Review of Veiled Rose!

Veiled Rose by Anne Elisabeth Stengl is the sequel to the YA Christian fantasy book Heartless. Rose Red is a girl who has always been in hiding. She stays in a small house with her nanny goat, a man who she calls father, and her secrets beneath numerous veils. Her world is drastically changed when she meets a boy her age named Leo. Leo is a headstrong boy who is determined to find a monster who terrorized the area,  and the two soon become friends, to the horror of Leo's household. But their childhood games soon become real when a monster so great begins to terrorize the kingdom. Leo is determined to stop it, but at what cost? And what is Rose Red hiding beneath all of her veils?

Excellent. Absolutely excellent. This book is even better than the first book, which is saying a lot. The characters are gripping, and I loved how what seemed like a minor character in the last book totally makes sense in this book. A hated character became an understandable person. This book fleshes out Heartless and its characters while strongly conveying a new, different story. This is absolutely one of my favorite fantasy books ever. I loved how the author progressed the friendship of Leo and Rosie in a way that had the reader loving them both. The story is so sweet, and I loved how the story of Rose with all of her veils shows that beauty is beyond the outside appearance. Rose's gentleness, inner strength, and courage shines through in her actions, and she is one of my favorite characters in all of the books I have read. Also, the ending is a great suspenseful build to the next book, Moonblood, which will be released April 2012. Oh, and isn't the cover just amazing?

All in all I rate this book five out of five stars. Truly a great read. I highly, highly recommend it! 

Specifics (from amazon.com):
~ Paperback: 394 pages
~Publisher: Bethany House (July 1, 2011)

Note: Many thanks to the publisher for providing me with a free copy of this book for reviewing purposes.

Blessings,