Alexis’s review of Witch Please (Fix-It Witches, #1) > Likes and Comments
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Kat, short for Clara wrote: "I was really looking forward to this... but it’s difficult not to have concerns about the content as this isn’t the only review that says the things you say about. (I will probably still read it, t..."
Ack, thank you. I really think there's a lot readers will find charming here, it's just there's elements that hit all my over-think buttons.
This review hits on all the issues I had with the book too, particularly with the grandmother. It’s kind of hand-waved away at the end that she’s, and I quote directly, “a hate, manipulative old witch,” and it’s ultimately played for laughs, but gramgram basically gaslights her entire family?! For decades?! And totally agree with you that there are weird racism vibes (which gets coded for “elitism” in the books, which, sure, whatever), but the whole arc about her having lied about magical powers disappearing when being in relationships with mundane was treated way too lightly for my tastes.
I had a lot of the same issues with the “twist” at the end and the questions of consent. I wanted to love it but was left feeling uncomfortable a lot of the time. As always you articulate it very well.
oitb wrote: "This review hits on all the issues I had with the book too, particularly with the grandmother. It’s kind of hand-waved away at the end that she’s, and I quote directly, “a hate, manipulative old wi..."
Yes, I felt the book ... didn't feel the grandmother was as unremittingly just flat out evil as I did? I mean, I thought the early exploration of love/complicity/emotional abuse and control was quite nuanced by the end of the book it had all been ... as you say ... sort of dismissed with one speech about how Danica was free now.
And retrospectively I sort of feel that with the whole CURSE thing Danica's mother is (in her way) as equally controlling of who Danica gets with as the grandmother was. Eeek.
Fei wrote: "I agree with Kat, this review is awesome <3
But also "so you have manifest certain behaviours in order to capture one like they’re some kind of obscure Pokémon instead of a person". Why is this so..."
I really can't tell: obviously a token x-person has always been a thing in the media, although I do wonder if Bridgerton has kind of opened new doors in that regard by taking a very white character and just ... making him Black with no other modifications. And, obviously, I'm not saying that it's a problem to cast a Black actor in any role at all--and greater diversity in casting can only be a good thing--but given that so much of Simon's arc is about, err, white shit? It just feels odd and problematic.
So I wonder if we're seeing a bit of that in terms of queer characters? Especially because bisexuality can be (I'm not saying it is, just that it can be portrayed this way) a sort of ... invisible orientation. I think to me, I find this "make one of 'em bi and change nothing else" kinda worse than zero representation especially because we have a burgeoning landscape of books that centralise queer characters within a queer story.
But then AA has written a bunch of queer characters with queer stories so it's not like this is opportunistic on her part. If she' d a string of the straightest-books-ever behind her, I'd be looking more askance but as it is ... I think I'm just a bit confused.
Mae - Twice Upon A Book wrote: "I had a lot of the same issues with the “twist” at the end and the questions of consent. I wanted to love it but was left feeling uncomfortable a lot of the time. As always you articulate it very w..."
Yes, alternatively charmed and, I think, unintentionally discomforted was kind of where my reactions ended up.
Add to all of this the throwaway mention of how this takes place "after the vaccine" when people are traveling "again" but no other anything to connect to our current reality.
Nicole wrote: "Add to all of this the throwaway mention of how this takes place "after the vaccine" when people are traveling "again" but no other anything to connect to our current reality."
I can see why that might not have worked for you; to me, it wasn't a problem at all. I think writers are in a real bind at the moment about whether to include the pandemic in their present-day novels (and I think this would have been an event more difficult call to make when AA was writing this which would probably have been over a year ago now). I think not mentioning the pandemic *at all* can see jarring. But including it might very well come across as diminishing or opportunistic.
I mean, you could write an absolute banger of a forced proximity romance set during lockdown ... but should you? Probably not because it feels kinda exploitative and I think people are in need of escapism more strongly than ever.
For me, the glancing mention sort of struck the balance between pretending it never happened and COVID-ing out the whole book. But I can totally see it being a mileage may vary issue.
I also thought that in addition to the grandmother and mom, the cousin was kind of controlling? Like she had so much anger around breaking this pact even when it was clearly making Danica unhappy. And it rubbed me the wrong way that Danica ended up apologizing and there was no acknowledgement whatsoever that Clem was to some degree part of the problem and ought to apologize, as well.
Allison wrote: "I also thought that in addition to the grandmother and mom, the cousin was kind of controlling? Like she had so much anger around breaking this pact even when it was clearly making Danica unhappy. ..."
Yes, I agree Clem was non-ideal but I think I was giving her extra leeway because I assumed she was the heroine of book 2? And I thought she and Danica were meant to be damaged in different ways, having been brought up in subtly different contexts, with racist!grandma, but with Danica being sure in her mother's love, and Clem not having that foundation. I felt - and I might be being over generous here so I'm definitely not arguing against my concerns - that Clem was controlling because it was the only model of love she had to work with.
And for myself (entirely personal taste) I don't always mind if family dynamics are left ... complicated. I would hope for more development / nuance/ understanding on Clem's part in her own book. Not that I should probably read it since this one didn't quite work for me.
Thank you for another great review! I wanted to read this as my first book by this author but I will put it off for now.
I have read only one romance in this current trend of contemporary paranormal and it didn't quite work for me. Any form of magic that allows one person to influence the thoughts/feelings of another person is problematic for me re consent.
Ellie wrote: "Thank you for another great review! I wanted to read this as my first book by this author but I will put it off for now.
I have read only one romance in this current trend of contemporary paranorm..."
Ah, thank you. I mean, I don't want to go putting you off the author but this is not my favourite book of hers by a long shot? Would you consider Strange Love? I know it sounds a bit outlandish but it's actually completely squish and heart-warming: and I think you'll appreciate both the hero and the heroine a lot (she's pretty fierce, he's a complete cinnamon roll).
I agree mind-altering magic raises complicated consent issues in romance. I don't think I object on principle, but I do need it to be acknowledged and explored on page.
