emfiliane reviewed New Witch on the Block by Louisa West
Review of 'New Witch on the Block' on 'Goodreads'
2 stars
Started out decent, in fact I was really liking the first third of the book; perhaps a bit raw, as the author's first book, the off-kilter bits ended up rather charming, and there's plenty to like about the characters. The slice of life bits of settling in a town to a completely new lifestyle, while broke as all hell, were great.
As soon as Declan overnight evolves from a drunk lunatic into a rippling Irish Adonis and gentle father figure that Rosemary holds out on only long enough to add a few extra chapters, though, the writing takes a real nose-dive. At the same time, Rosemary becomes a total magical Mary Sue who needs no real training whatsoever. I won't spoil, but if you've ever read any urban fantasy book, you'll be able to guess all the plot points before you hit them.
One thing I'll give this book is …
Started out decent, in fact I was really liking the first third of the book; perhaps a bit raw, as the author's first book, the off-kilter bits ended up rather charming, and there's plenty to like about the characters. The slice of life bits of settling in a town to a completely new lifestyle, while broke as all hell, were great.
As soon as Declan overnight evolves from a drunk lunatic into a rippling Irish Adonis and gentle father figure that Rosemary holds out on only long enough to add a few extra chapters, though, the writing takes a real nose-dive. At the same time, Rosemary becomes a total magical Mary Sue who needs no real training whatsoever. I won't spoil, but if you've ever read any urban fantasy book, you'll be able to guess all the plot points before you hit them.
One thing I'll give this book is that it feels no need to wrap up every conflict; from the start, it was obviously plotted as a series with room to breathe. My guess is by book 2 or 3 she'll be starting her own coven. I just won't be there to see how it plays out.