Scan barcode
A review by togidemi
These Witches Don't Burn by Isabel Sterling
3.0
why do queer books keep disappointing me
OKAY! SO! GAY WITCHES! It's not great, but it was alright! Shitton of telling instead of showing, though! Like SO MUCH of it! Also Sterling has a weird habit of referring to people by their roles ("my ex-girlfriend stood before me, we went to my ex-girlfriend's house, i stared at my ex-girlfriend") far more than I felt should be natural, which was most obvious with Veronica but was weirdest with Lady Arianna. Pacing only really picked up at the last third of the book, but it didn't save the book considering the villain's identity was predictable (and they turned out to be such a damn cartoon at the end), I didn't particularly care about the character who dies (oop), and the open ending was just meh. Lackluster romance (though one aspect of it surprised me and I really liked it, ngl ) (also points for gay girls and redheads, my two eternal weaknesses), forgettable magic system, mediocre mystery. Characters were all eh as well. Do appreciate all the little touches only a queer writer would think to add (Gemma's parents! paying on dates! Hannah's shirt puns!) and I was entertained enough that I was not actively bored, but yeah.
OKAY! SO! GAY WITCHES! It's not great, but it was alright! Shitton of telling instead of showing, though! Like SO MUCH of it! Also Sterling has a weird habit of referring to people by their roles ("my ex-girlfriend stood before me, we went to my ex-girlfriend's house, i stared at my ex-girlfriend") far more than I felt should be natural, which was most obvious with Veronica but was weirdest with Lady Arianna. Pacing only really picked up at the last third of the book, but it didn't save the book considering the villain's identity was predictable (and they turned out to be such a damn cartoon at the end), I didn't particularly care about the character who dies (oop), and the open ending was just meh. Lackluster romance (though one aspect of it surprised me and I really liked it, ngl ) (also points for gay girls and redheads, my two eternal weaknesses), forgettable magic system, mediocre mystery. Characters were all eh as well. Do appreciate all the little touches only a queer writer would think to add (Gemma's parents! paying on dates! Hannah's shirt puns!) and I was entertained enough that I was not actively bored, but yeah.