Reviews

The Witch Handbook to Magic and Mayhem by Tish Thawer

seguram's review against another edition

4.0

There are some love triangle jealousy moments that felt so awkward, but otherwise I loved this book! It was so unlike anything I normally read and I'm so glad I took the chance on it. I only wish there was more story based around the sisters' shop! It seemed like such a wonderful place

devonsbooknook's review

1.0

Got this during the Stuff Your Kindle event….I’m just going to keep it short and sweet. It was not good.

lulu97's review

adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

pagesofraleen's review

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

At times it was a little hard to follow but I really enjoyed this one. It was quick paced and just pulled you in from page one. The cliff hanger is the reason for my current suffering…I need to go find the second book NOW!!!

natraf_reads's review against another edition

3.0

This book was a stuff your kindle day find. I think there was really good intention for a story, but it fell a little flat. The author did not fully flesh out a story and often took the what felt like cheap answers having characters just magically forgive each other or magically have a solution. I also don’t think the Handbook to Magic and Mayhem played nearly enough of a role considering it’s the actual title of this book. The love triangle was thrown in last
minute… and also it’s her cousin who she’s destined to be with? A little odd, a little yucky, even if the characters said “it’s okay here.”

Overall I loved the concept of this book but was hoping for so much more ! It was a nice easy read, but I believe this universe and storyline could have been an easy five stars with some extra detail of the story and characters developed by the author.

aschaub's review

The premise of the book was so interesting, but the characters were so flat, I didn’t care for Lily, and the writing wasn’t good. There was barely any world building.

readwithclauds's review

2.5

Spoiler: this book feels like the first draft.

The premise of the story was great: five sisters sharing a shop that shifts to meet the needs of its customers: from candles to flowers and even a bookstore. When a customer causes the shop's magic to go crazy, it's up to the girls to save him.
It sounded so good and I was so excited to read it, but I was pretty disappointed. 
The whole story felt rushed, and the writing seemed very childish. It's not often I say that books needed more pages, but this is one of those moments. It felt like a big info-dump. The sisters and the shop are not even that relevant to the story.
Halfway through, we are introduced to a love triangle that came from nowhere. It lacks depth. I liked Alder as a character, he felt the most solid, especially after getting to know a little of his backstory
The main character, Lily, was very unlikeable, always showing up with an attitude and being mad, stomping her feet and angry crying.
The overall plot was okay, even if it was so rushed. I would have loved to get more details on the characters and the action, more emotional and deep moments.

uvglopanda's review

The premise seemed intriguing enough but after the first 4 chapters I hit chapter 5 and gave up. The pace was so fast it felt like everything was being thrown at you and you were expected to juggle and believe it all.

It felt like fan fiction with how the plot felt threaded together. Maybe just me but I couldn't get into it enough to care to carry on unfortunately. 

nerdy_german's review

adventurous emotional lighthearted fast-paced

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

3.75

jenncortes's review

slow-paced

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

0.5

Waste of time