Reviews tagging 'Murder'

Magic Lessons: The Prequel to Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman

15 reviews

loonysaurus's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional informative mysterious medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Chronic illness, Religious bigotry, Grief, Infidelity, Pregnancy, Child abuse, Animal death, Blood, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Physical abuse, Sexism, Misogyny, Murder, and Self harm

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Addiction, Stalking, Antisemitism, Colonisation, Hate crime, Slavery, Violence, Racism, and Abandonment

Minor: Classism and Sexual content

gen_wolfhailstorm's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense 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? It's complicated

5.0

Ah! What a beautiful, enchanting prequel. This was written just as wonderfully as practical magic and I adored it just as much.

Hoffman writes generational, magical stories about women so fantastically.

I loved learning how the Owen's curse began and who began the legacy, and growing with them. I felt attached deeply to Hannah, Maria and Faith and though some decisions took characters down some dark roads, the character development that came from that was phenomenal.

There's a few heart wrenching animal deaths that absolutely broke me, so just prepare if things like that greatly upset you too.

The writing was lush and rich. I always adore the little spell work included between chapters/parts. It just feels so wholesome and perfectly placed.

Overall, I adored this so much!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Slavery, Toxic friendship, Animal death, Genocide, Child death, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Rape, Religious bigotry, Colonisation, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Gore, Sexual content, Infidelity, Infertility, Death, Dementia, Child abuse, Grief, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Bullying, Confinement, Kidnapping, Pregnancy, Animal cruelty, Sexism, Stalking, Torture, Adult/minor relationship, Domestic abuse, Forced institutionalization, Murder, Pedophilia, Blood, Medical content, and Violence

danimain's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful sad slow-paced

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

3.5

Old world old school story of magic and Witchery, with strong female characters. Though this books style and plot is not personally my style Marie is endearing and the perpetual bleakness of the plot being during the Salem which trials does redeem itself. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Murder, Sexism, Xenophobia, Animal cruelty, Confinement, and Child abuse

Moderate: Religious bigotry, Self harm, Racism, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Pedophilia, Slavery, and Kidnapping

booksalacarte's review against another edition

dark hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Magic Lessons- 4⭐️ 2🌶️

Historical Fantasy
Magical Realism
Witches
Salem witch trials
Witch heritage
Early America
One Bed
Journey
Coming of age
Generational Curse
Kidnapping


Alice Hoffman’s writing often feels like campfire storytelling . It’s such a specific style that is a perfect example of the Art of a tale. With whimsey, magic and love she transports her readers to another place and time. 

I found the history of the Owens family and the originator of the love curse to be rich in prose, vivid descriptions and a careful attention to history.

This is a slow moving tale that follows the entire life of the matriarch of the Owen’s family. But Hoffman completely captures the scene of each of the places the MC finds herself, as well as the misogynistic and fearful tone of the time.

“Do as you will, but bring harm to no one.
What you will give will be returned to you threefold.”

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Sexism, Abandonment, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Dementia, Chronic illness, Confinement, Colonisation, Death, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Grief, Kidnapping, Murder, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Toxic relationship, Slavery, Torture, and Violence

serendipitysbooks's review against another edition

emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

 Magic Lessons was the really satisfying story of Maria Owens and her daughter Faith, a story that spanned the UK, Caribbean, and the US. It’s a prequel to Hoffman’s Practical Magic series. I haven’t read that but can attest that this story works well as a standalone. It’s a story that highlights women’s traditional healing skills and herbal knowledge, and the misogyny and self-interest that underlay the Witch Trials. Lots of loveable characters who sometimes made poor choices- as well as a few to be despised, an epic love story, and plenty of good life advice - “Read as many books as you can. Always choose courage. Never watch another woman burn. know that love is the only answer.” 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Death, Misogyny, Religious bigotry, and Murder

waytoomanybooks's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.5

It's been a while since I've been so gripped by a book! It has all of my favorite tropes: magical realism, female empowerment, deep personal connections, female joy, women supporting women, and strong mother-daughter relationships. I love that the core theme of the book is love of all kinds: familial, romantic, friendship, pets, and even neighbors. 

A recurring line is that what you put out into the world will come back threefold. And I love that it really makes you reflect on your own choices, on your own energy. The book also repeats the line that what has been done cannot be undone. How are you living your life? What can you change?

I love that it made me think and hit me right in the chest with insights and self-reflection right along with the characters. I constantly had a highlighter handy because there was so much that stood out to me that I wanted to go back to. I went back a few times throughout the novel and sayw deliciously perfect morsels of foreshadowing, which makes it perfect book to reread and get something new out of it or notice something that you missed the first time.

I highly recommend this book!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Misogyny, Torture, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Animal cruelty, Death of parent, Confinement, Adult/minor relationship, Physical abuse, Kidnapping, Sexual assault, Violence, Animal death, Domestic abuse, Slavery, Abandonment, Antisemitism, Death, and Emotional abuse

bookishfaye's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense 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

5.0

This book is a very slow burn & very heavy on the historical elements so with that being said I can see how this book is maybe not for everyone. I have never seen or read practical magic & decided to go about the series in chronological timeline order so I’ve started with the story of Maria Owens. I absolutely loved every second of this book, it was beautiful, & heartbreaking, & hopeful, & devastating & I’ll be jumping right into The Rules of Magic Asap!!! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Misogyny, Murder, Pregnancy, Death, Grief, Infidelity, Violence, Chronic illness, Confinement, Abandonment, Animal death, Kidnapping, Religious bigotry, Slavery, Sexism, and Toxic relationship

meganjeg's review against another edition

adventurous dark medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

I struggled to keep up the momentum with this book even though it is so well written. Part of it is the way the story jumped through time, I found it hard to connect with the characters. And part of it was the intensity of the storyline, every character was dealing with trauma. Also, I read this book first and even though that makes sense chronologically, sometimes prequels don't hit the same as the main series. 

That being said, the writing is excellent, I could vividly imagine the places in the story and, even though this is a fantasy book, it felt realistic - a feminist allegory of generational trauma. 

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Content Warnings

Minor: Murder, Abandonment, and Religious bigotry

citrinuke's review against another edition

adventurous dark hopeful mysterious medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Domestic abuse, Murder, Physical abuse, Religious bigotry, Confinement, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Infidelity, Kidnapping, Misogyny, and Torture

julianalo's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Religious bigotry, Misogyny, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Murder, Colonisation, Death, and Domestic abuse

Minor: Abortion, Sexual assault, and Slavery