A review by ballgownsandbooks
Witherward by Hannah Mathewson

adventurous mysterious medium-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

3.75

I'm honestly so surprised I haven't seen more hype for this! Not because it's the best book I've ever read, but it seems like exactly the kind of thing that would become a book community darling: it's got the spunky heroine who's out of place in her own life; the parallel magical London; family secrets; the dark, mysterious, initially-antagonistic love interest...

I found a lot of the worldbuilding quite confusing - I really struggled to keep all the different factions and types of magic straight, and the fact that Witherward has all the same place names as regular London, but in a different arrangement, really threw me off! On the other hand, we got a lot of details about the intricacies of shapeshifting, and I really loved those granular details about the rules of the magic!

I enjoyed Ilsa's character, and the friends she makes in Witherward (especially Fyfe!) - found family will always get me! It also seems to be setting up for the sequel to have one of my favourite romance tropes, so I'm excited to see where the story goes next! 
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