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pm_corbett 's review for:
The Witch and the Vampire
by Francesca Flores
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
I hoped this book was going to be good but... I'm not really sure if I can call it that? But I was curious enough about where it was going that I did finish it, and it didn't make me hate myself so that's something. It was entertaining in the same way a mostly-bad but still kind-of-good movie is entertaining.
From the pacing, to the characterisation, and the actual style of writing it reads in the same sort of way as a young teen's first foray into writing fantasy crossed with the level of prowess you'd expect from mediocre fanfiction.
The actual writing style felt way more like it should be a middle-grade novel. The way the characters thoughts and wants were conveyed was very immature compared to what I would expect, even from lower YA novels. The first handful of chapters almost seemed like warmup writing.
The characters were fairly stock-standard, and had very similar voices. I think this was almost my biggest issue with the novel, and it really would have benefitted from more distinct character voices. The side characters, Tristan in particular, were woefully under-developed or predictable. Though I don't think there's anything inherently wrong with predictable characters, especially when they're simple villains, I don't think this novel was strong enough in other aspects to justify it here.
I would also not really call this much of a rapunzel retelling? it's got some elements of rapunzel, but it really... doesn't make much difference to the overall story.
The whole thing was just slightly underbaked, in the same way a young teen's first few novels feel.
The lesbians didn't stay subtextual though, so that's another point in its favour.
Would I recommend this? No.
Would I tell you not to read it? Probably not, but I would tell you it's not exactly good.
I have read book that were much worse than this, but I think the saddest part is that this was actually a really fun take on magic and vampires that could have been absolutely fantastic! It just wasn't executed right.
I wish it was as good as the cover is.
From the pacing, to the characterisation, and the actual style of writing it reads in the same sort of way as a young teen's first foray into writing fantasy crossed with the level of prowess you'd expect from mediocre fanfiction.
The actual writing style felt way more like it should be a middle-grade novel. The way the characters thoughts and wants were conveyed was very immature compared to what I would expect, even from lower YA novels. The first handful of chapters almost seemed like warmup writing.
The characters were fairly stock-standard, and had very similar voices. I think this was almost my biggest issue with the novel, and it really would have benefitted from more distinct character voices. The side characters, Tristan in particular, were woefully under-developed or predictable. Though I don't think there's anything inherently wrong with predictable characters, especially when they're simple villains, I don't think this novel was strong enough in other aspects to justify it here.
I would also not really call this much of a rapunzel retelling? it's got some elements of rapunzel, but it really... doesn't make much difference to the overall story.
The whole thing was just slightly underbaked, in the same way a young teen's first few novels feel.
The lesbians didn't stay subtextual though, so that's another point in its favour.
Would I recommend this? No.
Would I tell you not to read it? Probably not, but I would tell you it's not exactly good.
I have read book that were much worse than this, but I think the saddest part is that this was actually a really fun take on magic and vampires that could have been absolutely fantastic! It just wasn't executed right.
I wish it was as good as the cover is.