I have been thinking of trying the Ars Numina series but will also consider Strange Love. Ironically this would be my first alien romance :)
Ellie wrote: "I have been thinking of trying the Ars Numina series but will also consider Strange Love. Ironically this would be my first alien romance :)"
It was my first and indeed only alien romance. The fact its an alien romance is not really significant, it's just kind of a romance, you know? A really warm, consent-focused, queer and uplifting one. Yes there's sex including non-human genitals but that's very much not the point of the book.
Melanie wrote: "Whom do I have to kill to get you to exhume your unpublished analysis of consent in Bridgerton?"
Probably me, so it could be published posthumously. The discourse around that subject was absolutely appalling and I didn't dare wade into it.
Ah, I feel like we just talked about representation of different sexual orientation being a checklist recently? There was a time when racial diversity was the hot ticket in the market, so every mainstream fantasy novel had the obligatory POC with very little to contribute beyond their skin color or their hair type. We seem to have supplanted that vapidity with sexual orientation tokenism.
I'm curious, what m/f tropes do you find alienating? All your salient points in this review, I think, should be universal in all romance; consent, an awareness/understanding of another person's personal agency, etc..
Thanks for link to Jasper Carrott. He IS sexy to those of us who like slim, pointy nosed, sparkly eyed, mouthy men. Being from USA, I have no ear for British regional accents but Tom Daley is from Birmingham and has several million IG followers many of whom seem to find him sexy. Is this author American? Sigh. When a friend and I discovered a colleague from Beijing was teaching "Mandarin class" for American children of immigrants we were sure she'd be very good because she has a "BBC" sort of accent.
Consent wasn't a concept when I was young and I see no signs that misogyny has lessened in any substantive way so am grateful for all your comments. (Also grateful for all your writing.)
Lux wrote: "Ah, I feel like we just talked about representation of different sexual orientation being a checklist recently? There was a time when racial diversity was the hot ticket in the market, so every mai..."
Ah, that might be the case. It's depressing - and, I will admit, somewhat frustrating. Although I don't want to whine about it too much because I know people feel represented by different things, and I'm sure there are certain contexts in which irrelevant queerness could feel normalising and positive. It just didn't happen to work for me in this instance.
I think it's "universalities" in romance can be pretty complicated. I mean, I can't quite believe I'm going to write this but ... uh take consent. I mean, just in the sense that non-consent can be a fantasy for some people, and there are parts of the romance genre that allow for its exploration in a safe context (like dark romance, and erotic romance). Though, of course, I wouldn't expect to find what read to me as a lack of it in a cute romcom about witches. I guess I've just felt the idea of "universal" values in romance used against books about marginalised characters so often that the idea makes me worry.
In terms of things I find alienating in m/f, I do find m/f tends to play fast and loose with m consent in ways that either go unnoticed or are actively celebrated in weird ways. Like I think the scene in this book was meant to be enjoyed from the POV of the heroine's agency and sexual confidence: and it's very clear from the hero's POV that he's into it. But had the situations been reversed, had the heroine been in the virgin, and the hero just sort of bounced on top of her, I think ... I think it would read very differently and been received very differently. And obviously naive gender reversal is exactly that but, for me personally, I would like at least as much care taken about consent for BOTH characters. I'm also not a big a fan of alpha heroes when they're a massive massive trope (just because that's the guy who spent my entire childhood calling me the f-word). I don't like insta-love along the lines, man sees woman and decides she is IT for him, which loads of people find that deeply romantic, and I just find it presumptuous / borderline consenty. I mean. I don't super enjoy the phallocentrism of sex-scenes, or the fact that so much m/f seems to focus on heroines who orgasm from penetration (again, plenty of women do, but--and I can only speak from my experience of people I've banged here--plenty don't). But I don't see these as PROBLEMS in the genre so much as aspects of it that don't work for me. But why would they? I am not the target audience.
Jeanne wrote: "Thanks for link to Jasper Carrott. He IS sexy to those of us who like slim, pointy nosed, sparkly eyed, mouthy men. Being from USA, I have no ear for British regional accents but Tom Daley is from ..."
I'm not dissing Jasper Carrott (well, I wouldn't sleep with him now, he's been dead for years): I'm just saying he's not the writer was clearly envisioning for this particular character.
Tom Daley has a standard RP accent to my ear - certainly not Birmingham. A hint of a slightly rhotic-r maybe, left over from childhood?
This review really sums up my perspective. I love their chemistry and the charming witchy aspect but can't get over the virginity trope & incel-ness of Titus...and that they had sex without protection without talking about it first made me cringe. Also Gram is straight up evil and deserves more than just a diatribe from Danica.
Alexis wrote: "Tom Daley has a standard RP accent to my ear - certainly not Birmingham. A hint of a slightly rhotic-r maybe, left over from childhood? " Oh, thanks, I thought it was just my American ears that couldn't distinguish a regional accent for Tom. Matty Lee is from Leeds and even I can hear his accent is different and find it and him charming, definitely not "rough." Jasper does actually seem to be still alive but is waayyyy too old for you anyhow. An off-topic note, having become a fan of GB Dive Team after seeing a pic of Tom's teary chibi eyes when he & Matty earned gold, the team interactions remind me of your fictional portrayals of friends that I so love in your books.
Emmylou wrote: "This review really sums up my perspective. I love their chemistry and the charming witchy aspect but can't get over the virginity trope & incel-ness of Titus...and that they had sex without protect..."
I feel conflicted about racist!grandma; like I think it's worth acknowledging that people like that, especially if they're old, are difficult to 'punish' - either socially or literally. I don't think every villain in a romance needs to fall on a spike and die, and I think it's sometime appropriate that they don't. Like sometimes the worst thing that can happen to these people is the world leaving them behind: but I think I wanted more textual acknowledgement that she was a fucking terrible person, you know? Or rather that the moment where Danica calls her out could have served both as a moment of a triumph for Danica and ... something for Gram? Not necessarily self-reflection because people like that NEVER self-reflect. But she did kind of lose her granddaughter in that moment, which could/should have felt like a punishment. And kind of didn't because the scene was so focused on Danica's speech, rather than Gram's reaction to it.
Jeanne wrote: "Alexis wrote: "Tom Daley has a standard RP accent to my ear - certainly not Birmingham. A hint of a slightly rhotic-r maybe, left over from childhood? " Oh, thanks, I thought it was just my America..."
