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pippin's review
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
dippedinhummus's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
2.0
felt amateur, with a lot of random, unnecessary, and/or incomplete elements that left a lot to be desired. That being said, I eat objectively bad LGBT romance books for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, so still an enjoyable read and I plan on picking up the sequel at some point.
linde99's review against another edition
3.0
This is a fun short read. When I first read it I though it was going to be gay Harry Potter. Well, it is. It took elements from Harry Potter and twisted to suit the story. I do realise that it was originally on Wattpad, so this is by all means a debut(?). So I cannot fault the author for making mistakes, as it was not originally intended to be published. It was nothing special, but it was a fun read. I liked that there was gay rep in fantasy books, as the most rep is in contemporary books. So a big plus in that department. I do think that it is rushed. So the pacing could have been way slower. Like, the entire book takes place in the span of 1 1/2 months. It can be a little slower, and develop the world and the characters more. That would be better in my opinion.
emmalthompson85's review
2.0
Don't know if I'm old or this isn't for me but I have very little time for none-more-goth teen vrs the cardboard homophobes. Like, maybe I'd have loved it when I was 15 and Goth and queer and felt like the world was against me but god, I was an annoying shit back then and I don't want to live it again. Like, perhaps this is on me for not reading the first few chapters in the book shop but I think I expected "I'm a gay Wizard" to be a fun magical romp, not for it to open with a violent transphobic attack.
I also found the writing style very shallow. Like, very little internality to the main character.
Think this one will be better in my charity shop pile where hopefully it'll find it's way too the gay Goth teen who actually wants to read it.
I also found the writing style very shallow. Like, very little internality to the main character.
Think this one will be better in my charity shop pile where hopefully it'll find it's way too the gay Goth teen who actually wants to read it.
wendy327's review against another edition
3.0
I’m a Gay Wizard introduces Johnny and Ali, two teens on a journey of self-discovery. Their journey, however, gets much more complicated when they decide to dabble in magic, cast a spell with serious consequences, and get kidnapped by a mysterious group of people who take them to a secluded magic school. But even the magic school isn’t all it seems. Secrets hide around every corner and trying to uncover them may cost them their lives or the lives or their new friends.
I have mixed feelings about this book. First, the positive. The representation and diversity of characters was a welcome change. Johnny is openly gay; Ali is a transgender; Blake seems to be pansexual, though he never states this; and Hunter struggles with his sexuality due to the way he was raised. All of these characters and perspectives are woven in seamlessly and the sadly realistic backlash to several of the claimed identities can also be viewed by the reactions, both verbal and physical, that the side characters exhibit.
There were some aspects of this novel that I found challenging. The writing at times felt unpolished. For a debut novel, particularly one that originated on Wattpad, that is forgivable, particularly if the characters, world, and plot are able to drive the story. As mentioned above, the characters worked; however, the world and plot felt flimsy. The plot, while relatively straight forward, suffered from the fact that the world needed to be developed more. There were several groups and plot threads that could have been teased out to allow more connections to an awesome group of characters and this would have created suspense for the eventual story finale. On that note, there were other aspects that seemed extraneous and probably could have been cut to allow more space for this development.
Don’t get me wrong. I really wanted to like this novel and I think there was great potential here. But I probably should have known that it would be a bit of a struggle when I started the book, read the first five chapters, and had to put it down for nearly six months. Though there is a planned sequel, I’m a Gay Wizard had a definite ending, and a happy one at that, and I’ll most likely just leave it there since I probably won’t be picking up the next book in the series.
I have mixed feelings about this book. First, the positive. The representation and diversity of characters was a welcome change. Johnny is openly gay; Ali is a transgender; Blake seems to be pansexual, though he never states this; and Hunter struggles with his sexuality due to the way he was raised. All of these characters and perspectives are woven in seamlessly and the sadly realistic backlash to several of the claimed identities can also be viewed by the reactions, both verbal and physical, that the side characters exhibit.
There were some aspects of this novel that I found challenging. The writing at times felt unpolished. For a debut novel, particularly one that originated on Wattpad, that is forgivable, particularly if the characters, world, and plot are able to drive the story. As mentioned above, the characters worked; however, the world and plot felt flimsy. The plot, while relatively straight forward, suffered from the fact that the world needed to be developed more. There were several groups and plot threads that could have been teased out to allow more connections to an awesome group of characters and this would have created suspense for the eventual story finale. On that note, there were other aspects that seemed extraneous and probably could have been cut to allow more space for this development.
Don’t get me wrong. I really wanted to like this novel and I think there was great potential here. But I probably should have known that it would be a bit of a struggle when I started the book, read the first five chapters, and had to put it down for nearly six months. Though there is a planned sequel, I’m a Gay Wizard had a definite ending, and a happy one at that, and I’ll most likely just leave it there since I probably won’t be picking up the next book in the series.
someonetookit's review against another edition
1.0
I would warn any person who reads this novel that the language and behaviour of multiple characters within this novel will be triggering. It features homophobia, horrendous bullying, fat shaming, transphobia and child abuse among other things.
Having seen the whirlwind involving this novel prior to requesting, I was so excited to be able to read it. After around the first 5%, that excitement was extremely quickly dwindling. The frequent use of homophobic slurs and constant bullying of the main character began to really grate on me and started to make me extremely angry. So I put it down thinking maybe another day and a different mood would make me love it as much as so may had before.
Unfortunately, when I started reading it again, it continued to attract my ire. Within the first 10-15% of the novel, the MC had been called various homophobic slurs including 'faggot', there was constant taunting and abuse towards the MC and his best friend and there had also been a scene whereby the two had beaten to a pulp by some nasty teenagers. Had this been advertised as a contemporary, I could have understood but unfortunately it was not.
