Roses, Briars and Blood: A Gothic Retelling of Sleeping Beauty by Alyne de Winter

3.5 This started so wonderfully. The language was rich and evocative full of mystery and tension. I shivered with anticipation as I dug in. Unfortunately, the ending didn't quite live up to the beginning. It was disjointed and quick. There were places that I wasn't really sure what was happening. I thought the overall concept was brilliant - a sorceress who needs a younger body and a queen desperate enough for a child to defy the church. I think had the story been longer and some things clarified, it would have been much better. There was also abrupt changes in time from one paragraph to the next. I read it on my Kindle, so perhaps it just didn't recognize a break from one thought to another. I did enjoy the tale, and I think that it is definitely a unique take on the Sleeping Beauty fairy tale. I just wanted a little bit more - more information,more development of the nine fairies who were very mysterious, and more world building. I did love the introduction which gave great motivations for character decisions and why the sorceress would doll out so great a punishment.