birdie13's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
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
5.0
the_knitted_reader's review against another edition
Re-read Feb 2019 - still loved it! It started slower than I remembered, but all the Simon and Baz
meganhueble's review
4.0
I really enjoyed reading this! An obvious take on Harry Potter — fun & easy to read!
who_is_using_all_30_characters's review
3.75
a fun read, it was very much like fanfiction harry potter where the concepts were mostly very similar but make it gay - also the gay part seemed... really sudden on simon's part? like i get that he's an impulsive character but but idk, sexuality doesn't make any sense let's be honest
Spoiler
i feel like he should have had at least a small moment of realization before he straight (ha) up just kissed baz.skiracechick's review against another edition
3.0
3 1/2 stars. My primary thought through this book was: haaaarrrrryyy pooootttteeerrr. Harry Potter. Harrypotterharrypotterharrypotter. Ok. Besides that, the story is super cute, and definitely its own story, similar as it may be to Harry Potter. My biggest beef would be with the mother stuff - it felt kind of incomplete.
catsci's review against another edition
5.0
The beginning of this is rough. I've started reading this two or three times before, but I'm so glad I finally stuck it through the rocky start because once this got going, it really got going.
alyssalizarraga's review against another edition
4.0
I knew going into this book that it was an undisguised queer retelling of Harry Potter, and boy is the facade feeble. It was distracting at first, but the growing divergence between the stories ultimately distracted me from the surface resemblances. Among the greatest differences is that this story doesn’t ignore the influence of the “Normal” world, and we get to see wizards using cell phones and mentioning Legos. Additionally, the author has created a brand new system of magic that explores the evolution of spells and an actual foundation for the existence and unmatched power of “the Chosen One,” a welcome addition to our understanding of magical worlds (I promise it’s at least better than Anakin’s midichlorian count). I also must confess that the reveal of the source of the main antagonist was well-crafted and resulted in an impactful ending.
This book refuses to take itself seriously, but it doesn’t ask you to either. It reads like a passion project, and it’s up to you to let go and enjoy the ride. Once you got over the ridiculous name of the main antagonist, the blatant Harry Potter parallels, the cringe-worthy names of the spells, and the fact that the author doesn’t seem to know what bisexuality is, you get a very creative take on magic and what it means to have and use it. That, and an enemies-to-lovers story that only someone with a sweet tooth for angsty romance could appreciate. I would recommend this book to anyone who has recently been looking at Harry Potter with a more critical eye and is ready to reenvision the world…and can get over a spell called “Some Like it Hot.”
This book refuses to take itself seriously, but it doesn’t ask you to either. It reads like a passion project, and it’s up to you to let go and enjoy the ride. Once you got over the ridiculous name of the main antagonist, the blatant Harry Potter parallels, the cringe-worthy names of the spells, and the fact that the author doesn’t seem to know what bisexuality is, you get a very creative take on magic and what it means to have and use it. That, and an enemies-to-lovers story that only someone with a sweet tooth for angsty romance could appreciate. I would recommend this book to anyone who has recently been looking at Harry Potter with a more critical eye and is ready to reenvision the world…and can get over a spell called “Some Like it Hot.”