Thank you to Sourcebooks Fire for providing me with a review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.
Book: Wicked As You Wish
Author: Rin Chupeco
Year Published: 2020
- Plot: 3.5/5
- Characters: 3.5/5
- Writing: 4/5
- Overall: 4/5
Wicked As You Wish was a tale of family, friendship and a fight for freedom that was fun and full of creativity. The start of the book was very full on with a lot of information to process but it really is worth sticking with until the end.
It was set in a world similar to ours only there was the Royal States of America and a few extra countries: Wonderland, Avalon and Neverland, not to mention an entirely different history inspired by fairy tales such as Snow White, Little Red Riding Hood and much more, all cleverly incorporated into a magical world. I also loved the representation as there were characters of many different races, genders and sexualities and I especially loved how Filipino culture was so intricately woven throughout the book. All the detailed descriptions of Filipino food made me hungry!
The magic followed a give-and-take system which I thought was really interesting. For example, if you wanted fire power you’d have to endure a tolerance to cold so low that standing in front of a freezer would be too much. However, that could be overcome through spelltech: objects already imbued with magic by someone else.
Tala Warnock was a Makiling, which meant she negated magic of all forms. Her family were charged with protecting Prince Alexei of Avalon, the sole survivor of his royal family, but they ended up going on an eccentric quest to reclaim their homeland and Alexei’s rightful throne. Tala’s journey was one of understanding herself and her goals. She had to deal with some truths that upended her world, but she always had people around her to support her. That was probably one of the best parts of this book: the tight bonds of family and friendship that held everyone together unconditionally
I found Alex very annoying. I could understand why he was frustrated but I couldn’t understand why he continually took it out on the people who were trying to help him. That being said, I did like how his friendship with Tala was portrayed. It was rocky at times but they were always there for each other when it mattered. I loved Tala’s family especially her titos and titas and Lola Urduja. In terms of the rest of the characters… there were too many for them all to be well developed and likeable. However, I did like Zoe (how could I not like someone who appreciates skirts with pockets?!) and also Loki but quite a few of the characters were easily forgettable.
I generally quite liked the plot although there were some plot twists near the end that needed more explanation. There were lots of ominous prophecies dotted throughout the book foreshadowing a lot more strife to come in the sequel which I am excited to read as I think it has the potential to be better than the first.
Sereadipity 