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annarella's review against another edition
4.0
This is a marmite book: you can love or hate, I was more on the love site that most.
It's an original story with a lot of potential and a cast of intriguing characters. The world building is fascinating and complex.
There's two notes: it's too long, some parts seem to drag and are a bit boring. The storytelling is good but sometimes things get mixed and I could have enjoyed it more but switch from one timeline to other was quite brusque at times.
I would recommend to read a couple of chapters to understand if you are on the love or hate field.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine
It's an original story with a lot of potential and a cast of intriguing characters. The world building is fascinating and complex.
There's two notes: it's too long, some parts seem to drag and are a bit boring. The storytelling is good but sometimes things get mixed and I could have enjoyed it more but switch from one timeline to other was quite brusque at times.
I would recommend to read a couple of chapters to understand if you are on the love or hate field.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine
2treads's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
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? No
4.0
'Cut your chains and you become free; cut your roots and you die.'
'Love is what you got to do to be free.' -Aidan
"Civilization is a tight weave of ideas. Pull out the savage thread, and it all unravels." -Bob
Hairston's writing will not be for everyone, but the staccato-like resonance of her tale has me wanting to delve deeper into her world. Her use of history, magic, contemporary society(at the time), and science fiction proves that melding these together can make for great storytelling.
Cinnamon Jones has a lot to deal with: not being beautiful and svelte like the theatre scene warrants, an ornery mother who wants to keep her away from the magic that runs through her, a brother who believes deeply in her talent and magical essence, grandparents and an aunt that embody that magic, a family with strong and hurtful opinions, and secrets kept from her that weigh her down.
Incorporating a story within a story has always appealed to me when reading and with Cinnamon delving into the Chronicles of the Wanderer, we get to experience a bond between an ancient Dahomean warrior woman and a space-faring, shapeshifting alien wanderer.
Hairston does a great job of telling a story across space and time, infusing it with a magic all her own. Her awareness and reverence are on full display here and can be seen in the way she highlights familial and societal structures that do more harm than good. If you love stories that require close attention to detail and are absorbing, this one is for you.
'Love is what you got to do to be free.' -Aidan
"Civilization is a tight weave of ideas. Pull out the savage thread, and it all unravels." -Bob
Hairston's writing will not be for everyone, but the staccato-like resonance of her tale has me wanting to delve deeper into her world. Her use of history, magic, contemporary society(at the time), and science fiction proves that melding these together can make for great storytelling.
Cinnamon Jones has a lot to deal with: not being beautiful and svelte like the theatre scene warrants, an ornery mother who wants to keep her away from the magic that runs through her, a brother who believes deeply in her talent and magical essence, grandparents and an aunt that embody that magic, a family with strong and hurtful opinions, and secrets kept from her that weigh her down.
Incorporating a story within a story has always appealed to me when reading and with Cinnamon delving into the Chronicles of the Wanderer, we get to experience a bond between an ancient Dahomean warrior woman and a space-faring, shapeshifting alien wanderer.
Hairston does a great job of telling a story across space and time, infusing it with a magic all her own. Her awareness and reverence are on full display here and can be seen in the way she highlights familial and societal structures that do more harm than good. If you love stories that require close attention to detail and are absorbing, this one is for you.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Homophobia and Fatphobia
Minor: Gun violence
dilliemillie's review
DNF at 61%. It's not a great sign if I have to repeatedly talk myself into listening to a book.
There are a lot of interesting elements here: magic, West African mythology, warrior women, a teenage theater kid finding friends, family dysfunction. If only the writing weren't so confusing! Jumping back and forth between past and future storylines would be fine if either storyline were easy to follow. Instead I struggled to understand what was actually happening in many of the scenes. The writing style causes a lot of dissonance when poetic description is sometimes something supernatural happening, but that isn't clear until several sentences later. The book is muddled, slow moving, and - as much as I hate to say it - more boring than it has any right to be. I honestly believed this book to be a self-published novel and possibly a debut, but it's neither. It also doesn't seem to have a clear target audience, with the sections about Cinnamon reading as young YA and the sections with the Wanderer very adult.
