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A review by jillheather
The Hedgewitch Queen by Lilith Saintcrow
1.0
I wanted to like it. Vianne was a good heroine -- neither too capable nor too incapable, and though the does he/doesn't he like me storyline was way too long, well, more than about one chapter is too long, and it was much shorter than many other books. The alt-France was fun, though some of the Frenchish vocabulary and spelling were intensely grating (especially the accents). The way magic worked was interesting. It had so much going for it.
And yet. The "shocking twist cliffhanger ending" was a shocking twist cliffhanger only if you've never read fantasy before. It was not so much foreshadowed as welcomed in with a 21 gun salute. The plot was so predictable I kept reading, sure I was going to be surprised somewhere because I couldn't believe that the story was going to follow the same lines and not do anything different at all. But it did, and for all that Vianne is likable and a good main character and for all that the world sketched out is a world that, if filled in, could be very interesting, I just don't care.
And yet. The "shocking twist cliffhanger ending" was a shocking twist cliffhanger only if you've never read fantasy before. It was not so much foreshadowed as welcomed in with a 21 gun salute. The plot was so predictable I kept reading, sure I was going to be surprised somewhere because I couldn't believe that the story was going to follow the same lines and not do anything different at all. But it did, and for all that Vianne is likable and a good main character and for all that the world sketched out is a world that, if filled in, could be very interesting, I just don't care.