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A review by jenzhg
Serpent & Dove by Shelby Mahurin
4.0
3.95/5 ⭐️
AHHH THIS BOOK WAS SO GOOD!! At first, I went into this book thinking it was just a romance and ~some~ bits of fantasy but NOPE! IT COMPLETELYY surprised me with the half fantasy half romance plot (lovely plot btw). I loved the witches and the description of their magic. However, I do wish there was more magic and action going on, that would’ve been lovely.
I also really liked how the romance was boiling at the back inevitably flooded and almost drowned our main protagonists, Reid and Lou. Their romance was cute, excruciatingly saccharine and quite refreshing— seriously, the enemies to lovers trope never gets old. I just wishhh that we could’ve gotten more.
There are many reasons as to why I am not giving a 5/5.
Firstly, I’ve read alot of this genre. Don’t get me wrong, this book is srsly good but as someone who had a high & low YA, fantasy phase, I didn’t feel like it reached out to me enough (emphasis on enough). The tropes felt repetitive— the vigilante MC, her wild, girlboss best friend who saves her ass and the cocky, annoying (yet respectful) bastard who learns to love our reckless protagonist. In other words, I’ve experienced this all before and thus wasn’t that deeply moved.
Secondly, the 50% fantasy, 50% romance ultimately bites this book in its ass since everything ended up feeling quite underdeveloped. However, I can totally understand why it is so as this is the first book in the series but I just wished we got to see more scenes of Angelica’s ring being used more for example. Or more scenes with Reid and Lou after the whole witch fiasco. Overall, this point is kind of irrelevant as this IS the first book in the trilogy so I’m seriously hoping for more magical action + romance in the second book.
Lastly, while some parts of this book was quite rushed and confusing but that’s like any fantasy book in the first 5 chapters. Nevertheless, the wit that’s woven between the characters’ conversations is what makes this book so original and dear to me. I can’t wait to read ‘Blood & Honey’ :-)
AHHH THIS BOOK WAS SO GOOD!! At first, I went into this book thinking it was just a romance and ~some~ bits of fantasy but NOPE! IT COMPLETELYY surprised me with the half fantasy half romance plot (lovely plot btw). I loved the witches and the description of their magic. However, I do wish there was more magic and action going on, that would’ve been lovely.
I also really liked how the romance was boiling at the back inevitably flooded and almost drowned our main protagonists, Reid and Lou. Their romance was cute, excruciatingly saccharine and quite refreshing— seriously, the enemies to lovers trope never gets old. I just wishhh that we could’ve gotten more.
There are many reasons as to why I am not giving a 5/5.
Firstly, I’ve read alot of this genre. Don’t get me wrong, this book is srsly good but as someone who had a high & low YA, fantasy phase, I didn’t feel like it reached out to me enough (emphasis on enough). The tropes felt repetitive— the vigilante MC, her wild, girlboss best friend who saves her ass and the cocky, annoying (yet respectful) bastard who learns to love our reckless protagonist. In other words, I’ve experienced this all before and thus wasn’t that deeply moved.
Secondly, the 50% fantasy, 50% romance ultimately bites this book in its ass since everything ended up feeling quite underdeveloped. However, I can totally understand why it is so as this is the first book in the series but I just wished we got to see more scenes of Angelica’s ring being used more for example. Or more scenes with Reid and Lou after the whole witch fiasco. Overall, this point is kind of irrelevant as this IS the first book in the trilogy so I’m seriously hoping for more magical action + romance in the second book.
Lastly, while some parts of this book was quite rushed and confusing but that’s like any fantasy book in the first 5 chapters. Nevertheless, the wit that’s woven between the characters’ conversations is what makes this book so original and dear to me. I can’t wait to read ‘Blood & Honey’ :-)