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A review by jessicabeckett
I'm a Gay Wizard by V.S. Santoni
2.0
(Between a 1.5, 2 or 2.5 star rating.) Blog | Twitter | Instagram | Review can be found here at Booked J.
As always, a copy of this book was provided by the publisher or author in exchange for my honest review. This does not effect my opinion in any way.
When I saw the title of this book I was somewhere between secondhand embarrassment (it is one of those titles that I'm just not super into, like I MARRIED MY BEST FRIEND or THE BAD BOY'S RIGHT SHOULDER BLADE or whatever) and intrigue. The intrigue won out because, hello, representation. I saw it and was like, UH, yes, sign me up, immediately, thanks.
I'm a Gay Wizard has a lead in representation. It made me SO happy.
Not only does it feature a gay main character, but a transgender character and a few other potential sexual identities that are yet to be explored. For this alone, Santoni should be praised for bringing these characters into our lives. While I had a lot of issues with the plotline and the way the story is written, its biggest redeeming quality is the sincerity Santoni portrays his characters.
Going into I'm a Gay Wizard, I expected the story to be driven by its magical elements and veer into magical realism. However, it felt to be very much so character driven and I definitely am appreciative towards that. Where Santoni lacks in development of the world and magic, he gains in portrayal of his characters. Also, there's this brutal force of honesty in Santoni's plotlines that mix the magic seen in I'm a Gay Wizard with the world we live in. I'm always keen on novels that take fantasy and blend in bits and pieces of our world's struggles.
(!! GIVE ME ALL THE PARALLELS.)
Because of these moments, there are going to be some very real topics that are touched upon that will be triggering. I'm a Gay Wizard truly does not shy away from this. As always, I have to recommend that readers look into what trigger warnings it might feature. There were a lot of slurs that were used in it that could be very damaging to some readers and, bluntly, felt a bit excessive.
Overall, I enjoyed quite a few moments during I'm a Gay Wizard but also felt it fell flat in so many other moments. Does this make it a bad novel or any less important? Absolutely not. Santoni writes in a way that is simple/to the point; sometimes it drifts off into an underdeveloped territory, but it's by no means badly written.
Much like with After, I can definitely tell it had its origins on Wattpad, but that makes me all the more impressed by how far Santoni has come--and how much potential his writing has to grow.
As always, a copy of this book was provided by the publisher or author in exchange for my honest review. This does not effect my opinion in any way.
When I saw the title of this book I was somewhere between secondhand embarrassment (it is one of those titles that I'm just not super into, like I MARRIED MY BEST FRIEND or THE BAD BOY'S RIGHT SHOULDER BLADE or whatever) and intrigue. The intrigue won out because, hello, representation. I saw it and was like, UH, yes, sign me up, immediately, thanks.
I'm a Gay Wizard has a lead in representation. It made me SO happy.
Not only does it feature a gay main character, but a transgender character and a few other potential sexual identities that are yet to be explored. For this alone, Santoni should be praised for bringing these characters into our lives. While I had a lot of issues with the plotline and the way the story is written, its biggest redeeming quality is the sincerity Santoni portrays his characters.
Going into I'm a Gay Wizard, I expected the story to be driven by its magical elements and veer into magical realism. However, it felt to be very much so character driven and I definitely am appreciative towards that. Where Santoni lacks in development of the world and magic, he gains in portrayal of his characters. Also, there's this brutal force of honesty in Santoni's plotlines that mix the magic seen in I'm a Gay Wizard with the world we live in. I'm always keen on novels that take fantasy and blend in bits and pieces of our world's struggles.
(!! GIVE ME ALL THE PARALLELS.)
Because of these moments, there are going to be some very real topics that are touched upon that will be triggering. I'm a Gay Wizard truly does not shy away from this. As always, I have to recommend that readers look into what trigger warnings it might feature. There were a lot of slurs that were used in it that could be very damaging to some readers and, bluntly, felt a bit excessive.
Overall, I enjoyed quite a few moments during I'm a Gay Wizard but also felt it fell flat in so many other moments. Does this make it a bad novel or any less important? Absolutely not. Santoni writes in a way that is simple/to the point; sometimes it drifts off into an underdeveloped territory, but it's by no means badly written.
Much like with After, I can definitely tell it had its origins on Wattpad, but that makes me all the more impressed by how far Santoni has come--and how much potential his writing has to grow.