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A review by leandrathetbrzero
Greenteeth by Molly O'Neill
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
This cozy fantasy is one I feel confident recommending to fans of T Kingfisher and Heather Fawcett. Numerous times, the plot and world-building reminded me of the Emily Wilde series in particular. A journey narrative with emphasis on found friendship and discussions surrounding what it means to exist in a world that a creature like Jenny Greenteeth may no longer belong in...a world where magic and magical creatures like her are no longer welcome or safe.
L O V E N O T E S
One of my favorite elements in Greenteeth is the first-person POV we receive from Jenny herself. I couldn't imagine following the perspective of any other character. I especially would not have wanted to be in the head of Temperance, for instance (see: Criticisms). Jenny was such a dynamic and easy to love voice, not to mention her worldview of humanity, society, and magic (having lived several centuries by the book's opening pages) was fascinating. Her running commentary across various scenarios lent itself to humor as well, which provided a great balance for the darker and more emotional moments in this book. And the book does, in fact, get far darker at times than I expected, but I would still classify this as a cozy read.
The best part of Greenteeth hands down would be the characters' observations of and reactions to the disquieting impermanence of magic that has become widespread, an ever growing concern for magical beings in this historical Britain. And it's a heavy topic that weighs on our ragtag group of heroes as they embark on a quest to expel a truly dark and evil thing from their home.
C R I T I C I S M S
The most glaring place where I found the narrative lacking involved the missed opportunities to dig deeper into how one might value a human life compared to the life of a magical creature. Twice, the author provides a scenario where lake monster and witch butt heads regarding who should be saved and who should be slain. Both women arguably straddle the same two worlds: one of magic and one of non-magical humans. While the witch Temperance has a stronger foothold in the human world, being human-passing with her husband and children, Jenny needs a glamour when interacting with humans and her "allegiance" leans toward the world of high and low fae even though she did start out her life as a human baby.
We see two identical scenarios which at their core challenge Jenny and Temperance to ask themselves who deserves to live. The first involveshuman soldiers attacking Jenny (and Temperance eventually) without hesitation or pause to consider if these women are even dangerous. Temperance is unyielding in her stance that the men should be allowed to live after Jenny announces her intention to kill them. Not long after this event, Temperance is cold-hearted and ready to kill an innocent unicorn--a creature that is basically an endangered species destined to eventually go extinct. When Jenny stops Temperance from killing the magical creature, the witch declares that Jenny has saved her soul but damned her family. And, here is when I said to my ereader: "Temperance, you better take a SEAT, right now."
Here was the time for O'Neill to have these protagonists observe the hypocrisy of Temperance as she places human life (violent humans at that!) above the life of a defenseless magical creature. Instead, O'Neill decides to explain Jenny's interference in the killing of the unicorn by connecting the unicorn's eye color to that of Jenny's daughter. I understand that one element that connects these women is their identity as mothers, but it honestly cheapened the scene for me. What would have been more powerful (and made slightly more sense) is if the author placed the two scenes side by side. She could have used them to open the door for social commentary surrounding a very topical and deep-seated issue of humans failing to care about groups they do not personally identify with. Temperance identifies more with humans than she does with the magical beings with which she interacts; therefore, it doesn't even occur to her that a magical creature's life should be respected and protected in the same way.
In general, I was disappointed with how narrow-minded the witch, Temperance, revealed herself to be in the latter half of the book. The friendship that Jenny forges with Temperance was lovely at first, but eventually Temperance becomes quite selfish in my opinion, and she only considers her own grief and struggle, never pausing to wonder what trauma or worries Jenny may be carrying with her. The two women argue at one point, both making good points and BOTH making harsh remarks, and it is only Jenny who apologizes to Temperance while the latter simply accepts said apology and they move on. Meanwhile, I was left thinking, "And, Temperance, babe, do you have anything to say or apologize for? Hint, hint: the answer is yes..." Eventually, Temperance apologizes for some things but the entire interaction was quite vague and unsatisfying. By the end of the story, it simply felt like an imbalanced friendship in which Jenny mostly gave, and Temperance was happy to take. I just wanted more sympathy and self-awareness from our witch.
My issues with Temperance's character and the missed opportunities for more depth will not bother all in the same way, and it in no way made me regret reading this book. I am also very much interested in what O'Neill elects to publish next!
Actual Rating: 3.75 stars
Original Pub Date: 25 Feb 2025
Reading Format: ebook
Thank you NetGalley and Orbit for an E-ARC copy in exchange for this honest review!
L O V E N O T E S
One of my favorite elements in Greenteeth is the first-person POV we receive from Jenny herself. I couldn't imagine following the perspective of any other character. I especially would not have wanted to be in the head of Temperance, for instance (see: Criticisms). Jenny was such a dynamic and easy to love voice, not to mention her worldview of humanity, society, and magic (having lived several centuries by the book's opening pages) was fascinating. Her running commentary across various scenarios lent itself to humor as well, which provided a great balance for the darker and more emotional moments in this book. And the book does, in fact, get far darker at times than I expected, but I would still classify this as a cozy read.
The best part of Greenteeth hands down would be the characters' observations of and reactions to the disquieting impermanence of magic that has become widespread, an ever growing concern for magical beings in this historical Britain. And it's a heavy topic that weighs on our ragtag group of heroes as they embark on a quest to expel a truly dark and evil thing from their home.
C R I T I C I S M S
The most glaring place where I found the narrative lacking involved the missed opportunities to dig deeper into how one might value a human life compared to the life of a magical creature. Twice, the author provides a scenario where lake monster and witch butt heads regarding who should be saved and who should be slain. Both women arguably straddle the same two worlds: one of magic and one of non-magical humans. While the witch Temperance has a stronger foothold in the human world, being human-passing with her husband and children, Jenny needs a glamour when interacting with humans and her "allegiance" leans toward the world of high and low fae even though she did start out her life as a human baby.
We see two identical scenarios which at their core challenge Jenny and Temperance to ask themselves who deserves to live. The first involves
In general, I was disappointed with how narrow-minded the witch, Temperance, revealed herself to be in the latter half of the book. The friendship that Jenny forges with Temperance was lovely at first, but eventually Temperance becomes quite selfish in my opinion, and she only considers her own grief and struggle, never pausing to wonder what trauma or worries Jenny may be carrying with her. The two women argue at one point, both making good points and BOTH making harsh remarks, and it is only Jenny who apologizes to Temperance while the latter simply accepts said apology and they move on. Meanwhile, I was left thinking, "And, Temperance, babe, do you have anything to say or apologize for? Hint, hint: the answer is yes..." Eventually, Temperance apologizes for some things but the entire interaction was quite vague and unsatisfying. By the end of the story, it simply felt like an imbalanced friendship in which Jenny mostly gave, and Temperance was happy to take. I just wanted more sympathy and self-awareness from our witch.
My issues with Temperance's character and the missed opportunities for more depth will not bother all in the same way, and it in no way made me regret reading this book. I am also very much interested in what O'Neill elects to publish next!
Actual Rating: 3.75 stars
Original Pub Date: 25 Feb 2025
Reading Format: ebook
Thank you NetGalley and Orbit for an E-ARC copy in exchange for this honest review!