Reviews with content warning for Religious bigotry - La bruja blanca

“Two years ago, Louise le Blanc fled her coven and took shelter in the city of Cesarine, forsaking all magic and living off whatever she could steal. There, witches like Lou are hunted. They are feared. And they are burned.

Sworn to the Church as a Chasseur, Reid Diggory has lived his life by one principle: thou shalt not suffer a witch to live. His path was never meant to cross with Lou's, but a wicked stunt forces them into an impossible union—holy matrimony.”

What I Loved:

Enemies-to-Lovers paired with a marriage of convenience with a sprinkling of sharing-one-bed and “that’s my wife”… 🙌🏻
I loved the two secs of witches, Dames Rouges and Dames Blanches. I’m curious to learn more about the Blood Magic as well as
how Reid was able to do magic when we should have been dying 😅
Ansel, you sweet boy! Coco, what a badass! I like how we flipped the script on traditional gender roles
This is a perfect example of new adult stories; our characters are adults who can make their own decisions and swear.

What can burn (this seems very aggressive but I was going for a theme 🧙‍♀️🔮✨)

While the fantasy world was a total vibe, there are some moments where the religion aspect of the anti-witch stance gets to be a bit much. That might just be me but the Archbishop needed to relax 95% of the book
I noticed a lot of re-explaining and telling. I get that we had the dual POV and catch up might have been needed, but I thought it was clearly shown so we could have saved ourselves a few pages.
Genuine question, when were we? The France inspired world was cool but we had swords and monarchy, but full theatres and working bathrooms

The building of tension was well paced and I will be continuing with the series with Blood and Honey up next ✨🩸🍯✨

Content Warnings

sophiejatta's review against another edition

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adventurous dark slow-paced

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

4.0

This book was VERY different to get into. The first few chapters were hard. Very confusing with not a lot of explanation as to the world building and characters.

BUT

If you carry on through, the story becomes incredible. I fell in love with both of the leads. Both characters developments through the book. The slow bloom romance is written perfectly. I'm writing this review a few months after I read the book and I've read many since but my mind always seems to come back to this.

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smuttymcbookface's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Shelby Mahurin created a beautiful, dark world with clashing Christianity and magic within Serpent & Dove. The plot developed wonderfully, with small hints and clues as time went on as to what secrets the characters were holding.

The characters themselves were well-written, both nuanced and flawed, and we were clearly able to see their struggles and trials as they developed into more understanding versions of themselves.

The only reason I've not given this 5* was that I found it to be a little too simplistic/YA at times, with some plots neatly lining up with one another, or ridiculously convenient plans (such as Coco being part of the infirmary and just happening to be able to take ownership of Lou).

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melissafelicia's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional medium-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I really enjoyed this story. I liked the vibe of the world, a sort of Renaissance French witches vs religious witch hunters story. I disliked the male mc at first but as his character developed, he started growing on me. The main plot was a bit predictable, but there were still some plot twists I didn't see coming. I'm curious about the rest of the series!

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zia_c's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious medium-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? It's complicated

3.5

I think I'm in love with the fmc. Must be her "i-don't-give-a-fuck" attitude toward everything. As for the mmc, he's sweet but aside from that i don't see no personality.

The plot is good but it's kinda confusing for me. There's no time reference and not much detail about the world. I don't even know the mmc's age.. lol.

Either way, I enjoyed reading it. The ending wasn't satisfactory nor was the 3rd part of the book but anyway. I'm rating this book on fmc alone.

It's been a very long time since I've found a fmc with a spine and a impressive mouth( not like that).

I don't know if I'll continue the series. I've got what I wanted and I can kinda see where the story's going so imma put in down for now. Reason is the YA writing style. The writing is beautiful and engaging, no doubt, but I still kinda not completely connect with it.

The story is good and I think those who enjoy YA will really like it.

Content Warnings

tragicdramatic23's review against another edition

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adventurous fast-paced

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

3.5

Content Warnings

zoepagereader's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark funny 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

5.0

This book was the best witch book I’ve read this year. The two main characters were perfect opposites of each other, and the alternating point of views made sure the reader never gets board with who’s telling the story. I thought the use of French felt weird and out of place. Are they an English speaking country where everyone just says occasional phrases and swears in French? Why not on say it in full sentences? 5⭐️

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