jasminelilymae's review
adventurous
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? No
5.0
bookmarkedbybritt's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
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
4.0
pagesandpitties's review against another edition
4.0
*Thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow for providing me with an early copy in exchange for an honest review.*
When I first came across this title and read the synopsis I immediately added it to my TBR.
When we first meet our protagonist, Lucky St. James, she is anything but lucky. Her mother is dead, she is responsible for caring for her grandmother Stella who has dimentia, and they're being evicted from their apartment. She is going through some of her mother's things when she comes across a small souvenier spoon with a picture of a witch and the word "Salem" on it. This discovery leads her to a group of witches who are trying to locate the final two women to complete their coven. Each new witch must be the one to locate the next, so now it's up to Lucky (with the help of her grandmother) to locate the final witch.
Overall I really enjoyed this book. I LOVED the LGBT+ and cultural representations of the other witches as well as the importance of feminism and women supporting women. I liked that we got some backstory for the other coven members, but I do wish we got more of them, either as they were entering the group or in present day. The end of this book definitely set up the potential for this to become a series, so I'm crossing my fingers that we get some more of these women!
My only real complaint about this book is that there was so much set up that the ending felt rushed. I'm not saying that the setup should have been condensed at all because it did a great job of showing us Lucky's personality as well as her dynamic with Stella, but I think this book could have used an extra ~50 pages to expand on some of the obstacles since everything was resolved pretty quickly. Each conflict throughout was resolved pretty easily, and the final battle in the book took up only one chapter (seventeen pages), so I never felt like the stakes were very high.
I would highly recommend this for fantasy lovers (or fantasy newbies, since the fantastical elements are still fairly rooted in reality) who are looking for a book with some great representation. I also have the ARC of "Funeral Songs for Dying Girls" by this author, so I can't wait to pick that one up as well!
When I first came across this title and read the synopsis I immediately added it to my TBR.
When we first meet our protagonist, Lucky St. James, she is anything but lucky. Her mother is dead, she is responsible for caring for her grandmother Stella who has dimentia, and they're being evicted from their apartment. She is going through some of her mother's things when she comes across a small souvenier spoon with a picture of a witch and the word "Salem" on it. This discovery leads her to a group of witches who are trying to locate the final two women to complete their coven. Each new witch must be the one to locate the next, so now it's up to Lucky (with the help of her grandmother) to locate the final witch.
Overall I really enjoyed this book. I LOVED the LGBT+ and cultural representations of the other witches as well as the importance of feminism and women supporting women. I liked that we got some backstory for the other coven members, but I do wish we got more of them, either as they were entering the group or in present day. The end of this book definitely set up the potential for this to become a series, so I'm crossing my fingers that we get some more of these women!
My only real complaint about this book is that there was so much set up that the ending felt rushed. I'm not saying that the setup should have been condensed at all because it did a great job of showing us Lucky's personality as well as her dynamic with Stella, but I think this book could have used an extra ~50 pages to expand on some of the obstacles since everything was resolved pretty quickly. Each conflict throughout was resolved pretty easily, and the final battle in the book took up only one chapter (seventeen pages), so I never felt like the stakes were very high.
I would highly recommend this for fantasy lovers (or fantasy newbies, since the fantastical elements are still fairly rooted in reality) who are looking for a book with some great representation. I also have the ARC of "Funeral Songs for Dying Girls" by this author, so I can't wait to pick that one up as well!
arelkins12's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
slow-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? No
2.5
obansmom's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
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
lennybiird's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
tense
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? It's complicated
5.0
arcookson's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
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
littleknit10's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.75
cowboyaj's review against another edition
4.0
Loved the relationship between Lucky and Stella. Sometimes it was a bit heavy handed with explaining its themes to the audience, but otherwise a fun read!