None of the characters felt very real or deep, and I didn't connect with any of them. I'm not going to touch the mod squad's best friendship beyond saying it comes out of nowhere and is hard to believe. But I do want to address the language around Cinnamon's brother, who is gay. He's gay. That's not a bad word, and it's also not a word used until over halfway through the book. That's not to say his sexuality is in question though; he is referred to - frequently - by a very different, hateful word. I'm not condemning the author's use of a slur to communicate the beliefs and attitude of a character, but I do have a problem with that slur accompanying nearly every reference to a particular character.
Listening to the story as an audiobook does nothing to help with the general comprehension problem. In fact, I think reading a physical copy might have been easier. Time jumps, chapter divisions, and scene changes have almost no delineation, leaving the listener playing catch up with the shifts while the story moves on without them. The narrator's cadence requires some initial adjustment, and while her voice fits Cinnamon it feels too young for the Wanderer. Early in the story there are also several hesitations before pronouncing unfamiliar words, which make the narrator sound unsure and inexperienced.
I wish I could have loved this book. Thank you to NetGalley and RB Media for an audio ARC in exchange for an honest review.
There are a lot of interesting elements here: magic, West African mythology, warrior women, a teenage theater kid finding friends, family dysfunction. If only the writing weren't so confusing! Jumping back and forth between past and future storylines would be fine if either storyline were easy to follow. Instead I struggled to understand what was actually happening in many of the scenes. The writing style causes a lot of dissonance when poetic description is sometimes something supernatural happening, but that isn't clear until several sentences later. The book is muddled, slow moving, and - as much as I hate to say it - more boring than it has any right to be. I honestly believed this book to be a self-published novel and possibly a debut, but it's neither. It also doesn't seem to have a clear target audience, with the sections about Cinnamon reading as young YA and the sections with the Wanderer very adult.
None of the characters felt very real or deep, and I didn't connect with any of them. I'm not going to touch the mod squad's best friendship beyond saying it comes out of nowhere and is hard to believe. But I do want to address the language around Cinnamon's brother, who is gay. He's gay. That's not a bad word, and it's also not a word used until over halfway through the book. That's not to say his sexuality is in question though; he is referred to - frequently - by a very different, hateful word. I'm not condemning the author's use of a slur to communicate the beliefs and attitude of a character, but I do have a problem with that slur accompanying nearly every reference to a particular character.
Listening to the story as an audiobook does nothing to help with the general comprehension problem. In fact, I think reading a physical copy might have been easier. Time jumps, chapter divisions, and scene changes have almost no delineation, leaving the listener playing catch up with the shifts while the story moves on without them. The narrator's cadence requires some initial adjustment, and while her voice fits Cinnamon it feels too young for the Wanderer. Early in the story there are also several hesitations before pronouncing unfamiliar words, which make the narrator sound unsure and inexperienced.
I wish I could have loved this book. Thank you to NetGalley and RB Media for an audio ARC in exchange for an honest review.
ninjapanda's review against another edition
3.0
Rep: plus-size Black bi mc in a polyamorous relationship, Non binary bi mc, gay sc, BIPOC scs, queer scs
This book is a mix of genres. It has some sci-fi and fantasy, even some paranormal-ish elements, but also in a more contemporary setting in one of the timelines. I went in thinking it was just sci-fi and in space lol I was wrong. It doesn’t take place in space, but it does have sci-fi elements.
It has a very interesting concept and elements. It was cool that Cinnamon had a magical book that slowly reveals more pages as time progresses. When there are new pages, we get transported into that world and follow the characters of it. Slowly we see the ties between the two timelines.
