3 stars, purely for the fact that I kind of knew what I was getting into beforehand. I was aware of the heavy anime influence, soapy tone, the tropey focus on morality, and some kind of body horror mixed into the dark magic. (Dare I say it’s a packaged deal?) As fun as this book could sometimes be, I was still disappointed. I don’t think the story was aware of how one-dimensional or cheesy it could be. 

I can see why people liked the characters because I think at least the POV characters are distinct, and entertaining on-page, but most of the cast functions best in a group dynamic than on their own. What I DON’T understand though is how readers still can’t name main characters they disliked when Alexander is RIGHT THERE! took him ALMOST THE ENTIRE BOOK TO APOLOGIZE FOR BULLYING THE CATBOY FOR TENS OF PAGES(I know Iori has a name, I remember it bc I kind of loved how dramatic his entire story/arc was, but it’s funnier to refer to him that way). I did NOT see wtf Tatiana meant when she said those two “had a homoerotic rivalry” like I’m sure there’s that one scene where they dueled, but then Alexander kept purposefully trying to rile up Iori and get his powers to go haywire so he could “prove how much of a monster Iori was” STFU! (I guess I can see his motives but even at that point wasn’t it overkill haha?)

(was that just a bit about Tatiana trying to see some kind of not platonic subtext in people she thinks are interesting, though? bc from the getgo Iori was obviously going to get with Ellen, so it’s not a dynamic that’s entertained…)

And the magic was a little awkward in novel form. Magic transformations and magical girl anime/shonen-esque spells are pretty prominent but played completely seriously. It was silly. (Based on the author’s note, though, I think that specific element was something she was aware of?)

I don’t have much else to say besides that? I predicted both major twists: who was the Keeper Of The Heart, and the identity of the guy in Iori’s memories, but in the case of the latter I think it added more intrigue, and I was looking forward to seeing the characters piece it together. Can’t say the same about the former, that was painfully on-the-nose. But at least I got a laugh or two out of the speculation. Despite my criticisms, this wasn’t a horrible book to me (outside of Alexander I can’t name many character choices that were nonsensical, and oddly, the overall tropey-ness of story made the Ellen x Iori romance work?!??). I just thought it was very stereotypical. 

Also, would’ve worked better in a manga/anime format tbh! I heard making a manga was the original plan, but I hope the author’s going through with an adaptation at least. 

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pre-review:
I’M FREE i’ll put up a review at some point