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unsponsoredbookreviews 's review for:
The League of Gentlewomen Witches
by India Holton
I just want to state this at the start of this review: I am aware that I am not the intended audience and I only have myself to blame. I bought this book in Salem, MA at a local bookstore thinking it would be a fun book about some witches. I did not understand that this is actually a Victorian romantacy novel.
I can tell that India Holton has some talent as a writer; I did find the occasional witticism or turn of phrase that made me smile. It is just truly unfortunate that the rest of what she writes really rubs me the wrong way. The League of Gentlewomen Witches has a number of failures as a book that compound upon one another in very frustrating ways. The general premise is an enemies become lovers story between a young witch and a rakish pirate (in this case, pirates commandeer flying houses not ships for some reason). A McGuffin chase for a magical amulet provides the flimsiest of trappings for one of the most straightforward and bland romances I have ever run into. It felt almost entirely frictionless outside the constant barrage of quippy one-liners.
Holton attempts to elevate the story by often directly and indirectly referencing Jane Austen and in particular Pride & Prejudice. Mentioning Elizabeth Bennett multiple times a chapter as a model to emulate for manners or morals. The comparisons and references are clunky at best and feel more offensive than reverential to me. The quippy dialogue is not limited to the main romance, it overtakes all relationship dynamics. The book is comprised of about 95% one-liners, smarminess, and sass. A little bit goes a long way and in this case it felt like trying to add a bit of seasoning to a recipe and the top falls off and the whole contents of the shaker is emptied out into the pan. My final issue is with the fantastical depiction of Victorian England, it feels ill-formed, non-sensical, and poorly fleshed out. I really had a hard time placing myself at all because it clearly was not a focus.
I can understand the appeal to some who would be more in-tune with the genre but it was truly not for me in so many ways.
I can tell that India Holton has some talent as a writer; I did find the occasional witticism or turn of phrase that made me smile. It is just truly unfortunate that the rest of what she writes really rubs me the wrong way. The League of Gentlewomen Witches has a number of failures as a book that compound upon one another in very frustrating ways. The general premise is an enemies become lovers story between a young witch and a rakish pirate (in this case, pirates commandeer flying houses not ships for some reason). A McGuffin chase for a magical amulet provides the flimsiest of trappings for one of the most straightforward and bland romances I have ever run into. It felt almost entirely frictionless outside the constant barrage of quippy one-liners.
Holton attempts to elevate the story by often directly and indirectly referencing Jane Austen and in particular Pride & Prejudice. Mentioning Elizabeth Bennett multiple times a chapter as a model to emulate for manners or morals. The comparisons and references are clunky at best and feel more offensive than reverential to me. The quippy dialogue is not limited to the main romance, it overtakes all relationship dynamics. The book is comprised of about 95% one-liners, smarminess, and sass. A little bit goes a long way and in this case it felt like trying to add a bit of seasoning to a recipe and the top falls off and the whole contents of the shaker is emptied out into the pan. My final issue is with the fantastical depiction of Victorian England, it feels ill-formed, non-sensical, and poorly fleshed out. I really had a hard time placing myself at all because it clearly was not a focus.
I can understand the appeal to some who would be more in-tune with the genre but it was truly not for me in so many ways.