cryptidstar's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder, Death, Child abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Blood, Deadnaming, Mental illness, Death of parent, and Dysphoria
discarded_dust_jacket's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
This is a solid YA fantasy, don’t get me wrong. I think it has some strong elements as well as some it could’ve executed better. But overall, I did enjoy reading it. I finished it in a day.
The queer representation was good. I empathized with Wyatt—his self-loathing, his anger, his tendency to lash out instead of facing his emotions, and his selfishness—even when he frustrated me SO MUCH.
I did like a lot of the secondary characters as well, but overall it seemed like the author was so focused on examining Wyatt’s internal struggles that not enough focus was spent on making any of the other characters very nuanced or multi-dimensional. (Tessa’s arc is, I think, meant to involve growth and development, but it comes across more as a clumsy and sudden about face.)
I also didn’t think the author did a good enough job of making us understand why Emyr found a marriage to Wyatt so necessary that he was willing to force him into it under penalty of death. It just didn’t feel fleshed out enough to read as believable, which gave the entire premise of the story a sort-of unmoored quality. (Maybe multiple POVs would have helped here?)
Plus I felt like a lot of the plot development got squished into the last 20% or so of the book, making it read very much like an attempt to quickly tie up lose ends and insert twists where they didn’t feel necessarily natural just to set up the events of the second book. (The big “aha!” moment at the end when the villain is confronted felt very similar to the end of a Scooby-Doo episode: “and I would’ve gotten away with it too, if it weren’t for you meddling kids!”)
Finally, a lot about the way witches in this story are born to (and subsequently rejected by) Fae families seemed to be an allegory for the queer experience, especially when at one point, that similarity is explicitly pointed out on page by Wyatt.
You have the Fae (conservative) businesses refusing service to the witches, then the guard (police) siding with the Fae when they protest/incite violence against witches using language most readers would immediately associate with white supremacists.
But at the same time, this allegory breaks apart when you consider this magical realm is also supposed to exist WITHIN the current, human world (and that there also exist Fae queer people). If an allegory is meant to be a fictional representation of a real-world people, institution, or concept, how can that allegory exist in a fictional story where the very real thing it’s meant to be representing ALSO exists? So maybe it’s not meant to be allegory at all, I don’t know, but I found my confusion over it very distracting as I was reading.
The queer representation was good. I empathized with Wyatt—his self-loathing, his anger, his tendency to lash out instead of facing his emotions, and his selfishness—even when he frustrated me SO MUCH.
I did like a lot of the secondary characters as well, but overall it seemed like the author was so focused on examining Wyatt’s internal struggles that not enough focus was spent on making any of the other characters very nuanced or multi-dimensional. (Tessa’s arc is, I think, meant to involve growth and development, but it comes across more as a clumsy and sudden about face.)
I also didn’t think the author did a good enough job of making us understand why Emyr found a marriage to Wyatt so necessary that he was willing to force him into it under penalty of death. It just didn’t feel fleshed out enough to read as believable, which gave the entire premise of the story a sort-of unmoored quality. (Maybe multiple POVs would have helped here?)
Plus I felt like a lot of the plot development got squished into the last 20% or so of the book, making it read very much like an attempt to quickly tie up lose ends and insert twists where they didn’t feel necessarily natural just to set up the events of the second book. (The big “aha!” moment at the end when the villain is confronted felt very similar to the end of a Scooby-Doo episode: “and I would’ve gotten away with it too, if it weren’t for you meddling kids!”)
Finally, a lot about the way witches in this story are born to (and subsequently rejected by) Fae families seemed to be an allegory for the queer experience, especially when at one point, that similarity is explicitly pointed out on page by Wyatt.
You have the Fae (conservative) businesses refusing service to the witches, then the guard (police) siding with the Fae when they protest/incite violence against witches using language most readers would immediately associate with white supremacists.
