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3.55 AVERAGE
3.55 AVERAGE
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Big “National Treasure” vibes with quite a few continuity issues.
adventurous
mysterious
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:
No
A fun, easy read that combines elements of American HIstory with some fantasy and a lot of puzzle-solving mystery.
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
adventurous
informative
mysterious
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:
Complicated
This does seem to deliver on the "National Treasure" meets "Discovery of Witches" vibes! It's just more exposition than I'm looking for right now.
adventurous
informative
mysterious
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
*I received an eARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.*
I saw "National Treasure meets the supernatural treasure hunts of Indiana Jones, with a dash of A Discovery of Witches," and thought well I have to read that. Unfortunately, I wish I hadn't.
I am a firm believer that every book has an audience, and I know that my reading experience (the audiobook while stuck in stop and go traffic) did not allow for the greatest mindset while reading, so I will try not to judge this book too harshly; however, I think it was trying to do way too much.
Billed as a "cozy thriller," An Intrigue of Witches follows Sidney Taylor, a 30 year old Black woman and talented early American historian when she's mysteriously placed on furlough (despite being the TV personality of the Smithsonian Institute). Then she gets a letter that sends her on a wild goose chase of American history à la National Treasure. What follows is a series of implausible clue finding missions and weird mixes of actual (or almost actual) American history set in a future version of the United States that also has witches and time travel?
I think I can understand where the author was trying to go with this and I applaud the creativity of the genre mash up but between the main character who has clearly never done a thing wrong in her life duh and the mustache twirling villain monologue (that actually included the lines "that's how awesome we are" and "It's your funeral. Literally.") I really struggled through this.
I think if you go in expecting this to be a speculative cozy mystery, you might fare better, but by the time I realized this was going down the traditional cozy mystery path of zany and unbelievable plot, I was already Over It.
I saw "National Treasure meets the supernatural treasure hunts of Indiana Jones, with a dash of A Discovery of Witches," and thought well I have to read that. Unfortunately, I wish I hadn't.
I am a firm believer that every book has an audience, and I know that my reading experience (the audiobook while stuck in stop and go traffic) did not allow for the greatest mindset while reading, so I will try not to judge this book too harshly; however, I think it was trying to do way too much.
Billed as a "cozy thriller," An Intrigue of Witches follows Sidney Taylor, a 30 year old Black woman and talented early American historian when she's mysteriously placed on furlough (despite being the TV personality of the Smithsonian Institute). Then she gets a letter that sends her on a wild goose chase of American history à la National Treasure. What follows is a series of implausible clue finding missions and weird mixes of actual (or almost actual) American history set in a future version of the United States that also has witches and time travel?
I think I can understand where the author was trying to go with this and I applaud the creativity of the genre mash up but between the main character who has clearly never done a thing wrong in her life duh and the mustache twirling villain monologue (that actually included the lines "that's how awesome we are" and "It's your funeral. Literally.") I really struggled through this.
I think if you go in expecting this to be a speculative cozy mystery, you might fare better, but by the time I realized this was going down the traditional cozy mystery path of zany and unbelievable plot, I was already Over It.
adventurous
mysterious
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
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-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