After listening to "The Secret Society of Very Irregular Witches" I was really surprised that this book uses a completely different magical setting, both in organisation of witches and in the workings of magic itself. Props for creativity. What surprisingly was the same was the male lead - the white guy with Scottish accent working in a library and lovingly taking care of a child who isn't his own. The other similarity between the books was even more irksome - I don't like it when people just drop dead for no apparent reason. I get that it's not relevant for the story, but I still find it irritating. Unlike others whose reviews I read, I wasn't upset about the result of the final showdown. The thing itself was weird - try to get a high stakes witches duel going in a cozy story, it's not easy - but the loss of magic in the end made sense to me. Yes, it was terribly sad, but there was so much talk about balance before, what sense would it have made for Sera to be by far the most powerful witch alone? Since I mentioned it in my review of the Secret Society: the sex scene was better this time, they even used condoms. Not being able to focus on an important mission because they're both dressed nicely? That one was a little disappointing. Grown-ups should have more self control.
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I mostly read (and listen to) books via Libby and my local library. For that, I referred a lot to Goodreads for reviews of books I might want to read next. I hope to use Bookwyrm for recommendations and reviews now. I read different genres: fantasy, sci-fi, mystery and a little romance from time to time.
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Cozy with weak points
3 stars
Overall, I liked the cozyness of the story, and Samara MacLaren's voice was great to listen to. I liked the world building, the idea that all witches are orphans and have to be alone, more or less, and the way the magic itself works. I also didn't see the main twist coming, at all. The second one was easy to see, though. What I didn't like was the sex scene. For one thing, it wasn't well told. For another, it always irritates me when the characters in a story go straight from nothing to sex without once talking about protection, be it from pregnancy or STDs. I'm pretty sure both are a possibility in this book's world and should be addressed no matter how badly desire suddenly struck the people involved.
Overall, I liked the cozyness of the story, and Samara MacLaren's voice was great to listen to. I liked the world building, the idea that all witches are orphans and have to be alone, more or less, and the way the magic itself works. I also didn't see the main twist coming, at all. The second one was easy to see, though. What I didn't like was the sex scene. For one thing, it wasn't well told. For another, it always irritates me when the characters in a story go straight from nothing to sex without once talking about protection, be it from pregnancy or STDs. I'm pretty sure both are a possibility in this book's world and should be addressed no matter how badly desire suddenly struck the people involved.
LilithElina started reading Witch's Guide to Magical Innkeeping by Sangu Mandanna
LilithElina started reading How To Seal Your Own Fate (Castle Knoll Files, #2)
LilithElina reviewed Water Moon by Cindy Kay
Captivating adventure
4 stars
I enjoyed this anime-style adventure in another world where nothing is as it seems. There were some grueling scenes, but nothing I found too shocking. The twists actually surprised me, making the story surprising and captivating, even though it was rather cosy.