OH MY GOD I THOUGHT HE WAS DEAD. How did I think he was dead?
RP *is* a regional accent, it's just the accent of the south east that various culture wars have enshrined as the "default" accent.
I really appreciate all the detail here, as someone writing in the paranormal/fantasy romance space I think about these kinds of concerns too.
Sri wrote: "I really appreciate all the detail here, as someone writing in the paranormal/fantasy romance space I think about these kinds of concerns too."
Ah thank you. I just think about things too much, I think ;)
I listened to this audiobook. I was really excited about it and even spend a whole credit on it and everything. But I never ended up reviewing it or promoting it on my blog because something felt really off and I couldn't put it into words. You did! Thanks for that :-)
Virgin heroes are something I'm always curious about because I like romance with people who are a bit different and stories that turn usual tropes around (although so far, I had never considered the incel aspect of it and with the hero's age that makes more sense... and the whole thing a lot less charming). And I'm always there for bisexual MCs. But mentioning in little more than one sentence that, oh yes, the hero is bi, was so odd to me and felt very uncomfortable. Also, their whole lack of communication. The witches marry witches thing and drawing parallels to racism. It was just all so... phew. I finished the book, but it didn't leave me happy.
Eline || Lovely Audiobooks wrote: "I listened to this audiobook. I was really excited about it and even spend a whole credit on it and everything. But I never ended up reviewing it or promoting it on my blog because something felt r..."
I love a virgin hero: I think it exists in challenge to a lot of problematic ideas about masculinity and male sexuality. I don't think it's *inherently* incelly, I should add, it's just this particular hero going around being all like "I'm doomed to be forever alone" and "how do I need to behave in order to retain this human female" hit incel vibes for me personally.
Again, the bi-rep is complicated. I'm not saying it's the "wrong" way to portray bisexual people and I'm sure there's an extent to which some people might really embrace it as normalising. It just didn't super speak to me but, yeah, that's me. My identity isn't a single line, you know? But who knows: my life might be better if it was ;)
Emmylou wrote: "This review really sums up my perspective. I love their chemistry and the charming witchy aspect but can't get over the virginity trope & incel-ness of Titus...and that they had sex without protect..."
100% agree, I couldn't quite articulate my issues with Titus but I absolutely was getting incell vibes, and while I could tell that wasn't the *intention* I never really liked Titus as a person. Really grateful for this review!!
Jacque wrote: "Emmylou wrote: "This review really sums up my perspective. I love their chemistry and the charming witchy aspect but can't get over the virginity trope & incel-ness of Titus...and that they had sex..."
I liked Titus a lot more when I realised his incel-ness and is uncomfortable "this lady is my walking uterus" attitude to the heroine was because he was literally cursed / fated to be her soul mate. But for myself, I wish that had been explored a lot earlier (including issues pertaining to his agency and consent) rather than revealed right at the end, by which time I'd already given up on him.
Thanks for this. Most of these are deal breakers for me too, so it’s nice to be able to take this off the want to read list. I’m definitely not the target audience either.
As a bi person in a long term m/f relationship I’ve read many, many m/f romances with a bi protagonist. I used to read all of them, until there were too many. I’ve also encountered a few m/f romances with a supposedly bi character (that read as straight to me) that have come out in the last few years. Some of those bothered me more than others - I think my annoyance was inversely proportional to my enjoyment of the story. There were at least two where I kept thinking that I must have made up that there was a bi character (so why was I reading this boring het romance?). I’m good with low key bi rep but not invisible bi rep.
Cleo wrote: "Thanks for this. Most of these are deal breakers for me too, so it’s nice to be able to take this off the want to read list. I’m definitely not the target audience either.
As a bi person in a lon..."
Yes, I can't tell if I went in with mis-managed expectations because the bi hero was kind of part of the marketing for the book and the last AA book I read was Strange Love, which I *adore* and which is also incredibly queer (despite have an ostensibly m/f pairing where both parties are generally attracted to opposite gender pairing).
I'm still working out where I stand on the bi-rep issue from a reader standpoint, so I definitely didn't mean to make this book the poster child for my concerns. But I think you're right that it's easy to dismiss any aspect of any story that didn't work for you as long as you've bought into the whole context of the story. Like, I recently read Duke Actually which has a really unfortunate subplot involving a queer character and I still came away from the book feeling really positive about it, I think because the book as a whole worked for me.
But there were just too many aspects of this book that didn't work *for me* that I think the rep bi kind of got rolled into it and I felt more negatively about it than it perhaps deserved.
Thanks for review since I just couldn't make it to 100 pages... or even 90... I felt no hmph to read more - something just felt so off. And as much as you want the leads to want each other it just felt.... too much. Titus was too much...or not enough.
Plus after four weeks the book was due back at library and I really didn't feel I should renew it to sit to the side.
Wendi wrote: "Thanks for review since I just couldn't make it to 100 pages... or even 90... I felt no hmph to read more - something just felt so off. And as much as you want the leads to want each other it just ..."
I think I kept reading on the assumption there'd come a point when it started working for me, because I really love this author as a general rule. But I guess this was just one those "didn't connect" situations.
This is my first Ann Aguirre book despite having have had several on my tbr for a long time (including the steampunk one she cowrote) so I'm bummed because it wasn't a great introduction despite having have heard great things about her in general. You seem like you know this author's work, so in your opinion what would be a good one to fix my negative first impression?
Cordelia wrote: "This is my first Ann Aguirre book despite having have had several on my tbr for a long time (including the steampunk one she cowrote) so I'm bummed because it wasn't a great introduction despite ha..."
I really love Strange Love: that's a touch rough about the edges, but it's super fun and very queer.
I only just started this book and have been struggling with it. The whole "pure blooded witch" thing especially. Icky. Thank you for laying out your concerns so clearly. It's helped me decide not to push through when I'm already struggling.
Crystal wrote: "I only just started this book and have been struggling with it. The whole "pure blooded witch" thing especially. Icky. Thank you for laying out your concerns so clearly. It's helped me decide not t..."
