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3.97 AVERAGE
3.97 AVERAGE
adventurous
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:
Yes
Libby/audio
Quite frankly, i simply adored this book!
Normally referencing Austen turns me away, but this was delightfully hilarious, wacky, quirky and delightful. The world is bonkers. The characters are fun. The romance is swoony. Alex drops enough 'Grand, Darling's to keep me happy, though i will say his brogue was a little more suppressed than i would have preferred.
I really enjoyed book one, but this book was the perfect recipe for me personally. Reminiscent of The Lady Janies style of historical lit-humor, with a sprinkling of Ally McBeal style inner monologuing, i had a great time!
Char is a repressed and sheltered naive heroine, and although a few bits of modern day messaging sneaked into the story (i prefer to do without) and some plot choices are employed (i also could have skipped) i still liked her very much, and the story makes sense as it is.
Alex is the seemingly gray pirate hero, hiding noble deeds behind thick walls, and a dark traumatic past, who with the help of Char and true love, finally finds happiness and peace.
The whole plot is kind of silly, but it gives the characters a quest journey to move through, while they slowly realize they actually fell in love along the way too. Which is always a favorite of mine.
Overall, you need to read book one for the world building, but i personally liked this one much more. 6 stars.
Quite frankly, i simply adored this book!
Normally referencing Austen turns me away, but this was delightfully hilarious, wacky, quirky and delightful. The world is bonkers. The characters are fun. The romance is swoony. Alex drops enough 'Grand, Darling's to keep me happy, though i will say his brogue was a little more suppressed than i would have preferred.
I really enjoyed book one, but this book was the perfect recipe for me personally. Reminiscent of The Lady Janies style of historical lit-humor, with a sprinkling of Ally McBeal style inner monologuing, i had a great time!
Char is a repressed and sheltered naive heroine, and although a few bits of modern day messaging sneaked into the story (i prefer to do without) and some plot choices are employed (i also could have skipped) i still liked her very much, and the story makes sense as it is.
Alex is the seemingly gray pirate hero, hiding noble deeds behind thick walls, and a dark traumatic past, who with the help of Char and true love, finally finds happiness and peace.
The whole plot is kind of silly, but it gives the characters a quest journey to move through, while they slowly realize they actually fell in love along the way too. Which is always a favorite of mine.
Overall, you need to read book one for the world building, but i personally liked this one much more. 6 stars.
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse
Minor: Gun violence, Misogyny, Violence
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
funny
hopeful
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Loveable characters:
Yes
This was decent. Plot itself was weak but the dialogue was hilarious and it had a lot of interesting/new fantasy ideas. I've heard that the 1st one in the series is better though so I look forward to that.
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
I just want to state this at the start of this review: I am aware that I am not the intended audience and I only have myself to blame. I bought this book in Salem, MA at a local bookstore thinking it would be a fun book about some witches. I did not understand that this is actually a Victorian romantacy novel.
I can tell that India Holton has some talent as a writer; I did find the occasional witticism or turn of phrase that made me smile. It is just truly unfortunate that the rest of what she writes really rubs me the wrong way. The League of Gentlewomen Witches has a number of failures as a book that compound upon one another in very frustrating ways. The general premise is an enemies become lovers story between a young witch and a rakish pirate (in this case, pirates commandeer flying houses not ships for some reason). A McGuffin chase for a magical amulet provides the flimsiest of trappings for one of the most straightforward and bland romances I have ever run into. It felt almost entirely frictionless outside the constant barrage of quippy one-liners.
Holton attempts to elevate the story by often directly and indirectly referencing Jane Austen and in particular Pride & Prejudice. Mentioning Elizabeth Bennett multiple times a chapter as a model to emulate for manners or morals. The comparisons and references are clunky at best and feel more offensive than reverential to me. The quippy dialogue is not limited to the main romance, it overtakes all relationship dynamics. The book is comprised of about 95% one-liners, smarminess, and sass. A little bit goes a long way and in this case it felt like trying to add a bit of seasoning to a recipe and the top falls off and the whole contents of the shaker is emptied out into the pan. My final issue is with the fantastical depiction of Victorian England, it feels ill-formed, non-sensical, and poorly fleshed out. I really had a hard time placing myself at all because it clearly was not a focus.
I can understand the appeal to some who would be more in-tune with the genre but it was truly not for me in so many ways.
I can tell that India Holton has some talent as a writer; I did find the occasional witticism or turn of phrase that made me smile. It is just truly unfortunate that the rest of what she writes really rubs me the wrong way. The League of Gentlewomen Witches has a number of failures as a book that compound upon one another in very frustrating ways. The general premise is an enemies become lovers story between a young witch and a rakish pirate (in this case, pirates commandeer flying houses not ships for some reason). A McGuffin chase for a magical amulet provides the flimsiest of trappings for one of the most straightforward and bland romances I have ever run into. It felt almost entirely frictionless outside the constant barrage of quippy one-liners.
Holton attempts to elevate the story by often directly and indirectly referencing Jane Austen and in particular Pride & Prejudice. Mentioning Elizabeth Bennett multiple times a chapter as a model to emulate for manners or morals. The comparisons and references are clunky at best and feel more offensive than reverential to me. The quippy dialogue is not limited to the main romance, it overtakes all relationship dynamics. The book is comprised of about 95% one-liners, smarminess, and sass. A little bit goes a long way and in this case it felt like trying to add a bit of seasoning to a recipe and the top falls off and the whole contents of the shaker is emptied out into the pan. My final issue is with the fantastical depiction of Victorian England, it feels ill-formed, non-sensical, and poorly fleshed out. I really had a hard time placing myself at all because it clearly was not a focus.
I can understand the appeal to some who would be more in-tune with the genre but it was truly not for me in so many ways.
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes