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3.78 AVERAGE
3.78 AVERAGE
lighthearted
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:
No
I kept waiting for this book to get good. I was 70% of the way through before I started to like it at all. It was not quite what I was expecting but it ended up being a lighthearted and sweet read.
I had high hopes for this book, but it ultimately disappointed me. I found it to be a peculiar and nonsensical fairy tale.
medium-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:
Complicated
adventurous
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
It's started off strong. It was giving Fiona from Shrek but w/ the roles reversed and instead of turning into an ogre the guy turns into a horse. It was funny in the beginning but the story fell apart half way through. I didn't really care for the characters anymore and just decided to skim the rest of the book.
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
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
adventurous
lighthearted
tense
medium-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:
Yes
This was solid! I thought most of the time it was fairly funny. I don’t know why but I didn’t expect the level of spice that was present either. It didn’t detract from the book though.
funny
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
Thanks to Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton for this eARC. I confirm this review is honest and that all thoughts are my own.
Ok so I initially went into this really enjoying it. I thought the world was interesting and I loved how the author always used consistent language for their deity e.g ‘seas’ and ‘virtues’ instead of God/heaven. It was especially funny when used in a curse context. I thought the Adept/green witch and blood magic element of the book an intriguing concept and I was excited for where it would go.
The banter between Aric and Bianca was funny, infact this book had a lot more humour than I was expecting and it made it an easy read which I appreciated. I also really loved the hidden disability/illness aspect of the book and Bianca’s inner monologue for this was extremely relatable for me as someone who also suffers with chronic illness. I also felt for her with her lack of self worth - though this did become a little repetitive and tedious at times but I suppose if people have been putting you down your whole life it is a hard habit to break. Another plus in this book was the LGBTQ+ rep and how people had attractions to either make or female without it being a big deal - it was just normal.
Sadly things did fall flat for me through the last third of the book as I got a bit bored and the ending felt a bit lacklustre. I found the villain reveal too simple and overly obvious, with no room for surprise and I wasn’t too sure I understood how the curse got broken either? Things didn’t quite add up. I also found the ending to have a bit of a plot hole with one of the characters and reason for Bianca’s sickness… basically a loose end that wasn’t addressed or dealt with in a way I thought realistic…
I also personally found this book would have been better off as a YA without the spice. Although the spice was done tastefully, it just felt out of place for me and didn’t suit the book, so think it didn’t need to be in there.
However this was a cute easy read overall with Swan Princess vibes with a twist which was pretty cool.
adventurous
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-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:
Yes