Glad to have helped. I really really *wanted* to like this book. And I can certainly see why it works for a lot of people. It just ... gah. Happened not to work for me.
this was actually really nice to read? you summed up a lot of what I was thinking and talked about things I hadn't even noticed. I just finished the book and there are so many things unresolved that might get spotlighted in other books when they eventually come out but I'm not honestly sure I'd want to read them.
Arunima wrote: "this was actually really nice to read? you summed up a lot of what I was thinking and talked about things I hadn't even noticed. I just finished the book and there are so many things unresolved tha..."
Ah thank you. I'm really really conflicted about my response to the book. I'm genuinely intrigued to read the future books but I'm concerned that I'm just not the right reader for them, and I kind of don't want it to come across like I'm grudge-reading because I really love this author's work in general.
I have been struggling with this book for very similar reasons. There’s so much dysfunctional behavior that’s supposed to be cute and quirky. Her grandmother is terrible, the whole “must marry pure blood witch” is very disturbing, Danica’s no-relationship pact with her cousin and her cousin’s pressure to keep the pact is deeply unhealthy and, like you said, Danica’s spell casting definitely has consent issues. I’m horrified Titus has basically been cursed by Danica’s mom and now knowing that there’s no real confrontation over her mom’s and grandmother’s behavior makes me think I should DNF this, which I was seriously considering once the “witch-hunter” showed up.
I’m not far enough along that Titus bothers me—I just figured he was a frustrated romantic too ready for a relationship and he didn’t say any of the over the top things he thought. It sounds like he gets worse tho.
Megan wrote: "I have been struggling with this book for very similar reasons. There’s so much dysfunctional behavior that’s supposed to be cute and quirky. Her grandmother is terrible, the whole “must marry pure..."
Yes - there really is a lot here that didn't work for me as well, although I'm sure it does work for other people because I've seen plenty of love of this book (which, y'know, is good - otherwise I would have felt like a shitheel for going on about it so much).
I found that learning the truth about Titus's curse helped me stop seeing his behaviour as so weird/creepy/randomly possessive but the curse raised a bunch of other questions that the book didn't seem interested in (like his consent, why the curse equates sex with love etc, are fated mates really a thing in this universe).
Thanks for the review. It clarifies things I couldn’t articulate.
Thank you for taking the time to lay all this out. I have no interest in reading about an incel-like MMC, no matter how he got that way. I tend to love this author's work but I've been on the fence about reading this one and now I know it's not for me.
Elizabeth wrote: "Thanks for the review. It clarifies things I couldn’t articulate."
Pleasure - thank you.
Leigh wrote: "Thank you for taking the time to lay all this out. I have no interest in reading about an incel-like MMC, no matter how he got that way. I tend to love this author's work but I've been on the fence..."
Oof, I feel kind of bad about that because I think a lot of what didn't work for me about this book is kind of personal (and plenty of people haven't had anything like the same reaction). With hindsight, incel-like might have been a bit unfair on my part? Since he's not aggressive or entitled. It was more the forever-alone mentality thing. And actually it turns out he's not like that all - he's literally cursed, which makes it better in some ways, but worse in others.
No need to feel bad! Your reviews are always thorough and helpful. It was the combination of my own reservations and what you laid out. The "forever alone" mentality would be very off-putting to me.
I found your review helpful.
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I was also really bothered by the mother's advice and the heroine's decision at the end to basically... lie to their mundane significant other about being a witch. Essentially, to pretend to be all "New Age-y" or pagan, so them doing actual magic would not raise any eyebrows. This is a level of secret-keeping and lying about who you are as a person that makes the relationship, to my mind, inherently unhealthy, and is a big huge NOPE for me. Not to mention (a propos of your discussion of consent) that it robs the unknowing partner of consent in a significant way. It's just... wrong.
I know it was only a small portion of your review, but you articulated so well here exactly why I find fated mates off putting.
Lark of The Bookwyrm's Hoard wrote: "I found your review helpful.
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I was also really bothered by the mother's advice and the heroine's decision at the end to basically... lie to their mundane signif..."
Oops, sorry I missed this. Yes, I'm not of the school that you have to disclose literally everything about you to your partner, but I think because witchcraft is acting as a metaphor for a bunch of things, including marginalised identity, in this book it just becomes really complicated and messy.
Jrooknroll wrote: "I know it was only a small portion of your review, but you articulated so well here exactly why I find fated mates off putting."
Ah, thank you. It's not my favourite trope. It can work for me, if done well, but ... here, not so much.
Oh and you forgot to mention our virgin hero is also interested in men in passing. “There was also a swarm of customers, one of them a cute guy, unmistakably flirting, and if Titus didn’t have plans he might see where that went. Ewww. So is He thinking about hooking up with a guy because he doesn’t have look over with women or is he attracted to men because he is unlucky with women and figures he’d give guys a twirl? This hero is just a whiny guy I can’t imagine anybody wanting.
Jen wrote: "Oh and you forgot to mention our virgin hero is also interested in men in passing. “There was also a swarm of customers, one of them a cute guy, unmistakably flirting, and if Titus didn’t have plan..."
The hero was not my favourite. I mean, I think you're in a bit of a damned if you do / damned if you don't situation when you're write bisexual characters. Because you either make them look like Horny McHorny, noting the sexual attractiveness of everyone around them irrespective of anything else that's going on, or else they never talk about their sexuality so they're just a word on a page. I think this book kind of manages to run in both directions simultaneously in that the hero's sexuality feels at once erased and meaningless AND whenever he thinks about potential attraction to men it comes across as insincere / stereotype-reinforcing.
I don't know if you've read Delilah Green Doesn't Care - for my money that does a real good of portraying a bisexual character whose interactions with the world feel informed by her sexuality (as one part of her identity).
I’m so glad you wrote this. I’ve been struggling to enjoy this book for days and I just.. can’t. For so many of the reasons you’ve pointed out.
K.T. wrote: "I’m so glad you wrote this. I’ve been struggling to enjoy this book for days and I just.. can’t. For so many of the reasons you’ve pointed out."
I'm sorry this book didn't work for you - have you read Strange Love? That really did hit for me - it's one of my favourite romances of all time.
