Reviews with content warning for Violence - Practical Magic

This is one of those books that I will accept no notes on and I fully believe that anyone who has any notes just didn’t get it like I did

Yes the movie is great but this is great too, I read this in 1 day and it was so simple yet beautiful yet real and strong and scary in places with how briefly Hoffman could sum up some really sacred parts of sisterhood and woman/girlhood

Very pleased to start my 2024 reads with a banger

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gen_wolfhailstorm's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective relaxing sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

Blended reading (audiobook + physical)

The Details:
Narrated by Laurence Bouvard
Unabridged

Mild spoilers will be in this review as I talk about different parts of the book.

I was initally apprehensive about the lack of chapters, but I needn't worry about that because everything just flowed in such a gentle storytelling way. It was also helpful that it was broken into parts.

I wasn't expecting such a generational saga, but I loved growing up with the sisters Sally and Gillian as they went to live with their peculiar aunts in Superstition. It was interesting to see little bits of witch craft, and from the little snippets of the movie I've seen (only very small scenes out of context), I was surprised that there was a lot of hexing and manipulation of love. It was fascinating to see how both of the very opposite sisters felt about it and also how everyone around them changed their views in different ways as they grew up. I felt like Sally was always getting the short straw of life, rather unfairly, just for being kind and not as bold and carefree as her little sister, so when she finally got a chance at love later on in this part and had a family I was so happy.

In Premonitions I'm happy that Sally was still a main character but the focus shifted on her two children growing up and mirroring the experience her and her sister had with school. I also loved seeing the OG sisters, who had become more and more estranged, reconciled at last.... but not over wholesome circumstances.
The lilacs haunting the sisters, suddenly reminded me of a scene from Weep, Woman, Weep and I wonder if that was inspired by Practical Magic. A pivotal development in this part was Kylie's 13th birthday and that did not go anyway I was expecting it to!

With the way that part ended, I was super interested to see how Clairvoyance would progress the story futher, now that Kylie was coming into her own. The story really developed here as powers were further unearthed and consequences began to come to a head for the run up to the conclusion.

It's weird how fond of the aunts I was, despite them feeling more like off page characters. I missed them and the cats so much when we were following everyone else living their lives.

The whole feel of this story was very whimsical and cosy and felt as if you were being narrated through this odd life, that wasn't super out of the ordinary, but enough to make you second glance. I absolutely adored it and am looking forward to reading the sequel and two prequels.

Content Warnings

agrandreflection's review against another edition

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challenging dark hopeful medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.5

How is this a classic? I have never seen so much subversive feminine power subsumed into toxic patriarchal bullshit.

This is not the feminine empowerment I'm looking for. This is homesteading through folk cures to appease your sex craved husband (who is only slightly less problematic than the literal murderer you may or may not have escaped from).

I get that it's a bit of a product of it's time, but geez. This is not empowering. This upholds limiting gender norms, and has a small view of what thriving looks like for men and women alike. Hell, for all the romance littered throughout, it's also got a miniscule vision of love itself. We deserve better examples than this.

One extra star for the good use of lightning as metaphor tho.

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marieeveparentroy's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious tense slow-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

3.75

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suziem00n's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious 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

This book was not what I first expected. It had a lot more dark themes than I thought, and involved some serious topics. However I enjoyed how the story ended, and enjoyed the subtle hints to witchcraft throughout. I read this as a stand alone book.

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euphemiajo's review against another edition

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adventurous

2.0

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kimberg's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful lighthearted mysterious sad medium-paced

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

4.0

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