Scan barcode
rebeccathorne's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
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
4.5
I was delighted to receive an ARC of this book! No spoilers in this review.
Marigold knows she doesn't belong in high society--not with honey witch magic in her blood. When her grandmother, Althea, offers to whisk her to a magical island filled with bees, nature spirits, and solitude, she instantly accepts. But Marigold doesn't understand the extent of a honey witch's curse... that she's destined to be alone, lonely, forever.
Until Lottie, that is...
This book was a breath of fresh air. It felt like Bridgerton, but a Bridgerton mixed with magic, spells, and intense love and loss. Althea was honestly one of my favorite characters--she reminded me so much of my own grandparents, although significantly less sassy. She was the supportive grandma we all want, and her magic alone made me want to flee to Innisfree with Marigold.
The romance happened pretty fast for my taste, but I'm a slow burn fan, so that doesn't really surprise me. I did love Lottie's personality, and August was an absolute delight. All the characters felt so real to me, and the lyrical writing style made this a fast, immensely enjoyable read!
It even has some very creepy undertones that kept the pages turning faster and faster towards the end of the book. Damn. Great stuff!
Overall, highly recommend THE HONEY WITCH. What a stunning debut by author Sydney J. Shields! Congrats on the upcoming release!
Marigold knows she doesn't belong in high society--not with honey witch magic in her blood. When her grandmother, Althea, offers to whisk her to a magical island filled with bees, nature spirits, and solitude, she instantly accepts. But Marigold doesn't understand the extent of a honey witch's curse... that she's destined to be alone, lonely, forever.
Until Lottie, that is...
This book was a breath of fresh air. It felt like Bridgerton, but a Bridgerton mixed with magic, spells, and intense love and loss. Althea was honestly one of my favorite characters--she reminded me so much of my own grandparents, although significantly less sassy. She was the supportive grandma we all want, and her magic alone made me want to flee to Innisfree with Marigold.
The romance happened pretty fast for my taste, but I'm a slow burn fan, so that doesn't really surprise me. I did love Lottie's personality, and August was an absolute delight. All the characters felt so real to me, and the lyrical writing style made this a fast, immensely enjoyable read!
It even has some very creepy undertones that kept the pages turning faster and faster towards the end of the book. Damn. Great stuff!
Overall, highly recommend THE HONEY WITCH. What a stunning debut by author Sydney J. Shields! Congrats on the upcoming release!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Death of parent, and Physical abuse
Minor: Grief and Miscarriage
This book is mostly cozy, but does have some darker instances as the story progresses. The Ash Witch is a very violent villain, so be prepared for the content warnings above!annirogue's review
adventurous
emotional
lighthearted
reflective
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? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and Fire/Fire injury
skillyillian's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
first off, thank you to the publisher and netgalley for an eARC of this book!
I really enjoyed The Honey Witch. Marigold leaves her boring courtly life behind to go be a Honey Witch on her grandmother's isle, cursed to never find love as long as she has magic. She goes through the trials of her new occupation, including convincing a non-believer that magic exists and can even help people find their soulmates. It's a well-thought-out story, full of love and grief and dealing with the unavoidable consequences of your actions and the choices you make to get what you want. Marigold making tough choices was done well, you could see her train of thought and follow the logic pretty easily. She felt real and relatable - they all did, in their own ways.
All of Shields' characters felt fully fleshed out, with personalities and minds of their own. It was so fun to see Mari and Lottie open up to each other as they spent more time together. August was the perfect person to encourage it, and seeing him go through his own little subplot was fun too. He deserves all of the good things, I absolutely adored him. The worldbuilding was good, I loved exploring Innisfree with Marigold as she arrived and familiarized herself with all of it.
I do wish the pace had been a bit quicker at the start of the book. I understand it takes time for things to get settled in, and I appreciated the way it was done, but I wish it hadn't taken quite as long as it did. That being said, it wasn't badly written - far from it, really. Just took a bit too long for my tastes. The back half was good though, I felt like once things picked up finally it settled into a good pace. The story ended with a good mix of action, romance, suspense, and hope. Once the romance started to kick in, it got even more interesting. I loved seeing them get closer and let down their walls for each other. Once the lesbians started lesbianing, it was all fireworks from there. There's some spice (not a ton, but it's undeniably present) and it was 10/10, my goodness.
Overall, I really liked the characters and the worldbuilding. The magic was very unique, I've never seen one like this in a book before and I really enjoyed it. The pacing was a bit too slow for me for a lot of the book, but at the same time, this wasn't an action adventure, it's a cozy, queer romantasy. You get exactly what's described, much to the author's credit. This book is a win for the cottagecore lesbian community, so if that's your vibe, you'll probably love this.
I really enjoyed The Honey Witch. Marigold leaves her boring courtly life behind to go be a Honey Witch on her grandmother's isle, cursed to never find love as long as she has magic. She goes through the trials of her new occupation, including convincing a non-believer that magic exists and can even help people find their soulmates. It's a well-thought-out story, full of love and grief and dealing with the unavoidable consequences of your actions and the choices you make to get what you want. Marigold making tough choices was done well, you could see her train of thought and follow the logic pretty easily. She felt real and relatable - they all did, in their own ways.
