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olivethebooks 's review for:
Weyward
by Emilia Hart
challenging
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This book made me angry and not for the reasons the author probably intended.
I was frustrated early on because something about Kate's storyline just wasn't ringing true for me. I know there are men like Simon who are that heinous and there are women like Kate who endure that sort of abuse for various reasons and this isn't my first time reading about relationships like that, but this just felt cheap for some reason. I thought I had to be the problem and maybe I just feeling too cynical and in my own head at the time to accept it as realistic, but as always I shouldn't doubt myself.
The explanation for why Kate was in the situation she was in at the beginning of the book was flimsy af. I'm sorry but you have so much guilt and self-loathing over the death of your father that it is the sole reason you allow a man (you never seem to have actually loved) to abuse you for years, but 20 years of this mindset just vanishes in an instant because of a fetus you haven't met yet? I understood from a young age that my parents would do anything to protect me and if I hadn't, I've seen it portrayed so many times in media and in books that it's not a foreign concept. Kate reads, Kate maybe lives under a bit of a rock, but seriously? Maybe if she was supposed to be in her late teens with unaffectionate parents, I'd get it.
Simon felt two dimensional even though I knew and kept telling myself that men like him really exist, but I think my problem was you never see a side of him that isn't repulsive and typically men like that have at least some superficial charm.
Also Kate supposedly was preparing to leave him when the time was right but it's never explained when the 'right' time was or what makes her departure 'too soon'. Why was Simon unable to track her down when he's clearly not moved on 8 months later? What was he doing all that time? She inherited her great aunt's property, there's a paper trail and it's not exactly a distant relation. Surely he's tried a private detective? Surely he's reported her missing - contrary to what the author might think, an adult leaving of their own volition and driving off in their own car doesn't stop them from being reported missing to the police. There was so much build up of how shitty he is and how he won't let her go but then nothing ever happens until she somehow types in an email she hasn't used in almost a year and doesn't notice until it's way too late even though it's literally life and death.
Don't get me started on Oh no my dangerous ex is on his way, I'm going to walk through the woods to the location he's headed to because I had a convenient car accident. Oh I'll make sure I have my phone on me in case I need to call someone but clearly if I'm crawling into an attic heavily pregnant to keep myself safe then I probably already need to call someone. And somehow after almost a year of living here I have no idea what the phone reception is like and I'm surprised when my phone can't get signal even though I'm probably in the best position in the house to get signal?
Don't get me started on her mother already suspecting Simon was abusive and doing fuck all but also still being a good mother but also not showing up to support her daughter until just before the baby is born. I wouldn't mind if the mother was being painted as passive and less concerned about her child than she should be consistently, but she's not. The second husband who made her move to Canada is never mentioned again and is clearly a plot device to make the mother look blameless in Kate's isolation.
And then there's Violet. Her storyline would've fit much better if it had been set at least 20+ years earlier but of course Kate's story would then have to shift or she'd be way too old to have met her. The author tried to have her cake and eat it. I saw what was coming a mile off, like the second her cousin showed up I knew immediately. Guessing a plot twist correctly doesn't usually bother me, I think it was just SO obvious.
I think the only surprising thing after that was that the controlling father who had made such an effort to keep Violet ignorant and sheltered, not even letting her go into the village, somehow felt that 'locking' her in a cottage unsupervised was a solid option. Why did he bother locking the door when there was an unlocked back door? Was he so careless that he just didn't check the security of the house? She had to get water from a well outside, did he expect her to magically not dehydrate if he thought she was locked in? He kept all knowledge of her mother from her out of fear she'd take after her, but then he knowingly locks her inside the cottage that belonged to her witch mother and grandmother and doesn't bother to have the remaining possessions removed? She could easily have run away. Why was he so smug about his nephew going off for private walks with Violet like he's suddenly not the most 19th century character in the book and the possibility of sex wasn't even near his mind. Is he suddenly that stupid? I honestly thought he wanted what happened to happen so he could ensure the marriage happened. Then he's suddenly shocked and outraged but when she's had what appears to be a miscarriage he's also outraged and suspects she's done it herself - is he then aware that he left her with access to that sort of information? Why is he calling off the marriage of his own volition when he's so concerned with propriety? IT DOESN'T ADD UP.
How does Violet not have even the smallest idea of what sex is when she's so interested in animals and biology? We know she had access to at least one biology book. She lives on an estate in the countryside and loves nature but has never seen animals have sex? How has she never asked about reproduction when the only thing she knows about her mother is that she died giving birth? She doesn't know what the word menses means but knows what a hysterectomy is? This whole storyline was reminiscent of Wakenhyrst but poorly written.
Altha was by far the best POV and the one that was most realistic aside from the fact that she was released and the questioning of witnesses seemed far more unbiased and fair than probably any other book I've ever read involving witch trials, especially when others had been convincted with less evidence. The removal of the 'witch's mark' was a little sketchy too, I've tried to remove a mole myself and I had tools and still only succeeded in reducing it. Plus the risk of her getting an infection and dying from it in the conditions she was being kept in?
I love a good screw the patriarchy and men in general sentiment, but this didn't do it for me even though on paper it should have. I could go on but I don't want to put any more time into this.
