Reviews with content warning for Body shaming - A Demon's Guide to Wooing a Witch

Reviews tagging 'Body shaming'

A Demon's Guide to Wooing a Witch by Sarah Hawley

10 reviews

jellifer28's review against another edition

emotional funny lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

I prefer the first book in the series to this one, however the characters in this are sweet, lovable, and this is an overall charming and lighthearted read with a magical twist!

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witcheep's review against another edition

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adventurous funny hopeful lighthearted fast-paced

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

2.5

The plot of this book feels like an erratic fever dream that interconnects random places, people, and sub-plot events with a loose quest arc masked with horniness. The small happenings (such as bar brawls for fun and driving around) that don't have much impact on the world get a lot of space, whereas the grand events that alter the course of the realms seem to be managed very fast with seemingly simple solutions. This makes the book feel like it was written in a rush and pushed out into the world as fast as possible. It's a fun read, but the book could have benefitted from some more editing and refining. The first book was certainly better.

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doahdancer's review against another edition

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emotional funny inspiring lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Simple, but fun. Not really my cup of tea, and I won't be reading the rest of the series, but if you like mostly fluffy urban fantasy/paranormal, this was pretty well done.

Plot was predictable to me and I don't personally enjoy when authors call out real life websites, companies, etc (in this case, Ao3 referenced multiple times). However the characters were charming and the message was positive.

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lady_smith's review

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adventurous funny lighthearted fast-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

4.5

I didn’t like Calladia while reading the first book in this series and was not really looking forward to a whole story focused on her AND the piece-of-work demon Astaroth. But in the end I liked this book more than the last one!

I found Calladia much more likeable but it also became clear that she isn’t the type of person to care what I think. I may not understand her enthusiasm for solving problems with her fists, but she’s not looking for my approval, and gosh darnit if that doesn’t just make me appreciate her in a whole new way.

Using temporary amnesia with Astaroth was a great way to make his character’s evolution believable. The author used this trope really effectively, particularly by having both him and Calladia ruminate on what might happen if/when he regained his memories and at the end

how Astaroth reconciles who he was vs who he is and how he couldn’t have shaken off his obsessive pursuit of power without the experience of losing his memories.

I loved that while these two were deeply flawed in some ways, the story prioritizes them realizing how right they are for each other just as they are, instead of forcing them to change. Example:

Calladia shot him a damning look. “You do not get to hop off the redemption train just to get on the murder train.” That seemed unfair. “What if I only kill annoying people?”

I didn’t like how things resolved between Mariel and her parents in the last book,

so it was immensely satisfying that Calladia made a different choice.

It’s a fast-paced story that does a great job of balancing action & introspection & dialogue & sexy times.

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circe813's review against another edition

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adventurous fast-paced

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

4.0

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indieandajean's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I was not prepared to forgive Astaroth when I picked up this book, but the amazing way with which his redemption was handled made me love it just as much (if not more) than A Witch's Guide to Fake Dating a Demon.

I appreciated how strong and unapologetically herself Calladia is allowed to be in this book. There has been a really great trend in romance lately of embracing women's bodies in any and every form they come in and I love to see that this has extended to strong women as well. The way that this book (and the previous) focuses on the characters building the strength they need to stand up for themselves is brilliant because it intertwines so well with the narrative while not coming off as beating the reader over the head with a message of "love yourself".

Also, the reference to AO3 got me. I definitely laughed, this author knows her audience.

The way Sarah Hawley writes these books is honestly healing for me and I can't wait for book three!

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direguard's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

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

5.0

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the_snowowl's review against another edition

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adventurous funny hopeful relaxing fast-paced

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

3.25

Fantastic enemies to lovers, a cosy (if somewhat explicit) slow burn. A great choice when wanting to curl up on the couch with your drink of choice.

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natashaleighton_'s review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

As humorously whimsical and steamy as its predecessor! Sarah Hawley’s second instalment in the magical (and deliciously chaotic) Glimmer Falls series was an absolute joy from start to finish. I urge everyone even remotely into fantasy or romance to check this series out.

I should start by saying that this is a sequel that continues right where book one left off. So, if you’re new to the series and don’t want spoilers, I highly recommend starting with A Witch’s Guide To Fake Dating A Demon before picking this up.

