Sunday, August 20, 2017

Veiled Rose by Anne Elisabeth Stengl


Synopsis:
Rose Red trusts no one with her secret. She hides in the forest, her face veiled in rags, shunning the company of all save her old father and her nanny goat. Her life is bleak and lonely.

Until she meets a privileged young man sent to spend his summer in the mountains. Headstrong young Leo startles everyone by befriending Rose Red, and together they begin searching for the monster rumored to be stalking these lands.

But the hunt, which began as a game, holds greater risk than either imagines. Soon both are forced to test their trust in each other as a far more terrifying scourge puts their entire land at risk.

(Synopsis from Goodreads).

My Thoughts:
A few years ago, I read Heartless by Anne Elisabeth Stengl, and loved it. I loved the way the author made Christian fiction exciting, which is difficult to do, at least in my opinion. It's a genre I've never really liked until then. Ever since then, I've been wanting to read the second book in the series, Veiled Rose. It was hard for me to find, but I finally got a copy. I liked it, but it definitely wasn't as good as the first book in the series.

I thought that Veiled Rose was going to be a direct continuation of Heartless, with the same characters, and it wasn't. I was bummed about that. The stories were only slightly connected. In fact, I'm pretty sure Veiled Rose could be read as a standalone if you really wanted to do so. I do hope that at some point in the series, all of the characters' stories will intertwine together. 

Other than that, I thought the book was decently good. I loved the story line, especially the first one hundred pages or so. I loved the characters I got introduced to. They were all interesting, and brought something new to the series. After that, the plot got boring, and dragged on at times, especially through the middle. By the end, it had picked up again, and I couldn't put it down.

Even though Veiled Rose wasn't what I was expecting, I did find it enjoyable. Even though this can be read as a standalone, I'm excited to continue the series, and see what Anne Elisabeth Stengl has in store next for readers. I'm sure it will be something good. This series has inspired me to read more Christian fantasy books whenever I can find them at my local library. I recommend this book to anyone wanting a different take on the fantasy genre.


I give Veiled Rose: 3/5.

Want to know more about the author?
Website: http://www.anneelisabethstengl.com/
Blog: http://anneelisabethstengl.blogspot.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AEStengl/?ref=aymt_homepage_panel
Twitter: https://twitter.com/AEStengl
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3145809.Anne_Elisabeth_Stengl

I received this book from the publisher, Bethany House, in exchange for an honest review. I was in no way compensated for this review.

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