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Kat, short for Clara wrote: "I was really looking forward to this... but it’s difficult not to have concerns about the content as this isn’t the only review that says the things you say about. (I will probably still read it, t..."Ack, thank you. I really think there's a lot readers will find charming here, it's just there's elements that hit all my over-think buttons.
This review hits on all the issues I had with the book too, particularly with the grandmother. It’s kind of hand-waved away at the end that she’s, and I quote directly, “a hate, manipulative old witch,” and it’s ultimately played for laughs, but gramgram basically gaslights her entire family?! For decades?! And totally agree with you that there are weird racism vibes (which gets coded for “elitism” in the books, which, sure, whatever), but the whole arc about her having lied about magical powers disappearing when being in relationships with mundane was treated way too lightly for my tastes.
I had a lot of the same issues with the “twist” at the end and the questions of consent. I wanted to love it but was left feeling uncomfortable a lot of the time. As always you articulate it very well.
oitb wrote: "This review hits on all the issues I had with the book too, particularly with the grandmother. It’s kind of hand-waved away at the end that she’s, and I quote directly, “a hate, manipulative old wi..."Yes, I felt the book ... didn't feel the grandmother was as unremittingly just flat out evil as I did? I mean, I thought the early exploration of love/complicity/emotional abuse and control was quite nuanced by the end of the book it had all been ... as you say ... sort of dismissed with one speech about how Danica was free now.
And retrospectively I sort of feel that with the whole CURSE thing Danica's mother is (in her way) as equally controlling of who Danica gets with as the grandmother was. Eeek.
Fei wrote: "I agree with Kat, this review is awesome <3
But also "so you have manifest certain behaviours in order to capture one like they’re some kind of obscure Pokémon instead of a person". Why is this so..."
I really can't tell: obviously a token x-person has always been a thing in the media, although I do wonder if Bridgerton has kind of opened new doors in that regard by taking a very white character and just ... making him Black with no other modifications. And, obviously, I'm not saying that it's a problem to cast a Black actor in any role at all--and greater diversity in casting can only be a good thing--but given that so much of Simon's arc is about, err, white shit? It just feels odd and problematic.
So I wonder if we're seeing a bit of that in terms of queer characters? Especially because bisexuality can be (I'm not saying it is, just that it can be portrayed this way) a sort of ... invisible orientation. I think to me, I find this "make one of 'em bi and change nothing else" kinda worse than zero representation especially because we have a burgeoning landscape of books that centralise queer characters within a queer story.
But then AA has written a bunch of queer characters with queer stories so it's not like this is opportunistic on her part. If she' d a string of the straightest-books-ever behind her, I'd be looking more askance but as it is ... I think I'm just a bit confused.
Mae - Twice Upon A Book wrote: "I had a lot of the same issues with the “twist” at the end and the questions of consent. I wanted to love it but was left feeling uncomfortable a lot of the time. As always you articulate it very w..."
Yes, alternatively charmed and, I think, unintentionally discomforted was kind of where my reactions ended up.
Add to all of this the throwaway mention of how this takes place "after the vaccine" when people are traveling "again" but no other anything to connect to our current reality.
Nicole wrote: "Add to all of this the throwaway mention of how this takes place "after the vaccine" when people are traveling "again" but no other anything to connect to our current reality."I can see why that might not have worked for you; to me, it wasn't a problem at all. I think writers are in a real bind at the moment about whether to include the pandemic in their present-day novels (and I think this would have been an event more difficult call to make when AA was writing this which would probably have been over a year ago now). I think not mentioning the pandemic *at all* can see jarring. But including it might very well come across as diminishing or opportunistic.
I mean, you could write an absolute banger of a forced proximity romance set during lockdown ... but should you? Probably not because it feels kinda exploitative and I think people are in need of escapism more strongly than ever.
For me, the glancing mention sort of struck the balance between pretending it never happened and COVID-ing out the whole book. But I can totally see it being a mileage may vary issue.
I also thought that in addition to the grandmother and mom, the cousin was kind of controlling? Like she had so much anger around breaking this pact even when it was clearly making Danica unhappy. And it rubbed me the wrong way that Danica ended up apologizing and there was no acknowledgement whatsoever that Clem was to some degree part of the problem and ought to apologize, as well.
Allison wrote: "I also thought that in addition to the grandmother and mom, the cousin was kind of controlling? Like she had so much anger around breaking this pact even when it was clearly making Danica unhappy. ..."Yes, I agree Clem was non-ideal but I think I was giving her extra leeway because I assumed she was the heroine of book 2? And I thought she and Danica were meant to be damaged in different ways, having been brought up in subtly different contexts, with racist!grandma, but with Danica being sure in her mother's love, and Clem not having that foundation. I felt - and I might be being over generous here so I'm definitely not arguing against my concerns - that Clem was controlling because it was the only model of love she had to work with.
And for myself (entirely personal taste) I don't always mind if family dynamics are left ... complicated. I would hope for more development / nuance/ understanding on Clem's part in her own book. Not that I should probably read it since this one didn't quite work for me.
Thank you for another great review! I wanted to read this as my first book by this author but I will put it off for now. I have read only one romance in this current trend of contemporary paranormal and it didn't quite work for me. Any form of magic that allows one person to influence the thoughts/feelings of another person is problematic for me re consent.
Ellie wrote: "Thank you for another great review! I wanted to read this as my first book by this author but I will put it off for now. I have read only one romance in this current trend of contemporary paranorm..."
Ah, thank you. I mean, I don't want to go putting you off the author but this is not my favourite book of hers by a long shot? Would you consider Strange Love? I know it sounds a bit outlandish but it's actually completely squish and heart-warming: and I think you'll appreciate both the hero and the heroine a lot (she's pretty fierce, he's a complete cinnamon roll).
I agree mind-altering magic raises complicated consent issues in romance. I don't think I object on principle, but I do need it to be acknowledged and explored on page.
