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A review by chaosandbooks
The Scapegracers by H.A. Clarke
4.0
This book was the girl gang coven book I have been waiting for all these years. The Scapegracers takes the idea of covens like in The Craft that abuse their powers and spins it on its head. It's about girls supporting girls and tackling issues girls face. It's a bit of a slow burn as it leads up to something bigger in the sequel, but this book packs its own punch anyway. There's humor, dynamic characters, meaningful conversations, and all the dark concepts that you want in a book about teenage witches. Fans of the Weird Sisters from The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina will love this book.
As for the diversity and LGBT themes, it's packed with them but also handled in a graceful way. The characters have realistic dialogues and reactions, along with woes. The ambiance of small town life and dealing with finding yourself when you feel like you're being crushed by how inescapable the constraints of your home is are represented so well.
The one criticism I have on this book is that it rests on the double-edged sword of purple prose. It's common in fantasy to have purple prose because lush descriptions make the story feel like it's woven in magic itself. However, too much of it can be distracting to the actual plot as the reader focuses more on the imagery than the action. This book wavered back and forth on the edge of this blade throughout. I enjoyed the author's style and tone so much, but at times I needed to go back to reread because I was so caught up in the spell of pretty words that I didn't follow what actually happened. I also saw a few editing mistakes, but that's a rather minor detail.
Truthfully, I'm eagerly awaiting the sequel to this book. It leaves off in a place that left me thirsting for more of what happens since things were just getting to an elevated state of risk.
Note: I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
As for the diversity and LGBT themes, it's packed with them but also handled in a graceful way. The characters have realistic dialogues and reactions, along with woes. The ambiance of small town life and dealing with finding yourself when you feel like you're being crushed by how inescapable the constraints of your home is are represented so well.
The one criticism I have on this book is that it rests on the double-edged sword of purple prose. It's common in fantasy to have purple prose because lush descriptions make the story feel like it's woven in magic itself. However, too much of it can be distracting to the actual plot as the reader focuses more on the imagery than the action. This book wavered back and forth on the edge of this blade throughout. I enjoyed the author's style and tone so much, but at times I needed to go back to reread because I was so caught up in the spell of pretty words that I didn't follow what actually happened. I also saw a few editing mistakes, but that's a rather minor detail.
Truthfully, I'm eagerly awaiting the sequel to this book. It leaves off in a place that left me thirsting for more of what happens since things were just getting to an elevated state of risk.
Note: I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.