I LOVED every second of this! I knew before starting that I’d enjoy it as I loved the first book soo much, but I didn’t anticipate loving Calladia and Astaroth’s story even more than Oz and Mariel’s. The enemies to lovers dynamics (which includes some fabulously witty dialogue) was really entertaining, as was Calladia whose penchant for starting bar room brawls made her an instant favourite.

Given his actions in the first book, I was prepared to dislike Astaroth. But his redemption arc, which includes being left on earth with amnesia (and no one to help except a reluctant Calladia) was surprisingly quite endearing.

I enjoyed exploring a more vulnerable side to Calladia and Astaroth, both of whom are quite standoffish and emotionally guarded characters. And their chemistry was absolutely scorchingly addictive!

Calladia assertive demeanour and ability to not suffer fools fantastic and I loved that she’s described as being physically strong (her muscled calfs get quite a few appreciative mentions from Astaroth.) But most importantly, I loved that she’s (rightfully) proud of her strength. Given the complex emotional journey she undertakes, (with her mother and an emotionally abusive ex) it was great to see how proud she is of everything accomplished.

Astaroth, too goes through quite a huge transformation. Without his power or memories, the demon we all loved to hate is practically a whole new person. Which did make liking him a bit more palatable after his villainous performance in book one. We do get to delve into his past a little and explore his reasons for the villainous behaviour which I was really intrgued by.

There’s a lot to unpack that may lead to spoilers so I’ll just say, even you you disliked him previously— but love emotionally complex, morally grey characters who set off on a path to redemption then you’ll definitely like Astaroth in this. I was also impressed Hawley’s use of British colloquialisms and sense of humour for Astaroth. I find alot of non-UK authors struggle with making British characters (or characters with British accents) sound British—but Hawley absolutely nailed it!

The romance was also incredible and I adored that Astaroth’s initial attraction to Calladia stemmed from her ability to strong arm him. Their interactions were comedy gold and their chemistry gloriously intense.

I also have to give a shoutout to Astaroth’s mother, Lilith, who (despite being just a secondary character) was stole the show with her utterly hilarious antics— and AO3 obsessed penchant for NAFW Tudor Tentacle fanfics. The juxtaposition between her love and support of Astaroth, with Calladia’s cold & emotionally manipulative mother was also instrumental in helping Calladia finally stand up for herself, which I loved!

I’ve been eager to explore Demon realm in more depth so was really excited we were able to do so this time around, though I still look forward to seeing more of Glimmer Falls (and the rest of this magical world) in the next instalment.

Definitely a must read for fans witchy, paranormal Rom-Coms, trust me you’re gonna absolutely devour this!

Also, a huge thank you to Javerya over at Gollancz for the finished copy.

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queergoth_reads's review

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adventurous funny lighthearted 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

3.75

I received a copy of this book as an ARC from the publishers but all thoughts are my own.

I was very excited to read this book as I really enjoyed the first one. We return to Glimmer Falls just after Oz and Mariel's happily ever after. This time we follow Calladia as she finds Astaroth being beaten up in an alley with no memory of how he got there.

I definitely enjoyed parts of this books. I really enjoyed Calladia and Astaroth's relationship as it went from enemies to lovers. There were a lot of deep parts to both of those characters and I enjoyed seeing them grow together. I also liked the little bit thrown in about how you don't need to fit into gendered expectations to be the gender you are. Also it was pretty spicy.

The mail plot line is based around turmoil on the demon plane and the rights of individuals with mixed demon heritage (e.g. one demon and one human parent). While I think it was done well something didn't sit quite right with me. It took me a while but I realised that the lack of main characters from marginalised groups made it feel a little flat. There are mentions of people with marginalised identies in the human realm but they are often very minor characters or it isn't explored (as in Themmie's case). It is made to feel like the human realm is all fine and dandy and only the demons have issues. Which is fine cause it's fantasy but since there is a fight for hybrid demon rights it would have been nice to have conversations about rights in the human realm.

Overall I did have fun with the book though. I think that Sarah Hawley does a really great job writing complex characters as well as a great redemption arc. I also loved Calladia's emotional healing. Parts of that resonated a lot with me.

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