Review: Never The Roses by Jennifer K. Lambert
- Grace
- 5 days ago
- 5 min read
I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
“Dealing death, leveling destruction, stealing from dreams, those things are easy. Creating, sustaining, nurturing—those take true skill.” She reached out and tapped a crooked finger over Oneira’s heart. “They require something of your self that cannot be bought or stolen.”
Never The Roses has a beautiful, almost fairytale- like quality that I really enjoyed. The writing was lyrical and the slow-burn romance had playful, fun moments.
Tired of fighting the endless wars of Kings & Queens, the Dread Sorceress Oneira has retired, alone at last. However with only the company of a few uninvited companions - a near-mythical wolf, a goddess’s avatar, and a feline that embodies magic itself - she soon realises she's bored and makes an unlikely trp to the most extensive library in existence: the home of her most powerful rival, the sorcerer Stearanos.
However when Oneria recklessly steals a book from him, she inadvertently initiates a forbidden correspondence of taunting notes and clever retorts that reveals a connection neither has found in any other.
"You’re bored is what you are,” she observed without rancor. “I was. Not anymore. You’re the most interesting thing to happen to me in a very long time.”
Never The Roses was one of my most anticipated reads of the year, and while I went in with high expectations – and did enjoy it – it turned out to be quite different from what I was expecting. I went into it assuming the focus of the plot would be on either the potential war or Oneria & Stearanos’ relationship, but the heart of the book is really Oneria’s personal journey which was a pleasant surprise.
I did find that Never The Roses was a little slow to start, but once it did, I found myself slowly drawn into its dreamlike, almost poignant atmosphere. It's a slow-burn romance in every sense: the protagonists don’t even meet until around the halfway point but I loved that when they do actually meet, they’re both prepared to kill each other. Yet somehow, they end up having quite an almost playful & teasing interaction, almost playing house while maintaining their calculating and distrustful natures, while also bonding over their shared hatred of war. Their interactions were oddly charming and I really enjoyed it.
“Of the two of us, you are the one who boldly takes what she wants—your freedom from debt, my books, the roses. I didn’t think you would be the one to be too afraid to take anything else you want.” “You are assuming that I want you,” she retorted, stung. “I don’t have to assume. I know. That kiss went two ways, sorceress, and you cannot pretend to me that you didn’t feel what I did. The question is whether you’re willing to come to me and ask for it, thief. No more stealing from me.”
The chemistry between the Oneria & Stearanos was fun and playful and there was a lot of mischief and banter. I loved that when Stearanos realises who has been breaking into his library he starts spiralling through all these conspiracies about her motivations and is convinced she must have a deeper agenda but her agenda is literally that she’d read all the books she had at home and wanted something new to read.
“You drive me crazy, Oneira. You fascinate me. I am interested and aroused. I want more.” He’d closed the distance between them as he spoke, ending up close enough to her to feel the warmth of her skin, to catch the scent of herbs from her hair. She had to tip her head back slightly to hold his gaze, refusing to give any ground. … “Give it a try, Oneira. You have only your loneliness to lose. Let me show you how it can be.”
The relationship between Stearanos & Oneria was quite sweet and held a lot of promise, but did feel a little rushed. I really liked their dynamic but at times it felt flat and a little underdeveloped. Although in saying that, I really can’t see how Jennifer K. Lambert could have resolved this or fleshed out their relationship more given the structure of the story & plot, while still focusing on Oneria’s personal journey because at its heart, Never the Roses does seem to be primarily about Oneria’s personal growth rather than her romantic relationship or the potential war.
More than the romance, more than the war, Never The Roses is Oneria’s story of reckoning – of coming to terms with her past actions and the choices she has made and her growing need for atonement. In that sense, it felt more like an old-world fairytale than a traditional fantasy romance. The raw, unearthly kind of fairytale, where the resolution is more about learning a lesson than wrapping everything up with a perfectly happy ending.
The writing style was undeniably beautiful – almost like prose with a dreamy, introspective quality that fits perfectly with the plot and was focused more on the emotional heart of the story than action.
“Suffering isn’t quantifiable. It cannot be counted and weighed and totaled up to be compared to another’s. Suffering is personal and we all suffer in our own ways, struggling under the burden of it.”
My heart ached for Oneria, seeing her vulnerability and wistful longing for connection as the story progressed was heartbreaking. There was a touching honesty in Oneria’s inner monologue when she reflects on how no one’s ever truly shown interest in her, and deciding to settle for Tristan’s, a man sent to seduce her into returning to her Queens service, interest in her because it would still be better than nothing was tragic, but made me root for her even more.
“He would be gone again soon enough and it wasn’t as if men flocked to her gate – entirely her fault, what with the wards, but still – and Tristan was so harmless.”
Never The Roses is a compelling story, and I’m hopeful there might be a second book, because this one felt like just the beginning. It did have a bit of an open ending to it, where it could potentially be continued in another book, or it could be an open ending that allows for the reader to form their own conclusion, reminiscent of many fairy-tales which would fit the overall tone of the story.
Overall, Never The Roses was an introspective fantasy with fairy-tale undertones, a unique and atmospheric story with compelling characters and I’d be interested to read more about these characters & this world.
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