Reviews tagging 'Grief'

Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman

49 reviews

bexi's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship, Grief, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Sexual content, and Death of parent

Minor: Child abuse and Drug use

cjeter's review against another edition

emotional funny mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

I love the way Hoffman writes: they way she flows from one perspective to the next, how she describes feelings and emotions, and how she presents all different kinds of love.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Grief, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Suicide

for the suicide warning it is briefly mentioned toward the end of the book on page 261.

ellensmith's review against another edition

emotional hopeful lighthearted mysterious reflective relaxing 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

4.5

This book is pure coziness and comfort. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment

alisylvi's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful mysterious slow-paced

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

2.25

Wanted more magic and witchy things :(

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Content Warnings

Minor: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, and Murder

claudiamacpherson's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted 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

I was immediately enchanted by this funny, sweet, magical story of sisterhood. The sisters of the Owens family are far from perfect, but so charming that you can’t help but love them. The magic is subtle and satisfying, because everyone gets what’s coming to them (good and bad). I loved how Hoffman wove superstitions and folklore through the story, some common and some I’d never heard of.

I hit a bit of a reading slump mid-read, so it took me a while to finish, but definitely not because I didn’t enjoy the book. I’ve noticed that, for some reason, books with super long chapters (like this one, which is divided into 4 sections rather than traditional chapters) take me a lot longer to finish than books with shorter chapters.

Happy ending meter (no specific spoilers, just the vibe of the ending):

It’s satisfyingly happy.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, and Alcohol

Minor: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Drug use, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and Alcohol

lain_darko's review against another edition

hopeful mysterious 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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief

Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Death, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Cursing, Panic attacks/disorders, Death of parent, Murder, and Fire/Fire injury

ezrah's review against another edition

emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

Very different from the movie but I thoroughly enjoyed it. Pretty quick read but not intensely paced. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, and Alcohol

Minor: Animal death, Death, Drug abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, and Murder

ahopper7's review against another edition

emotional hopeful mysterious 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? It's complicated

4.0

I finally read this book after years of having it on my shelf. It was hard for me to get into at first because the writing style is so different than most books. It reads like a fairytale rather than a start-to-finish story. When I switched over to the audiobook it was much more enjoyable. The last part, levitation, was my favorite part of the book. My favorite part is the relationship between sisters and the witchy vibes. I really do with their was more dialogue to love the. plot along instead of narration. I also think I went in a little biased because I’ve seen and loved the movie way before I even knew the book existed, so the book’s story wasn’t as lively for me. But overall I really enjoyed the book. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Grief, and Murder

Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Sexual content, and Blood

raesengele's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful reflective relaxing fast-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

This is such a beautifully written book that left me with so many feelings, but I can entirely understand how it won't be for everyone.

For starters, it's magical realism, not fantasy, so if you want hard magic systems and Harry Potter esque witchcraft, look somewhere else.

Second, know that it is written in a stream of consciousness style and highly character driven, so if you're more comfortable with linear plot lines or are prone to claiming that "nothing happened" look somewhere else.

Finally, it is nothing like the movie (which was perfect for me since I never did get much out of it beyond the house and Nicole Kidman's face), so if it's one of your absolute favorites, look somewhere else.

For everyone still here, you are in for a treat! Why have I waited so long to read an Alice Hoffman book? Her prose is lyrical, almost fairy tale like, and moves seamlessly from one thought to the next which makes it difficult to put down.

One thing I've noticed a lot in other reviews is people criticizing the fact that every Owens woman is described as some kind of traffic stopping sort of beautiful (some more literally than others), but I'd argue that that's the point. Because it's written in this fairy tale style, hyperbole is to be expected. The princess is never just an average princess, she the fairest in all the land, the prince is always handsome, the witch is always ugly and disfigured. What Hoffman does is take that hyperbole and then makes them real despite of it. Yes, the women are traffic stopping level of gorgeous, but they're also broken, flawed, and struggle with getting through life, understanding what real love is, seeing themselves the way the rest of the world sees them. And that beauty is never treated as "this is a good person because she is beautiful." Sally refuses to see herself as anything other than a mother, as a woman worthy of love and longing. Gillian believes she deserves to be abused and used, never letting men see her for anything other than her beauty. Antonia is cruel and puts all her worth in her looks to the point where when her sister out shines her, she loses her confidence and has to learn what parts of her truly matter. Kylie learns deals with the hazards of beauty from an early age. The lesson is that it doesn't matter how beautiful you are, because that beauty is, after all, only skin deep. From page 227, "Although she'd never believe it, those lines in Gillian's face are the most beautiful part about her. They reveal what she's gone through and what she's survived and who exactly she is, deep inside."

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Death, Domestic abuse, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Grief, and Murder

Minor: Alcoholism, Animal death, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Car accident, and Death of parent