thecandlelightlibrary's Reviews (1.25k)

This was okay - I don't think the format was right for the target age group & some context was missing in order for the book as a whole to be fully successful.

This was okay - I don't think the format was right for the target age group & some context was missing in order for the book as a whole to be fully successful.

This is such a beautiful edition, and the story has aged well for me since I last read it. I only wish there were more of the author's annotations throughout.

This book was frustratingly ridiculous: I really disliked most of the plot decisions and the characters could have had a lot of potential if they had been allowed to explore it. Honestly, I'm not sure why most of the crew was included in this book when they could have easily been added in at about the 60% mark. That said, the 60% mark was about when I started to enjoy the story although there were still some plot choice issues.

Thank you to Macmillan/St. Martin’s Griffin for sending me an ARC of this title. I received this copy for free and this review contains my honest opinions. 

 

What Became of Magic blends a paranormal story with a hint of romance and prose that is wonderfully atmospheric for fall. There were quite a few elements that didn’t work for me in this story, but I found it so atmospheric I was willing to give the story longer than I otherwise might have. Even though my ARC was advertised as a romance first and paranormal second, I thought the romance was more of a subplot and didn’t really meet the expectations set for that genre. I know romance is a huge range, and there will probably be a lot of readers who will enjoy this type of story, but the main characters’ relationship really takes a back seat to the rest of the plot.

I also felt the pacing wasn’t the right choice for this story: the first four chapters are basically an extended prologue as we get to experience Aline growing up and some of the events that shaped her while the rest of the book (19 chapters in my copy) takes place over a couple of days. Perhaps these 4 introductory chapters would have worked more cohesively with the rest of the story if they were integrated throughout the book, like with the shifts in POV and backstory for some of the other characters. Thank you again to the publisher for sending me a free ARC. 

This one started out so promising but I struggled to make it to the end. Hugh didn't have a backbone until literally the last chapter and SO MUCH could have been avoided if he had simply told his mother to stop meddling when she arrived (seriously - there was so much miscommunication and lies that it no longer was humorous or enjoyable). I picked this up because I was gifted the third book in this series, but after reading this one I have no desire to read Vee's story: Minerva's youngest sister - who is supposed to be 17 here - acted like she was 10 the entire book. There is no way someone can mature that much in the space of a middle book.