But at the same time, this allegory breaks apart when you consider this magical realm is also supposed to exist WITHIN the current, human world (and that there also exist Fae queer people). If an allegory is meant to be a fictional representation of a real-world people, institution, or concept, how can that allegory exist in a fictional story where the very real thing it’s meant to be representing ALSO exists? So maybe it’s not meant to be allegory at all, I don’t know, but I found my confusion over it very distracting as I was reading.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Bullying, Child abuse, Deadnaming, Blood, Death of parent, Grief, and Murder
Moderate: Sexual assault, Terminal illness, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Infertility
mxemma's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
This book was enjoyable in some ways, but suffers from a whole lot of tonal dissonance. It felt like every couple of pages we swung from fluffy fanfic romance (there was only one bed!) to horrifying gore and betrayal. The writing itself is beautiful, but I think cutting a few lines and a couple plot-twists would have made the story flow more smoothly and strengthened the book as a whole. They may be setting up the sequel, but the ending felt rather abrupt because of it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug use, Violence, Racism, Gore, and Hate crime
Moderate: Body horror, Grief, Murder, Abandonment, Child abuse, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Police brutality, Sexual violence, War, Terminal illness, and Transphobia
Minor: Pregnancy, Dysphoria, and Deadnaming
kai1313's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
tense
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
3.5
Originally rated it a 5 stars after reading, now I rate it a 4 as I read another 5 star read directly after it and started comparing the two experiences. I saw many reviews criticizing the world building, and how it didn’t make sense, or how they didn’t like the main character Wyatt. Personally, I came into it expecting a feel good sappy fantasy with a romance plot, and it provided just that. I didn’t read it for the complex world building and magic system. I read it purely for good vibes and it delivered, which is why I liked it. EDIT: now 3.5 stars after many months.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, War, Xenophobia, Domestic abuse, Hate crime, Police brutality, Abandonment, Colonisation, Homophobia, Murder, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Child abuse, and Violence
katieandkiri's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Most of this read I had a really difficult time liking the main character, but once he became more self aware (which in my opinion took too long) I finally got into it. I really loved so many aspects of this book like the relationship between Briar and Wyatt, Emyr is an absolute sweet heart and hottie, and rolling over the complexities of the world they live in. It was just really hard to get over how frustrating it was to read Wyatt’s perspective.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder, Hate crime, Emotional abuse, and Antisemitism
Minor: Transphobia
zoepagereader's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
inspiring
relaxing
sad
tense
slow-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
5.0
I was so incredibly close to bailing on this. The few chapters of this book left me in a mix of wanting to read but feeling like everyone word was dragging me through molasses. In the end though, I stuck through it and after about 100 pages, the plot made it worth while.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Blood, Deadnaming, Gore, Hate crime, War, Body horror, Fire/Fire injury, Murder, Sexual assault, Violence, Sexual content, and Sexual violence
hobbithopeful's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
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
4.5
Magic, witches, queer characters, The Witch King has it all. H.E. Edgmon's story goes to dark places, but shining through each page is hope and a chance that things will get better. Wyatt is a transgender witch who thought he was free from the world and machinations of the Fae. Reality comes crashing down when his fiancée, Emyr discovers where he has been hiding and demands he return to marry him so he can ascend to the throne. Wyatt wants nothing to do with the cruel world he left behind, one that treats Witches like lesser beings and even typically will throw away witch babies that are born. Please be kind to yourself and check the triggers before reading because this book deals with heavy topics centered around healing from trauma, transphobia, and homophobia. Edgmon uses the symbolism of Witches and Fae to parallel what it is like to be queer in our world. There is so much discrimination that Witches face, and while some realize that they are all the same and should get along, others bully and hurt anyone they perceive to be too different.
I love when a main character is one you want to root for, and Wyatt is no different. Messy as he is, as flawed as he is, the growth and realizations he goes through on his journey of finally confronting his past was so beautiful to read. I felt his helplessness as he felt so lost and powerless, unable to control his future or his fate. His love for his best friend Briar was so warm to read, a welcome respite in the often difficult to read situations they found themselves in. I also found myself enthralled with all of the vivid and diverse character descriptions, every Fae and Witch had such a unique appearance it made me want to learn more about them and their lives. The Witch King is at its heart a story of fighting for what is right, and dealing with past shame and trauma. Although heavy handed at times, I thoroughly enjoyed it and recommend it anyone looking for a fantasy queer read.
