 2025
✨ Reseña ✨
💫 Marlow Briggs, una talentosa rompemaldiciones, se embarca en una peligrosa búsqueda para descubrir la verdad sobre la desaparición de su madre, mientras enfrenta intrigas y magia en la ciudad de Caraza.
✨ Marlow es una protagonista fuerte y decidida, muy bien desarrollada. Adrius Falcrest pertenece a una de las familias de hechiceros más influyentes, es arrogante, aunque se acaba viendo más allá... Es un viejo amigo con quien debe fingir una relación... y ya sabemos a qué lleva esto 🫣 y debo decir que me ha encantado.
✨ La narración es ágil y envolvente, rica en detalles. La pluma de la autora brilla con descripciones vívidas y una construcción de mundo fascinante, capturando la atención del lector desde la primera página.
✨ La ambientación en Caraza, llena de misterios y familias poderosas con secretos (algunos bastante oscuros), añade profundidad a la trama.
✨ El final bastante acertado, y deja con ganas de más 🤩
☄️ A veces la historia avanza un tanto rápido, lo que complica conectar con ella en ciertos momentos. El plot twist es predecible, aunque no por ello se disfruta menos la lectura.
✨💖✨💖✨💖✨💖✨
💫 Marlow Briggs, una talentosa rompemaldiciones, se embarca en una peligrosa búsqueda para descubrir la verdad sobre la desaparición de su madre, mientras enfrenta intrigas y magia en la ciudad de Caraza.
✨ Marlow es una protagonista fuerte y decidida, muy bien desarrollada. Adrius Falcrest pertenece a una de las familias de hechiceros más influyentes, es arrogante, aunque se acaba viendo más allá... Es un viejo amigo con quien debe fingir una relación... y ya sabemos a qué lleva esto 🫣 y debo decir que me ha encantado.
✨ La narración es ágil y envolvente, rica en detalles. La pluma de la autora brilla con descripciones vívidas y una construcción de mundo fascinante, capturando la atención del lector desde la primera página.
✨ La ambientación en Caraza, llena de misterios y familias poderosas con secretos (algunos bastante oscuros), añade profundidad a la trama.
✨ El final bastante acertado, y deja con ganas de más 🤩
☄️ A veces la historia avanza un tanto rápido, lo que complica conectar con ella en ciertos momentos. El plot twist es predecible, aunque no por ello se disfruta menos la lectura.
✨💖✨💖✨💖✨💖✨
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