Roses and Rot by Kat Howard

What is the price of a dream?  What sacrifice would be reasonable to reach your goals and to have those things in life you dearly desire?  What if it meant a friend, a love, a lover or family?  Imogen, Marin and their new found friends will all put these questions to the test in the new book Roses and Rot by Kat Howard. 

This is a story that straddles worlds.  The subtle transitions from one to the another adds tremendously to the mystery and mystique of some of the places we get to visit.  The author takes us on a journey from the almost tragically mundane to the seductively fantastical.  This is where I might normally have a bit of a problem with the level of detail in a story.  Fantasy stories almost require rich descriptions of characters and places.  In my opinion, this is one of those books that is the exception that proves the rule.  Much like The Downfall of the Gods, the story is paramount here.  There is enough description to give the reader a framework to build on.  There are some very good moments where the author does make excellent use of all five senses  to make things real.

As important as the story is in this book there is still the matter of the characters.  This really is a fine example of the slow exposition as far as some of our central characters are concerned.  Most of the side characters show a good bit of growth as well.   It is not simply the way the characters develop that makes them come alive in this book.  It is also how they act and interact that really breathes life into them.  Here is where I must give fair warning:  This is a very emotional story.  This story relies less on action and more on the psychological and emotional to give us all the conflict, struggle and resolution we are looking for.

Roses and Rot by Kat Howard is a journey to the center of the artists soul.  While there is not a tremendous amount of violence, the mature content and deep emotional themes have it earn a PG13 rating from me. 

Posted by Tynga at 02:00

 Artistry, fae, Fairy Tales, Fantasy, Fiction, Kat Howard, Netgalley, Review, Saga Press  2 People left their mark

Tynga is a 32 years old mom of two, from Montreal, working as a lab technician in an hospital specialized in heart disease. In her free time, she enjoys reading all things Paranormal and photography.

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