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A review by emfass
A Wizard's Guide to Defensive Baking by T. Kingfisher
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
My book club chose it for "cozy mystery" month. We did agree that it ended up not really being a mystery after all, (small spoiler) as you find out who the assassin is a quarter of the way into the book, but still enjoyed it a lot for other aspects of the story and the things it had to say.
I really liked the use of magic in this book; the emphasis was on creativity, and not necessarily how much power a character had or what the end result of them using their power was. I also loved that Mona wasn't suddenly an expert at any point: she continually grappled with learning how to use her magic throughout the story. Magic didn't solve all of anyone's problems, the characters still had to be creative, and no one person was the hero: there was lots of teamwork involved. The exception to this might be the final moment of the end battle that saves everybody, but I thought even that was earned and also poignantly done.
I also liked the portrayal of the citizens of the city as real people (well, maybe not the villains so much, they were pretty heightened), all the way up to the Duchess. She was nothing special, and certainly not a perfect ruler; she was just a regular middle-aged woman doing the best she could to take care of her city and her people.
Lastly, I loved the themes I found in this book, namely how we call people "heroes" in order to avoid taking accountability for the way we may have put them in harm's way without support, and also the disappointment (and, occasionally, disaster) that we feel when those we trust to take care of us fall down on the job.
I really liked the use of magic in this book; the emphasis was on creativity, and not necessarily how much power a character had or what the end result of them using their power was. I also loved that Mona wasn't suddenly an expert at any point: she continually grappled with learning how to use her magic throughout the story. Magic didn't solve all of anyone's problems, the characters still had to be creative, and no one person was the hero: there was lots of teamwork involved.
I also liked the portrayal of the citizens of the city as real people (well, maybe not the villains so much, they were pretty heightened), all the way up to the Duchess. She was nothing special, and certainly not a perfect ruler; she was just a regular middle-aged woman doing the best she could to take care of her city and her people.
Lastly, I loved the themes I found in this book, namely how we call people "heroes" in order to avoid taking accountability for the way we may have put them in harm's way without support, and also the disappointment (and, occasionally, disaster) that we feel when those we trust to take care of us fall down on the job.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Confinement, Excrement, Vomit, and Grief
Minor: Animal death and Death of parent