Reviews

Back in a Spell by Lana Harper

frankie_sue722's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny lighthearted mysterious 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

gothamballer39's review against another edition

emotional lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

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

3.25

It was a little harder to enjoy this 3rd book since the main character was essentially one of the "Malfoys" of Thistle Grove. A little less escapist than the other 2 books in the series so far (and I found myself continually wishing for the prior 2 protagonists' perspectives instead) but still an overall, enjoyably campy read. 

islaybooks's review against another edition

3.0

Okay, let me just start this off by saying that the introduction of a non binary character was so great! HOWEVER, Morty was then referred to as he/him throughout the novel, despite saying that they do welcome both they/them AND he/him. I would have liked to see Morty be referred to as they/them pronouns as a non binary character who does say that they like this use of pronouns.

Other than that, this book was cute. It was a classic enemies to lovers, with lovely witchy magic and soulmate stuff. The chemistry between Morty and Nina was evident, and I really enjoyed their relationship journey throughout the book.

I did read this not knowing that it was part of a series (which is my mistake), so possibly I should have better researched this and read the previous novels first to help strengthen my relationship with the characters and the story of Thistle Grove.

evierysik's review against another edition

5.0

I really enjoyed the book so it gets 5 stars. That said, I can understand people being disappointed by the lack of use concerning the other half of Morty's pronouns. Usually the pronoun that comes first is the most favored or preferred but it's customary to use them interchangeably, something the author failed to do. I'm surprised her editor didn't catch that and suggest a change.

vaguelyirritated's review against another edition

3.0

I was a bit disappointed by the strict use of he/him for Morty. It seemed weird to me to graze over the fact that Morty indentifies that they use he/they pronouns, only to disregard they/them and only use he/him throughout the entire rest of the book. It just seemed like it was pushed aside when there was a really neat opportunity for some more non-binary representation. Also Morty’s constant use of “milady” gave me the ick.

jrasband's review against another edition

medium-paced

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

3.0

clhtdr's review against another edition

adventurous funny lighthearted medium-paced

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

3.75

mediumyellow10's review against another edition

3.0

Yeah yk it does what it says on the tin, it's a little Halloweeny feeling romance when I want to get in the spirit and it does the trick. I did love some non-binary rep, and it definitely felt like different rep from what I normally read. Yeah silly and fun, still don't understand this town's lore and every day I gain more questions!!!

leahjade_98's review against another edition

adventurous lighthearted mysterious 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

3.0

brittandwaffles's review

3.75

Overall, I thought this was a decent read. The one aspect that I do not think was handled as well as it could have been was the nonbinary representation. It seemed very tacked on in a sentence at the beginning, and then it was never really addressed much after that. It almost felt more like an attempt to just put a check in the box.