All of Shields' characters felt fully fleshed out, with personalities and minds of their own. It was so fun to see Mari and Lottie open up to each other as they spent more time together. August was the perfect person to encourage it, and seeing him go through his own little subplot was fun too. He deserves all of the good things, I absolutely adored him. The worldbuilding was good, I loved exploring Innisfree with Marigold as she arrived and familiarized herself with all of it.
I do wish the pace had been a bit quicker at the start of the book. I understand it takes time for things to get settled in, and I appreciated the way it was done, but I wish it hadn't taken quite as long as it did. That being said, it wasn't badly written - far from it, really. Just took a bit too long for my tastes. The back half was good though, I felt like once things picked up finally it settled into a good pace. The story ended with a good mix of action, romance, suspense, and hope. Once the romance started to kick in, it got even more interesting. I loved seeing them get closer and let down their walls for each other. Once the lesbians started lesbianing, it was all fireworks from there. There's some spice (not a ton, but it's undeniably present) and it was 10/10, my goodness.
Overall, I really liked the characters and the worldbuilding. The magic was very unique, I've never seen one like this in a book before and I really enjoyed it. The pacing was a bit too slow for me for a lot of the book, but at the same time, this wasn't an action adventure, it's a cozy, queer romantasy. You get exactly what's described, much to the author's credit. This book is a win for the cottagecore lesbian community, so if that's your vibe, you'll probably love this.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Sexual content, Death, Fire/Fire injury, and Grief
Moderate: Violence
alliesannotation's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
fast-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? No
4.75
Absolutely stunning.
⭐️: 4.75/5
🌶️: 1/5, Mild Salsa
I have a hard time believing this is a debut novel. I am impressed and so sad it’s over. Reading The Honey Witch took me into a book world the way books used to when I was younger. Innisfree feels real. Shields’ unique writing style and fresh POV made for an enchanting read about an enchanting world, and you can’t ask for more from a fantasy book about a golden witch.
No spoilers, because this doesn’t come out until May 2024, but some of my favorites included:
✨ The present tense writing - We just don’t see books written in present tense often, so it brought things very into the moment. It helped foreshadowing stay a little hidden, and you discovered things along with the character.
✨ The detail in the witch’s world - Often, books either give little to know description of a magic system, or elaborate in near-painful detail that drags the book (and those info-dump scenes) too long. The Honey Witch does neither, giving the world’s magic a more natural slant.
✨ Diversity Doppler - It’s basically the Bechdel’s test but for diversity in books: does the book feature more than one marginalized community? YES!
✨ True twist and mystery until the end - You know those books where, about 87% in, everything’s all wrapped up with an HEA, and the last 10% is basically epilogue? Not here, friends. I loved that there were threads of mystery throughout.
✨ Comfort - The Honey Witch brought me back to those feelings you love to get while reading. This books feels cozy.
🌶️ Salsa Ingredients: This could very nearly be a closed-door romance but for one scene that is critical to the plot of the book. The one scene uses softer explicit language.
The pacing is quite fast. There will be scenes that come up quickly with shorter or more abrupt transitions, so be prepared for that! You also may be left with questions about the magic system or societal system that aren’t explicitly defined, but in my opinion, this fits the book well, especially one of the main character arcs.
Overall, this is one of my best reads of the year, and it isn’t even out yet. Shields is one to watch.
**ARC Review: I was given an advance copy of this book to read in exchange for my honest review.**
⭐️: 4.75/5
🌶️: 1/5, Mild Salsa
I have a hard time believing this is a debut novel. I am impressed and so sad it’s over. Reading The Honey Witch took me into a book world the way books used to when I was younger. Innisfree feels real. Shields’ unique writing style and fresh POV made for an enchanting read about an enchanting world, and you can’t ask for more from a fantasy book about a golden witch.
No spoilers, because this doesn’t come out until May 2024, but some of my favorites included:
✨ The present tense writing - We just don’t see books written in present tense often, so it brought things very into the moment. It helped foreshadowing stay a little hidden, and you discovered things along with the character.
✨ The detail in the witch’s world - Often, books either give little to know description of a magic system, or elaborate in near-painful detail that drags the book (and those info-dump scenes) too long. The Honey Witch does neither, giving the world’s magic a more natural slant.
✨ Diversity Doppler - It’s basically the Bechdel’s test but for diversity in books: does the book feature more than one marginalized community? YES!
✨ True twist and mystery until the end - You know those books where, about 87% in, everything’s all wrapped up with an HEA, and the last 10% is basically epilogue? Not here, friends. I loved that there were threads of mystery throughout.
✨ Comfort - The Honey Witch brought me back to those feelings you love to get while reading. This books feels cozy.
🌶️ Salsa Ingredients: This could very nearly be a closed-door romance but for one scene that is critical to the plot of the book. The one scene uses softer explicit language.
The pacing is quite fast. There will be scenes that come up quickly with shorter or more abrupt transitions, so be prepared for that! You also may be left with questions about the magic system or societal system that aren’t explicitly defined, but in my opinion, this fits the book well, especially one of the main character arcs.
Overall, this is one of my best reads of the year, and it isn’t even out yet. Shields is one to watch.
**ARC Review: I was given an advance copy of this book to read in exchange for my honest review.**
Content Warnings
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Blood, Death, and Grief
Minor: Injury/Injury detail and Miscarriage
More...