A review by bisexualwentworth
Her Majesty's Royal Coven by Juno Dawson

  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

This book absolutely exists as a response to Harry Potter in a “fuck you JKR” sort of way, and I mean this very much as a compliment. It’s a British fantasy novel set in a modern world with a hidden magical society. There are a few other similarities in the worldbuilding as well (government, history, etc.), though Dawson has evidently thought about most aspects of her magical world much more than Rowling ever has. 

Her Mejesty’s Royal Coven, however, is a story that subverts and plays with these concepts in ways that are a direct result of common critiques of both Rowling and her novels. The characters and the text interrogate magic supremacy, magic gender essentialism, and real-world white supremacy and transphobia as central parts of the story. 

I love that the main characters here are in their thirties and that the teens are firmly secondary characters. I LOVED what Dawson did with prophecies. I was compelled by all of the plotlines (though I’m definitely hoping for more Leonie in the sequels), and the ending absolutely made me lose my mind.

It was rough around the edges in some places, and the beginning was definitely VERY slow, but I would absolutely recommend this modern adult pro-trans witch novel and look forward to continuing the series.
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