[Skye’s Review:] Sweet and Bitter Magic by Adrienne Tooley

Sweet and Bitter Magic
by Adrienne Tooley
Pages: 368
Published by Margaret K. McElderry Books
Release Date: March 9th 2021
Genres: YA, Romance, Magic, LGBTQ+, Fantasy, F/F, Diverse
Source: Publisher
Format Read: ARC, eBook
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In this charming debut fantasy perfect for fans of Sorcery of Thorns and Girls of Paper and Fire, a witch cursed to never love meets a girl hiding her own dangerous magic, and the two strike a dangerous bargain to save their queendom.

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 who is 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 Wren—the only caretaker to her ailing father—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.

I received this book for free from Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Adrienne Tooley’s writing is perfect for this type of book. The world she creates is one full of magic reminiscent of the fairytales we grew up hearing. She incorporates little nods to those stories by mentioning trolls under bridges or frogs who claim to be princes. I really appreciated and enjoyed those easter eggs she threw in. This world felt new yet familiar which was cool. Her writing was also an easter egg in itself. Her descriptions and narration felt like a modern fairytale. I’m eager to see what she’ll write next! I can’t believe this was her debut.

I have a few minor complaints. There were definitely some cliches in this book, and I found the story to be fairly predictable. I guessed a few things early on that ended up happening later on in the book. Something to consider when picking up this book is that a lot of this book is spent traveling, so if you aren’t a fan of books where a lot of travel occurs then this may not be the book for you. This story isn’t action-packed. It’s more character and emotionally driven.

All in all, I enjoyed this book and I look forward to reading the author’s next book! If you’re a fan of fairytales, magic, witches, and curses, then you should definitely check out this book!