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lastblossom's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
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? Yes
tl;dr
A charming fantasy romance with slow burn and a dash of magic.
Thoughts
This book is like a fairy tale. Usually when I say that, I mean it in the "dark, tragic, unsettling" sort of way, but this time I mean it in the "dreamy, beautiful, hopeful ending" sort of way. You've got your self-sacrificing heroine with a heart a gold and magic in her fingertips, a cranky prince surrounded by a wall of thorns (sometimes literally), and a kingdom in peril. The magic system doesn't get much detail, leaving the reader to have to accept that magic is magic, but the rest of the world building is solid - weighted heavily on real world history, including a frank look at colonization, classism, the fact that LGBT people have existed at every point in history. And yet even with all the weight, it remains a dreamy, sometimes cozy read about a gently blossoming romance between two lonely people.
Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an advance copy. All thoughts in this review are my own!
A charming fantasy romance with slow burn and a dash of magic.
Thoughts
This book is like a fairy tale. Usually when I say that, I mean it in the "dark, tragic, unsettling" sort of way, but this time I mean it in the "dreamy, beautiful, hopeful ending" sort of way. You've got your self-sacrificing heroine with a heart a gold and magic in her fingertips, a cranky prince surrounded by a wall of thorns (sometimes literally), and a kingdom in peril. The magic system doesn't get much detail, leaving the reader to have to accept that magic is magic, but the rest of the world building is solid - weighted heavily on real world history, including a frank look at colonization, classism, the fact that LGBT people have existed at every point in history. And yet even with all the weight, it remains a dreamy, sometimes cozy read about a gently blossoming romance between two lonely people.
Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an advance copy. All thoughts in this review are my own!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Colonisation and Classism
Moderate: Blood and Death of parent
Minor: Homophobia and War
meganpbell's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
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
4.5
If Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) was a YA book, it would be this fantasy and its aching forbidden romance between a magical dressmaker from a former colony, hired for the royal wedding, and the king's wayward, plant-magic-wielding second son, the groom. Together, Niamh, soft as velvet, and Kit, prickly as a briar patch, risk not only scandal, but war, ruin, uprising, and the loss of all the armor and thorns both have used to protect themselves from life and love ‘til now.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Chronic illness
Minor: Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Alcoholism, Homophobia, Sexual content, Death of parent, Child abuse, Car accident, and War
chronicacademia's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Grief, Ableism, Colonisation, Infidelity, Death of parent, Homophobia, Sexual content, and Terminal illness
mimimac's review against another edition
lighthearted
slow-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? Yes
2.0
A Fragile Enchantment is a low stakes regency fantasy romance, with a unique magic system and a hint of mystery!
What worked for me in this book was the world building & magic system. I liked the world Allison created, it’s obviously regency influenced and that fully come across in the setting. I really liked the magic systems, linked to the characters emotions (and heritage too) is always interesting to see, but I especially loved Niamh’s magic, maybe because it was more of a developed idea, but something about someone embroidering their emotions onto the fabric and that influencing the wearer or people around them is just so fascinating to me, such a wonderfully unique idea!
What didn’t work for me though was plot and characters. There wasn’t really a plot, which is fine if you like the characters, but I also didn’t really like the characters. I think this is somewhat quite a me problem, but I found them to be one dimensional and annoying. Usually I love a grumpy x sunshine/“enemies” to lovers trope, but here it just didn’t work for me, really it ended up being more of an “instalove” trope. The twist of the scandal sheet columnist was easy to guess and overall just a predictable story.
There was a lot going on at the beginning of the story and everything towards the end felt rushed and everything fell conveniently into place. I think this is marketed as a YA title too, but for me it read towards the younger end of YA, yet there was also a not fade-to-black scene which I found quite weird to be shoehorned in? It just didn’t hit the mark for me.
Thank you to Wednesday Books and Netgalley for the opportunity to review this ARC
What worked for me in this book was the world building & magic system. I liked the world Allison created, it’s obviously regency influenced and that fully come across in the setting. I really liked the magic systems, linked to the characters emotions (and heritage too) is always interesting to see, but I especially loved Niamh’s magic, maybe because it was more of a developed idea, but something about someone embroidering their emotions onto the fabric and that influencing the wearer or people around them is just so fascinating to me, such a wonderfully unique idea!
What didn’t work for me though was plot and characters. There wasn’t really a plot, which is fine if you like the characters, but I also didn’t really like the characters. I think this is somewhat quite a me problem, but I found them to be one dimensional and annoying. Usually I love a grumpy x sunshine/“enemies” to lovers trope, but here it just didn’t work for me, really it ended up being more of an “instalove” trope. The twist of the scandal sheet columnist was easy to guess and overall just a predictable story.
There was a lot going on at the beginning of the story and everything towards the end felt rushed and everything fell conveniently into place. I think this is marketed as a YA title too, but for me it read towards the younger end of YA, yet there was also a not fade-to-black scene which I found quite weird to be shoehorned in? It just didn’t hit the mark for me.
Thank you to Wednesday Books and Netgalley for the opportunity to review this ARC
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia and Alcoholism
annasneddon's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-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: Homophobia
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