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lucyselim's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
I really don't know how to feel about this book. On the one hand I love the representation and the story is pretty decent, if somewhat predictable, but I also just felt something lacking. However, I know I would have loved this book more when I was a teenager. To conclude, whilst realising I am not in the target audience, I am still a little disappointed with this book overall, but I love the casual gayness.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Car accident, Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Gun violence, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Medical content, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Biphobia, Domestic abuse, Gore, Homophobia, Lesbophobia, Physical abuse, Sexual content, and Torture
librariangeorgia's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Animal death, Fire/Fire injury, Car accident, Violence, and Death
Minor: Homophobia and Biphobia
smillas_tales's review against another edition
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
This book was such a good time, and exactly what I was looking for this spooky season! It’s got queer witches and a murdererous mystery, and if that doesn’t get your attention, I’m not sure what will!
This is a super fast-paced story with a deadly mystery element, and a cute queer romance. But don’t be fooled, it does take a darker turn than I expected, so consider checking the trigger warnings beforehand!
While I love a fast-paced story, I did find it almost a little too fast at some points. I think this book could’ve benefited from being a little longer! The characters seemed to move on a little too quickly from some of the very serious plot points, and I would’ve loved a bigger focus on the consequences.
Similarly, the romance moved a little too quickly for my liking. But as it’s only a side plot, and both characters are very lovable, it didn’t affect my enjoyment! It was lovely reading about a mostly uncomplicated sapphic romance for once!
Overall, I liked the characterwork and their dynamics, and the abundance of LGBTQ+ characters was wonderful! Hannah can be a bit frustrating at times, though. She’s horrible at communicating, and the mystery probably would’ve been resolved a lot quicker if she had communicated better.
The mystery itself was a little predictable, but I did have a few different theories throughout the book, and the reveal was satisfying. Although not a perfect read, I’m stoked to get to the sequel!
This is a super fast-paced story with a deadly mystery element, and a cute queer romance. But don’t be fooled, it does take a darker turn than I expected, so consider checking the trigger warnings beforehand!
While I love a fast-paced story, I did find it almost a little too fast at some points. I think this book could’ve benefited from being a little longer! The characters seemed to move on a little too quickly from some of the very serious plot points, and I would’ve loved a bigger focus on the consequences.
Similarly, the romance moved a little too quickly for my liking. But as it’s only a side plot, and both characters are very lovable, it didn’t affect my enjoyment! It was lovely reading about a mostly uncomplicated sapphic romance for once!
Overall, I liked the characterwork and their dynamics, and the abundance of LGBTQ+ characters was wonderful! Hannah can be a bit frustrating at times, though. She’s horrible at communicating, and the mystery probably would’ve been resolved a lot quicker if she had communicated better.
The mystery itself was a little predictable, but I did have a few different theories throughout the book, and the reveal was satisfying. Although not a perfect read, I’m stoked to get to the sequel!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Car accident and Violence
Moderate: Death of parent
Minor: Animal death, Homophobia, Lesbophobia, and Biphobia
tyhud's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
This book had a great start, slow middle, and absolutely explosive last act. While the teen breakup drama did get a bit tiring, it was amazing how well Sterling was able to show them slowly working through it and dealing with their big teenage emotions throughout the events of the book. I love the cast we've settled into in the end and I'm beyond excited to read more!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent
Moderate: Death
Minor: Homophobia, Lesbophobia, and Biphobia
casmurphy's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Grief, Kidnapping, Toxic relationship, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Animal death, Biphobia, Medical content, Stalking, and Violence
regenerating's review against another edition
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Grief, and Murder
Moderate: Homophobia and Stalking
Minor: Biphobia
megplant's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Grief, Gun violence, and Violence
Minor: Biphobia and Homophobia
katbamkapow's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
mysterious
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
It's a sweet, unchallenging novel about a teen witch and her trials and tribulations with both girl trouble and a murderous witch hunter trying to kill her. It's easy enough to read and hits all the right notes. Occasionally I had to skip past descriptions of bodily harm -- not because they were particularly graphic, but just because I couldn't really handle it at the time.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and Grief
Minor: Animal death, Biphobia, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, and Violence
Spoilered content warnings for:bookishandlegal's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I really enjoyed this on! Solid YA set in Salem, MA with queer main characters and witchy vibes. I mean honestly, what else can we want out of our YA's than that? This book had mystery, intrigue, romance, and so much more. It was a super quick read and I just kept going until I finished it.
There is a looooottt of toxic relationship, emotional abuse, and manipulation going on with the main character from her ex-girlfriend (who also happens to be the only other teenage witch in her coven in town, which ends up throwing them together a lot more often than they would like). Victoria is honestly one of the most manipulative and abusive characters I've read about in a long time. I wanted to reach into the book and yell at her so many times! But I found that Hannah did a really great job of standing her ground, expressing her disapproval of how Victoria was treating her, attempting to set boundaries, and not letting herself be treated badly anymore/recognizing she deserved better. There were downfalls and she forgave to quickly sometimes, but she's 17 and no one's perfect.
This really was such a fun book and trying to work out what was happening in the town and who was after Hannah and her coven was entertaining. The story/plot kept up nicely and was engaging and interesting throughout. The characters were well developed and were likable and you were rooting for them. I didn't see the ending coming or who was behind the targeting of the coven. I definitely will be picking up the second one in this series to see how the story continues.
There is a looooottt of toxic relationship, emotional abuse, and manipulation going on with the main character from her ex-girlfriend (who also happens to be the only other teenage witch in her coven in town, which ends up throwing them together a lot more often than they would like). Victoria is honestly one of the most manipulative and abusive characters I've read about in a long time. I wanted to reach into the book and yell at her so many times! But I found that Hannah did a really great job of standing her ground, expressing her disapproval of how Victoria was treating her, attempting to set boundaries, and not letting herself be treated badly anymore/recognizing she deserved better. There were downfalls and she forgave to quickly sometimes, but she's 17 and no one's perfect.
This really was such a fun book and trying to work out what was happening in the town and who was after Hannah and her coven was entertaining. The story/plot kept up nicely and was engaging and interesting throughout. The characters were well developed and were likable and you were rooting for them. I didn't see the ending coming or who was behind the targeting of the coven. I definitely will be picking up the second one in this series to see how the story continues.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Homophobia, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Biphobia and Death
Minor: Animal death
rave's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Violence, Animal death, and Blood
Moderate: Medical content
Minor: Biphobia
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