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A review by adrienner
The Witchkin Murders by Diana Pharaoh Francis
3.0
I received a copy of The Witchkin Murders by Diana Pharaoh Francis from the publisher through NetGalley for free for a fair and honest review.
I have been seeing Diana Pharaoh Francis books in the stacks and genres I read and had been wanting to pick up a book by her. I was thrilled to get this book. Sadly, I think the story is not meant for me. It took me twelve days to read this book when I have been averaging two similar length books per weeks for this year. It took me four times as long to read this as it should have.
I like urban fantasy, and I'm passing familiar with Portland, so I thought this would be great. I've enjoyed a lot of urban fantasy set in Portland. This book is a mystery/cop story set in urban fantasy. I'm not a fan of mysteries nor cop stories. I'm a little put-off by how many urban fantasy stories require police. In the current political climate, the use of police in stories needs to be done carefully and not with loads of privilege where the issues that surround police in many cities, including Portland, are wholly ignored. This book does not pass that test. I also wondered if police partners being "closer than spouses" contributes to why there's fewer women on police forces. That could end a lot of marriages. Given the large chips on the shoulders of both main protagonists, I had a hard time believing they were ever good partners the way the story says they were.
I also could have done without the toxic masculinity that dripped off every page of this book. There would be no story without it. If it's that necessary to the plot and characters, then it isn't a book I want to read.
There is a lot of predictability in the story, which is good and bad. I mostly kept reading to see if my predictions were accurate. Some of the things that happen come out of left field and completely blind-side the reader because the world building never indicates such things exist until they do and are necessary.
I liked the writing. I think the premise of magic having existed in the world and major magic users causing a large influx of visible magic, followed by a war between magic users and non-magic users is very interesting. It's just the story that was told was only okay and the characters weren't well-depicted.
Overall, I would recommend this book to people who like urban fantasy and cop stories.
I have been seeing Diana Pharaoh Francis books in the stacks and genres I read and had been wanting to pick up a book by her. I was thrilled to get this book. Sadly, I think the story is not meant for me. It took me twelve days to read this book when I have been averaging two similar length books per weeks for this year. It took me four times as long to read this as it should have.
I like urban fantasy, and I'm passing familiar with Portland, so I thought this would be great. I've enjoyed a lot of urban fantasy set in Portland. This book is a mystery/cop story set in urban fantasy. I'm not a fan of mysteries nor cop stories. I'm a little put-off by how many urban fantasy stories require police. In the current political climate, the use of police in stories needs to be done carefully and not with loads of privilege where the issues that surround police in many cities, including Portland, are wholly ignored. This book does not pass that test. I also wondered if police partners being "closer than spouses" contributes to why there's fewer women on police forces. That could end a lot of marriages. Given the large chips on the shoulders of both main protagonists, I had a hard time believing they were ever good partners the way the story says they were.
I also could have done without the toxic masculinity that dripped off every page of this book. There would be no story without it. If it's that necessary to the plot and characters, then it isn't a book I want to read.
There is a lot of predictability in the story, which is good and bad. I mostly kept reading to see if my predictions were accurate. Some of the things that happen come out of left field and completely blind-side the reader because the world building never indicates such things exist until they do and are necessary.
I liked the writing. I think the premise of magic having existed in the world and major magic users causing a large influx of visible magic, followed by a war between magic users and non-magic users is very interesting. It's just the story that was told was only okay and the characters weren't well-depicted.
Overall, I would recommend this book to people who like urban fantasy and cop stories.