Disclaimer: I received this e-arc from the tour company. Thanks! All opinions are my own.

Book: The Chalice and the Crown

Author: Kassandra Flamouri

Book Series: Standalone?

Rating: 3/5

Recommended For...: Magic, Rebellion

Publication Date: June 5, 2020

Genre: Fantasy

Recommended Age: 17+ (violence, assault, slavery, death, sexual abuse TW, physical abuse TW)

Publisher: Indie Published

Pages: 364

Synopsis: Driven, talented, and determined to live up to her family's fame, Sasha Nikolayeva is ballet’s crown princess. But just when Sasha lands her most prestigious role yet, she falls prey to a host of disturbing neurological symptoms that threaten to end her career and her very life. As her mind and body deteriorate, Sasha spirals into a nightmare world where beauty and cruelty exist in the same breath and villains rule from the shadows.

In the glittering, sharp-edged City of Roses, Sasha is no princess. She’s a thrall, a slave. Thousands like her suffer in cursed silence while citizens enjoy the splendor of the City, blissfully unaware that their servants are anything more than living dolls enchanted to do their bidding. But the City's slavers know the truth, and they are always watching. One misstep could cost Sasha her life—or her soul.

Even as she endures the violence and indignity of captivity, Sasha can't help being drawn to the beauty of her nightmare world and the underground rebels who offer her friendship, shelter, even love. Before Sasha can break her chains for good, she'll need to choose between the life waiting for her at home and the countless lives she could save if she stays. To choose a nightmare over her real life, her future, would be madness...but maybe a little madness is just what it takes to change the fate of a city built on lies.

Review: For the most part this book was pretty good. The plot was interesting and the character development was really well done. I feel like the writing was also very well done and it made it easy to breeze through the novel.

However, this was an incredibly dark book and it was very hard for me to get through. I advise everyone to be careful reading this one.

Verdict: A good book, but so dark.