stateofiction's reviews
616 reviews

I thought this was a pretty fun time! it is definitely a nice fast paced palate cleanser book, and don't expect anything super profound from it. but it was easy to read and very enjoyable

So this is a book with a lot of potential that just went nowhere. By the end, the last 100 page-ish I was just skimming to quickly finish it off. So let me talk about it issue by issue.

For one: we jump back and forth between the timelines WAY TOO MUCH. The book acts like it's about the daughter, Ivy, but it is just as much about the mother, Dana. Dana fucks off pretty immediately in the present timeline, and then we just follow Ivy trying to find her and Dana in the past doing witch shit, The Craft fucked up style. This book would have been done so much better if we focused on who we're supposed to be focusing on. I'm not even saying that the past chapters should be taken out completely, but what I am saying is that they're too much. maybe put them in every 5 chapters and make them longer.

Speaking of longer chapters, all of them need to be longer. we barely have time to do anything in one timeline before we're shoved into another one. The pacing of this book is just atrocious. The 340 pages at the same time go by too quickly to absorb anything yet also drag along.

Then we have the characters. If you are not either Ivy or anyone in the past timeline, say goodbye to any personality. Not that the minor characters in the past timeline had an abundance of personality, but way more than the present. Ivy has a best friend, supposedly, that we see for a whopping three pages. She's not even mentioned again. Amina, get better friends. Of course the ex and the boy next door have no personalities either, but I think I'm more bitter about Amina.

It's really clear that Albert really only wanted to write a The Craft retelling, but had to find a way to make it original enough to not be called one. But with how little development we actually get in the present timeline I'm left to wonder what was the point?

love love love! I'm a huge horror movie buff and slashers are really what got me into them, so when this book (with this cover omfg) was announced I knew I needed to pounce on it. I had such an amazing time with this book.

this is such a good one sitting or readathon book. I know summerween has already ended but if you're looking to build a tbr for next year I highly recommend this one

two things that I've seen go around: the pacing and the ending. 
the pacing could be seen as off but in my opinion the writing is so easy to read that you fly through it anyway.
*minor spoilers*
the book does not follow the traditional slasher route, and I know people were less than happy about that. though it's one of the things I loved about it. it took all these horror movie tropes and subverted them into something completely different by the end and it was so refreshing to read.

3 stars - obligatory star reduction for the creep that is a male author adopting a purposely gender neutral pen name so people think he's a woman

I may have liked this more if I didn't read it so sporadically. I also only read this to participate in the Literally Dead Book Club. Kit was just such an unlikable and stupid main character that it was kind of hard to read. the last 100 pages of plot twist after plot twist had me wondering why the book even needed to be as long as it was. 300 pages would have been fine. by the time everything was revealed my thoughts were "wow! I do not give a fuck." I'm torn on my thoughts on the last couple pages, because part of me likes it, but the other part is just pissed off.

I found I really just did not care at any point what would happen next. I never felt like reading the next story and didn't feel like giving a book a bad review when it's a me problem.

here are the reviews for the stories I did finish:

The Long Walk Act 1 by Tiffany D. Jackson - 3/5
Even though I know it’s only a part one it still felt really short

Mask Off by Nic Stone - 3/5
I feel like the flashbacks were much more developed than the present timeline, and it just kind of lost me

The Long Walk Act 2 - 3/5
I think this is just gonna be a me problem story. I rarely care for exes to lovers

and I ate up TLH 3.0. just like I will be doing with 4.0, 5.0, etc. these are my comfort books and I will always love them.

I'd say my one thing was the epilogue gave ~nothing~. I could have done without it personally

even though in my head I completely misjudged the vibe and plot, this was SO GOOD! I'm obsessed with these characters, including the romance. I'm joining the hoard of people telling you that you need to read this and I cannot wait to read the next one

this was SO MUCH FUN!! it's camp, and you either get it or you don't. or you're mad because it's queer and diverse friend group in which case kys

my reread of this went just as well at the first one. I'm still so obsessed with this series and I can't wait to get back into the last one before starting the new series!

if anything is going to showcase my love for this book, it will be the fact that 50 pages into my library loan I returned it so I could own and read my own copy. 

this is the cozy fantasy that makes this new genre! I want to read every book that gives me these feelings, and you bet I'll be reading A Witch's Guide to Magical Innkeeping when it comes out.