Book Review: Witch Eyes, by Scott Tracey
This book was the October/November selection for the Permanent Floating YA Diversity Book Club, started by rachelmanija. The theme of the month was 'books with LGBTQ protagonists.' I can certainly get behind that!
Before I go any further, let me say this: Do not read the blurb in the back. It spoils almost every single relevant surprise the book has to offer, to the point where, if you read the blurb, there's almost no point to reading the book.
I knew going in that Witch Eyes was not normally my cup of tea. If not for the book club, I would not have picked it up. I would certainly not have finished it. I'm not a huge fan of what is referred to as 'urban fantasy' nowadays, or, let's be more accurate, of 'supernatural romance.' Actual urban fantasy, in the vein of Charles de Lint, where the city is as much a part of the magic as the characters, I'm actually quite fond of, but Tracey's Bel Dam was just not developed enough to qualify.
And there's my problem in a nutshell - most aspects of this book felt underdeveloped. The characters felt underdeveloped, with most of the ensemble cast largely swept aside and made irrelevant as the book went on. The love plot felt underdeveloped - Braden and Trey could not and did not communicate worth a damn. I'll believe they have the hots for each other, sure. But love? Shhhyeah right. Actually, the only ones of Braden's relationships I actually believed in were the ones with his father and uncle, and the one with Jade. It feels so, so wrong to cheer for the het relationship in a rare book with a gay protagonist, but that's where the genuine chemistry and affection were. I'm sorry, but it's true. The villain felt underdeveloped. The plot contained too many incidents and not enough forward momentum.
There were other problems, too, such as my dear friend Big Misunderstanding rearing its ugly head and giving a good roar. Everyone in this book seemed bent on secret keeping, accusations and rushing out in a fit of pique, rather than talking about anything like sane people. If by chance someone tried, their conversation partner would blow them off. Moreover, Braden had this annoying tendency to come up with long-shot theories - which turned out to be dead on. This could only be somewhat accounted for by his powers. Somewhat. Not entirely. Didn't Limyaael write a rant about that, back when she was writing rants?
All in all, one of the best things I can say about Witch Eyes is that it feels like the first novel in a series. A number of the problems present could be ameliorated in a longer format. Unfortunately, with a beginning as weak as this, I doubt I'd be picking up any future books, even if they exist.
In principle, I'm happy that this book exists. A YA fantasy novel with a gay protagonist from a mainstream publisher? That's groundbreakingly awesome, guys! But I can't give this book a good review on that alone. I think we deserve better, and by that I mean both we the queer community and we the readers.
(Yes, I know there's no such thing as a single, uniform queer community. I was also trying to find a succinct way of saying things in a sentence. Hush, y'all.)
Before I go any further, let me say this: Do not read the blurb in the back. It spoils almost every single relevant surprise the book has to offer, to the point where, if you read the blurb, there's almost no point to reading the book.
I knew going in that Witch Eyes was not normally my cup of tea. If not for the book club, I would not have picked it up. I would certainly not have finished it. I'm not a huge fan of what is referred to as 'urban fantasy' nowadays, or, let's be more accurate, of 'supernatural romance.' Actual urban fantasy, in the vein of Charles de Lint, where the city is as much a part of the magic as the characters, I'm actually quite fond of, but Tracey's Bel Dam was just not developed enough to qualify.
And there's my problem in a nutshell - most aspects of this book felt underdeveloped. The characters felt underdeveloped, with most of the ensemble cast largely swept aside and made irrelevant as the book went on. The love plot felt underdeveloped - Braden and Trey could not and did not communicate worth a damn. I'll believe they have the hots for each other, sure. But love? Shhhyeah right. Actually, the only ones of Braden's relationships I actually believed in were the ones with his father and uncle, and the one with Jade. It feels so, so wrong to cheer for the het relationship in a rare book with a gay protagonist, but that's where the genuine chemistry and affection were. I'm sorry, but it's true. The villain felt underdeveloped. The plot contained too many incidents and not enough forward momentum.
There were other problems, too, such as my dear friend Big Misunderstanding rearing its ugly head and giving a good roar. Everyone in this book seemed bent on secret keeping, accusations and rushing out in a fit of pique, rather than talking about anything like sane people. If by chance someone tried, their conversation partner would blow them off. Moreover, Braden had this annoying tendency to come up with long-shot theories - which turned out to be dead on. This could only be somewhat accounted for by his powers. Somewhat. Not entirely. Didn't Limyaael write a rant about that, back when she was writing rants?
All in all, one of the best things I can say about Witch Eyes is that it feels like the first novel in a series. A number of the problems present could be ameliorated in a longer format. Unfortunately, with a beginning as weak as this, I doubt I'd be picking up any future books, even if they exist.
In principle, I'm happy that this book exists. A YA fantasy novel with a gay protagonist from a mainstream publisher? That's groundbreakingly awesome, guys! But I can't give this book a good review on that alone. I think we deserve better, and by that I mean both we the queer community and we the readers.
(Yes, I know there's no such thing as a single, uniform queer community. I was also trying to find a succinct way of saying things in a sentence. Hush, y'all.)