I have been thinking of trying the Ars Numina series but will also consider Strange Love. Ironically this would be my first alien romance :)
Ellie wrote: "I have been thinking of trying the Ars Numina series but will also consider Strange Love. Ironically this would be my first alien romance :)"It was my first and indeed only alien romance. The fact its an alien romance is not really significant, it's just kind of a romance, you know? A really warm, consent-focused, queer and uplifting one. Yes there's sex including non-human genitals but that's very much not the point of the book.
Melanie wrote: "Whom do I have to kill to get you to exhume your unpublished analysis of consent in Bridgerton?"Probably me, so it could be published posthumously. The discourse around that subject was absolutely appalling and I didn't dare wade into it.
Ah, I feel like we just talked about representation of different sexual orientation being a checklist recently? There was a time when racial diversity was the hot ticket in the market, so every mainstream fantasy novel had the obligatory POC with very little to contribute beyond their skin color or their hair type. We seem to have supplanted that vapidity with sexual orientation tokenism. I'm curious, what m/f tropes do you find alienating? All your salient points in this review, I think, should be universal in all romance; consent, an awareness/understanding of another person's personal agency, etc..
Thanks for link to Jasper Carrott. He IS sexy to those of us who like slim, pointy nosed, sparkly eyed, mouthy men. Being from USA, I have no ear for British regional accents but Tom Daley is from Birmingham and has several million IG followers many of whom seem to find him sexy. Is this author American? Sigh. When a friend and I discovered a colleague from Beijing was teaching "Mandarin class" for American children of immigrants we were sure she'd be very good because she has a "BBC" sort of accent.Consent wasn't a concept when I was young and I see no signs that misogyny has lessened in any substantive way so am grateful for all your comments. (Also grateful for all your writing.)
Lux wrote: "Ah, I feel like we just talked about representation of different sexual orientation being a checklist recently? There was a time when racial diversity was the hot ticket in the market, so every mai..."Ah, that might be the case. It's depressing - and, I will admit, somewhat frustrating. Although I don't want to whine about it too much because I know people feel represented by different things, and I'm sure there are certain contexts in which irrelevant queerness could feel normalising and positive. It just didn't happen to work for me in this instance.
I think it's "universalities" in romance can be pretty complicated. I mean, I can't quite believe I'm going to write this but ... uh take consent. I mean, just in the sense that non-consent can be a fantasy for some people, and there are parts of the romance genre that allow for its exploration in a safe context (like dark romance, and erotic romance). Though, of course, I wouldn't expect to find what read to me as a lack of it in a cute romcom about witches. I guess I've just felt the idea of "universal" values in romance used against books about marginalised characters so often that the idea makes me worry.
In terms of things I find alienating in m/f, I do find m/f tends to play fast and loose with m consent in ways that either go unnoticed or are actively celebrated in weird ways. Like I think the scene in this book was meant to be enjoyed from the POV of the heroine's agency and sexual confidence: and it's very clear from the hero's POV that he's into it. But had the situations been reversed, had the heroine been in the virgin, and the hero just sort of bounced on top of her, I think ... I think it would read very differently and been received very differently. And obviously naive gender reversal is exactly that but, for me personally, I would like at least as much care taken about consent for BOTH characters. I'm also not a big a fan of alpha heroes when they're a massive massive trope (just because that's the guy who spent my entire childhood calling me the f-word). I don't like insta-love along the lines, man sees woman and decides she is IT for him, which loads of people find that deeply romantic, and I just find it presumptuous / borderline consenty. I mean. I don't super enjoy the phallocentrism of sex-scenes, or the fact that so much m/f seems to focus on heroines who orgasm from penetration (again, plenty of women do, but--and I can only speak from my experience of people I've banged here--plenty don't). But I don't see these as PROBLEMS in the genre so much as aspects of it that don't work for me. But why would they? I am not the target audience.
Jeanne wrote: "Thanks for link to Jasper Carrott. He IS sexy to those of us who like slim, pointy nosed, sparkly eyed, mouthy men. Being from USA, I have no ear for British regional accents but Tom Daley is from ..."I'm not dissing Jasper Carrott (well, I wouldn't sleep with him now, he's been dead for years): I'm just saying he's not the writer was clearly envisioning for this particular character.
Tom Daley has a standard RP accent to my ear - certainly not Birmingham. A hint of a slightly rhotic-r maybe, left over from childhood?
This review really sums up my perspective. I love their chemistry and the charming witchy aspect but can't get over the virginity trope & incel-ness of Titus...and that they had sex without protection without talking about it first made me cringe. Also Gram is straight up evil and deserves more than just a diatribe from Danica.
Alexis wrote: "Tom Daley has a standard RP accent to my ear - certainly not Birmingham. A hint of a slightly rhotic-r maybe, left over from childhood? " Oh, thanks, I thought it was just my American ears that couldn't distinguish a regional accent for Tom. Matty Lee is from Leeds and even I can hear his accent is different and find it and him charming, definitely not "rough." Jasper does actually seem to be still alive but is waayyyy too old for you anyhow. An off-topic note, having become a fan of GB Dive Team after seeing a pic of Tom's teary chibi eyes when he & Matty earned gold, the team interactions remind me of your fictional portrayals of friends that I so love in your books.
Emmylou wrote: "This review really sums up my perspective. I love their chemistry and the charming witchy aspect but can't get over the virginity trope & incel-ness of Titus...and that they had sex without protect..."I feel conflicted about racist!grandma; like I think it's worth acknowledging that people like that, especially if they're old, are difficult to 'punish' - either socially or literally. I don't think every villain in a romance needs to fall on a spike and die, and I think it's sometime appropriate that they don't. Like sometimes the worst thing that can happen to these people is the world leaving them behind: but I think I wanted more textual acknowledgement that she was a fucking terrible person, you know? Or rather that the moment where Danica calls her out could have served both as a moment of a triumph for Danica and ... something for Gram? Not necessarily self-reflection because people like that NEVER self-reflect. But she did kind of lose her granddaughter in that moment, which could/should have felt like a punishment. And kind of didn't because the scene was so focused on Danica's speech, rather than Gram's reaction to it.
Jeanne wrote: "Alexis wrote: "Tom Daley has a standard RP accent to my ear - certainly not Birmingham. A hint of a slightly rhotic-r maybe, left over from childhood? " Oh, thanks, I thought it was just my America..."
