Entwined by A. J. Rosen Review
Hi babes! Today I’ve got for you another review brought to you by Wattpad Books!
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I would like to thank Wattpad Books for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
I also filmed a YouTube video which you can check out here:
Quick summary:
The story follows our main protagonist Avery who lives in a society descended from Greek gods and goddesses. Avery is brought to the Royal Court to take part in her first Gathering, which people attend in hopes of finding their soulmate. Avery finds herself not wanting to find her other half and get away from the traditions that her kind followed for generations. Things get complicated when a series of suspicious and tragic events occurs, further reminding us that there is something mysterious going on. With the help of her best friend’s brother Vlad, whom she didn’t get along with, and Adrian, who keeps flirting with her, Avery tries to uncover the truth while also keeping in mind that any day, she could find her soulmate and lose herself.
Overall review:
AJ Rosen created a world that pushes the limits of your imagination and makes you wonder how anybody could come up with such a story. The mystery aspect is what made this book impossible to put down and easy to read through the night and until early hours of the morning. If you pick it up, prepare to get sucked into the world of Greek mythology and murder.
Characters:
Avery felt like an interesting character at first but then the more the story progressed, she felt quite flat. Everybody kept telling her that she was fierce and built this image of her but the only thing she lived up to when it came to her reputation was her recklessness. She didn’t come across as feisty or fierce, just rash.
Due to the circumstances of the story, I was very suspicious of Adrian. He’s a sweetheart but there was something off about him that I couldn’t quite put my finger on.
Because we had been informed of a love triangle in the summary, I couldn’t help but be biased and root for Vlad, her best friend’s older brother. He seemed like the only sensible one in this story.
World-building:
The society is split into three castes: Pure Royals (descendants of the big three), Royals (all other gods and goddesses), and Regulars (everybody descended from minor gods). Our main character belongs in the last category, marking her an unimportant subject compared to everybody else.
The history behind the beginning of the Hellenicus (this race that was then split into castes) was what made me truly sit down and try to pick my jaw up from the floor. It’s been a while since I’ve encountered such a strong beginning in a story. I loved every aspect of it and the introduction we got in order to better understand how everything worked. For some people, the first chapter could count as an info-dump but I think this book got away with it because it was done so well. It was easy to understand and interesting enough to keep on reading. The imagination it took to come up with the foundation of this story blows my mind.
Atmosphere:
I couldn’t really get behind the atmosphere in this book. The atmosphere itself didn’t stand out to me that much because there was a lot of telling and not showing going on. It’s unfortunate but it didn’t take that much away from my enjoyment of the story.
Writing:
The author’s strong points are the descriptions and weaknesses are the cliche and cheesy dialogues. A lot of these conversations could’ve been reworked to make them less cringy and more enjoyable. The book could use a beta reader or two just to make sure everything is the best it can be.
The writing itself, apart from it being tell and not show, felt awfully convenient. It was as if everybody disappeared in order for Avery to have bonding moments with the two boys. Her parents were gone most of the time, only appearing to remind the reader that they still existed. Things didn’t happen to help progress the plot, it was mostly on Avery to do that. One advice I’d have for AJ Rosen moving forward and it’s completely up to the author to take it, is to create some external forces to help progress the plot and force a split-second reaction out of the main character. Have the character not expect things yet be forced to make decisions that move the plot further.
Taking a step back from afore-mentioned dialogues and convenience, AJ Rosen’s writing and descriptions are anything but repetitive. To be honest, it’s far better than anything I could’ve written. I have really enjoyed that aspect of the story because I thought it was done really well without making the reader lose interest.
Plot and pacing:
The plot itself was easy to follow but the pacing was a little bit off at times. One second, our main character could be hanging out with her friends and the next, she’d be already in her room asleep. I’d love it if these scenes had a smoother transition from one to another. The idea behind the suspicious events that surrounded Avery intrigued me and I needed to know what happened. A lot of the scenes inside the book could’ve easily been skipped because they weren’t detrimental to the story and they could have been replaced with something more high-stakes. The book itself had high points and low points – chapters where a lot of things have been happening and chapters that didn’t need to happen.
Enjoyment:
My enjoyment mostly derived from the intensity that the mystery provided. The plot twists in the second half of the book when everything had finally been established made me scream in excitement that my theories were either debunked or confirmed.
When I say that I’ve had many, many theories, that doesn’t even come close to painting the real picture on how many theories I’ve had. This book kept me at the edge of my seat, constantly guessing and trying to predict the final outcome.
And I couldn’t have predicted half of the things that ended up revealing themselves.
The main question for this book: does the mystery make up for some of the weaknesses this book has?
Yes. Definitely. I would 100% recommend it. If anything, at least you’re highly entertained.
All in all, I’m giving this book 4 stars because it in my opinion deserves it. I can understand why a lot of people on Wattpad enjoyed this book because it makes you constantly question what is going to happen next. It is a black hole, sucking you in and spitting you out with even more questions.
With that being said: I NEED THE SECOND BOOK. PLEASE. Thank you
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