Garden Of The Cursed is an atmospheric story with excellent tropes, which makes it a unique and original story. We have: Curses and a curse breaker investigating how to break a dangerous and legendary curse. A high society with treacherous politics, secrets, and dances. And ex-friends who will pretend to be together but could be hiding their true feelings.
Marlow Briggs is a curse breaker who is investigating the disappearance of her mother, but she needs information in circles which she has no access to until Adrius Falcreast returns to her life. He has been cursed and does not know who else to trust, it's a powerful and dangerous curse, taken from history books and fairy tales. To investigate who cursed him and how to break it, they pretend to be together, she will accompany him to the most important parties of the season.
The characters are little gray moral characters, smart and realistic, Marlow is brave and loyal, and Adrius is the golden boy of society. I liked the scenes about their past together, their present motives, and the romance, is slow burn; love the banter in public and in private. And the secondary characters, were great too, but my favorite was not a human, but a cat who can detect curses.
The setting was wonderful, palaces, libraries, and night dates, love the air of mystery, the secrets, and the world of high society, beautiful outside but dangerous inside. It feels like a Belle Époque setting with Art Nouveau architecture.
I enjoy the story, but I would have liked it to be a bit longer or more descriptive, about the magic system, curses, libraries and grimoires, about ball gowns and palaces. But that's my opinion, I think that for most the pacing will be ideal.
The ending has a cliffhanger that leaves you wanting more and creates expectations for the next book.
Read if you like:
Fantasy, magic, mystery, and atmospheric settings
Dangerous curses
A cat who perceives curses (and deserves more scenes)
Friends to haters to fake dating
Marlow Briggs is a curse breaker who is investigating the disappearance of her mother, but she needs information in circles which she has no access to until Adrius Falcreast returns to her life. He has been cursed and does not know who else to trust, it's a powerful and dangerous curse, taken from history books and fairy tales. To investigate who cursed him and how to break it, they pretend to be together, she will accompany him to the most important parties of the season.
The characters are little gray moral characters, smart and realistic, Marlow is brave and loyal, and Adrius is the golden boy of society. I liked the scenes about their past together, their present motives, and the romance, is slow burn; love the banter in public and in private. And the secondary characters, were great too, but my favorite was not a human, but a cat who can detect curses.
The setting was wonderful, palaces, libraries, and night dates, love the air of mystery, the secrets, and the world of high society, beautiful outside but dangerous inside. It feels like a Belle Époque setting with Art Nouveau architecture.
I enjoy the story, but I would have liked it to be a bit longer or more descriptive, about the magic system, curses, libraries and grimoires, about ball gowns and palaces. But that's my opinion, I think that for most the pacing will be ideal.
The ending has a cliffhanger that leaves you wanting more and creates expectations for the next book.
Read if you like:
Fantasy, magic, mystery, and atmospheric settings
Dangerous curses
A cat who perceives curses (and deserves more scenes)
Friends to haters to fake dating