Book Review: The Rose Society by Marie Lu

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The Rose Society
The Young Elites #2
Author: Marie Lu
Reading Level: Young Adult
Genre: Fantasy
Released: October 13th 2015
Review Source: G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers 

Once upon a time, a girl had a father, a prince, a society of friends. Then they betrayed her, and she destroyed them all.

Adelina Amouteru’s heart has suffered at the hands of both family and friends, turning her down the bitter path of revenge. Now known and feared as the White Wolf, she and her sister flee Kenettra to find other Young Elites in the hopes of building her own army of allies. Her goal: to strike down the Inquisition Axis, the white-cloaked soldiers who nearly killed her.

But Adelina is no heroine. Her powers, fed only by fear and hate, have started to grow beyond her control. She does not trust her newfound Elite friends. Teren Santoro, leader of the Inquisition, wants her dead. And her former friends, Raffaele and the Dagger Society, want to stop her thirst for vengeance. Adelina struggles to cling to the good within her. But how can someone be good, when her very existence depends on darkness?

This book was so dark and I freaking loved it!

It’s like reading Tom Riddle turn into He Who Must Not Be Named…

In The Rose Society, Adelina is losing her grip. The girl has gone mad. Mad for power and she wants it all. It was actually scary to read some parts. All the hate she’s feeding on. It’s actually heartbreaking to see your main character like this. It was so hard that at some point... that I was wishing she would fail. I know, I feel terrible for writing this, but when you read this book, you will understand. Also, it was a weird experience. Yet it was amazing.

As a fan of Marie, I always expect action. She did give us heart-racing moments, but with The Rose Society, she threw in a new element I’ve never read before from her. That is dark fantasy. This antihero is feeding on hate and only wants power. I remember I kept saying “Calm down, Sméagol. Calm down”. To be honest this was a love/hate type of story. You hate it so much that you love it! The way Marie Lu told this story is by far her best writing I’ve read. Seriously, she needs to write more dark stories.

Overall, The Rose Society is fantastic. It's so dark yet beautifully told. It’s fascinating to see your main character feed on power and turning into this... villain. Gosh, she's terribly blinded by power! You want to shake her and make her realize what she's doing. Such an emotional roller coaster.

You have to read The Rose Society. That is all. Just be warned, the ending is insane! It’s a slap to your face. And you you have to go back just to get slap again. It’s genius! The Young Elites is a series you do not want to miss out on!