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veeloucagraph 's review for:
Spellbook of the Lost and Found
by Moïra Fowley-Doyle
After much deliberation, I give it 3.5/5
"if you don't get lost, you'll never be found"
Let me tell ya, this book was hard to get my head around. I finished it last night and I had to sit down and think about it for a while. It wasn't what I was expecting, it was a very complicated story and what you're thinking it is about, it probably isn't.
----
*!*I hope this book isn't categorized as YA, it should be in the Adult section. There are scenes where the author doesn't shy away from what the characters are doing and while it doesn't go into much detail, I don't think teens up until 15 will be comfortable.
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The story follows a few groups of teenagers that lose their belongings after a summer party. Mysteriously, a spellbook appears to them with a spell to find their lost things. Is it real? Does it work? What's gonna happen? Why is everybody losing their things?
You get the idea.
This is one of the most-if not the most- diverse books I've ever read.
We have bisexual and lesbian representation, a girl with Indian heritage and a hearing-impaired girl. It deals with sexual assault/rape. Also this takes place in Ireland I think?
It was very important to me as a queer woman to read about a romance between two girls, not just that but also how casual it was to be attracted to the same gender. There is no 'coming out' in this story.
It was a very significant, validating experience for me and that's a reason why I think this book matters, to me and to others.
The issue of rape was handled very realistically I feel like. I haven't been through that but I didn't think there was anything problematic about the way it was shown. Consent is essential and I love how Hazel thought about that in that scene (you'll know which if you have read it)
So, moving on from the wonderful rep and diversity overall, I want to talk about the complexity of the story.
It is very unique. I haven't come across anything like this before. It's intricate. The last 100 pages were full of plot twists and I really was caught unaware. It turns out the story was a lot more well-crafted than I originally thought, with more care put into it than you imagine.
I loved the character of Hazel, she was undoubtedly my favorite to read about and I really appreciated the family issues that troubled her and her brother. She had depth and a great development by the end.
A lot of this story is about losing and finding yourself. It's a story of magical realism, magic existing in our everyday life whether we know it or not. Metaphorically, I felt like this adventure served as a way for our characters to grow and mature. To find themselves.
While all of this is very positive, I have to mention the fact that you need some time to get into the story. At first you are confused, at least I was. There are multiple character point of views and three storylines. You need to follow closely and it might take a while for you to get it sorted. Once two of the groups of people meet, it's a little easier.
I happened to notice a few reviews saying that the writing of the story is one of its strongest points and... I have to disagree. While the structure of the plot and the variety of characters is something I admire, I didn't find myself admiring the writing style. There wasn't anything spectacular about it in my eyes.
I had a problem with the heterosexual relationships in this book. It might seem odd and stupid, but trust me you'll understand in a second.
There are two established relationships by the end. One of them is born out of cheating. I don't have a problem when someone breaks up with their partner to get to be with another person. The issue here is that they didn't break up. The previous partner just knew that they cheated and that their partner didn't like them anymore (I'm using they so I won't spoil anyone) and they just didn't talk about it. The two weren't together anymore but that's because the person who cheated was openly with the person the cheating happened with.
Excuse me? That's problematic, unfair and hurtful.
The other problematic heterosexual..relationship I won't get into because the book tells you it is indeed toxic and manipulative. It could even serve as a good thing because in case anything remotely similar is happening in your life, you'll know that it's bad for you.
So that was the Spellbook of the Lost and Found. A very interesting read and I certainly recommend it if you would like to read a diverse story about magical realism.
"if you don't get lost, you'll never be found"
Let me tell ya, this book was hard to get my head around. I finished it last night and I had to sit down and think about it for a while. It wasn't what I was expecting, it was a very complicated story and what you're thinking it is about, it probably isn't.
----
*!*I hope this book isn't categorized as YA, it should be in the Adult section. There are scenes where the author doesn't shy away from what the characters are doing and while it doesn't go into much detail, I don't think teens up until 15 will be comfortable.
----
The story follows a few groups of teenagers that lose their belongings after a summer party. Mysteriously, a spellbook appears to them with a spell to find their lost things. Is it real? Does it work? What's gonna happen? Why is everybody losing their things?
