Title: The White Rose

Author: Amy Ewing

Series: The Lone City #2

Genre: Teen Dystopian

Release Date: October 6, 2015

Rating: 4.5/5 stars

The Overview: 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?

The Review:

I admit that, even though I fangirled over The Jewel for several months after finishing it (heck, even before I actually read it – have you seen that cover??), I didn’t think the second book would be nearly as good (jaded reader, party of one). But you know what? The White Rose was awesome and I take back all of the judgy, negative feels I had about it.

It started out with a bang and didn’t really let up until the end. Great pacing aside, I loved the half-dozen amazing things I learned in this book about the characters, the city, the magic… I could go on, but suffice to say it was basically one big revelation after another as many of my questions were answered (and were inevitably replaced by several much more desperate ones). So I’m basically torn between happiness and how much I liked The White Rose and FREAKING OUT that I have to wait another year to find out what happens next (seriously, why does this always happen to me? ::sobs::). Okay, I’m done being a baby (mostly), but it’s worth noting that I think The Lone City series is totally worth the wait.

In my review of The Jewel, I stated several very specific reasons why I liked it (yes, I’m quoting myself):

I found everything about The Jewel a mite unexpected. The love interest was fantastically unconventional, all of the characters showed duality, the subject matter was slightly more serious than a typical YA, and the plot never followed the route I thought it would. All of these elements were delightful twists that made the book stand out that much more.

And the best thing is, all of these things are still true about The White Rose. I still don’t know where the story is going (even though I have several speculations), and in a world of predictable YA storytelling, that’s an exciting thing!

I’m a huge fan of The Selection Trilogy, and the series will definitely put you in a similar kind of mood. While the Lone City (so far) lacks just a little bit of the magic that made The Selection so addicting, it makes up for it with the great writing, more robust world building, fewer plot holes, and loads of memorable moments. My only qualm is that the ending felt too rushed (which I bet I wouldn’t have noticed if the third one were out because I would’ve just kept going #getoveritalready). The moral of the story is, I happily recommend this series along with these:

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