I had the pleasure of reading this for BBNYA and now it is time to share my thoughts.
A Rose Among Thorns
Ash Fitzsimmons
Rose Thorn should never be left unsupervised around plants. Potted things tend to die around her as if on principle. But when her great-aunt calls and asks Rose to watch her garden nursery for a few days, Rose can hardly say no. After all, Aunt Lily is the closest thing Rose has to a grandmother — and the only family she has left — so Rose doesn’t mind driving out to her tiny mountain town to look after the place.
Aunt Lily never mentioned anything about an inspection, however.
Rose is taken aback when an agent from an organization she’s never heard of arrives and panics to find Aunt Lily missing. As it turns out, Aunt Lily hasn’t been entirely straight with Rose. She’s not visiting a sick friend — she’s in danger and on the run. She keeps a hidden greenhouse on the property in which she grows highly regulated magical plants. And she’s an elf…as was Rose’s grandfather.
Though stunned to witness magic at work and shocked that no one ever divulged the family secret, Rose refuses to abandon the nursery until her great-aunt is safely home. But as she and the agent, now awkward housemates, try to keep up their cover story and find the missing grower, they realize that whatever led to Aunt Lily’s disappearance might not be the only magical crime in progress.
And while Rose has no green thumb, another talent of hers may be budding…
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It’s brilliant when you pick up a book and realise that you are in for an easy but exciting read and that’s what happened when I picked this book up. A Rose Among Thorns has such a nice light atmosphere and I loved the premise, it is urban fantasy mixed with a little action and a little bit of romantic tension, but still has the suspense that I expect when trying to find a perpetrator.
The story is so engaging, it didn’t take long before I was hooked and didn’t want to put the book down, I felt totally immersed in the journey to find out what happened to Aunt Lily and the magical world the author created. We only get a glimpse of the magic since what can be done in the human world is limited but I enjoyed the little bits that we were able to see and find out about the supernatural world.
I wasn’t too sure about Rose at first she didn’t seem like she was going to bring much to the story as she was really out of her depth and it didn’t feel like she was going to find her way, but I did like that she dropped everything to help her family. Then as the story progressed she showed her determination and acceptance, especially with all the new things she has learned about her family, and quickly became a loveable character.
Yven was fascinating, I liked that he was always a little unexpected, he’s an agent with style that loves to cook, but can also hold his own in a fight. I also liked the chemistry between Rose and Yven, especially as they are very different but I was rooting for them for most of the book. Also, a special mention goes to Sally the vine who is of course the coolest, a plant with sass and a protective streak, what’s not to love?
I really enjoyed this book, it was entertaining and kept me engaged, I didn’t want to put it down once I got started. I was a little gutted when it ended because I wanted to know more about the world that Yven and Rose’s family come from but then I was excited because there are more books in this world and with these characters to come. I highly recommend A Rose Among Thorns and I’m looking forward to more from this author.
When not writing, Ash Fitzsimmons is an unrepentant car singer. She is the author of several contemporary fantasy series: Stranger Magics, The Crossing, Hall of Thorns, and its sequel series, The Wild Hunt. A second sequel series, Fortune’s Child, will be released in 2024. You can find her at ashfitzsimmons.com.
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