Venía con expectativas altísimas porque el libro anterior fue de mis favoritos, pero Las rosas de mayo me dejó una gran decepción. La historia es lenta y monótona; sentía que no pasaba nada, y honestamente, intenté leerlo en diferentes momentos, hasta en mis viajes, pero terminaba adormecida sin sentir que me estaba perdiendo de nada importante.

Aunque se anuncia como una historia independiente, está llena de referencias al primer libro, y el asesino de esta entrega tiene una presencia casi fantasmagórica. La narrativa es confusa, mezclando escenas en tiempos y lugares diferentes sin ninguna transición clara. De un párrafo a otro, pasas de una historia a otra, y te encuentras de repente con personajes nuevos que no te dan tiempo de procesar.

El asesino aparece cerca del 85% del libro, y cuando parece que finalmente habrá algo de acción, la escena se corta. En vez de mostrarnos lo que ocurre, el autor prefiere narrar cómo el detective se sube a un avión, y para cuando volvemos a la historia, la protagonista ya está en el hospital. Y el final… es un meh absoluto. En lugar de desarrollar la trama, el libro se llena de escenas de amistad entre la chica y el detective que sienten más como relleno que como algo realmente relevante.

📃frases📃
🌻"Siempre estuve rota, y siempre estuve conforme con eso."
🌻"¿Cómo te reconstruyes cuando las piezas que se han perdido para siempre son las únicas razones que te hacen visible?"
🌻"No deberíamos tener que componernos si no queremos. No deberíamos tener que ser fuertes o valientes o tener esperanza ni ninguna mierda de esas."
🌻"está bien no estar bien. No le debemos eso a nadie"
🌻"Las amistades entre los hombres son de lo más extrañas"

I would say this book could be read as a standalone, but it is definitely a more enjoyable read if you already know and love the characters. Roses of May revisits the Quantico Three, the FBI agents responsible for investigating the Gardener’s torturous acts. It’s spring, which means a serial killer from a different open case will strike again soon. While thrilling, this book was definitely not as dark and disturbing as the first. Phew! (I’m sure none of the other books in this series will live up to The Butterfly Garden 😬) One thing I struggled with was the nature of Agent Eddison and Priya’s relationship. The two met because the aforementioned serial killer murdered Priya’s sister. She is a minor. They’re texting, he’s looking out for her, and they refer to each other as family. At the end of the book he kisses her forehead in farewell and IDDDKKKK. I get she doesn’t have a dad anymore and so maybe he is a new father figure to her, but it was slightly ick. Maybe Eddison sees her as the sister he lost many years ago? Slightly weird, folks! In any event, it was worth my time, and it was a bit refreshing to not have to read about the Gardener on every page. 🥴 The next book appears to be Agent Ramirez’s time in the spotlight!

The second book in the Collector series was not what I expected, but I really enjoyed it nonetheless. I assumed it would follow more along with the life of the butterflies after the garden, which it did to a certain extent, but it was off to the side around another crime being investigated by the original FBI agents. 
Both stories interlinked and I really enjoyed following along.

Again, I listened to this one on Audible over a couple of days, going back and forth to work, and then the last 40% on my kindle to finish it off as I didn’t want to wait until Monday to find out how it ended. 

Looking forward to getting into the third book of the series :)

There are some triggering/sensitive material in this book, but not as much as The Butterfly Garden. is was an intertwined story. Gave some details and progress of where The Butterfly Garden left off and had another story that also ties into it. It was an enjoyable read.

A fitting sequel to Butterfly Garden and yet much less disturbing. Priya is a lovable yet fierce teen who is just as much a part of the Quantico Three as any outsider could be. The relationship between her and Eddison is perfect and her choice of companions in her new town feels natural. The most shocking parts of this story isn't so much in the "monster" as it is in the quiet moments in between. Definitely looking forward to the next book in the series, even if the "bad guy" for this story was pretty predictable.