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pagewanderer_'s review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
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? It's complicated
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Antisemitism, and Abandonment
charthinksalot's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death and Racism
Minor: Emotional abuse
podanotherjessi's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
I am very conflicted about this book. I loved the story and the characters, the romance was sweet, the themes were great. But there were some world building elements that I felt very uncomfortable.
This is very clearly fantasy Europe, which is fine, but then it has fantasy editions of real religions (with particular emphasis on Catholicism and Judaism). And I'm just not sure how well that was done? There are changes to these religions to make them fit the fantasy world, but they're still very recognizable in some of the structural elements (like having a Pope) and the kind of biases people exhibit toward them (like antisemetic stereotypes). And I just found myself uncomfortable with that execution. Specifically, it felt odd to have the Hebrew terms for Jewish ideals used in the book given it wasn't actually Judaism, just a fantasy religion based on it.
I think the worldbuilding fell into a weird place where it wasn't far enough from the real world to make sense for it not to just BE the real world with fantasy elements used as needed (something like Nethercott's Thistlefoot, for example). And if Saft wanted it to not be the real world, she could have pushed things further away and not used so much from the real world. The allegory could have still landed without it.
Overall though, I did really like this book. I'm just a little confused. Would love to see some own-voices Jewish and Irish Catholic reviews of it, honestly.
This is very clearly fantasy Europe, which is fine, but then it has fantasy editions of real religions (with particular emphasis on Catholicism and Judaism). And I'm just not sure how well that was done? There are changes to these religions to make them fit the fantasy world, but they're still very recognizable in some of the structural elements (like having a Pope) and the kind of biases people exhibit toward them (like antisemetic stereotypes). And I just found myself uncomfortable with that execution. Specifically, it felt odd to have the Hebrew terms for Jewish ideals used in the book given it wasn't actually Judaism, just a fantasy religion based on it.
I think the worldbuilding fell into a weird place where it wasn't far enough from the real world to make sense for it not to just BE the real world with fantasy elements used as needed (something like Nethercott's Thistlefoot, for example). And if Saft wanted it to not be the real world, she could have pushed things further away and not used so much from the real world. The allegory could have still landed without it.
Overall though, I did really like this book. I'm just a little confused. Would love to see some own-voices Jewish and Irish Catholic reviews of it, honestly.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Emotional abuse, and Antisemitism
Moderate: Abandonment
nafisa_tabassum's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
A Far Wilder Magic was a very enjoyable read that accompanied me through a difficult weekend. It dabbles into alchemy and takes a lot of inspiration from Full Metal Alchemist's magic system, including a harrowing reference that I won't go into detail about. For those who like Riza and Roy from FMA, there's a lot to like in this book. I wish it explored alchemy a bit further, but the book mainly deals with the two characters in the heart of the story and their growth.
The story is best when explores religious prejudice and bigotry from the perspective of two people descended from immigrants - the way it tackles the subject matter is nuanced and real. It shows the way bigotry can take different forms and the things people leave unsaid. The two characters are able to connect because of this shared experience and it really adds depth to their relationship. It's fully understandable why these two people are drawn to each other and what they give to each other. There are also themes of parental neglect and abuse, though not physical. It's handled very well and it's often quite heart-wrenching.
I did feel like I wanted more from the fantasy aspect of the book. The fantasy seems to be connected deeply to religion and the bigger world is teased in the story, but not fully explored. There is an act at the end of the book that is genuinely "world-changing". This story is definitely not the place to explore that change or the repercussions of that action, since it's huge and the story is personal, but I was left feeling like a very interesting part of the novel was left unresolved.
Still, it was a perfect light read and I really enjoyed it.
The story is best when explores religious prejudice and bigotry from the perspective of two people descended from immigrants - the way it tackles the subject matter is nuanced and real. It shows the way bigotry can take different forms and the things people leave unsaid. The two characters are able to connect because of this shared experience and it really adds depth to their relationship. It's fully understandable why these two people are drawn to each other and what they give to each other. There are also themes of parental neglect and abuse, though not physical. It's handled very well and it's often quite heart-wrenching.
I did feel like I wanted more from the fantasy aspect of the book. The fantasy seems to be connected deeply to religion and the bigger world is teased in the story, but not fully explored. There is an act at the end of the book that is genuinely "world-changing". This story is definitely not the place to explore that change or the repercussions of that action, since it's huge and the story is personal, but I was left feeling like a very interesting part of the novel was left unresolved.
Still, it was a perfect light read and I really enjoyed it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Racism, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Emotional abuse and Abandonment
baccou's review
adventurous
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Death, Racism, Blood, Antisemitism, and Grief
massivepizzacrust's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
This is definitely an atmospheric read, with a sweet relationship and family dynamic that left me feeling pretty cozy. I enjoyed the whole "attractive person suddenly lives with you through a series of circumstances" situation and their relationship in general. I felt like both Wes and Margaret were really complex and fleshed out and I was really rooting for them.
There were a couple of weird plot choices. It was hard to care about the characters' emotional conversations when they were happening while an injured animal was lying on the ground next to them - which somehow happens more than once. The characters' religions and ethnic backgrounds were a weird rebranding of Catholicism and Judaism that were somehow merged with the fantasy setting. I also wish we had gotten a bit more of an explanation of the characters' decisions in the plot finale, I didn't really understand why they killed the hala but still just released the ash, and there wasn't much of an explanation except "feels right."
There were a couple of weird plot choices. It was hard to care about the characters' emotional conversations when they were happening while an injured animal was lying on the ground next to them - which somehow happens more than once. The characters' religions and ethnic backgrounds were a weird rebranding of Catholicism and Judaism that were somehow merged with the fantasy setting. I also wish we had gotten a bit more of an explanation of the characters' decisions in the plot finale,
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Death, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Religious bigotry, and Abandonment
froggydanny's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Hate crime, Panic attacks/disorders, Religious bigotry, and Abandonment
Moderate: Bullying, Sexual content, Death of parent, and Alcohol
guessgreenleaf's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-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
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Sexual content, Violence, Xenophobia, Religious bigotry, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Minor: Child death, Death of parent, and Alcohol
mad_is_rad's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Gaslighting, and Abandonment
owl_eerie's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
sad
medium-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
4.0
I'm unsure about this book. I found the characters to be engaging and the storyline both interesting and well-paced. Wes was incredibly frustrating to read at some points, but that made his growth rewarding. Maggie growing past her trauma was well done.
I'm not sure I jive with the author's writing style (a simile or 3 in every paragraph...) but her character work was good. My only real complaint was the lack of grounding in the setting--It was very obviously Jewish/Protestant/Irish Catholic religious strife planted in a post WW1 America, shifted out of plane. Would have enjoyed it to take a firmer step further from known history instead of just... changing names but keeping things like microphones.
Listen to the audiobook; I kind of liked Wes's bad NY/Boston accent.
I'm not sure I jive with the author's writing style (a simile or 3 in every paragraph...) but her character work was good. My only real complaint was the lack of grounding in the setting--It was very obviously Jewish/Protestant/Irish Catholic religious strife planted in a post WW1 America, shifted out of plane. Would have enjoyed it to take a firmer step further from known history instead of just... changing names but keeping things like microphones.
Listen to the audiobook; I kind of liked Wes's bad NY/Boston accent.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Antisemitism, Religious bigotry, and Death of parent
Moderate: Gore, Xenophobia, and Grief
Minor: Hate crime