A review by bookwyrmsam
The Book of Gothel by Mary McMyne

mysterious tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

Ended up being pretty disappointed in this book, despite loving the first hundred or so pages. The book ended up feeling aimless and meandering and as we got closer and closer to the end of this standalone I realized the book wasn't going to focus on the things I wanted to know more about or answer the questions about the world and the magic that have been raised. I really disliked the romance in this book which became a heavier focus near the climax than I anticipated, and I wasn't really satisfied with the conclusion that our protagonist was given compared to her desires and goals throughout the book. I knew going into this that it reads more like historical fantasy than a direct Rapunzel retelling, but I definitely need to reiterate that here: don't go into this looking for a Rapunzel story. I'm not mad I read this, but I probably won't revisit it. There were elements I loved but the execution didn't work out for me. However there were enough positives that I would still recommend giving it a try if you were interested.
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