You get the idea.
This is one of the most-if not the most- diverse books I've ever read.
We have bisexual and lesbian representation, a girl with Indian heritage and a hearing-impaired girl. It deals with sexual assault/rape. Also this takes place in Ireland I think?
It was very important to me as a queer woman to read about a romance between two girls, not just that but also how casual it was to be attracted to the same gender. There is no 'coming out' in this story.
It was a very significant, validating experience for me and that's a reason why I think this book matters, to me and to others.
The issue of rape was handled very realistically I feel like. I haven't been through that but I didn't think there was anything problematic about the way it was shown. Consent is essential and I love how Hazel thought about that in that scene (you'll know which if you have read it)
So, moving on from the wonderful rep and diversity overall, I want to talk about the complexity of the story.
It is very unique. I haven't come across anything like this before. It's intricate. The last 100 pages were full of plot twists and I really was caught unaware. It turns out the story was a lot more well-crafted than I originally thought, with more care put into it than you imagine.
I loved the character of Hazel, she was undoubtedly my favorite to read about and I really appreciated the family issues that troubled her and her brother. She had depth and a great development by the end.
A lot of this story is about losing and finding yourself. It's a story of magical realism, magic existing in our everyday life whether we know it or not. Metaphorically, I felt like this adventure served as a way for our characters to grow and mature. To find themselves.
While all of this is very positive, I have to mention the fact that you need some time to get into the story. At first you are confused, at least I was. There are multiple character point of views and three storylines. You need to follow closely and it might take a while for you to get it sorted. Once two of the groups of people meet, it's a little easier.
I happened to notice a few reviews saying that the writing of the story is one of its strongest points and... I have to disagree. While the structure of the plot and the variety of characters is something I admire, I didn't find myself admiring the writing style. There wasn't anything spectacular about it in my eyes.
I had a problem with the heterosexual relationships in this book. It might seem odd and stupid, but trust me you'll understand in a second.
There are two established relationships by the end. One of them is born out of cheating. I don't have a problem when someone breaks up with their partner to get to be with another person. The issue here is that they didn't break up. The previous partner just knew that they cheated and that their partner didn't like them anymore (I'm using they so I won't spoil anyone) and they just didn't talk about it. The two weren't together anymore but that's because the person who cheated was openly with the person the cheating happened with.
Excuse me? That's problematic, unfair and hurtful.
Spoiler
this is the reason why I don't like Olive, she knew Rowan and Ivy had something going on and Rowan had told her that they had kissed and done more than that (but not sex) yet she still went ahead and had sex with him! What the fuck?! Every time she talked about how she wanted Rowan and how good he felt I was just disgusted because that was hurting Ivy! The saddest thing is Ivy knew what they were doing and didn't say anything.. don't tell me it's because she knew she was his half sister because if she did, she wouldn't have began dating him anyway.The other problematic heterosexual..relationship I won't get into because the book tells you it is indeed toxic and manipulative. It could even serve as a good thing because in case anything remotely similar is happening in your life, you'll know that it's bad for you.
Spoiler
I'm obviously talking about Jude and Laurel, Holly, Ash. He got each under his thumb and took turns between them. Laurel was the only one with a voice of reason still echoeing and thankfully convinced the others. I still don't know what to think of Ash because what she did was shitty, then she was insane and then we learned that she had regrets..Spoiler
at first I wanted Ivy to be with Hazel, because Hazel had been in love with her for a while and I thought that was where the story was going. But then she met Rose became infatuated with her in like one sentence! We are told Hazel falls in love very fast and very often but that doesn't really help, in my opinion because it downgrades their relationship and it's importance. They were really cute together but I was just surprised and I didn't want Ivy to end up alone! I was very conflicted. But then the end happened and it turned out Ivy is her half sister and I can support Hazel & Rose being together 100%. I love them together but I do wish it wasn't so rushed. By the way, anyone else get Luna Lovegood vibes from Ivy? I really liked her and even though it was maddening that she kept the fact that Rowan and Hazel's mom is alive I can understand why she did it.So that was the Spellbook of the Lost and Found. A very interesting read and I certainly recommend it if you would like to read a diverse story about magical realism.