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A review by ahopper7
The Unfortunate Side Effects of Heartbreak and Magic by Breanne Randall
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
This book was marketed incorrectly. It’s not a cozy witchy small town romance. There was so much potential in the premise but it desperately needed more editing to hone in on a real plot and handle its topics in a thoughtful way.
Pros (kind of):
- It definitely has some cozy elements especially in the first quarter of the book
- I loved the family element it was *trying* to incorporate
- The recipes at the end of each chapter added nicely to the story, not enough to redeem but still cute
- The magic was soo close to being a mix of Practical Magic and Mayfair Witches (depending on character) but it wasn’t executed well
Cons:
- The romance subplot is not done well and the characters or their romance are not developed
- The book very carelessly handled serious topics like rape, murder and attempted suicide which didn’t sit well with me and is the main reason behind my rating
- Overall, the story or the characters were just not developed. The team around this book really should have spent more time fleshing out one or two of the plot points instead of throwing in several different story lines and not executing any of them well.
Pros (kind of):
- It definitely has some cozy elements especially in the first quarter of the book
- I loved the family element it was *trying* to incorporate
- The recipes at the end of each chapter added nicely to the story, not enough to redeem but still cute
- The magic was soo close to being a mix of Practical Magic and Mayfair Witches (depending on character) but it wasn’t executed well
Cons:
- The romance subplot is not done well and the characters or their romance are not developed
- The book very carelessly handled serious topics like rape, murder and attempted suicide which didn’t sit well with me and is the main reason behind my rating
- Overall, the story or the characters were just not developed. The team around this book really should have spent more time fleshing out one or two of the plot points instead of throwing in several different story lines and not executing any of them well.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder, Abandonment, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Mental illness, Rape, and Suicide attempt