The White Rose (The Lone City #2)

*This review contains spoilers for The Jewel (The Lone City #1)* 

The White Rose (The Lone City #2): Amy Ewing 
Publication Date: October 6th 

Violet is on the run. After the Duchess of the Lake catches Violet with Ash, the hired companion at the Palace of the Lake, Violet has no choice but to escape the Jewel or face certain death. So along with Ash and her best friend, Raven, Violet runs away from her unbearable life of servitude.

But no one said leaving the Jewel would be easy. As they make their way through the circles of the Lone City, Regimentals track their every move, and the trio barely manages to make it out unscathed and into the safe haven they were promised—a mysterious house in the Farm.

But there’s a rebellion brewing, and Violet has found herself in the middle of it. Alongside a new ally, Violet discovers her Auguries are much more powerful than she ever imagined. But is she strong enough to rise up against the Jewel and everything she has ever known?

I was a huge fan of The Jewel. I read it in January and I thought it was the best book I've read in a LONG time. The plot was so intriguing and the world was just as addicting as it was cruel. For me, the The White Rose didn't pack quite the same punch as The Jewel, but I feel that a lot of second books have that effect. 

So The White Rose picks up literally exactly where The Jewel left off - I mean that cliffhanger was crazy! I feel like a lot of the book was them on the run. You find out almost immediately what Ash's fate is, which I kind of wish we would have been left hanging a little bit on that. This book was more about their independency and not wanting to be stifled by those royal houses anymore. The reason I don't think it had quite the same effect on me was because we don't see much of anyone in The Jewel, and I thought that surrogate/royal or slave/master dynamic was so raw and shocking that it just kind of awed me. Putting aside practically the entire relationship dynamic from book 1, the plot was still solid. I liked seeing the different areas of The Lone City - The Bank, Smoke, Farm. It really showed how each of those areas were affected by the Royal Houses. We also get to see why certain people have the auguries and see those develop more as well. 

“I never paid for you,” I say. “And you are beyond priceless to me.” 

I freaking love Garnet. I would love if he was with Violet, like this is a love triangle I could handle. I mean, that ending of The Jewel, right? I thought for sure they'd be getting together this book. Besides my desire for Garnet and Violet to get together, I think that Garnet is one of the best characters in the book and I don't think that he's getting the attention he deserves. There are a lot of times in the book I wish it would have switched to Garnet's point of view, but since it's not one of those switching point of views books - it never does. I do think that this is the kind of book that multiple point-of-views would add to the effectiveness of the plot. Like I was saying above, I think we missed a lot of what was going on in The Jewel while Violet was the run. ASH! God, I was swooning over him last book but this book he just bugs me. He complains that he isn't being utilized like he should be. Well - then do something about it! He's a grown freaking man and he's letting other people tell him what to do. And of course there's the scenes of him wining about his past. I'm sorry but I'm just not an Ash fan. Team Garnet for life. Come on, guys I know I'm not the only one who's Team Garnet. Anyone? 

“If only someone would help me. If only someone would tell me what to do.” 

Overall, I really liked The White Rose but not as much as The Jewel. There really was no "Big Bad" in the book which I feel like is super important in books. I mean, obviously the Big Bad is the Royal Houses, but we don't really get to see them or hear anything of them so I kind of forgot about them. However, it was a nice follow-up to The Jewel and I'll definitely be continuing with the series (Another Cliff-Hanger!) 

- Jocelyn