crownedaimee's reviews
386 reviews

The Modern Girl’s Guide to Magic follows Aria who is a powerful witch with little to no control of her power. She left her small hometown in Charming Cove behind years ago and moved into big city life. But with her magical failures following her with every step, she is soon called back home to save her family shop when the owner of a magical enchanted garden in Aria’s hometown wants to retire.

If you’re looking for a cosy, witchy romance book with a low stakes plot, this is definitely for you. However, if you expect this to be enemies to lovers and have spice, leave that idea behind. It’s more of a one side enemies to lovers story and Aria pretty much ends up changing her mind and ends up liking him a couple of chapters in anyways and that “spice” scene is VERY mild.

This book definitely started off strong but felt a little bit weak towards the end. There wasn’t much conflict happening so when there was something, it got solved rather quickly. Furthermore, for a book that has a dual POV, there was very few Callan chapters. I felt like it would’ve been better to have the book marketed more towards Young Adult rather than Adult as it reads more like a YA book, but that’s just my opinion.

However, I enjoyed reading about the magic and felt like it was different compared to other magical elements that I tend to gravitate towards. And Catrina!! I love her character and would love to see her have a spin off book so I read all about her being the smartest witch because let’s face it. She could be more powerful than Aria and Callan because of her brains.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

#2 Reread - November 2023 - *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ 5 stars

This reread is just as good as the first I read it. However during this read, I did find the pacing to be a little off towards the middle but that hasn't changed my opinion one bit. I had forgotten how sarcastic Tairn actually was! The ending still hurts and I don't think I'll ever be over it unless a miracle happens, and by miracle I mean Andarna. I can't not wait one moment to start reading iron flame.

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#2 Read - May 2023 - *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ 5 stars
The ending, oh my god! I had a feeling that was going to happen!

This book has it all! The tension, the characters, the romance, the plot!!! I would never stopping recommending this book. I haven't been obsessed with a fantasy book like this for a while. I was a little sceptical at first, especially with all the hype that was surrounding this book. But let me tell you, this did not disappoint. It was an rollercoaster and had me hooked from the start. 

this will contain spoilers so read at your own risk.

Violet Sorrengail oh my god! It's rare for me to like female main characters but Violet definitely surprised me! Despite dealing with a chronic illness, she is so strong! Even if she (and everyone else) mentions how small she was. Her character development? *chefs kiss*

Xaden Riorson, my latest book boyfriend. That man is FINE! Mysterious guy who is supposed to be the villain? SIGN ME THE FUCK UP. How can you not root for him? Even if he was the villain, I would've joined him every step of the way and nobody could convince me otherwise. Plus he is a shadow wielder? Oh I was in love from the start. This man could run me over or kill me whichever he would prefer and I would thank him for it. The things he did for Violet throughout this book as well! Someone find me a guy like him. 

I just want my own sarcastic dragon like Tairn. Though let's be real, I wouldn't be able to bond with him. The fact that he was one of the deadliest and strongest dragons as well! Could you imagine him as a human? He would be so grumpy and possessive but I also feel like he would be so cocky as well. I love Andarna, she is so cute. I can't wait to see her more in Iron Flame, now that she's grown. 

I will never get over what happened to Liam. WE WERE ROBBED! I still have hope that he is somehow alive. That maybe Andarna went back in time and saved them or he's resurrected. Like please give me something. I will not accept that he dies here and like that. Rebecca Yarros seriously can't make everyone fall in love with him then do this. 

Also Dain who? We don't talk about him here. He's personally responsible for Liam's death, I don't care. I don't make the rules.  

Can I just praise Rebecca Yarros on actually including disability rep in this? It's hard to find any fantasy books that have characters with any disability and I love how despite Violet still struggling with her weak joints and her disability a lot, she still pushes through like many of us with disabilities are forced to do. 

Like is this book a little cliche? sure but did I eat it up anyways? absolutely. I would've liked to have seen the academic setting a little more and obviously not for Liam to be dead but I still highly recommend this book! I can't wait to see what happens in Iron Flame.

Was this cheesy and a bit cliche? Sure. But did I enjoy it? Most of it.

We first meet Cassie, a struggling artist, on her search for an apartment when her friend, Sam stumbles across an ad for an apartment that costs only $200 a month. Enter Frederick J. Fitzwilliam, owner of the apartment. With a name like that, you expect him to be old. And you would be correct, he just happens to be a 300 year old vampire. He is very out of touch with modern society. When his secret gets out to Cassie, things change quickly between them and she learns he requires her help.

For me, Frederick was my favourite character in this book, alongside Reginald who I wished we got to see more of within the book. I loved the scenes between him and Cassie when she attempts to teach him about modern culture and society even though he is getting frustrated about it. However, I couldn't quite warm to Cassie. I felt like she acted more in her early to mid twenties than in her thirties.

The dynamic between Frederick and Reginald was amusing and offered another side to Frederick's character that we don't get to see much of. The multimedia was definitely an interesting aspect of this part and paid off. However, the romance was based on very little foundations. I'm not a big fan of insta love, so this is probably another reason I wasn't completely sold on their romance.

I would've loved to have seen the lore around the vampires much more, it just seemed like the vampire aspect was more an afterthought. Like one mention of the vampire hunters and that's it? Additionally, I think this book would've worked better with a dual POV. The plot itself started out interesting and I enjoyed the idea of "vampire needs help to learn modern society" but the last chapters felt rushed and not necessary. One particular part felt out of place.

However, this novel is a light-hearted and fun romcom that is easy to read so if that's something you're looking for, I would say to give it a read.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

couldn’t get into it, might try rereading it later in the year