OH MY GOD I THOUGHT HE WAS DEAD. How did I think he was dead?
RP *is* a regional accent, it's just the accent of the south east that various culture wars have enshrined as the "default" accent.
I really appreciate all the detail here, as someone writing in the paranormal/fantasy romance space I think about these kinds of concerns too.
Sri wrote: "I really appreciate all the detail here, as someone writing in the paranormal/fantasy romance space I think about these kinds of concerns too."Ah thank you. I just think about things too much, I think ;)
I listened to this audiobook. I was really excited about it and even spend a whole credit on it and everything. But I never ended up reviewing it or promoting it on my blog because something felt really off and I couldn't put it into words. You did! Thanks for that :-)Virgin heroes are something I'm always curious about because I like romance with people who are a bit different and stories that turn usual tropes around (although so far, I had never considered the incel aspect of it and with the hero's age that makes more sense... and the whole thing a lot less charming). And I'm always there for bisexual MCs. But mentioning in little more than one sentence that, oh yes, the hero is bi, was so odd to me and felt very uncomfortable. Also, their whole lack of communication. The witches marry witches thing and drawing parallels to racism. It was just all so... phew. I finished the book, but it didn't leave me happy.
Eline || Lovely Audiobooks wrote: "I listened to this audiobook. I was really excited about it and even spend a whole credit on it and everything. But I never ended up reviewing it or promoting it on my blog because something felt r..."I love a virgin hero: I think it exists in challenge to a lot of problematic ideas about masculinity and male sexuality. I don't think it's *inherently* incelly, I should add, it's just this particular hero going around being all like "I'm doomed to be forever alone" and "how do I need to behave in order to retain this human female" hit incel vibes for me personally.
Again, the bi-rep is complicated. I'm not saying it's the "wrong" way to portray bisexual people and I'm sure there's an extent to which some people might really embrace it as normalising. It just didn't super speak to me but, yeah, that's me. My identity isn't a single line, you know? But who knows: my life might be better if it was ;)
Emmylou wrote: "This review really sums up my perspective. I love their chemistry and the charming witchy aspect but can't get over the virginity trope & incel-ness of Titus...and that they had sex without protect..."100% agree, I couldn't quite articulate my issues with Titus but I absolutely was getting incell vibes, and while I could tell that wasn't the *intention* I never really liked Titus as a person. Really grateful for this review!!
Jacque wrote: "Emmylou wrote: "This review really sums up my perspective. I love their chemistry and the charming witchy aspect but can't get over the virginity trope & incel-ness of Titus...and that they had sex..."I liked Titus a lot more when I realised his incel-ness and is uncomfortable "this lady is my walking uterus" attitude to the heroine was because he was literally cursed / fated to be her soul mate. But for myself, I wish that had been explored a lot earlier (including issues pertaining to his agency and consent) rather than revealed right at the end, by which time I'd already given up on him.
Thanks for this. Most of these are deal breakers for me too, so it’s nice to be able to take this off the want to read list. I’m definitely not the target audience either. As a bi person in a long term m/f relationship I’ve read many, many m/f romances with a bi protagonist. I used to read all of them, until there were too many. I’ve also encountered a few m/f romances with a supposedly bi character (that read as straight to me) that have come out in the last few years. Some of those bothered me more than others - I think my annoyance was inversely proportional to my enjoyment of the story. There were at least two where I kept thinking that I must have made up that there was a bi character (so why was I reading this boring het romance?). I’m good with low key bi rep but not invisible bi rep.
Cleo wrote: "Thanks for this. Most of these are deal breakers for me too, so it’s nice to be able to take this off the want to read list. I’m definitely not the target audience either. As a bi person in a lon..."
Yes, I can't tell if I went in with mis-managed expectations because the bi hero was kind of part of the marketing for the book and the last AA book I read was Strange Love, which I *adore* and which is also incredibly queer (despite have an ostensibly m/f pairing where both parties are generally attracted to opposite gender pairing).
I'm still working out where I stand on the bi-rep issue from a reader standpoint, so I definitely didn't mean to make this book the poster child for my concerns. But I think you're right that it's easy to dismiss any aspect of any story that didn't work for you as long as you've bought into the whole context of the story. Like, I recently read Duke Actually which has a really unfortunate subplot involving a queer character and I still came away from the book feeling really positive about it, I think because the book as a whole worked for me.
But there were just too many aspects of this book that didn't work *for me* that I think the rep bi kind of got rolled into it and I felt more negatively about it than it perhaps deserved.
Thanks for review since I just couldn't make it to 100 pages... or even 90... I felt no hmph to read more - something just felt so off. And as much as you want the leads to want each other it just felt.... too much. Titus was too much...or not enough. Plus after four weeks the book was due back at library and I really didn't feel I should renew it to sit to the side.
Wendi wrote: "Thanks for review since I just couldn't make it to 100 pages... or even 90... I felt no hmph to read more - something just felt so off. And as much as you want the leads to want each other it just ..."I think I kept reading on the assumption there'd come a point when it started working for me, because I really love this author as a general rule. But I guess this was just one those "didn't connect" situations.
This is my first Ann Aguirre book despite having have had several on my tbr for a long time (including the steampunk one she cowrote) so I'm bummed because it wasn't a great introduction despite having have heard great things about her in general. You seem like you know this author's work, so in your opinion what would be a good one to fix my negative first impression?
Cordelia wrote: "This is my first Ann Aguirre book despite having have had several on my tbr for a long time (including the steampunk one she cowrote) so I'm bummed because it wasn't a great introduction despite ha..."I really love Strange Love: that's a touch rough about the edges, but it's super fun and very queer.
I only just started this book and have been struggling with it. The whole "pure blooded witch" thing especially. Icky. Thank you for laying out your concerns so clearly. It's helped me decide not to push through when I'm already struggling.
Crystal wrote: "I only just started this book and have been struggling with it. The whole "pure blooded witch" thing especially. Icky. Thank you for laying out your concerns so clearly. It's helped me decide not t..."Glad to have helped. I really really *wanted* to like this book. And I can certainly see why it works for a lot of people. It just ... gah. Happened not to work for me.
this was actually really nice to read? you summed up a lot of what I was thinking and talked about things I hadn't even noticed. I just finished the book and there are so many things unresolved that might get spotlighted in other books when they eventually come out but I'm not honestly sure I'd want to read them.
