Withering Rose by Kaitlyn Davis

A big thanks to Netgalley for letting me receive a copy for free for an honest review.

This book was amazing, it was reminiscent of the 10th Kingdom miniseries and book I love so much. The premise of this series is that their was a parallel universe to ours that was full of magic and fairy tale like wonder (read: horror). But due to an earthquake in both multiverses they collide and form a new world that is a combination of both, and of course the natives of Earth are afraid of the magic that comes with the new inhabitants and decide to hunt them down and remove magic from the world. Kind of like the European Witch Hunts. The main character Omorose is an unfortunate magic user who must hide her magic abilities and forsake them because she would be killed if she was discovered, and also she is cursed. Every time she uses her ability she losses time and it shortens her life. So in a desperate attempt at freedom to use her magic, or rid herself of it forever she escapes to the Beast's kingdom, who the Earthling's and Fairy Tale people both fear.

Overall I really enjoyed this book. I'm definitely adding the rest of this series to my TBR list. What I liked most about this story is the complexity of the world the author has created. It's part dystopian and part high fantasy. The characters could use a little more depth, they seem a little flat at times, and their backstories get a little confusing as they are glossed over. However I absolutely loved the idea that magic users suffer a curse, because magic costs something, and I like the reason behind the curse. I was conflicted over the Earthling's reaction to magic existing and how they are so untrusting of the people from the fairy tale world, but the more I thought about it the more I realized that it was a very accurate response. People were afraid of something they had no control over, and they did what they always do. They hunt it down and kill it. Case in point, the Salem Witch Trials. The persecution of the Protestants by the Catholic Church, the Spanish Inquisition. So while I would like to believe that people would be more accepting in circumstances such as the ones presented in the book, history has shown again and again that that would not be the case.