Reviews with content warning for Sexual content - The Secret World of Maggie Grey

I didn't expect to finish this book in 2 days, but I did. I couldn't rate it any higher because of the POV jumping and a few notable unedited sections. That being said, I'm actually excited to read book 2 of this series, I'm super interested to see how HBCU themes play out with creatures and magic.

I have not read something like this before, and even with the parts I disliked I have high hopes and curiosity for the other books in the series.

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sincerelydebi's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny informative mysterious reflective

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

3.5

Oh my… What do I say about 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐞𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐭 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 𝐎𝐟 𝐌𝐚𝐠𝐠𝐢𝐞 𝐆𝐫𝐞𝐲? Let’s start with everything I loved.

a book about an all Black urban paranormal HBCU? Vampires, Witches, Sirens, etc? Yes. Immediately, yes.
a fantastic storyline. From beginning to end, I can honestly say the world building was amazing. A page turner for sure! Getting to understand the ins and outs of this underground world; a place that was specifically created for Black people. Getting to walk along side the protagonists while they navigate a new world that everyone else is so familiar with; as they figure out who they really are, and where they belong.
that this was a Black book. Things that some believe can only be white. Things that some Black people shy away from. (Example: people freaking out because an animated mermaid is Black…) We exist in these spaces as well, and this book definitely highlighted that.
quan the talking cat.

Things I didn’t like or…:

this might be controversial. Fight me. Maybe it was a little too present day socially urban for me🤷🏾‍♀️I mean heavy on slang. Heavy on the ratch. I almost wish we could’ve gatekeeped it. It’s not for everyone. This is a BLACK book.
the men. I’m aware or at least I hope, the point of this was to showcase real life situations and behaviors. I disliked all the men🤣they were extremely perverted & vulgar assholes. Minor spoiler: The fact that he was so disgustingly rude to ol’ girl only for there be a possibility that they’re destined…🤢
the authors obsession with Kodak Black. Please. Nurrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.
too many povs. It just wasn’t necessary to me…and to others I’ve spoken with lol
lastly, it could’ve used more editing.

Other than that, it was good. Now that I take a step back and reflect on it; I think I’m going to continue the story. The author left us on a cliffhanger, and she has plenty of time to change her mind on who 👀🤣iykyk.

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a_dub7's review

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dark mysterious slow-paced

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

3.75

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bookdnbusy's review against another edition

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dark funny mysterious 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? Yes

3.0

what can i say? three stars, deserved.

i started this book wanting to give it five stars, and for a second there i really thought i was gonna give it five stars. then it started dragging and it honestly didnt capture my attention again until the 60% mark.

the fact that i’m gonna have to read the second book to find out what the hell happened has me upset cause i really dont want to dive back into this world. it had so much potential, honestly, it did! during some moments it felt like i was reading some magnificent YA fantasy and others like i was reading a wattpad story by an aspiring writer. it had no consistency, and the fact that it focused so much on everything and everyone ASIDES from the person who’s supposed to be the main character just had me annoyed.

there’s a lot of college sh*t happening at any given time, and i get it, but these are meant to be adults. over 21 adults. you’d think they’d have a little more common sense, but you know, that frontal lobe doesn’t do much until after 25…

the characters are loveable, for sure. maggie can be a little a-holish, but i dont mind it. souxie is a mystery, and the fact that quan has made himself her familiar is hilarious to me. asha is filled with trauma and reticence, but i do love her sharp edges. and isis… i hope nothing bad ever happens to her, EVER!

i dont know what else to say other than, i really don’t want to read the second book if it’s just gonna drag on like this one did. this could’ve been a nice stand alone if there wasnt so much filler writing going on. i was at the edge of my seat the last 40% of the book. it could’ve counted for something, but no, we’re left with a cliff hanger and a promise of nothing.

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ksamaine95's review against another edition

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medium-paced

3.0

I’m a little spoiled and new to independent publishing, so the typos and continuity blips were the only things big things to bring it down. Definitely willing to give the next books a chance.

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reizrblade's review against another edition

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adventurous dark funny mysterious medium-paced

5.0

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dymonlikestoread's review against another edition

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adventurous dark funny fast-paced

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

4.5

The Secret World of Maggie Grey

Author: Granger

Rating: 4.5/5

Spice: 🌶️🌶️

* Trigger Warnings *

Imagine discovering you’ve been accepted into a magical HBCU. Your new friend group consists of a Witch, a Siren, a talking cat, and a Nymph. Oh yeah, and you just discovered you're a Vampire.

Think of an unapologetically black Legacies (Vampire Diaries Spin-off).

I was hesitant about this book. It took me a while to get into it. Once I got into it I really enjoyed it. I loved the setting of a secret historically black college where magical beings can be around people like them. The characters were all interesting and their backgrounds played a key role in their personalities.

While I enjoyed getting the multiple points of view from all the characters. I did feel like we missed out on a lot of points of view from Maggie who I assumed is the main character. The girls are hilarious, especially Asha.

The only issue I had was the stereotypical depiction of some of the black characters. And some of the men in this book are misogynistic narcissists, to say the least. I don't think this author’s writing style will be everyone’s cup of tea it’s very blunt. Either way, I can’t wait to start book 2.

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bshane22's review against another edition

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dark funny lighthearted 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

I was interested in this book because folks said it was like a black version of Harry Potter meets twilight—turns out it’s also a bit of a murder mystery. I wasn’t sure I was going to love it at first because of the writing style, but the writing evolved with the story and the characters. I truly grew to love some of them like Maggie Asha and Quan. I couldn’t add book 2 fast enough after I finished.

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