Reviews - The Women Could Fly

1.36k reviews for:

The Women Could Fly

Megan Giddings

3.73 AVERAGE

carlsnan's review against another edition

4.0

dark emotional 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

baileya23's review against another edition

3.0

3.5 stars

Initially, I loved this book. It ticked a lot of boxes for me -- witches, speculative fiction, strained mother-daughter relationship. But the more I thought about it, the more it feel flat for me. I liked certain parts of it more than I liked the whole of it. Still a insightful, well-written book but it was missing something for me.

This was my first Megan Giddings book, and I'll definitely pick up Lakewood next!

stellamcvey's review against another edition

4.0

adventurous emotional sad slow-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

agardenofweeds's review against another edition

3.75

dark emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

Megan Giddings's The Women Could Fly depicts a dystopian world where witches and women exist at the margins of society, their lives and autonomy restricted, their choices limited, their bodies policed and under near constant surveillance, and their power diminished. A feminist work of speculative fiction that explores the intersections of gender, race, sexuality, and class, this novel raises many questions regarding the white, patriarchal hegemony of our own society while also depicting the importance of building a supportive community. Although I very much enjoyed interacting with the many sociopolitical questions this novel raised, I wish there had been as much care given to the story being told. While I enjoyed the main protagonist, her perspective, and her arc, I didn't always feel like her motivations matched the decisions she made, and I never felt truly connected to the side characters or fully immersed in the world as a result. That being said, this is a very important story that I will definitely be thinking about for a while.

lgindc's review against another edition

I loved the ambiguity of Jo's thoughts about her family, Preston, and even the island. But the island itself didn't entrance me, and I wished

Spoiler

her parents were not both such outright jerks.

I also felt there were a lot of loose threads that were never tied up--for instance,

Spoiler

what the door in the sky represented, in its ability to both scream and sing; why it said Jo would get her own hut but then she continues living in her mother's hut; and I think once Tiana said something would have to be given/contributed for magic to work, but it's never clear what she is referring to.