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A review by julesdmuells
Weyward by Emilia Hart
dark
emotional
sad
fast-paced
2.5
There's a lot to like about this book, chief among them the glittering diction and fluttering background characters, the bugs and the birds. But I grew frustrated with it.
I was surprised at how little I felt like I knew or cared by one third, one half, two thirds of the way through. For instance, this is a book about witches, and it says so on the cover; yet two thirds of the way through this book, a main character (who's a witch) is starting to connect the dots about her special abilities, and then it says, "Anyway, she was being ridiculous. Witches weren't real." Man, and I thought the book was finally about to start.
Another reviewer said that although she felt sympathy for the characters - CONTENT WARNING: almost every woman in this book is raped and unwillingly impregnated, usually miscarrying or aborting - she didn't necessarily feel attached to them, and I feel the same. I just kept wondering when it would feel like the plot was starting.
My biggest gripe, honestly, was the writing style. Contemporary fiction is often written to reflect the way people talk, even if it's not proper writing, sure, but the amount of short, choppy, incomplete sentences in this book drove me crazy once I noticed the pattern.
"Then she knows. She didn't imagine it. It was real... Early childhood. Sun on her face, the brush of wings on her palm, that feeling in her chest... She squeezes her eyes shut, tries to pull it closer, but she can't bring it into focus. Somehow, though, she is left with the odd sense that this has happened before. The villagers' gossip echoes in her mind. One word, ringing louder than the rest. Witch. She has to know the truth. About the Weywards. About herself."
So isochronal and choppy, like riding with a driver who keeps hitting the gas and the breaks in heavy traffic.
I have to admit, although it's harder to articulate what I liked about the book, it wasn't hard for me to pick back up and read. When I got into the weeds in a different read and felt leaden, I would turn to this because I knew the pages would turn quickly.
I don't get the hype, y'all.
I was surprised at how little I felt like I knew or cared by one third, one half, two thirds of the way through. For instance, this is a book about witches, and it says so on the cover; yet two thirds of the way through this book, a main character (who's a witch) is starting to connect the dots about her special abilities, and then it says, "Anyway, she was being ridiculous. Witches weren't real." Man, and I thought the book was finally about to start.
Another reviewer said that although she felt sympathy for the characters - CONTENT WARNING: almost every woman in this book is raped and unwillingly impregnated, usually miscarrying or aborting - she didn't necessarily feel attached to them, and I feel the same. I just kept wondering when it would feel like the plot was starting.
My biggest gripe, honestly, was the writing style. Contemporary fiction is often written to reflect the way people talk, even if it's not proper writing, sure, but the amount of short, choppy, incomplete sentences in this book drove me crazy once I noticed the pattern.
"Then she knows. She didn't imagine it. It was real... Early childhood. Sun on her face, the brush of wings on her palm, that feeling in her chest... She squeezes her eyes shut, tries to pull it closer, but she can't bring it into focus. Somehow, though, she is left with the odd sense that this has happened before. The villagers' gossip echoes in her mind. One word, ringing louder than the rest. Witch. She has to know the truth. About the Weywards. About herself."
So isochronal and choppy, like riding with a driver who keeps hitting the gas and the breaks in heavy traffic.
I have to admit, although it's harder to articulate what I liked about the book, it wasn't hard for me to pick back up and read. When I got into the weeds in a different read and felt leaden, I would turn to this because I knew the pages would turn quickly.
I don't get the hype, y'all.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Stalking, Car accident, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Pregnancy, and Alcohol