Reviews tagging 'Death of parent'

The Honey Witch by Sydney J. Shields

13 reviews

juliaureads's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful lighthearted relaxing medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

 This was cozy and sweet just like a cup of honey tea. The magic system was so unique and easy to understand. I billed this as “Bridgerton but with magic” and stand by it. There is a bit of Regency-era gossiping, Mari finding her way in the world, and a lot of sapphic love. The romance was a little rushed, but you know I love some pining, of which there was none. 
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amina_writes_books's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful lighthearted mysterious reflective relaxing tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

there was zero action until page 133. Narration reads stilted, with the gay romance scenes feeling forced. I love it when Allies write books, but maybe should refrain from telling the gay experience unless it mirrors their own journey. "I love you" came as a cheesy romance novel.
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ana_the_frog's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

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jojo_bookworm's review against another edition

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

5.0

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mamaewalk's review

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adventurous mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

Such a good read. Starts off cozy and sweet but definitely has high stakes in second half. What I love is the queer joy. Queer relationships are a normal thing that no one bats an eye at in this world. 
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ninjamuse's review

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emotional hopeful medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

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metaphorsandmisc's review against another edition

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emotional lighthearted slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

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cloverbeee's review against another edition

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

0.5

Boring fanfic unsuccessfully turned into a full novel. About 75% of the way through, I was very tempted to start redacting lines and editing as I read. 

Look elsewhere for cozy moments of character development and unrequited longing, here you get exposition dumps, zero worldbuilding, flat unlikeable characters and you'll like it.


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klbreyfogle's review against another edition

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

3.5

I was really looking forward to reading this book and it didn’t quite live up to my expectations. There were some pacing issues, especially in the first third of the book when it was really slow. And it’s a LOT of inside Mari’s head, which isn’t the most interesting place to be (she’s pretty fixated on her dislike of her life and of love). It’s a slow burn without being a slow burn - the romance develops quickly but they don’t actually meet until like halfway through the book. The second half of the book is much better than the first half, though! The romance is sweet, although the plot twist is predictable. (Read with an ARC on NetGalley)
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atthelibrarywithmegan's review

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challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I received a free digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was in such a deep reading slump and I picked this ARC on a whim, hoping it would pull me out. Spoiler alert: it did! I’d mostly forgotten what the plot to THE HONEY WITCH was, so I briefly skimmed over it. I had no idea it was a queer book, but looking back, the blurb definitely clues you in on that little tidbit. Needless to say, I was pleasantly surprised when I realized it.

Before I get into the bones of the story, I want to touch on the queerness of the book. There were no big over explanations to why someone was queer, why that woman had been with men and women, why someone’s preference was the way it was. Everyone simply just existed and I absolutely love when a novel/series does that.

You enter Marigold’s world of Bardshire where she has twin siblings who are incredibly talented, and she is not. She is the odd one, the one with no talent, the one trying to find her place in the world. After a night under the full moon, when the veil is thin, she ends up being surprised by her grandmother and learns the family secret: she comes from a line of honey witches. The only catch; no one can fall in love with a honey witch. Since Marigold is adamant that she doesn’t want to become “just a wife,” she jumps at the chance to be whisked away to Innsfree and begin her training. 

In Innsfree, Marigold’s grandmother, Althea, teaches her the way of the honey witch and leaves her with her legacy. Now enter August - a childhood friend whom Marigold is so glad to reconnect with - and Lottie Burke, August’s best friend. An impossible girl who refers to magic/witchcraft as “mythcraft.” Marigold does all that she can to convince Lottie that magic is in fact real. Can she do it? Can Marigold break the curse on honey witches, and can she protect Innsfree in the meantime? You’ll just have to read THE HONEY WITCH when it comes out in May!

This was a solid 3 star read for me. I enjoyed it very much, and will be recommending it, but I’m not sure it’ll find a home on my shelf. That is to be determined by how much I think about it in the coming months. 


TRIGGER WARNINGS: Death, fire/fire injury, grief, miscarriage, confinement, sexual content.

 
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