As the alpha of her pack, Calla Tor has been a strong, brave leader who refuses to miss a fight. But this final battle is not a sure thing for her pack or the Searchers. It is all or nothing; everything is at stake. She needs to save Ren and keep Ansel safe and keep her focus when it comes to dealing with her feelings for the two alphas in her life. But all of that will only matter if they all survive the war.

Going into Bloodrose after reading Wolfsbane, which I liked but did not love like I loved Nightshade, I was more cautious. At about two hundred pages in, almost halfway through the entire book, nothing had really touched me yet. Not deeply anyway. It worried me. Am I the only one who felt this way? I am sure I am in the minority, but maybe I am not the only one. 

For the majority of the book, I felt disconnected. I really cannot figure out why. Does it all stem from my feelings of Wolfbane? I did like the second book, but maybe something shifted in me since it did not live up to Nightshade. Maybe that has carried over to Bloodrose.

I can say that Calla tries to turn herself around and be more like Nightshade Calla than Wolfsbane Calla. But this evolved version of Calla still falls somewhere between the two. She is an alpha and a force to be reckoned with but she can no longer deny her emotions. She has to find a balance. There were still times when I wanted to throttle her but I was finally able to find my peace with her.

The development of a lot of the characters came about organically and really pleased me while the development of one in particular (which changed in Wolfsbane) really irked me. Still, I was even able to come to terms with that character.

There were a lot of little humorous and touching moments throughout the whole book and I am sure many fans of the trilogy can guess which characters were involved in those moments. There were also a lot of heartbreaking moments, but they did not affect me as much as they may affect other readers.

Still, Bloodrose had to go out with a bang and it was a rather impressive and unexpected one. Things really became interesting for me in the last thirty or so pages. That last bit of Bloodrose made me feel invested in the characters and the story again. 

The whole trilogy has been about making choices, mainly Calla’s, but other ones as well. A lot of this choosing came too late and in some cases, choice was lost.

I loved Nightshade. I kind of liked Wolfsbane. But I liked Bloodrose more and loved its ending. Despite my issues with parts of the trilogy, it has overall led to a pleasurable reading experience and I look forward to Andrea Cremer’s future projects.

It has been a crazy journey that has ended on a bittersweet, yet fulfilling, note.

Recommended for those sixteen and up who enjoy young adult novels, especially ones involving paranormal elements and wolves. Also for those who are already fans of Andrea Cremer and her books. Minor sexual content and language. Some violence.