Roses and Rot
Ratings7
Average rating3.7
15
Ratings7
Average rating3.7
Publishers Weekly Best Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Horror Novel of Summer 2016 “Captivating, fiercely smart (about sisters, artists), utterly transporting. I read it so consumingly, it was more akin to swallowing it whole. Not to be missed.” —Megan Abbott, Edgar-winning author of The Fever and You Will Know Me “Kat Howard seems to possess a magic of her own, of making characters come alive and scenery so vivid, you forget it exists only on the page. Roses and Rot is both beautiful and dark, lovely, and haunting." —Anton Bogomazov, Politics and Prose Bookstore “A contemporary dark fantasy full of dark magic, the hidden traps of fairy tales, and painful humanity. I loved every page.” —Christopher Golden, New York Times bestselling author of Dead Ringers Imogen and her sister Marin escape their cruel mother to attend a prestigious artists’ retreat, but soon learn that living in a fairy tale requires sacrifices, whether it be art or love in this haunting debut novel from “a remarkable young writer” (Neil Gaiman). What would you sacrifice for everything you ever dreamed of? Imogen has grown up reading fairy tales about mothers who die and make way for cruel stepmothers. As a child, she used to lie in bed wishing that her life would become one of these tragic fairy tales because she couldn’t imagine how a stepmother could be worse than her mother now. As adults, Imogen and her sister Marin are accepted to an elite post-grad arts program—Imogen as a writer and Marin as a dancer. Soon enough, though, they realize that there’s more to the school than meets the eye. Imogen might be living in the fairy tale she’s dreamed about as a child, but it’s one that will pit her against Marin if she decides to escape her past to find her heart’s desire.
Reviews with the most likes.
Roses and Rot is a wonderfully compelling story and my favorite 2016 release so far. The relationship that is given the most focus–the one between narrator Marin and her sister Imogen–is complex and realistic, and many of the relationships are quite well done. It's a book about art and fairy tales that is quite fittingly titled since it encompasses both light and dark.
Full Review: http://www.fantasybookcafe.com/2016/05/review-of-roses-and-rot-by-kat-howard/
Pros: lyrical writing, thought provoking, evocative
Cons:
Imogen is a writer while her younger sister Marin is a ballet dancer. Their mother supported Marin's beauty and talent, as they reflected positively on her. She denounced Imogen's storytelling as lies, punishing her as necessary. Imogen escaped but had to leave her sister behind. They grew up. This is the fairytale of two sisters, coming together after a decade apart, to work on their arts in an artist's colony where things aren't as they appear.
I loved this book. It resonated with me on so many levels. Howard captures the hard work, the fear, the loneliness, the exhilaration of being an artist, believing in yourself one moment while wondering if you're good enough the next. She also captures the emotional turmoil of a broken family: the guilt, the attempts to reconcile the truth you know from the truth others believe, protecting yourself from harm while constantly dreading the next attack - whether physical or verbal.
The book is so lyrically written, it's prose is beautiful, and often heart-wrenching. The snippets of Imogen's stories that retell her childhood are so sad and yet so hopeful as well. The descriptions are vivid and lush, easy to picture and viscerally present as events progress.
I loved the characters and the hints of what's happening at Melete, the campus where they're studying. Everything felt real. The characters impacted each others lives in ways it was hard to imagine when the novel started. Though I thought there were times when Imogen should have been more honest and open with her sister, I can understand why such intimacy was difficult for them, given their upbringing and past.
This is a brilliant book and I can't recommend it enough.
