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blewballoon's review against another edition
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I was enjoying this book just fine and then I'm not sure what happened, but around the 60% mark I started to feel exasperated with it and just wanted to finish as quickly as possible.
I liked the concept of the magic seamstress who could imbue her embroidery with emotion, and the tension that her magic came with a price and it would weaken her if she used it too much. I was baffled by the juxtaposition of this setup with a multitude of other (arguably more valuable and powerful) forms of magic that cost nothing for the users. People can just shoot lighting, have Elsa's Frozen powers, sprout plants everywhere, and more! This made it seem out of place that the main character's abilities would be so valuable, half the time she didn't even sew the right emotion into the garments that were commissioned of her. Speaking of, the book tries to make it seem like there's a little bit of a found family situation going on with the group of royals she is working for, but every time they are like "aww you work too hard, just relax!" it doesn't hit right because the reason she is working so hard is because of the complicated garments they have ordered her to create in such a short time frame?
I thought the political aspects of the plot were a bit weak and/or nonsensical.How the hell could the prince regent keep the fact that the country was out of money hidden from anyone? They specifically say he's hiding it from Parliament? What? It was so obvious that was what he was hiding, but it didn't make sense. At the end most of the issues are basically resolved by "people inexplicably became a lot more chill about everything, and they just talked about stuff off-page and it all worked out."
Ultimately I probably could have looked past all of the above if I liked the romance more. I was looking for some cute tension with the premise of a seamstress falling in love with her client (like a gender swap of The Siren of Sussex by Mimi Matthews) but I felt let down by the small amount of sewing/fitting/garments in the story. Kit kind of does the bare minimum in terms of being a love interest. He's outwardly a jerk most of the time and he turns on Niamh at the slightest discomfort. Their bickering/banter didn't feel healthy because the power dynamic was off-balance. I'm not even sure if having Kit's perspective would have helped.
I'll cut myself off there, I feel like I've complained enough. The audiobook narrator was pretty good, and the cover is gorgeous. I also didn't mind the writing style, there were some really pretty yet effective descriptions. I would try this author again.
I liked the concept of the magic seamstress who could imbue her embroidery with emotion, and the tension that her magic came with a price and it would weaken her if she used it too much. I was baffled by the juxtaposition of this setup with a multitude of other (arguably more valuable and powerful) forms of magic that cost nothing for the users. People can just shoot lighting, have Elsa's Frozen powers, sprout plants everywhere, and more! This made it seem out of place that the main character's abilities would be so valuable, half the time she didn't even sew the right emotion into the garments that were commissioned of her. Speaking of, the book tries to make it seem like there's a little bit of a found family situation going on with the group of royals she is working for, but every time they are like "aww you work too hard, just relax!" it doesn't hit right because the reason she is working so hard is because of the complicated garments they have ordered her to create in such a short time frame?
I thought the political aspects of the plot were a bit weak and/or nonsensical.
Ultimately I probably could have looked past all of the above if I liked the romance more. I was looking for some cute tension with the premise of a seamstress falling in love with her client (like a gender swap of The Siren of Sussex by Mimi Matthews) but I felt let down by the small amount of sewing/fitting/garments in the story. Kit kind of does the bare minimum in terms of being a love interest. He's outwardly a jerk most of the time and he turns on Niamh at the slightest discomfort. Their bickering/banter didn't feel healthy because the power dynamic was off-balance. I'm not even sure if having Kit's perspective would have helped.
I'll cut myself off there, I feel like I've complained enough. The audiobook narrator was pretty good, and the cover is gorgeous. I also didn't mind the writing style, there were some really pretty yet effective descriptions. I would try this author again.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual content, Chronic illness, Classism, Homophobia, and Xenophobia
Minor: Death of parent, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Alcohol, and War
theresamothinmyroom's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Death of parent, and Chronic illness
inkysplodge's review against another edition
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Xenophobia
Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, and Homophobia
nataliealane's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
What I liked:
-The friendships
-The romance is so sweet and full of yearning. Kit and Niamh have a lot of personal work to do and trauma to unpack, but that doesn’t mean that aren’t worthy of love or a relationship right now/as they are healing and still messy.
-Niamh’s character. She is clumsy, diehard romantic/idealist, and unapologetically feminine and loves pretty things. She is also loyal (to a fault perhaps) and stubborn, and I love her magical ability. I’ve only read a couple other books that have fabric/sewing-based magic.
What I didn’t like:
-The last third of the book fell flat for me. It seemed rushed, the characters made some really dumb decisions in a last ditch effort to save the day, and everything kind of seemed to magically resolve/tie together nicely with a bow despite that.
-I wanted more magic! I always want more magic though😂 Maybe that’s why romantasy isn’t really my favorite
-Technically, the romance is cheating/an affair as Kit has a fiancée (albeit a purely political match/“marriage of duty”).
Overall, A Fragile Enchantment is not my favorite book from Saft, but it was so fun to read! I read it as an e-ARC, but I do think I will eventually pick up my own physical copy.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Colonisation, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Ableism and Sexual content
Minor: Biphobia, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Child abuse, Addiction, Alcoholism, Death of parent, and Self harm
drtx_bwt's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Colonisation, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Infidelity, Homophobia, and Death of parent
Minor: Injury/Injury detail and Terminal illness
kirstenf's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Addiction, Alcoholism, and Colonisation
Moderate: Sexual content, Grief, Classism, Death of parent, Homophobia, Domestic abuse, and Death
Minor: Lesbophobia, Police brutality, Religious bigotry, War, Antisemitism, and Cursing
scarlett_f's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Most unusual, disjointed romance I think I've read. Whiney, repetitive protagonist. Boringly clumsy. Skip this for a better read.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cursing, Grief, Homophobia, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Bullying, Misogyny, Confinement, Death of parent, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Alcoholism, Classism, Alcohol, and Emotional abuse
natraf_reads's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
I loved this ! A perfect, soft hearted, forbidden romance between a prince and a commoner. This book had me in all the feels wishing for them to be able to be together despite what was expected of the prince’s responsibilities. I loved seeing Kit come out of his cold personality and warm up towards Niamh. I am a sucker for a good grumpy sunshine! Kit had shouldered many responsibilities and expectations of what being a prince meant. Seeing Kit come into his emotional side, finding solace and comfort in Niamh warmed my heart so much. These two balance each other out perfectly and are truly meant to be!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction and Alcoholism
Moderate: Racism, Sexism, Outing, War, Alcohol, Slavery, Classism, and Death of parent
mattyroh07's review against another edition
lighthearted
relaxing
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? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Classism, Sexual content, and Chronic illness
Minor: War, Alcoholism, Death of parent, and Outing
sfdogmom's review against another edition
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Meh. Boring characters.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Homophobia, Xenophobia, Sexual content, and Alcoholism
Minor: Death of parent