Reviews with content warning for Adult/minor relationship - The Rules of Magic

DNF

I love Alice Hoffmann’s writing style but <Spoiler>the way her story handled the boys statutory rape was disturbing. This book is not for me doesn’t matter if the child is magical I detest victim blaming. </Spoiler>

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amberrose's review against another edition

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DNF at 28%

Pretty, descriptive writings are not enough to make up for the fact that I don't care one iota about the characters.

Also, statutory rape is later described as "a summer fling" and my dudes, I Simply Cannot With That Shit

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breeforestell's review against another edition

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emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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

1.5

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chezarose79's review against another edition

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dark mysterious 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

3.0

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bookishfaye's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective 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? Yes

3.5

I love Alice Hoffman’s whimsical & folkloric witchy writing and the way she writes the Owens & their magic & curse & trauma & the history of the world around them so much!!!!!!!! God damn I love the Owens family 😤😤😤; I will definitely be continuing these books!! That being said, this book had some…. issues:

1. The incest. There was literally no reason for it, & I know she had to include it because she had written it into Practical Magic already like almost 20 years previously, but hated that it was even there at all.

2. The lack of diversity. Hoffman tells such a profound generational story with these books & it would benefit so much more from being more diverse. Magic Lessons definitely had diversity, but this one was very bland on that front, apart from

Vincent’s

queerness (which i take issues with in some ways as well)

3.

Vincent’s journey to discovering his sexuality was a really annoying queer trope. Spoilers ahead: we follow Vincent as he sleeps with his older cousin (impregnating her in the process, & it is her daughter Regina’s kids who we follow in Practical Magic), & then his 30+ year old neighbour when he’s 14 years old. The way it’s written makes it seem mutual and him just “sleeping around,” but homie was being groomed & writing that situation in the way Hoffman did did not sit right with me at all. Vincent then becomes kind of a player, sleeping around with women quite often, before eventually realizing that he’s not attached to them because he’s actually attracted to men.

Yes, I realize this is a real thing that a lot of queer people go through in their journeys in real life, but something about a straight white women representing queerness only in this way doesn’t feel cool.

Someone give me a diverse & queer Practical Magic style generational saga right MF NOOOWWW

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samgelbert's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious 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? No

4.0

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