A review by literaryprincess
A Far Wilder Magic by Allison Saft

adventurous emotional hopeful medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

What ultimately kept me hooked on this story was the slow-burn romance and the ridiculous chemistry and charm that comes with the two main characters' relationship with one another. While the main draw of the story is the infamous pseudo-magical, pseudo-action hunt of an ancient wild beast, I was far more invested in the bonding between our two protagonists. The religious aspect of the worldbuilding and storyline was clunky and felt forced at times - it's clearly based in reality, and that is used as an excuse to not actually build up the history of this fictional world, to its detriment. I also enjoyed the story of Margaret's mother and her relationship with the alchemic art and I wish that it had been explored more thoroughly. The side characters achieve exactly what they set out to do, but they very much read as stepping stones to an ultimate goal rather than actual fleshed-out people with their own lives outside of their chapters in this story. The beginning, middle, and end of this book is all about one thing: the romance between Weston Winters and Mararet Welty. Everything else is an afterthought. And I'm not too mad about that.