Review: The Rules of Magic by Alice Hoffman

3.5/5 stars

Well, I just finished my first Alice Hoffman novel. 

I dislike when books hype me up and then let me down. 

I loved the first half of this book so much that I put a hold on Practical Magic at my library after just a few pages. I found the writing chanting, and like nothing I've ever read before. And then, somewhere towards the middle the spell broke. 

The plot stagnated, things got awfully repetitive and the writing, instead of being enchanting became way too flowery. I could not wait to be done with the book! Thankfully things did get better for me in the last half, but by then it was a bit too late for me to re-invest myself into it. 

I can't pinpoint the exact moment when I lost interest. I was reading it and enjoying it one moment, and the next - I was not. Books are magic, even if sometimes it's not the good kind.

I also found myself unable to connect to any of the characters deeply, or invest in them emotionally. I only really liked Haylin, and his story arc was the only one to evoke some feelings in me. My least favorite character was Vincent, hands down. Why? He left his dog! He abandoned him at his sisters' and went to live off somewhere in France, frolicking around in fields of flowers! (okay, it sounds really stupid out of contest, but it's kind of what happened). And never once he thought about his dog again. And I just can't like people who abandon their dogs. Sorry, not sorry.  

I also found it annoying how certain things were repeated over and over again. For example, the way Franny looked. Almost on every page (not kidding) we are told something either about her red hair, her red boots or her black clothes. Most often we are told about all three at once. 
Wait, what color was her hair again?? 

The main thing that might have killed the book for me was, that most of it was set in New York in the 60s. I'd have known that if I bothered to read the blurb on the cover, but no, I don't do that. And New York in the 60s is a subject I have absolutely no interest in. 

I will still read Practical Magic , because I'm curious to see how that one plays out, and honestly hoping that plot will not be too similar. And because it won't be set in the 60s, so I might like it more. 

---