The Cover
Inkyard Press's covers are often hit or miss with me, but this one I quite like. Briar and Emyr pose on the cover, looking off into the sky while Wyatt appears to be stepping over and into foreground. The symbolism pertaining to perhaps him stepping into another world, hands out tentatively as if unsure what he will find. I love getting to see what the characters look like, especially Emyr's design. All his necklaces and jewelry add so much to the movement and composition. That being said I would have liked to have seen Briar with flowers woven through her hair, as is often mentioned in the book. Overall the color patlette is very cohesive, and I love the look of it. Though if I had to nitpick I wish the cut off for the white shape was lower, and not cutting the cover in half so much.
The title font and cover works really well with the cover scheme, but the author font and blurb look a bit out of place and I don't think it matches the rest of the piece at all.
Cover art by Ryan Garcia
I love when a main character is one you want to root for, and Wyatt is no different. Messy as he is, as flawed as he is, the growth and realizations he goes through on his journey of finally confronting his past was so beautiful to read. I felt his helplessness as he felt so lost and powerless, unable to control his future or his fate. His love for his best friend Briar was so warm to read, a welcome respite in the often difficult to read situations they found themselves in. I also found myself enthralled with all of the vivid and diverse character descriptions, every Fae and Witch had such a unique appearance it made me want to learn more about them and their lives. The Witch King is at its heart a story of fighting for what is right, and dealing with past shame and trauma. Although heavy handed at times, I thoroughly enjoyed it and recommend it anyone looking for a fantasy queer read.
The Cover
Inkyard Press's covers are often hit or miss with me, but this one I quite like. Briar and Emyr pose on the cover, looking off into the sky while Wyatt appears to be stepping over and into foreground. The symbolism pertaining to perhaps him stepping into another world, hands out tentatively as if unsure what he will find. I love getting to see what the characters look like, especially Emyr's design. All his necklaces and jewelry add so much to the movement and composition. That being said I would have liked to have seen Briar with flowers woven through her hair, as is often mentioned in the book. Overall the color patlette is very cohesive, and I love the look of it. Though if I had to nitpick I wish the cut off for the white shape was lower, and not cutting the cover in half so much.
The title font and cover works really well with the cover scheme, but the author font and blurb look a bit out of place and I don't think it matches the rest of the piece at all.
Cover art by Ryan Garcia
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Racism, Violence, Death, Emotional abuse, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Deadnaming, Domestic abuse, and Transphobia
Moderate: Violence and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Sexual violence
brianneh's review
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I really liked the beginning of this book, but I thought it got a little bogged down and flat in the middle. I wasn’t quite sure what the goal was at certain points and felt like the plot meandered a bit.
I loved that there was so much good representation and diversity in The Witch King. I really enjoyed several of the characters we are introduced to, my favorites being Briar and Jin. I wish we’d had more of Jin overall! I’d also love to hear more from Briar’s side of things, I think it would be really interesting.
At first, I really found myself drawn to the main character Wyatt and his story. One of my favorite lines of his in the early pages of the book was:
“Gender is weird. The rules are all made up and people should just do whatever they want”
But as the book went on I found Wyatt to be a bit annoying at times. The book is told through first person point of view, which I think contributed to the meandering I mentioned, as a lot of time was spent on Wyatt thinking about things, then not really communicating those thoughts to people in a conducive way. Throughout the book, Wyatt comes up these schemes which he doesn’t really seem to think through, then never really has to face any real consequences to many of his actions. This way of thinking and acting may be true to course for some teenagers, but it’s not the most compelling thing to read.
There were also quite a few mentions about pregnancy, specifically unwanted and/or forced, which wasn’t marked in the content warnings here on StoryGraph.
There were also quite a few mentions about pregnancy, specifically unwanted and/or forced, which wasn’t marked in the content warnings here on StoryGraph.
Overall, I know a lot of people love this book, and while it wasn’t one of my favorites, I can see why others enjoyed it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Transphobia, Violence, Homophobia, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Murder
Moderate: Sexual assault, Child abuse, Sexism, Pregnancy, and Deadnaming
Minor: Abandonment
kibberbl's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
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
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Death, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, and Transphobia
Moderate: Sexual content and Deadnaming
karcitis's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Hate crime, Fire/Fire injury, Death, Gore, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Domestic abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Police brutality, Murder, Death of parent, and Blood
Moderate: Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Colonisation, Drug use, Child abuse, Sexual harassment, Emotional abuse, Pregnancy, Confinement, Deadnaming, Vomit, and Dysphoria