This book is pretty long and slow. I felt it drag at points.I wasn’t super invested in the characters. I think the dual timeline being in a similar styles and the same narrator confused me at times. I sometimes forgot which timeline I was in. I think I just read the blurb once, so I didn’t really know what the plot was. And listening to the book, I still didn’t really know where the story was going. I’m very visual and I found it hard to visualize what was going on at times.
I liked that it explores themes such as race, gender, sexuality, and family. It was nice to see so many queer characters and the two different journeys with identity the two main characters go through.
Taiwo was probably my favourite. It was cool seeing their fluidity. They were apparently an alien? Maybe I didn’t pay enough attention, but I kept forgetting this fact. They didn't seem like an alien, not in the traditional sense anyway.
There are a lot of homophobic slurs in here. The beginning especially has a lot. I think they could have take a few out and it would have been fine. But that many felt a bit excessive. So beware of that going into this.
Overall, this has a lot of interesting things about it and cool concepts. It’s good if you like mixed genre books. For me it was just okay.
Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an audio ARC of this book
bibliovino's review
challenging
emotional
hopeful
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? It's complicated
4.0
Absolutely beautiful story of redemption, loss, acceptance, and magic. This urban fantasy weaves African history and culture with modern longings and failings, raising up the young and the old, bidding the reader to look beyond the mundane and see the impossible in the everyday.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my free copy.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my free copy.
the_grimdragon's review against another edition
4.0
A novel of what might have been...
Will Do Magic for Small Change by Andrea Hairston is a queer, coming-of-age fantasy that comes out October 11th!
Hairston is a thought-provoking wordsmith & this was an emotional adventure!
Will Do Magic for Small Change by Andrea Hairston is a queer, coming-of-age fantasy that comes out October 11th!
Hairston is a thought-provoking wordsmith & this was an emotional adventure!
caseythereader's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
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
3.0
Thanks to Tor Books for the free advance copy of this book.
- WILL DO MAGIC FOR SMALL CHANGE is a wildly imaginative and ambitious story within a story, braiding characters and plotlines from 1893 and 1987 together. It's something like a cross between Octavia E. Butler and Nalo Hopkinson, maybe with a dash of Nicky Drayden.
- I found myself more compelled by the 1800s story than the 1980s story, even though I thought Cinnamon was a great character. I think that historical plotline was just better paced for me. The modern plot often had 20 or so pages of conversation pinging between half a dozen characters while nothing much happened, and then a big pivotal moment would occur in a space of a sentence or two.
- I didn't realize until after I started reading it that this book is a companion to REDWOOD AND WILDFIRE, and while I could figure it out well enough, the characters were constantly referencing people and events from that book, so I wish I'd read it first.
- WILL DO MAGIC FOR SMALL CHANGE is a wildly imaginative and ambitious story within a story, braiding characters and plotlines from 1893 and 1987 together. It's something like a cross between Octavia E. Butler and Nalo Hopkinson, maybe with a dash of Nicky Drayden.
- I found myself more compelled by the 1800s story than the 1980s story, even though I thought Cinnamon was a great character. I think that historical plotline was just better paced for me. The modern plot often had 20 or so pages of conversation pinging between half a dozen characters while nothing much happened, and then a big pivotal moment would occur in a space of a sentence or two.
- I didn't realize until after I started reading it that this book is a companion to REDWOOD AND WILDFIRE, and while I could figure it out well enough, the characters were constantly referencing people and events from that book, so I wish I'd read it first.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Alcohol, Blood, Body shaming, Child abuse, Colonisation, Drug abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Addiction, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Grief, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Infidelity, Medical content, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Violence, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, and Suicidal thoughts
Moderate: Sexual content and Rape
karter's review
dark
reflective
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? It's complicated
3.5
If you are impatient like me it's a hard book to stay engaged with. This is an ambitious unique story and I wish I had better concentration abilities to enjoy it more, there were definitely interesting storylines it just couldn't quite suck me in.
kmj91's review
challenging
emotional
tense
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
3.0