Rating: 4 Stars
Publication: March 9th, 2021
Genre: Fantasy
Format: ARC/Audiobook
Goodreads
Summary
Tamsin is the most powerful witch of her generation. But after committing the worst magical sin, she’s exiled by the ruling Coven and cursed with the inability to love. The only way she can get those feelings back even for just a little while is to steal love from others. Wren is a source, a rare kind of person made of magic, despite being unable to use it herself. Sources are required to train with the Coven as soon as they discover their abilities, but being the only caretaker to her ailing father Wren has spent her life hiding her secret. When a magical plague ravages the queendom, Wren’s father falls victim. To save him, Wren proposes a bargain: if Tamsin will help her catch the dark witch responsible for creating the plague, then Wren will give Tamsin her love for her father. Of course, love bargains are a tricky thing, and these two have a long, perilous journey ahead of them. That is, if they don’t kill each other first.
Thoughts
I really enjoyed Tamsin and Wren reluctant alliance turn romance. While Tamsin might be a little jaded from being banished and cursed not to love after trying to save her sister Wren ends softening her edges with her compassionate heart. Without the ability to feel any kind of love Tamsin point of view was effected in some unique ways. All colors and smells were dull. Food and drinks tasted like ash. Music had no affect on her. It made having empathy for the people around her a struggle but I could tell she had a good heart underneath it all. They both go through some great character growth but especially Wren who learns to balance her kindness for others with kindness for herself. As much as she cared for her father it was time she started living her own life.
When the rise of black magic creates a plague that steals Wrens fathers memories she makes a deal with Tamsin to find the source of the black magic and put a stop to it. All she has to give up in return for Tamsins help saving her father is her love for her father. Having been the dutiful daughter all her life she doesn’t know what she will do once that loves gone. The pace wasn’t the most exciting since they spend a lot of time travelling and thats generally not my cup of tea but I did like the characters and their interactions enough to keep reading. I thought the reveals and the reason why Tamsin was regaining her senses around Wren was pretty clever. Tamsins family dynamics with her mother being the head of the witch council and her twin sister resenting her was all very intriguing.
I liked how the magic system had physical consequences and how those consequences could be lessen if the witch worked with a source. While witches can manipulate magic a source is made of magic. Rare and coveted its mandatory for any source to present themselves to the witch council for training. The enchanted forest protecting the witch border was one of my favorite settings in the book along with the taverns that grow in size once you enter them. We get a glimpse of both the human and the witch kingdom. The world referenced some fairytales as if they were real which was fun but Im pretty sure they got the Aladdin reference wrong. I’m happy everything wrapped up in one book and look forward to seeing what else the author will publish.
Diversity: LGBT+ MC
Trigger/Content Warnings: Death, Violence, Grief, Depression, Anxiety
*This book was received for an honest review
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