This started off so strong with cozy cottagecore vibes and a cool concept for a magic system, but ended up being disappointing. The structure and pacing makes what should be a cute story ultimately boring and lackluster. I could tell the plot of the book by the first 20ish pages, and none of the "twists" were remotely surprising. 

There are several instances of an attempt to leave breadcrumbs for some major plot points, but they are more like loaves of bread thrown at the reader's face. It treats the reader like they are stupid - giving the same clues over and over, while the main character constantly monologues about how they don't understand the very obvious situation that is occuring. The reveals of these plot points end up being almost annoying (like...ya! Duh!), where it could have been cool if the rest of the book didn't beat you over the head with clues throughout. 

The characters in this book also act and speak pretty immaturely, and feel more like teenagers than adults. The romance is not believable and jumps immediately from a contentious one to suddenly head over heels for each other - and it has no true build up. There is one very minor sexual scene near the end of the book that felt out of place and out of character for them (and weirdly modern/praise kinky? Why?). Without this scene, I'd call this book middle grade from its writing. 

This read was honestly a bummer! The premise, the world, and the magic was so promising but it just did not deliver a satisfying story.