Reviews tagging 'Death of parent'

Magic for Liars by Sarah Gailey

97 reviews

thewoodlandbookshelf's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body horror, Bullying, Cancer, Death, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Blood, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, and Alcohol

schnaucl's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad medium-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? It's complicated

4.75

I really liked this book.   Even though I guessed some of the twists, I thought it was cleverly written.  I really liked the protagonist's voice, and her ability to imagine herself in different timelines felt very genuine.

I almost expected it to turn out that it was a kind of magic that she was doing, to so fully inhabit the alternate timeline characters.

The characters were interesting and as were the ways the high school was both magical and utterly ordinary.  Ivy's resentment at the wasted magic was understandable, as was the student's "waste" of magic because they're just kids and it's common for them, not the extraordinary thing it is for Ivy.  

It was a very well built world.  I'd like to spend more time there. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Body horror, Gore, Blood, Medical content, Medical trauma, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Cancer, Death, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Abortion, and Death of parent

whitllo's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-paced

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

3.0

The premise was promising (Sarah Gailey's River of Teeth is one of my favorite reads ever) but it just didn't deliver. The twists and turns were either obvious

the sister drugging her

or a dead end

the weird thing with the friend who wanted to get brunch</spoiler). The world building was fine but uninteresting and I felt similarly abput the characters. I didn't particularly care about the emotional core of the story which was for the best because the payoff at the end was minimal. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Medical trauma, and Abortion

Moderate: Cancer and Pregnancy

Minor: Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, and Death of parent

shereadytoread's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This was nothing like I expected but really great. A magic book that felt like it had nothing to do with magic and so much to do with feeling inadequate, fractured family relationships, rivalry and perspectives. Sarah Gailey’s use of magical schooling to look at everyday issues was so good!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death and Death of parent

Moderate: Cancer and Abortion

imds's review against another edition

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Cancer, Death, Gore, Terminal illness, Blood, Grief, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, and Alcohol

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship and Eating disorder

twelvekindsoftrouble's review against another edition

emotional lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

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

4.5

Christ. This was so much better than I expected it today. I see you, foreshadowing. I see you.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion and Murder

Moderate: Death of parent and Pregnancy

Minor: Alcoholism, Sexual content, and Suicidal thoughts

justasking27's review against another edition

dark funny mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Cancer and Death of parent

b_lownds127's review

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I enjoyed this and it held my attention. The plot blended two tropes that normally don't occur in the same universe: we have our broody, cynical, (barely) functioning alcoholic P.I. investigator; and then we have a magical school. I found the main character Ivy unlikable, which is not a deal breaker - but she was also very gullible which felt out of place. People were able to manipulate her easily because she was desperate for love and most often, the hardened P.I. character doesn't fall for that. I liked the book, but I really wanted more about the school and less about how much Ivy was drinking. I think the clues slipping past Ivy's notice were intentional choices by the author, though it made the main character appear a poor investigator at times. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Bullying, Cancer, Death, Blood, Death of parent, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Abortion

tessarudnick's review against another edition

dark funny mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

An enjoyable read. The worldbuilding and mystery are both compelling, with a satisfying ending to a complex set of clues. The mystery is well done with clues and foreshadowing throughout. Lots of queer representation as always in Sarah Gailey's work. I loved many of the characters, though protagonist and narrator Ivy was by far my least favorite. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism and Alcohol

Moderate: Bullying, Death, Blood, Medical content, Abortion, and Toxic friendship

Minor: Cancer, Eating disorder, Suicide, Terminal illness, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, and Sexual harassment

oliverreeds's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad fast-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

4.75

ouchie

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Body horror, Cancer, Chronic illness, Death, Eating disorder, Gore, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Blood, Grief, Medical trauma, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail