I received an Advanced Reader Copy of The Witch of Painted Sorrows by M.J. Rose, from Atria Books via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This in no way impacted my review.
Possession. Power. Passion. New York Times bestselling novelist M. J. Rose creates her most provocative and magical spellbinder yet in this gothic novel set against the lavish 
spectacle of 1890s Belle Époque Paris.
Sandrine Salome flees New York for her grandmother’s Paris mansion to escape her dangerous husband, but what she finds there is even more menacing. The house, famous for its lavish art collection and elegant salons, is mysteriously closed up. Although her grandmother insists it’s dangerous for Sandrine to visit, she defies her and meets Julien Duplessi, a mesmerizing young architect. Together they explore the hidden night world of Paris, the forbidden occult underground and Sandrine’s deepest desires.
Among the bohemians and the demi-monde, Sandrine discovers her erotic nature as a lover and painter. Then darker influences threaten—her cold and cruel husband is tracking her down and something sinister is taking hold, changing Sandrine, altering her. She’s become possessed by La Lune: A witch, a legend, and a sixteenth-century courtesan, who opens up her life to a darkness that may become a gift or a curse.
This is Sandrine’s “wild night of the soul,” her odyssey in the magnificent city of Paris, of art, love, and witchery.
Publication Date: March 17, 2015.
What I was looking forward to most in The Witch of Painted Sorrows, was the Gothic, Witches, Fantasy and Romance aspects of this novel. What I wasn’t looking forward to was the Historical Fiction. I don’t normally read Historical Fiction unless there’s quite a bit of fantasy to overlap it, and I was sincerely hoping that in The Witch of Painted Sorrows, the Fantasy aspects of this novel would overtake the fact that this book takes place in the year 1894.
The writing feels is akin to something that comes out of an age-old fairy tale.
Drawn in by the alluring synopsis, i pictured that The Witch of Painted Sorrows would be a quick read. While the story was entertaining, it is not one that I could have enjoyed to the fullest.
I didn’t like that The Witch of Painted Sorrows was slow on the uptake.
What I liked about The Witch of Painted Sorrows is that I could very easily be drawn into the story. With the slow build up of the story however, I knew that I was *reading* a story, rather than living the story alongside the character.
I marked The Witch of Painted Sorrows as Did Not Finish (DNF) at 23%.
I give (what I read of) The Witch of Painted Sorrows, 2 stars.
Happy Reading!
— Adele
Meet Kara Hartman, a young painter living and working in D.C. She would love to let you believe she is just an ordinary young woman with a dream of sharing her art with the world. But she is hiding an astonishing secret: Kara can wield magic, the most powerful force in the universe. Traumatized by the loss of her brother, she wants nothing more to do with magic. But when an old foe resurfaces, hellbent on destroying all that she loves, Kara has no choice but to embrace the only power that can stop her.
A year ago, Brooke Covington lost everything when her beloved older brother, Jason, confessed to the murder of his best friend, Calvin. Brooke and her family became social pariahs, broken and unable to console one another. Brooke’s only solace remains the ice-skating rink, where she works but no longer lets herself dream about a future skating professionally.
Adele Is Reading 