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A review by annamickreads
Sweet & Bitter Magic by Adrienne Tooley
4.0
Once again wishing Goodreads would put in half stars but this is a solid 3.5 from me!
Adrienne Tooley has an incredible way with words, and honestly what I most appreciated about this book was her mastery of language. Let me give an example because she could turn even the smallest of descriptions into something gorgeous:
"She moved as though she were moving through water, the steady trickle of magic washing over her. Past the shimmering waterfall of power, colors became so sharp Wren could taste them.. Lush lilac-purple lavenders, blushing powdered-sugar pinks, and dreamy sky blues all settled themselves on her tongue."
I also thoroughly enjoyed the magical world built in this story; everything had a fairytale-esque quality to it told from the point of view of witches. What I honestly struggled with was the story itself--the first half of the book is a quest, VERY fairy-tale and very fun. I enjoyed watching Wren and Tamsin getting to know one another and the little details about each other.
The second half of the book takes an unexpected turn that might leave some readers disappointed. The villain and her motivations (no spoilers!) were lackluster to me, I understood them but I think the way the main conflict was resolved in a number of like 5 pages seemed hurried.
The romance was very sweet and who doesn't love sapphic witches?? The energy of this book is big time first love and I think that's perfect especially as Tamsin grapples with her curse (although for a hot minute I did think she was aroace so maybe I misread that one).
Adrienne Tooley has an incredible way with words, and honestly what I most appreciated about this book was her mastery of language. Let me give an example because she could turn even the smallest of descriptions into something gorgeous:
"She moved as though she were moving through water, the steady trickle of magic washing over her. Past the shimmering waterfall of power, colors became so sharp Wren could taste them.. Lush lilac-purple lavenders, blushing powdered-sugar pinks, and dreamy sky blues all settled themselves on her tongue."
I also thoroughly enjoyed the magical world built in this story; everything had a fairytale-esque quality to it told from the point of view of witches. What I honestly struggled with was the story itself--the first half of the book is a quest, VERY fairy-tale and very fun. I enjoyed watching Wren and Tamsin getting to know one another and the little details about each other.
The second half of the book takes an unexpected turn that might leave some readers disappointed. The villain and her motivations (no spoilers!) were lackluster to me, I understood them but I think the way the main conflict was resolved in a number of like 5 pages seemed hurried.
The romance was very sweet and who doesn't love sapphic witches?? The energy of this book is big time first love and I think that's perfect especially as Tamsin grapples with her curse (although for a hot minute I did think she was aroace so maybe I misread that one).