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A review by lanidon
Bad Witch Burning by Jessica Lewis
dark
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
I feel the need to clarify that my rating has nothing to do with the quality of the book. This book had a profound negative impact on me mentally. I don't believe the synopsis accurately gives an impression of this book, which may lead some to read it and have the same reaction.
This book is incredibly dark in a very real way. The magic is a side plot in a story about very depressing real world issues that have personally affected me. Please read the content warning and know just how dark this book is before going in. Specifically, if you cannot handle depictions of verbally, physically, and financially abusive parents then do not read this book.
I think using "black girl magic" as buzzwords for this book does both the story and black girls a great disservice. That movement was started to reframe the narrative around black girls and women. The marketing team fundamentally misunderstood that and stripped all meaning from it to instead describe a black girl literally doing magic.
I regret reading this book, I truly do. That being said, I can see the value others have found in this. It is well written. The plot is interesting and unique. The friendship between the two main characters is genuinely heartwarming and wonderful, I wish it were the center of the book. All that being said, only read this if you have the emotional strength to handle a very bleak and depressing depiction of something that may hit close to home.
This book is incredibly dark in a very real way. The magic is a side plot in a story about very depressing real world issues that have personally affected me. Please read the content warning and know just how dark this book is before going in. Specifically, if you cannot handle depictions of verbally, physically, and financially abusive parents then do not read this book.
I think using "black girl magic" as buzzwords for this book does both the story and black girls a great disservice. That movement was started to reframe the narrative around black girls and women. The marketing team fundamentally misunderstood that and stripped all meaning from it to instead describe a black girl literally doing magic.
I regret reading this book, I truly do. That being said, I can see the value others have found in this. It is well written. The plot is interesting and unique. The friendship between the two main characters is genuinely heartwarming and wonderful, I wish it were the center of the book. All that being said, only read this if you have the emotional strength to handle a very bleak and depressing depiction of something that may hit close to home.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Child abuse, Death, and Physical abuse
Early on in the book, the MC's mother's boyfriend shoots her dog in retaliation for her "misbehaving." There are multiple graphic scenes of both the mother and the boyfriend abusing the MC in various ways. There is no tag for this, but the mother is financially abusive towards her daughter. She forces her to completely financially support the family while still in high school and takes every cent she has so she cannot escape. This is central to the plot and recurrent