You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.7 AVERAGE
3.7 AVERAGE
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Promising Premise, Lackluster Results
I struggled with this story. I had to keep pushing myself to finish. It is hard to put my finger on what was difficult because the premise does have promise. I had a hard time remembering and differentiating characters they did not feel clear enough. The early stages of the book some of the magic was presented in a way that was confusing and muddled. The protagonist's changing thoughts about folks in the town meant I often felt unsure of how I felt about people and therefore just did not feel connected to people in the town or did not care about certain dynamics. In particular certain relationships that were being built would have info revealed that just changed things in such a way with such a sudden turn I ceased to care. Sudden rug pulls on situations that already were feeling lackluster left me feeling no motivation to connect. Things I wished were given more time to breathe felt rushed through and things I wasn't as interested in the story seemed to be given lots of narration. This did have some of the cozy mystery tropes of face palm 'why on earth would you do that' which I do not enjoy. Also the hard shift between not understanding powers, to struggle to accept powers, to accept and excel with powers instantly did not feel believable and therefore like a forced plot device. By the end reveal I just was ready to be done and not rewarded by the answers--it felt more like a meaningless exposition and set up to the next story. There was a repeated tendency of developing a character then sharing something that walked that development back or completely changed what had developed. I understand characters change and have nuance but it left me feeling unmoored, struggling to keep characters straight, and not feeling a connection to anyone. I am able to get the second volume on loan so may try to see if this is a rough start that picks up as there are lots of elements I want to love in a cozy: small town, witchy, library. But I can't lie this volume left me feeling more meh than magical.
I struggled with this story. I had to keep pushing myself to finish. It is hard to put my finger on what was difficult because the premise does have promise. I had a hard time remembering and differentiating characters they did not feel clear enough. The early stages of the book some of the magic was presented in a way that was confusing and muddled. The protagonist's changing thoughts about folks in the town meant I often felt unsure of how I felt about people and therefore just did not feel connected to people in the town or did not care about certain dynamics. In particular certain relationships that were being built would have info revealed that just changed things in such a way with such a sudden turn I ceased to care. Sudden rug pulls on situations that already were feeling lackluster left me feeling no motivation to connect. Things I wished were given more time to breathe felt rushed through and things I wasn't as interested in the story seemed to be given lots of narration. This did have some of the cozy mystery tropes of face palm 'why on earth would you do that' which I do not enjoy. Also the hard shift between not understanding powers, to struggle to accept powers, to accept and excel with powers instantly did not feel believable and therefore like a forced plot device. By the end reveal I just was ready to be done and not rewarded by the answers--it felt more like a meaningless exposition and set up to the next story. There was a repeated tendency of developing a character then sharing something that walked that development back or completely changed what had developed. I understand characters change and have nuance but it left me feeling unmoored, struggling to keep characters straight, and not feeling a connection to anyone. I am able to get the second volume on loan so may try to see if this is a rough start that picks up as there are lots of elements I want to love in a cozy: small town, witchy, library. But I can't lie this volume left me feeling more meh than magical.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Kidnapping, Murder
Moderate: Violence
Kind of felt a little all over the place - a lot of plot threads that were wrapped up without a lot of buildup. However, I can't help but be a sucker for a story about librarians and witches. Will probably keep reading this series, or at least the next book. This was not a book that wowed me though!
I want to preface this review by saying the “cozy mystery” genre is not my usual cup of tea. However reading the description, something just tickled my tastebuds so to speak. Key words being: cozy, librarian, Victorian mansion, murder, magic, cat familiar. And let me say it was exactly what I expected and wanted from this book. It was the reading equivalent of sipping on a weak flavored coffee, wrapping yourself in a worn blanket, and curling up in your leather recliner. The usual things that make me hate mysteries were thankfully absent here: it wasn’t immediately obvious who the murderer was, the character wasn’t an unreliable drunk who infuriatingly went out of their way to get themselves in trouble, or have completely illogical and over the top plot twists to thrill you into thinking an otherwise mundane book is actually good. On the other hand it isn’t the best written book either. it has a lot of blaring misspellings and grammatical errors, the characters aren’t deep or richly painted, the story isn’t particularly original or really add anything new to old ideas. But that was kind of what I was looking for. I definitely recommend it for anyone who likes books about libraries, witches, and murder but wants something familiar and reliable over something probing or dramatic.
I want to preface this review by saying the “cozy mystery” genre is not my usual cup of tea. However reading the description, something just tickled my tastebuds so to speak. Key words being: cozy, librarian, Victorian mansion, murder, magic, cat familiar. And let me say it was exactly what I expected and wanted from this book. It was the reading equivalent of sipping on a weak flavored coffee, wrapping yourself in a worn blanket, and curling up in your leather recliner. The usual things that make me hate mysteries were thankfully absent here: it wasn’t immediately obvious who the murderer was, the character wasn’t an unreliable drunk who infuriatingly went out of their way to get themselves in trouble, or have completely illogical and over the top plot twists to thrill you into thinking an otherwise mundane book is actually good. On the other hand it isn’t the best written book either. it has a lot of blaring misspellings and grammatical errors, the characters aren’t especially deep or richly painted, and the story isn’t particularly original. But that was kind of what I was looking for. I definitely recommend it for anyone who likes books about libraries, witches, and murder but wants something familiar and reliable over something probing or dramatic. Thank you netgalley for giving me a chance to read the advanced copy!
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Loveable characters:
Yes
emotional
funny
inspiring
relaxing
fast-paced
My mother and grandmother really like cozy mysteries. They've never really been my genre but I thought I'd give this one a try. Turns out cozy mysteries still aren't my thing.
emotional
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Witch mysteries aren’t my fav but this one was okay.
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No