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“If there be a cure, seek till you find it. If there be none, never mind it.”

Release Date: October 10th, 2017

Genre(s): Fiction, Fantasy

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Pages: 369

Rating: .25

Synopsis

The Rules of Magic is a novel by Alice Hoffman that primarily follows siblings Franny, Jet, and Vincent Owens. For centuries, the Owens family has lived under a curse. And in order to protect her children, Susanna Owens strictly prohibits anything in relation to magic and their family’s roots. But one day when they visit her Aunt Isabelle’s in Massachusetts, they begin to understand their family history and what their mother has hidden from them – and try to find out how to break the curse.

Review

I’ve seen The Rules of Magic around little by little on book lists until I finally decided to pick it up when I saw it at a library sale. I loved the idea of witches and magic combined with the 1960’s, and I’ve heard a lot of praise for this book as well as Practical Magic. And while this book was written after the first, it is considered a prequel, and in fact can be read as a standalone as I have done. 

This book was overall a quick and fun read. I definitely loved the concept of magic in this world and the small details about spellcasting and what the characters would learn from relatives and books. I found it especially impressive that this book was a prequel, as the storyline and family history went so deep. 

While I enjoyed The Rules of Magic overall, I had a hard time connecting to the characters. Throughout the books, there are lots of ups and downs, romantic encounters, and tragic events. But the way that this is written, it feels like you’re going through them so quickly that there was no time to really sink into each character’s emotions. Instead, it was more of a “well, that’s really sad” and I ended up not feeling for the characters as much as I wanted to. 

Additionally, there was a ton of miscommunication-related conflicts in this book that just felt so unnecessary. And once the truth was told, the response always went on as “oh, why didn’t you say so?” and everything just goes on as normal. Some parts overall did feel a bit rushed. 

Regardless, I did enjoy my reading experience with The Rules of Magic overall. This is a great read for summer, and one for those who like contemporaries with a light touch of fantasy. I really liked the story and concept for The Rules of Magic overall, so perhaps Practical Magic will be a read in my future too.