Firstly I wanna say that the epilogue is *chefs kiss* honestly my favorite part of the book. 

 

This is the second book I have read by this author and I’ve realized she has a knack of writing the kinds of characters that I love. Lots of strong women with distinct and varied personalities, dreams, and motives. 

 

The friendship between the main protagonist and her best friend was particularly well done. It’s always great to see 2 young women lift each other up and love each other without jealousy and competition ruling their dynamic. 

 

I also appreciated the commentary about the deep insecurities, regrets and resentments we carry around with us. There were several scenes where our heroine casts a particular spell that lays bare a person’s innermost truths. I thought they were very perceptive and relatable. 

 

The theme of peace also resonated with me. 

 

So why 3 stars? For me, the pacing was off. Certain parts dragged and others were rushed rushed rushed. But that could just be a personal preference as this is a well beloved book. 

 

My Rating System: 

1. DNF* 

2. I didn’t like it, but I finished it. Don’t recommend. 

3. I liked aspects of it, would recommend to some. 

4. Great book, would recommend to most. 

5. My favorites** 

 

* I don’t rate all DNFs 

 

** subject to bias and not necessarily something I would recommend to others

Dear Uprooted,
Let me start this letter by saying I am glad that I pushed through and kept going,. You were a fantastical story of magic, an adult fairy tale. But you were long winded and overly detailed. I started by listening to you, and it somehow took me 5 hours (and several days) to listen to 160 pages of you. I am not sure if it is the accent the book is read in, or the speed of the reader's voice, but you were a struggle for me to enjoy listening to. So, I picked up the physical book, and your pace was better. But there was much of the story and details that were drawn out and longer then necessary. You felt much longer then a 400 page book. I did love getting to watch Agnieszka learn her craft and discover her brand of magic, and grow into the witch she became, but there was not a lot of character development either, which is something that made you tough for me. You also are have your own issues within the characters; the Dragon is deeply flawed and often abusive and hurtful to Agnieszka. The "rules" of magic and the nature of the Woods did not seem to follow any rules of magic as I am familiar with either. The wizards seem to have unending wells of magic, and don't require much of a cost from it's casters. Ultimately, you fall short of the goal of suspension of disbelief and escapism that I enjoy in a fairy tale.