The next book in the Entangled With Fae by Tessonja Odette series has came out called A Dream So Wicked. Or will come out very soon, as the paperback releases early compared to the electronic version. This is a standalone book in a connected series, so you don’t have to read the others before you start this book. Though there are mentions of characters from the other books in this one including Maisie, Franco, and Ember. Each book in this series is a retelling of a classic story, this one in particular is Sleeping Beauty. I did receive an advanced reader copy (ARC) of the book in exchange for this review, but my thoughts are my own.
Synopsis
A vicious rivalry.
A forbidden desire.
A curse only her enemy can break.After twenty years stuck in a fae convent with no word from whoever abandoned her there, Briony Rose is all out of hope. But when her parents suddenly claim her and reveal she’s a lost fae princess, she’s burdened with the weight of a kingdom on the brink of collapse. To secure her family’s precarious position, she must marry a wealthy human stranger. She would have done her duty with pride…if it weren’t for Thorne Blackwood.
Thorne Blackwood harbors three things: a secret name, a love for baked goods, and a long-standing plan for revenge on the family that destroyed his own. Briony Rose—a woman born to be his nemesis—provides the solution. With a single touch, he controls her. And through that control, he tricks her into triggering a curse that sends her family into one hundred years of enchanted sleep.
But Briony isn’t the soft princess he expected her to be. She’s just as sharp and cunning as he is, and when she traps him in a bargain to reverse her family’s curse, he has no choice but to join a tense alliance. He too stands to gain from her plans, for if they break the sleeping spell, his own family will return from their forced slumber.
To accomplish their goal, they must cooperate on one task: pair Briony with a husband who will make her parents proud. It should be easy. Thorne has connections while Briony has wit and beauty. What neither of them expects is the forbidden desire that burns in their darkest hearts…
Book Details
- Published: June 30, 2023
- Page Count: 512 pages
- Genre: YA Fantasy and Folklore
Thoughts on A Dream So Wicked
A Dream So Wicked is loosely based on Sleeping Beauty, but instead of Sleeping Beauty (Briony Rose/Rosaline Briar) falling in love with Prince Philip (Monty Phillips) she falls for the son of her enemies (Thorne Blackwood/Vintarys Lemuria). And whereas in the original Sleeping Beauty, Maleficent cursed Sleeping Beauty to prick her finger and fall into a sleep-like death, in A Dream So Wicked both families have multiple curses on them:
- Rosaline if she touches Iron will be bound to it forever. Thorne’s real name means Iron so when he touched her, she became bound to him. Meaning that she has to follow every single one of his commands, which leads to multiple times of him taking away her memories.
- Vintarys can never look at his mother’s face. He was tricked once to looking at his mother’s face and had his eyes melted, so now he has to wear glasses in order to see during daylight but he can see perfectly well in the dark.
- If either family draws the blood of the other, then their entire family will fall into a sleep-like death for a hundred years. Thorne drew blood when he attacked Briony’s uncle for setting off a bomb filled of iron dust on Thorn’s mother and sister. And Briony drew blood when she attacked Thorne for controlling her when he revealed the truth of who he was.
Of course, all of these curses come to pass in some way within the first quarter of the book, so I wouldn’t consider this a spoiler. As the rest of the time we’re following Briony and Thorne attempting to break the sleeping spell on each of their families by completing a task together that neither wants to do but will benefit each of their families. Of course, the more they work towards the goal they set, the less either of them wants it. As they both realize their families are corrupt and that they deserve better.
What is this task?
They have to get Monty to marry Briony and upon that marriage, Briony’s real mother cannot use her magic anymore to secure her father’s throne. Meaning that Thorne’s stepfather, a moon dragon, can challenge for the throne without interference. A benefit for each of their families, but also a task that neither wants to do. As Briony doesn’t want to marry someone she does not know or care for, and Thorne has feelings for Briony.
There are nods along the way to the original tale, while taking on a life of its own.
Briony plays more of an active role in the curses rather than Sleeping Beauty, but we also see that she loves dancing much like the original character and was raised away from her family by three pixies each represented by a specific color. As Thorne is basically Maleficent’s son in this version, we experience that tortured past that led to the families hating one another and he was raised to be a tool for vengeance against Briony’s family. But the two have a past together due to Briony’s daydream magic which allowed her to pull Thorne into her dreams for the past two years before they officially met. Though she wasn’t aware that it was real, while he did but he came to enjoy those dreams so he never said anything. So, despite their history, Thorne still acts out against the Briar clan to get vengeance for what happened to his family fifteen years prior. As we learn that Briony’s family were trying to burn the catacombs where Thorne’s family has been kept. So, Thorne is very much a morally grey character but he never claimed to be otherwise.
There were so many great characters in this book. I loved Briony as she was witty, smart, and devilish, not to mention she is plus-sized. Then there’s Thorne who has a strong sense of honor as everything he does is for his family, but he also has softer moments when he’s baking and shows how much he cares for Briony despite their families hatred of each other. Also, Minka and Mr. Boris were hilarious side characters. I seriously love how willing Minka was to claw someone’s eyes out for wronging Briony. And Monty was such a love-hate character, but he cemented his place when it was revealed that his games were actually his way of getting Thorne and Briony together, rather than actually trying to get with Briony.
I seriously enjoyed reading this book and I can’t wait to see the adult fantasy romcom series that he’ll be in called Fae Flings and Corset Strings. Especially since it’s got Monty in it and given the games he played, I can only imagine what antics he’s going to get up to in that series. Overall, I would give A Dream So Wicked a 3.75 stars out of 5 rating.
Love ya,
Mae Polzine
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