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Book Review: Wooing the Witch Queen, by Stephanie Burgis

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I purchased a copy of Stephanie Burgis‘ Wooing the Witch Queen.

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Queen Saskia is the wicked sorceress everyone fears. After successfully wrestling the throne from her evil uncle, she only wants one thing: to keep her people safe from the empire next door. For that, she needs to spend more time in her laboratory experimenting with her spells. She definitely doesn’t have time to bring order to her chaotic library of magic.

When a mysterious dark wizard arrives at her castle, Saskia hires him as her new librarian on the spot. “Fabian” is sweet and a little nerdy, and his requests seem a little strange – what in the name of Divine Elva is a fountain pen? – but he’s getting the job done. And if he writes her flirtatious poetry and his innocent touch makes her skin singe, well…

Little does Saskia know that the “wizard” she’s falling for is actually an Imperial archduke in disguise, with no magical training whatsoever. On the run, with perilous secrets on his trail and a fast growing yearning for the wicked sorceress, he’s in danger from her enemies and her newfound allies, too. When his identity is finally revealed, will their love save or doom each other?

my review

I honestly adored this. It’s not a perfect book. It took a little while for me to settle into it, and it feels very cozy and low-stakes for what is objectively a high-stakes situation. But Felix was marvelous. I want to roll him up and bundle him away from anything but kindness and light forevermore.

Mostly, however, I love the way Burgis subverts cultural expectations here. The FMC is older, more powerful, more aggressive, and possessive, etc. But Burgis does it subtly. They’re not the wooing the witch queen photofirst author to do this. But far too many such books that I’ve read feel ham-fisted or lean heavily into D/S, femme-dom territory. Burgis avoided this trap, and the book is far better for it. Plus, on a somewhat different point, I appreciate that Burgis gave an explanation for some of what would otherwise feel like too convenient plot points.

I loved this book. It was 100% based on the vibes, I’ll admit. However, I’ll be looking forward to book two when it comes out.

Other Reviews:

Won Over by “Wooing the Witch Queen”

 

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Audio Book Review: Magical Intelligence, M.K. Wiseman 

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Somewhere on the internet, I came across a freebie Audible code for M.K. Wiseman‘s Magical Intelligence.

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When you are a member of Britain’s first team of wizard spies, every mission might be your last. But as the dawning of the 20th century draws ever nearer, magic grows weak. Violectric Dampening, the clash of man-made electricity with the Gifts of magekind, threatens M.I.’s existence. And if that isn’t enough, they’ve now been discharged from their own government. Obsolete. Distrusted.

And now hunted by one of their own.

Myra Wetherby has always feared her so-called fits, strange visions of people and places that she cannot explain. It is the emotional manipulation, however, a strange empathic connection to those around her, which threatens her very sanity. A danger to her family, Myra runs away, falling straight into the hands of the newly ousted Magical Intelligence team. Who just so happen to need an ability like hers.

Which makes Myra one of them…whether she likes it or not.

my review

The description for this book isn’t untrue, but it misdirects. It does not give an accurate impression of the story. Most of it is the history that the story builds on, rather than the story itself, and it more problematically leaves out the fact that the main character, Myra, is 14 years old, which makes this a much different story than one is led to expect by the blurb.

Having said that, nothing about the story actually feels like she is 14 years old. I say that as a parent of a 14-year-old. So, I feel ideally placed to say her young age does not work for the character or the plotline. She does not act 14, no one treats her as if she is 14, and the plot does not lend itself to a 14-year-old. Honestly, several of the other characters are also in their teens, and they don’t act their age either. But it is especially problematic for Myra, as the main character. Plus,14 feels so much younger than 18 in this context. Eighteen might round up to a young adult. 14 rounds down to a child.

Outside that one big glaring problem, I generally liked this. I didn’t love it, but I liked it well enough. However, the pacing is a bit off. Somehow, the beginning dragged on and on, and then the end rushed too fast. Honestly, I felt like I was constantly scrambling, being like, “Wait, who is this again?”

I do feel like this book did a lot of work setting up the series. So, the rest of the series might not suffer from the same pacing problems, which could just be a symptom of first-book syndrome. All in all, it was a middle-of-the-road read for me. Alyson Grauer did a nice job with the narration, however.

Other Reviews:

Blog Tour Book Review: Magical Intelligence – M. K. Wiseman

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Book Review: Avidian, by Ashley R. O’Donovan

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I was recently lucky enough to win a giveaway on Instagram that included a copy of Avidian, by Ashley R. O’Donovan.

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I can see the dead. They tell me their secrets. But this time, their secrets might get me killed.

My name is Kat Sinclair, and the Volkov family owns me. People like me, born with special abilities, are called Avids. But my gift doesn’t spare me from the demands of Marco Volkov, the ruthless family patriarch who keeps me in line with the ever-present threat of violence.

When a grisly double murder involving a family nephew and a cook shakes the household, I’m forced to uncover the truth. The whispers of the dead reveal more than I bargained for, unearthing secrets that could destroy the Volkovs—and me.

But I met a charming stranger who might be able to help. Except he doesn’t know about my gift, my scars, or the dark past I can’t escape. But in his eyes, I see something I thought I’d lost long ago—hope.

If I want to escape, I’ll have to play along. But this murder might be hiding something even more dangerous. If I’m not careful, I’ll be the next one the dead are whispering about.

my review

I didn’t particularly care for this book. However, I’m pretty certain it’s just a case of the wrong book for the wrong reader. My main complaint is that I never trusted the main male character (MMC); therefore, I could never trust the developing relationship. This is essentially insta-love, and for me, O’Donovan never managed to bridge the gap between the MMC and the female lead, who meet in questionable circumstances and then fall in love. I don’t feel the reader is given any reason to believe the FMC would trust the MMC, especially how strongly the FFC emphasizes that she can’t trust anyone.

The whole thing also just felt inconsistent to me. We’re given a wretched post-apocalyptic world, but the reader never feels it at all. The FMC is enslaved, but her internal monologue is all about strength and agency. Which, yeah, I don’t want a doormat. However, her internal self doesn’t align with the self she describes to the reader, given the circumstances she’s supposed to have endured. Mostly, I feel like O’Donovan wanted a gritty, dark, and dangerous world, but then wimped out on actually writing it or allowing her character to live it. The FMC emerges far too untarnished to have lived the life we’re told she does.

Lastly, I wanted so, so, so much more of the paranormal/fantasy aspect of this plot. It’s photo of avidiansprinkled throughout, but mostly this is a contemporary romance. I frequently forgot that some of the characters have magic powers. And I was waiting for that last chapter plot twist from very, very early on.

Having said all of that, the writing is good, and there’s a cute ghost dog in it. If you’re a reader who would rather stories with darker themes not actually get dark, this is likely a good read for you.

Other Reviews:

Isha Dowlyn, Author: Avidian