Magical, But Perhaps Too Saccharine For Me

DNF just over a quarter of the way through.

The writing has a magical, fairytale quality that the narrator performs with a wondrous vitality and the blending of cultures and mythologies into the fantastic elements are wonderful. I desperately want to love this story, but it just isn't for me. The grief, obsession, and tantalising hints of magic not far away are absolutely my kind of thing on paper, but the bright, broad strokes with which the author paints the story just didn't work for me.

There is a palpable vibe of what seems like (apologies for just how on the nose this is) wish fulfilment, which there's nothing wrong with, it's just not for me. It's often something I can get through, but hear it's just too on the nose for me. I am not someone who throws about Mary Sue and think the discourse around it is contains so much toxicity, misogyny, and cognitive dissonance. However, the perfection of the MC and her life, beyond her mother's death in her childhood and her obsession with work and her mother's stories, is frustrating, especially with the reader only being told of the MC's troubles and feelings. Allowing us to see more of how she experiences life, rather than going from all but perfect moment to perfect moment, while we are told she is struggling.

The MC's partner is the most perfect South Asian Prince Charming, I imagined Kumail Nanjiani's abs after the superhero workout (and let's be honest human growth hormone) made into a person even sweeter than he is with his wife. The MC treats him appallingly and in turn his persistent thoughtfulness starts to feel creepy and misogynistic, especially with him 'not allowing her' to do certain things alone. Both characters and their relationship could have worked with more of all of them actually being on the page, warts and all. Again, this could well be a me problem and my bouncing off this subgenre of fantasy.

Ultimately, with all the beautiful narration and magical prose I just couldn't get swept up in the sweetness of the adventure and didn't feel any of the grief of the character (heavy emotions being something I often resonate with -- I'm a sad girl who loves sad girls), so it ended up feeling incredibly saccharine and false to me. Reading other reviews has no disabused me of this feeling and that it doesn't pervade every aspect of the story.

This is a story the author clearly feels passionate about and has researched and woven in mythology and moon symbolism from various cultures throughout history who has a wonderful way with words. The telling not showing, caricatures, and uncanny valley tweeness of it all simply didn't work for me personally. I would definitely be up for trying another work of theirs and would absolutely track down things the narrator had worked on to hear more of them.

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