Reluctant Witch
A Course in Magic – Book 2
❤️❤️
(Spoilers for previous book in series)
I hate leaving a series unfinished. It’s not something I do often. Even if it’s been a few months since I read the last book I usually try to get back into it. That’s why I picked up this book despite not liking the first one very much. I thought to myself that it was only a duology so I’m not going to be wasting months of my time reading it.
I went into this book cautiously excited. The first book Remedial Magic ended with a bang. The main character Ellie’s memories were altered so that she would want to stay in Crenshaw, a magical place built for witches, to help solve their problems and to live with her “wife” Prospero, the witch who erased her memories.
I liked the concept of her having to essentially start over and I was interested in seeing how it played out. I also was interested in the fact that Ellie’s Aunt Hestia would be joining them in Crenshaw despite the law that nonmagical people were not allowed.
I should have known better than to be interested because the author does absolutely nothing with that.
Aunt Hestia only exists for a chapter practically and her only role is to say she was happy at home and then care for a different character’s son, someone who was also dragged to Crenshaw without magic. It honestly felt like a disservice to her previously established character. The other characters don’t even really spare her much thought. It felt like a convenient out. In fact, a lot of what happens in this book felt too convenient.
Throughout the whole book the author builds tension towards a major conflict between two political factions. Blood is shed over this conflict, and people are actively dying because of it. A large part of Prospero’s motivation is that her friend gets severely hurt and she wants the person who did it to pay with their life.
An eye for an eye.
But this sentiment has no payoff. Every time the group confronts one of the rogue witches responsible for multiple deaths, the conflict gets solved in less than a page sometimes by a third party. It was very unsatisfying, especially after all the build up.
I understand that this is a romance first and foremost, but when you throw in a plot that overtakes the romance then you should finish it in a way that makes sense.
Speaking of romances, I did like the two side relationships in this book. I know in my review of the first book, I mentioned that they weren’t my favorite, but in this one they really put in the work and I liked the characterization.
The main romance between Ellie and Prospero lost some of its appeal to me. Mainly because it felt like Ellie had a new personality every chapter.
One minute she was focused solely on her wife and how to better their relationship, the next she was thinking about how good it would feel to kill someone. I guess you could argue that those aren’t mutually exclusive thoughts. But it felt a little like they were leaning towards “absolute power corrupts absolutely” which didn’t make sense since we see how Prospero’s magic didn’t corrupt her and she is just as powerful.
I preferred when Ellie was a sweet librarian who doted on her aunt.
But like I said, the side romances were really sweet in this book, so if you’re looking for a romance that you can turn your brain off for then this series is a great pick.
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