Arunima wrote: "this was actually really nice to read? you summed up a lot of what I was thinking and talked about things I hadn't even noticed. I just finished the book and there are so many things unresolved tha..."Ah thank you. I'm really really conflicted about my response to the book. I'm genuinely intrigued to read the future books but I'm concerned that I'm just not the right reader for them, and I kind of don't want it to come across like I'm grudge-reading because I really love this author's work in general.
I have been struggling with this book for very similar reasons. There’s so much dysfunctional behavior that’s supposed to be cute and quirky. Her grandmother is terrible, the whole “must marry pure blood witch” is very disturbing, Danica’s no-relationship pact with her cousin and her cousin’s pressure to keep the pact is deeply unhealthy and, like you said, Danica’s spell casting definitely has consent issues. I’m horrified Titus has basically been cursed by Danica’s mom and now knowing that there’s no real confrontation over her mom’s and grandmother’s behavior makes me think I should DNF this, which I was seriously considering once the “witch-hunter” showed up.I’m not far enough along that Titus bothers me—I just figured he was a frustrated romantic too ready for a relationship and he didn’t say any of the over the top things he thought. It sounds like he gets worse tho.
Megan wrote: "I have been struggling with this book for very similar reasons. There’s so much dysfunctional behavior that’s supposed to be cute and quirky. Her grandmother is terrible, the whole “must marry pure..."Yes - there really is a lot here that didn't work for me as well, although I'm sure it does work for other people because I've seen plenty of love of this book (which, y'know, is good - otherwise I would have felt like a shitheel for going on about it so much).
I found that learning the truth about Titus's curse helped me stop seeing his behaviour as so weird/creepy/randomly possessive but the curse raised a bunch of other questions that the book didn't seem interested in (like his consent, why the curse equates sex with love etc, are fated mates really a thing in this universe).
Thanks for the review. It clarifies things I couldn’t articulate.
Thank you for taking the time to lay all this out. I have no interest in reading about an incel-like MMC, no matter how he got that way. I tend to love this author's work but I've been on the fence about reading this one and now I know it's not for me.
Elizabeth wrote: "Thanks for the review. It clarifies things I couldn’t articulate."Pleasure - thank you.
Leigh wrote: "Thank you for taking the time to lay all this out. I have no interest in reading about an incel-like MMC, no matter how he got that way. I tend to love this author's work but I've been on the fence..."
Oof, I feel kind of bad about that because I think a lot of what didn't work for me about this book is kind of personal (and plenty of people haven't had anything like the same reaction). With hindsight, incel-like might have been a bit unfair on my part? Since he's not aggressive or entitled. It was more the forever-alone mentality thing. And actually it turns out he's not like that all - he's literally cursed, which makes it better in some ways, but worse in others.
No need to feel bad! Your reviews are always thorough and helpful. It was the combination of my own reservations and what you laid out. The "forever alone" mentality would be very off-putting to me.
I found your review helpful.(SPOILERS AHEAD)
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I was also really bothered by the mother's advice and the heroine's decision at the end to basically... lie to their mundane significant other about being a witch. Essentially, to pretend to be all "New Age-y" or pagan, so them doing actual magic would not raise any eyebrows. This is a level of secret-keeping and lying about who you are as a person that makes the relationship, to my mind, inherently unhealthy, and is a big huge NOPE for me. Not to mention (a propos of your discussion of consent) that it robs the unknowing partner of consent in a significant way. It's just... wrong.
I know it was only a small portion of your review, but you articulated so well here exactly why I find fated mates off putting.
Lark of The Bookwyrm's Hoard wrote: "I found your review helpful.(SPOILERS AHEAD)
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I was also really bothered by the mother's advice and the heroine's decision at the end to basically... lie to their mundane signif..."
Oops, sorry I missed this. Yes, I'm not of the school that you have to disclose literally everything about you to your partner, but I think because witchcraft is acting as a metaphor for a bunch of things, including marginalised identity, in this book it just becomes really complicated and messy.
Jrooknroll wrote: "I know it was only a small portion of your review, but you articulated so well here exactly why I find fated mates off putting."
Ah, thank you. It's not my favourite trope. It can work for me, if done well, but ... here, not so much.
Oh and you forgot to mention our virgin hero is also interested in men in passing. “There was also a swarm of customers, one of them a cute guy, unmistakably flirting, and if Titus didn’t have plans he might see where that went. Ewww. So is He thinking about hooking up with a guy because he doesn’t have look over with women or is he attracted to men because he is unlucky with women and figures he’d give guys a twirl? This hero is just a whiny guy I can’t imagine anybody wanting.
Jen wrote: "Oh and you forgot to mention our virgin hero is also interested in men in passing. “There was also a swarm of customers, one of them a cute guy, unmistakably flirting, and if Titus didn’t have plan..."The hero was not my favourite. I mean, I think you're in a bit of a damned if you do / damned if you don't situation when you're write bisexual characters. Because you either make them look like Horny McHorny, noting the sexual attractiveness of everyone around them irrespective of anything else that's going on, or else they never talk about their sexuality so they're just a word on a page. I think this book kind of manages to run in both directions simultaneously in that the hero's sexuality feels at once erased and meaningless AND whenever he thinks about potential attraction to men it comes across as insincere / stereotype-reinforcing.
I don't know if you've read Delilah Green Doesn't Care - for my money that does a real good of portraying a bisexual character whose interactions with the world feel informed by her sexuality (as one part of her identity).
I’m so glad you wrote this. I’ve been struggling to enjoy this book for days and I just.. can’t. For so many of the reasons you’ve pointed out.
K.T. wrote: "I’m so glad you wrote this. I’ve been struggling to enjoy this book for days and I just.. can’t. For so many of the reasons you’ve pointed out."I'm sorry this book didn't work for you - have you read Strange Love? That really did hit for me - it's one of my favourite romances of all time.
PS: this review is amazing—thank you for writing it <3 <3 <3