I was frustrated early on because something about Kate's storyline just wasn't ringing true for me. I know there are men like Simon who are that heinous and there are women like Kate who endure that sort of abuse for various reasons and this isn't my first time reading about relationships like that, but this just felt cheap for some reason. I thought I had to be the problem and maybe I just feeling too cynical and in my own head at the time to accept it as realistic, but as always I shouldn't doubt myself.
The explanation for why Kate was in the situation she was in at the beginning of the book was flimsy af. I'm sorry but you have so much guilt and self-loathing over the death of your father that it is the sole reason you allow a man (you never seem to have actually loved) to abuse you for years, but 20 years of this mindset just vanishes in an instant because of a fetus you haven't met yet? I understood from a young age that my parents would do anything to protect me and if I hadn't, I've seen it portrayed so many times in media and in books that it's not a foreign concept. Kate reads, Kate maybe lives under a bit of a rock, but seriously? Maybe if she was supposed to be in her late teens with unaffectionate parents, I'd get it.
Simon felt two dimensional even though I knew and kept telling myself that men like him really exist, but I think my problem was you never see a side of him that isn't repulsive and typically men like that have at least some superficial charm.
Also Kate supposedly was preparing to leave him when the time was right but it's never explained when the 'right' time was or what makes her departure 'too soon'. Why was Simon unable to track her down when he's clearly not moved on 8 months later? What was he doing all that time? She inherited her great aunt's property, there's a paper trail and it's not exactly a distant relation. Surely he's tried a private detective? Surely he's reported her missing - contrary to what the author might think, an adult leaving of their own volition and driving off in their own car doesn't stop them from being reported missing to the police. There was so much build up of how shitty he is and how he won't let her go but then nothing ever happens until she somehow types in an email she hasn't used in almost a year and doesn't notice until it's way too late even though it's literally life and death.
Don't get me started on Oh no my dangerous ex is on his way, I'm going to walk through the woods to the location he's headed to because I had a convenient car accident. Oh I'll make sure I have my phone on me in case I need to call someone but clearly if I'm crawling into an attic heavily pregnant to keep myself safe then I probably already need to call someone. And somehow after almost a year of living here I have no idea what the phone reception is like and I'm surprised when my phone can't get signal even though I'm probably in the best position in the house to get signal?
Don't get me started on her mother already suspecting Simon was abusive and doing fuck all but also still being a good mother but also not showing up to support her daughter until just before the baby is born. I wouldn't mind if the mother was being painted as passive and less concerned about her child than she should be consistently, but she's not. The second husband who made her move to Canada is never mentioned again and is clearly a plot device to make the mother look blameless in Kate's isolation.
And then there's Violet. Her storyline would've fit much better if it had been set at least 20+ years earlier but of course Kate's story would then have to shift or she'd be way too old to have met her. The author tried to have her cake and eat it. I saw what was coming a mile off, like the second her cousin showed up I knew immediately. Guessing a plot twist correctly doesn't usually bother me, I think it was just SO obvious.
I think the only surprising thing after that was that the controlling father who had made such an effort to keep Violet ignorant and sheltered, not even letting her go into the village, somehow felt that 'locking' her in a cottage unsupervised was a solid option. Why did he bother locking the door when there was an unlocked back door? Was he so careless that he just didn't check the security of the house? She had to get water from a well outside, did he expect her to magically not dehydrate if he thought she was locked in? He kept all knowledge of her mother from her out of fear she'd take after her, but then he knowingly locks her inside the cottage that belonged to her witch mother and grandmother and doesn't bother to have the remaining possessions removed? She could easily have run away. Why was he so smug about his nephew going off for private walks with Violet like he's suddenly not the most 19th century character in the book and the possibility of sex wasn't even near his mind. Is he suddenly that stupid? I honestly thought he wanted what happened to happen so he could ensure the marriage happened. Then he's suddenly shocked and outraged but when she's had what appears to be a miscarriage he's also outraged and suspects she's done it herself - is he then aware that he left her with access to that sort of information? Why is he calling off the marriage of his own volition when he's so concerned with propriety? IT DOESN'T ADD UP.
How does Violet not have even the smallest idea of what sex is when she's so interested in animals and biology? We know she had access to at least one biology book. She lives on an estate in the countryside and loves nature but has never seen animals have sex? How has she never asked about reproduction when the only thing she knows about her mother is that she died giving birth? She doesn't know what the word menses means but knows what a hysterectomy is? This whole storyline was reminiscent of Wakenhyrst but poorly written.
Altha was by far the best POV and the one that was most realistic aside from the fact that she was released and the questioning of witnesses seemed far more unbiased and fair than probably any other book I've ever read involving witch trials, especially when others had been convincted with less evidence. The removal of the 'witch's mark' was a little sketchy too, I've tried to remove a mole myself and I had tools and still only succeeded in reducing it. Plus the risk of her getting an infection and dying from it in the conditions she was being kept in?
I love a good screw the patriarchy and men in general sentiment, but this didn't do it for me even though on paper it should have. I could go on but I don't want to put any more time into this.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abortion, Pregnancy
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Blood
Minor: Confinement, Death, Incest, Infertility, Xenophobia, Vomit, Dementia, Grief, Stalking, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol, War, Injury/Injury detail