Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.74 AVERAGE
3.74 AVERAGE
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
There's a good book in here that is bogged down by way too many ideas. It needed an editor.
I just wanted so much more glyph magic.
I just wanted so much more glyph magic.
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
slow-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
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I love the book this wanted to be, but I'm disappointed with the execution of a few key elements.
The pacing in this is bizarre, and resulted in the story feeling split in two. From a romance-structure standpoint, it's not uncommon for the midpoint climax to be the characters getting together, and the rest of the story dealing with the obstacles trying to keep them apart; and I think this holds true here to a certain extent. Only, the second half of this book is such a wildly different story from the first half that it feels like two different stories.
This effect is exacerbated by the rush to accomplish the romance. I'm all for friends-to-lovers, but despite both main characters calling each other "friends" at the start of the story, they're not. Not really. And the tension between "is this guy a friend, a client, or my unrequited crush" muddies the waters of their relationship. I feel the progression would have been more satisfying if they were friends, and had to wonder if being lovers was the right next step, rather than spending most of the early story wondering if they were really friends or not, then jumping into bed together. It felt inorganic, unauthentic.
And the world-building was based on an incredibly promising concept that was interesting to me, but ultimately it was thin. There was a lot about Elle's powers and their derivation from her heritage, which was solid. But there was little similar information about Luc, whose backstory was "he's a half-elf with an abusive boss/father figure," which is fine in terms of character but does nothing to explain his powers. He's magical because he has elven blood, end of story, apparently. And this shadowy international organization they both worked for could have used a lot more development.
With all those gripes out of the way, I did still enjoy it--this mid-level rating is very much "I liked enough about it to be disappointed it wasn't better," rather than "meh, there was nothing special about it." And I would read something else by this author in the future, in the hopes that it does get better.
The pacing in this is bizarre, and resulted in the story feeling split in two. From a romance-structure standpoint, it's not uncommon for the midpoint climax to be the characters getting together, and the rest of the story dealing with the obstacles trying to keep them apart; and I think this holds true here to a certain extent. Only, the second half of this book is such a wildly different story from the first half that it feels like two different stories.
This effect is exacerbated by the rush to accomplish the romance. I'm all for friends-to-lovers, but despite both main characters calling each other "friends" at the start of the story, they're not. Not really. And the tension between "is this guy a friend, a client, or my unrequited crush" muddies the waters of their relationship. I feel the progression would have been more satisfying if they were friends, and had to wonder if being lovers was the right next step, rather than spending most of the early story wondering if they were really friends or not, then jumping into bed together. It felt inorganic, unauthentic.
And the world-building was based on an incredibly promising concept that was interesting to me, but ultimately it was thin. There was a lot about Elle's powers and their derivation from her heritage, which was solid. But there was little similar information about Luc, whose backstory was "he's a half-elf with an abusive boss/father figure," which is fine in terms of character but does nothing to explain his powers. He's magical because he has elven blood, end of story, apparently. And this shadowy international organization they both worked for could have used a lot more development.
With all those gripes out of the way, I did still enjoy it--this mid-level rating is very much "I liked enough about it to be disappointed it wasn't better," rather than "meh, there was nothing special about it." And I would read something else by this author in the future, in the hopes that it does get better.
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
I fell hard for the magic, the art, and the relationship. Such a great read if you're in the mood for a modern day fantasy romance.
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I really enjoyed the beginning of the book. I had super high hopes for the romance, cause it started off so strong. But I kinda lost interesting after maybe 1/3 of the book. I just found it to be really boring and serious and kind of a hard read, like you really have to pay attention to everything which can get tiring. I’m also a bit confused by the ending, I won’t spoil anything but I don’t think everything was fully resolved. I feel like there are definitely some plot points that weren’t concluded satisfyingly. But still, I think the world is supppper cool and i love Luc.
Bitter Medicine introduces a fascinating sprawling urban world that unfortunately does not receive much evocative depth and description. While the characters and magical systems appear expansive and interesting, this book seems devoted mostly to relationship building, as opposed to any worldbuilding and action.
However, with this single-minded devotion to depicting a relationship from two sides of the same coin while simultaneously attempting to construct a world around it, what results is an uneven mishmash of unresolved plot lines and questions.
While Tsai’s attempt to depict guilt and recovery from trauma in the second half is commendable, it completely changes the second half into another story that could easily have been its own separate book, with enough development. This not only rushed the original plot and lowered its stakes, but also ended up inserting blank spaces within Luc and Elle’s relationship that could have been devoted to increasing the tension and action within their dynamic.
To put it simply: there is so much going on that not a lot of it really gets its just desserts.
With the simplistic writing and the seemingly out-of-the-blue twist from one overarching plot to another, Bitter Medicine is definitely at best a work in progress, with a hodgepodge of unanswered questions and undefined limits to the world and magic systems given up in favor of image-based sensationalism.
However, with this single-minded devotion to depicting a relationship from two sides of the same coin while simultaneously attempting to construct a world around it, what results is an uneven mishmash of unresolved plot lines and questions.
While Tsai’s attempt to depict guilt and recovery from trauma in the second half is commendable, it completely changes the second half into another story that could easily have been its own separate book, with enough development. This not only rushed the original plot and lowered its stakes, but also ended up inserting blank spaces within Luc and Elle’s relationship that could have been devoted to increasing the tension and action within their dynamic.
To put it simply: there is so much going on that not a lot of it really gets its just desserts.
With the simplistic writing and the seemingly out-of-the-blue twist from one overarching plot to another, Bitter Medicine is definitely at best a work in progress, with a hodgepodge of unanswered questions and undefined limits to the world and magic systems given up in favor of image-based sensationalism.
adventurous
emotional
funny
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:
Complicated
The characters were really loveable and the magic system was super cool! #23for23
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Medical content, Grief
Moderate: Death, Gun violence, Violence, Murder, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Racism, Blood, Alcohol