Reviews tagging 'Death of parent'

Il giardino delle magie by Alice Hoffman

56 reviews

brittishliterature's review against another edition

emotional hopeful mysterious relaxing medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Such a perfect October/Halloween read! I was drawn into the narrative very quickly and looked forward to picking the book up every day. I enjoyed Hoffman's writing style and structure for this novel - it often felt like magic weaving in and out through multiple viewpoints and character stories to create a beautiful tapestry. I usually don't read much magical realism, but after this one, I look forward to trying out the genre more! 

The ending felt a little anticlimactic, and I would have liked to spend more time with how it ended. But nonetheless, the ending and the relationships between the Owens family left my heart feeling warm and happy. Overall, I loved it and can't wait to continue with the others in the series at some point! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse and Grief

Moderate: Death, Drug abuse, Gaslighting, Grief, Physical abuse, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Death of parent

genny's review against another edition

emotional lighthearted mysterious slow-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

3.75

This was so readable, I just flew through the pages...the writing style really worked for me, though I can easily see how it may annoy others. It almost reads like a stream of consciousness that jumps from one character to another. This is definitely more magical realism than fantasy. There's no deep lore about the women's magical abilities (though this may be explored in the other books in the series); they're not full-blown witches that just happen to live with mortals a la Sabrina the Teenage Witch. They make potions and curses and there's something magical in their bloodline that no one can run from, but it is primarily a family saga.

I can't help but be weirded out by the portrayal of romantic love throughout this book - it's always this extreme obsession. The love-at-first-sight descriptions are actually insane! Where this book really shines, IMO, is in its portrayal of grief and familial love. To be clear, I liked it! I haven't watched the movie, which everyone seems to love and apparently has a vastly different plot, so I wasn't let down by anything. I'm interested in reading the other books but I need a break first from Hoffman's writing - again, I found it beautiful, but in an exhausting way. 😅

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, and Grief

Moderate: Sexual content, Death, and Bullying

Minor: Animal death and Death of parent

katisreading's review against another edition

adventurous dark hopeful fast-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

3.75

“She knows now that when you don’t lose yourself in the bargain, you find you have double the love you started with, and that’s one recipe that can’t be tampered with.”

Finally read through this classic now that it’s celebrating its 25th anniversary...I really enjoyed reading through this one over the last couple of days - and what a ride it was! Can’t wait to watch the movie and see if it lives up to the book. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Domestic abuse and Death

Minor: Death of parent

bexi's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Sexual harassment, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Sexual content, and Alcoholism

Minor: Child abuse and Drug use

puf's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful mysterious relaxing sad 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Animal death, Rape, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, and Sexual assault

galfieri's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Alcoholism, Drug use, Death of parent, and Death

waynethelibrarian's review against another edition

emotional funny lighthearted mysterious relaxing 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

3.25

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Bullying, Death of parent, Rape, and Sexual content

ellensmith's review against another edition

emotional hopeful lighthearted mysterious reflective relaxing 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

4.5

This book is pure coziness and comfort. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Bullying, Car accident, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, and Toxic relationship

alisylvi's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.25

Wanted more magic and witchy things :(

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Content Warnings

Minor: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Car accident, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Grief, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual content, and Toxic relationship

claudiamacpherson's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny 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? Yes

4.0

I was immediately enchanted by this funny, sweet, magical story of sisterhood. The sisters of the Owens family are far from perfect, but so charming that you can’t help but love them. The magic is subtle and satisfying, because everyone gets what’s coming to them (good and bad). I loved how Hoffman wove superstitions and folklore through the story, some common and some I’d never heard of.

I hit a bit of a reading slump mid-read, so it took me a while to finish, but definitely not because I didn’t enjoy the book. I’ve noticed that, for some reason, books with super long chapters (like this one, which is divided into 4 sections rather than traditional chapters) take me a lot longer to finish than books with shorter chapters.

Happy ending meter (no specific spoilers, just the vibe of the ending):

It’s satisfyingly happy.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcohol, Death, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Bullying, Death of parent, Drug use, Grief, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Violence, and Vomit