A review by seagate
The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
As a POC, the diversity felt pandering, insulting, and utilized only when the author wanted to pat themselves on the back. There were multiple instances in the book for them to actually show us how diversity is affecting their everyday lives, but they don't, instead the author tells us how to feel about it. And that's the thing about it too, the author overelies on "telling" the readers instead of "showing" us. And that has caused things like the romance to feel forced. The characterization was very poor, and the dialogue even more so. It felt like the author's personality was constantly in the background of all the characters. Internet humor culture seeps through the pages, making the author come off unoriginal and uncreative. They tried for a grumpy x sunshine trope, but it was as if they didn't know how to create romantic or sexual tension with someone wh 's grumpy and so they would un-grumpy him for that moment.
Some aspects were good. The way magic was described and parts of the world building were good. The children were believable (aside from one scene towards the end) and had a childlike appreciation for magic. There were great scenes that depicted consequences, although they were always patched up a little too smoothly.
Some aspects were good. The way magic was described and parts of the world building were good. The children were believable (aside from one scene towards the end) and had a childlike appreciation for magic. There were great scenes that depicted consequences, although they were always patched up a little too smoothly.