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smartie_chan's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
sad
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief and Dementia
Moderate: Death
Minor: Child death, Injury/Injury detail, Suicide, and Suicidal thoughts
cadence99's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
4.0
This book is really sweet: found family vibes, emotional moments; quite reminiscent of the very secret society of irregular witches in some ways except sapphic and with the addition of exploring grief. I think it lands somewhere around a 4 star for me: there were some moments with the love interest in the beginning that had me rolling my eyes HARD (think overly grumpy mad at the world cringeyness) and then a few moments in the middle that I could tell were supposed to be grand emotional reveal type things that just didn’t hit me quite perfectly. BUT the ending really wrapped it up so well and left me feeling all the things. Overall a lovely read! So excited for it to hit the shelves- thank you to Netgalley and Bindery for this eARC
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Child death, Death, Death of parent, Dementia, and Terminal illness
Minor: Animal cruelty, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual content, and Suicide
93ali_mod's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Thank you Net Galley and Bindery for the ARC!
I loved this book with a passion (and an amount of tears) that I was honestly not expecting. I just loved everything about it. The cover is stunning, it really captures the vibes of the story without giving anything away. And it’s just so beautiful. The characters feel extremely real and are all so so lovely. I really truly and deeply cared about them and their friendship with one another, and I found the sheer kindness of their actions, so powerful that bleeds through most of the pages of this book so heartwarming. All within a plot that is unexpected and an approach to grief and loss (two of my biggest personal triggers) that is oh-so-refreshing. Definitely a five stars read.
I loved this book with a passion (and an amount of tears) that I was honestly not expecting. I just loved everything about it. The cover is stunning, it really captures the vibes of the story without giving anything away. And it’s just so beautiful. The characters feel extremely real and are all so so lovely. I really truly and deeply cared about them and their friendship with one another, and I found the sheer kindness of their actions, so powerful that bleeds through most of the pages of this book so heartwarming. All within a plot that is unexpected and an approach to grief and loss (two of my biggest personal triggers) that is oh-so-refreshing. Definitely a five stars read.
Normally, at this point I would summarise the plot, but I think the less you know the better it is, so I’ll tell you a story instead. It’s a bit of a long and winding story, but bear with me. My mum has this body oil that she would bring on vacations. It’s a friction oil (I think that’s what they are called in English), which you put on your legs or your arms after having done sports to soothe muscle pain. We would use it after days walking in new cities, and it would really help getting our legs to feel light again – and to be useable the day after. She calls it “the magical oil”, because what it does is “it finds the spots within your muscles where you are (going to be) most sore, and then it acts specifically there.” You know it because you feel a cooling sensation only in specific parts of your legs. Now, letting along the fact that this is EXACTLY how this oil feels, I cannot find better words to describe the experience that reading House of Frank was for me. Going through the pages really felt like a sort of balm was coating my heart and my memories, finding precisely the points that were ‘sore’ and just healing them. I felt parts of me glow after I finished the epilogue.
In the last few years, only two other books have had this effect on me: Light from Uncommon Stars by Ryka Aoki and A Psalm for the Wild Built by Becky Chambers. House of Frank is NOT a read alike for either, but the sensations that it leaves you with are absolutely comparable.
Reading this book was such a joyful and cathartic experience to get through. I had to force myself to read it at a leisurely pace (like over two days instead of one setting), because I just wanted to tear through it but the language, the feelings, the plot, and the characters needed to be savoured.
I really really really can’t wait for it to be out. I honestly can’t wait to get my hands on a hard copy and reread it, maybe even a bit slower than I did this time. Oh, and I can’t wait to see the fan art that I am sure will flourish after this book hits the shelves.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Grief
Moderate: Suicide
lisamchuk's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Yes, the amazing cover is a completely accurate portrayal of this cozy story about grief, healing, and found family! The author has depicted a magical world that includes a colourful cast of magical characters: different types of witches, a fairy, and a ghost to name a few - plus Frank, a beast, who is the caretaker of the house (as per the title of course). Saika, a witch with no powers, has come to Ash Gardens to fulfill her sister’s wish of having her ashes planted in the magical arboretum. Thus we follow Saika’s emotional journey as she mourns her sister while getting to know the supportive characters who live and work at Ash Gardens.
The writing is fine, very clear and descriptive, though the there were a few too many incidences of slow paced miscommunication for my taste. I didn’t always connect with the main character's first person point of view and found some of her inner angst repetitive (constantly being inside someone’s head for all of this telling-not-showing sad content did weigh on me at times). The other characters are diverse and have some depth: I wanted to read on to find out more about them, their magic, and how their relationships would develop. The author kindly included content/trigger warnings and a pronunciation guide at the start, and in addition to the heartfelt coziness sprinkles of humour throughout. My issues with the point of view aside, this really is a very sweet book.
Overall, I liked this story and its message and found the characters interesting even though I didn’t connect with the main character’s voice. If you like cozy, emotional, magical stories, and/or you enjoyed Under the Whispering Door by TJ Klune or The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna, then this book might be for you.
Thank you to Netgalley and Bindery Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
The writing is fine, very clear and descriptive, though the there were a few too many incidences of slow paced miscommunication for my taste. I didn’t always connect with the main character's first person point of view and found some of her inner angst repetitive (constantly being inside someone’s head for all of this telling-not-showing sad content did weigh on me at times). The other characters are diverse and have some depth: I wanted to read on to find out more about them, their magic, and how their relationships would develop. The author kindly included content/trigger warnings and a pronunciation guide at the start, and in addition to the heartfelt coziness sprinkles of humour throughout. My issues with the point of view aside, this really is a very sweet book.
Overall, I liked this story and its message and found the characters interesting even though I didn’t connect with the main character’s voice. If you like cozy, emotional, magical stories, and/or you enjoyed Under the Whispering Door by TJ Klune or The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna, then this book might be for you.
Thank you to Netgalley and Bindery Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief
Minor: Suicide
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