Flowerheart

by Catherine Bakewell

Ebook, 2023

Status

Available

Call number

Fic SF Bakewell

Collection

Publication

HarperCollins

Description

Fantasy. Young Adult Fiction. Young Adult Literature. HTML: "Flowerheart is like a garden in full bloom: vibrant and sweet, whimsical and wondrous." �??Allison Saft, New York Times bestselling author of A Far Wilder Magic Perfect for fans of Margaret Rogerson and Tamora Pierce, this standalone YA debut is a stunning cottagecore fantasy romance about a girl with powerful and violent magic which she must learn to control�??or lose everything she loves. Clara's magic has always been wild. But it's never been dangerous. Then a simple touch causes poisonous flowers to bloom in her father's chest. The only way to heal him is to cast an extremely difficult spell that requires perfect control. And the only person willing to help is her former best friend, Xavier, who's grown from a sweet, shy child into someone distant and mysterious. Xavier asks a terrible price in return, knowing Clara will give anything to save her father. As she struggles to reconcile the new Xavier with the boy she once loved, she discovers how many secrets he's hiding. And as she hunts for the truth, she instead finds the root of a terrible darkness that's taken hold in the queendom�??a darkness only Clara's magic is powerful enough to s… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member jennybeast
I'm seeing the description cottagecore for this book a lot and I don't completely see that -- yes, very Studio Ghibli sorts of magic, and Clara is often accidentally surrounded by flowers as a magical by product, which is beautiful to imagine. I like the strangeness of the magic. I'm not blown away
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by the romantic arc, but it is sweet and fierce and forgiving. A lovely fantasy break, but the characters aren't as compelling as I desire.

Advanced Reader's Copy provided by Edelweiss.
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LibraryThing member krau0098
Series Info/Source: This is a stand alone book. I got an eGalley of this book through NetGalley to review.

Thoughts: This was a good romantic fantasy read. There is a lot about magic, growing up, family, and love in this story. It was a very quick and easy read and in general I enjoyed it.

We follow
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Clara, whose wild magic has prevented her from taking her rightful place as a witch. Since her magic is so unpredictable, the council wants to remove it from her completely, and when she accidently fills her own father's chest with poisonous blossoms they aren't inclined to change their minds. She strikes a deal with her old childhood friend, Xavier, that she will give him her wild magic if only he will help her learn how to do a blessing on her father to cure him. Unfortunately, Clara doesn't know that Xavier has secrets of his own.

I did think the main protagonist, Clara, was a bit inconsistent in her character throughout the story. At times she was very naïve and passive and then at times she was very aggressive. In the beginning she was overly trusting but then later on she turned on her teacher without much provocation, it was a bit confusing. I thought Xavier was a bit of a creeper, especially in the beginning of the book. I didn't really love him anymore as the book went on; he was just too messed up and conflicted...although the author tries to explain that away.

This was a quick and easy read; I read it in a night. I did enjoy watching Clara learning to control her magic and enjoyed the relationship she had with her father. I thought her relationship with Xavier was a bit shaky, they seemed to fall in love quickly but didn't have a very trusting relationship. I didn't love the relationship dynamics portrayed here, but that's personal preference.

This is a fairly simple story. The magic system isn't well explained (other than you use your heart to guide magic) and the world-building is fairly non-existent. If you are looking for a fluffy, cozy fantasy read about magic and love, this is a decent read.

My Summary (3.5/5): Overall this was an okay read if you want a cute little fantasy romance with some magic in it. Everything in here (characters, plot, world, magic) is kept fairly simple. I wasn't hugely keen on the relationship dynamics between our two main characters, but that is personal preferences. If you are looking for a fluffy, cozy romantic YA fantasy read this is a decent one.
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LibraryThing member sennebec
Imagine your life as a spider web, each strand helping you to move forward or hindering you from doing so. What if some of them aren't really what you think or see? How might that alter your course? Clara's life is like that, but her awareness is clouded by several things...Loss of her best friend,
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treachery by her estranged mother, fear that she'll never get her wild magic to cooperate.
When she's faced with a huge crisis, one created by that very magic, she embarks on a desperate path to fix what she thinks is her error. In the process, she learns many things, loses two precious things, but gains both back and so much more. Read the book and find out how everything resolves. This is a true delight to read.
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LibraryThing member Kiaya40
This is just so cute, and cozy and I love it! I hope there are more of these books with these characters and I think I may need to go find more of these types of books with all the cozy vibes and all.

DDC/MDS

Fic SF Bakewell

Rating

(25 ratings; 3.3)
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