Reviews

Witchmark by C.L. Polk

tmcurley's review

adventurous lighthearted mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes

4.0

maddun's review against another edition

4.0

Overall I liked it!

I liked the concept, characters, and the themes of the book. Some aspects were very creative and it was enjoyable to read, dabbled in dark subjects without being too heavy

I think there were some plot holes but I chose not to think about them too much to enjoy the book!!

I liked the way the romance started but the way the romance resolved in the end was a bit cringe to me sorry...I also am kind of tired of human/fae stuff ACOTAR has turned me off it

20000beesunderthesea's review

dark emotional mysterious 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

4.25

msliz's review against another edition

mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

2.75

lesserjoke's review against another edition

4.0

A charming story, both for its Edwardian-flavored fantasy setting and for the tender gay romance at its heart. The worldbuilding details of bicycle traffic and early electric lights stop just short of twee, but my favorite is possibly that there's no signs of homophobia in this society -- matched by no real drama in the central relationship beyond the practical considerations involved with loving a supernaturally beautiful angel. The characters are allowed to just be sweet with one another as they team up to investigate a rapidly expanding mystery.

That main plotline falters a bit, and I think debut author C.L. Polk sometimes loses track of who knows what information when. There's an interesting class dynamic of wealthy sorcerers using their magic openly while poor witches get locked in asylums for exhibiting the same powers, but the narrator still seems to fear this fate long after he's been openly identified as a runaway scion of a major family. There are also some thematic considerations of slavery and battlefield trauma that get somewhat lost in the shuffle as the novel progresses.

So it's not exactly a flawless work, but it's still a precious and cozy start with a lot of promise ahead. I'll be reading on, for sure.

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eb2114's review

adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.75

rains22's review

adventurous hopeful mysterious sad fast-paced

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

3.0

minchowski's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious 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

4.0

manadziesma's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.0

chimamas's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional inspiring sad medium-paced

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

5.0

 I absolutely loved this book. It had so much intrigue and mystery, I could not put it down. There are some books that make it hard for me to go to sleep until I finish it, and this was one of those books. The magic system in this was amazing to witness, plus a gay romance?! No wrong done here. I have read the whole series and I would say this one is my favorite of all 3, but that isn't saying much because I loved the others too. The world that was created was very well put together and I also loved the underlying issues listed of the imbalance of power between the rich and poor.