By the time the MC is kidnapped and taken to 'wizarding school' I had developed so a uncomfortable feeling towards the novel that I struggled to get any further. Usually one to take maybe a week or two to read a novel, this took me more than a month of reading small portions just to tamp down the rage that steadily built inside with every sitting.
So, I found the MC to be superficial and unlikable (usually I like unlikable characters - Lila Bard is the bomb but so not a 'nice' character). I found him to have very few redeeming features despite the fact that he has been abused which is extremely unfortunate as he should have been a person I could at least pity.
The writing was extremely simple. While it is a young adult novel and one would not expect a writing style similar to that which would win a Pulitzer, I at least expected some better than basic vocabulary.
The story line felt tedious and provided me endless frustration despite the fact the blurb makes it feel fantastical and wonderous. I also felt that there were so many similarities between I'm A Gay Wizard and many different popular franchises that I felt I was reading a poorly disguised fanfiction rather than an independent work.
I was extremely hopeful for this novel as it was own voices. Unfortunately the 'own voice' seemed more like the author hates his own identity rather than someone who I felt should be celebrating his own sexuality.
Overall I found this novel to be a disappointment. I find it extremely difficult to find a redeeming feature however I am sure many will find it an enjoyable novel - It simply was not for me.
I received an advanced reading copy of this novel from Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Having seen the whirlwind involving this novel prior to requesting, I was so excited to be able to read it. After around the first 5%, that excitement was extremely quickly dwindling. The frequent use of homophobic slurs and constant bullying of the main character began to really grate on me and started to make me extremely angry. So I put it down thinking maybe another day and a different mood would make me love it as much as so may had before.
Unfortunately, when I started reading it again, it continued to attract my ire. Within the first 10-15% of the novel, the MC had been called various homophobic slurs including 'faggot', there was constant taunting and abuse towards the MC and his best friend and there had also been a scene whereby the two had beaten to a pulp by some nasty teenagers. Had this been advertised as a contemporary, I could have understood but unfortunately it was not.
By the time the MC is kidnapped and taken to 'wizarding school' I had developed so a uncomfortable feeling towards the novel that I struggled to get any further. Usually one to take maybe a week or two to read a novel, this took me more than a month of reading small portions just to tamp down the rage that steadily built inside with every sitting.
So, I found the MC to be superficial and unlikable (usually I like unlikable characters - Lila Bard is the bomb but so not a 'nice' character). I found him to have very few redeeming features despite the fact that he has been abused which is extremely unfortunate as he should have been a person I could at least pity.
The writing was extremely simple. While it is a young adult novel and one would not expect a writing style similar to that which would win a Pulitzer, I at least expected some better than basic vocabulary.
The story line felt tedious and provided me endless frustration despite the fact the blurb makes it feel fantastical and wonderous. I also felt that there were so many similarities between I'm A Gay Wizard and many different popular franchises that I felt I was reading a poorly disguised fanfiction rather than an independent work.
I was extremely hopeful for this novel as it was own voices. Unfortunately the 'own voice' seemed more like the author hates his own identity rather than someone who I felt should be celebrating his own sexuality.
Overall I found this novel to be a disappointment. I find it extremely difficult to find a redeeming feature however I am sure many will find it an enjoyable novel - It simply was not for me.
I received an advanced reading copy of this novel from Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
melodyseestrees's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.75
This story feels closer to a middle grade book. The most young adult aspect of the book was the one fade-to-black sex scene and perhaps the mention of the institute wanting to genocide non-legacy wizards. Replace that scene with a kiss and the story remains unchanged.
The pacing was a bit frustrating in how the character thinks, which also felt very juvenile. The school system is underexplained, as are the motivations of the antagonist groups. The world building is flawed and not super in depth. For example there is a whole location the students can go but are told they should not with no reasons why. There is also a messaging system for every student to use that is used one time. The school makes no move to curtail rule-breaking aside from one scene where "the Smiths" read the students' minds and raid their stuff. The kids are removed from their home area, yet an outside character can get them to the one kid's former home just in time to learn of some sad news and receive a supposed-to-be-heartbreaking scene of their family not remembering them.
The pacing was a bit frustrating in how the character thinks, which also felt very juvenile. The school system is underexplained, as are the motivations of the antagonist groups. The world building is flawed and not super in depth. For example there is a whole location the students can go but are told they should not with no reasons why. There is also a messaging system for every student to use that is used one time. The school makes no move to curtail rule-breaking aside from one scene where "the Smiths" read the students' minds and raid their stuff. The kids are removed from their home area, yet an outside character can get them to the one kid's former home just in time to learn of some sad news and receive a supposed-to-be-heartbreaking scene of their family not remembering them.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Hate crime, and Confinement
Moderate: Bullying, Transphobia, and Violence
Minor: Genocide
bugsybugs's review against another edition
Target audience a bit too young I think. The pacing felt rushed and the plot was a bit all over the place, the main character also seems to have no critical thinking skills which makes for a frustrating read.
wy_woman's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Hate crime, Confinement, and Forced institutionalization
Moderate: Death of parent, Genocide, Sexual content, Violence, Bullying, Cancer, Transphobia, Homophobia, and Grief
Minor: Blood, Outing, Gore, Gun violence, and Police brutality
scrollsofdragons's review
3.0
The magic school is barely an magic school, more like a cushy prison with magic involved which I was not expecting. I don't know whether to continue. I liked this book, Hunter and Johnny were cute and any time it focused on the contemporary side of things was my favourite but the magic-fantasy side of it wasn't. I'm not overly interested in the characters nor it's continuing plot and think this book could easily be a standalone for me.