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dytiscusfriend's review
reflective
sad
medium-paced
2.0
The art was really beautiful but the writing left a lot to be desired stylistically and in terms of representation. A lot of spoilers ahead.
There was a lot of racism and classism built into the story I didn't appreciate. Some were really thoughtless stereotypes like naming a woman of color who is desired by everyone who sees her Cinnamon Cocoasparkles and having the white main character specifically express wanting to touch and smell her hair. The main character's love interest is the only explicitly of color character in the book and she has green eyes. There's a lot of things related to describing beauty and attributing traits associated with whiteness to someone's attractiveness repeatedly throughout. SStructurallytructurally
Structurally the story was sweet but the actual sentence structure and word choice were uninspired and pulled me out of the story with sentences like, "Not behind her, not at some dick on a unicorn, but at *her*." Cute and gay with pretty illustrations AND being about a witch didn't save this for me which is pretty hard to do.
I also just didn't resonate with the back stories of any of the characters because they were trope-y and lacked emotional depth. Parents who "won't let [the princess] choose" by offering to buy her whatever she wants to support her interests? Getting kicked out of a coven for wanting to live in the city? These aren't the kind of things that *actually* alienate people unless you're exclusively talking about downwardly mobile wealthy white kids who are extremely emotionally immature. Guess that's a story this author felt hadn't yet been covered adequately. And the only poor character's story boiled down to was poor, got married but it was hard because we were poor, he died because he worked jobs poor people work, and now I'm sad because I realized being poor isn't so bad if you just have someone to love. Yuck.
I'm just over the queer girl is oblivious to the OBVIOUS affection of someone she professes to be in love with because she just CAN'T BELIEVE that's possible. It's just so tired for me.
And it really felt like this person didn't know much about witches. I know it's a fairytale but clothing stores that sell what Blair likes to wear? Why would they do that if she/her aesthetic are so despised in this community? Are witches really always despised by their communities? Do we still need that trope? And defining a coven as whoever is around you whether they practice magic or not? Being critical of her former coven for being *too equal* and not letting her dress however she wants? Not having an answer for what the purpose of magic is? Using a potion on someone nonconsensually as a routine part of her practice? The character felt more concerned with the esthetics of witchiness than the work of witchcraft.
This has become long and snarky but I have to add, seriously?? A witch named Blair????
There was a lot of racism and classism built into the story I didn't appreciate.
Structurally the story was sweet but the actual sentence structure and word choice were uninspired and pulled me out of the story with sentences like, "Not behind her, not at some dick on a unicorn, but at *her*." Cute and gay with pretty illustrations AND being about a witch didn't save this for me which is pretty hard to do.
I also just didn't resonate with the back stories of any of the characters because they were trope-y and lacked emotional depth. Parents who "won't let [the princess] choose" by offering to buy her whatever she wants to support her interests? Getting kicked out of a coven for wanting to live in the city? These aren't the kind of things that *actually* alienate people unless you're exclusively talking about downwardly mobile wealthy white kids who are extremely emotionally immature. Guess that's a story this author felt hadn't yet been covered adequately. And the only poor character's story boiled down to was poor, got married but it was hard because we were poor, he died because he worked jobs poor people work, and now I'm sad because I realized being poor isn't so bad if you just have someone to love. Yuck.
I'm just over the queer girl is oblivious to the OBVIOUS affection of someone she professes to be in love with because she just CAN'T BELIEVE that's possible. It's just so tired for me.
And it really felt like this person didn't know much about witches. I know it's a fairytale but clothing stores that sell what Blair likes to wear? Why would they do that if she/her aesthetic are so despised in this community? Are witches really always despised by their communities? Do we still need that trope? And defining a coven as whoever is around you whether they practice magic or not? Being critical of her former coven for being *too equal* and not letting her dress however she wants? Not having an answer for what the purpose of magic is? Using a potion on someone nonconsensually as a routine part of her practice? The character felt more concerned with the esthetics of witchiness than the work of witchcraft.
This has become long and snarky but I have to add, seriously?? A witch named Blair????
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Animal death, and Physical abuse
Minor: Kidnapping
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