A Girl's Guide to Love & Magic

I've received an Advance Reader's Copy of this book through a giveaway hosted by the publisher. This has not affected my rating in any way.

In A Girl's Guide To Love and Magic, we follow Cicely, her best friend Renee, her crush Kwame, and her possessed, Vodou-practicing aunt Mimose as they go on a scavenger hunt to exorcise the spirit Ezru from Mimose during an event called Carnival.

The story was very fast-paced once I got into it, and it flew by quickly. Some of the items they needed were found surprisingly easily and effortlessly, making what I thought was going to be a huge adventure a mediocre walk about town- It made this story feel rushed.

I loved all four of the main characters at first, but as the story went on I realized that all Renee cared about was not being seen by anyone she knows as he hung out with the group, which left a bad taste in my mouth. I had a bad feeling that Renee would abandon or betray the group throughout the story. Mostly, though, I loved the bond between Cicely and Mimose. I really enjoyed reading about how much the two care for each other, and the unconditional love between them definitely drove this story.

The amount of Marvel references- specifically Black Panther references, were really fun since I'm a Marvel fan. And I'm sure that the “Allons-y” at the beginning was not a Doctor Who reference, but I'll take it.

The reveal that Ezru was Cicely's Grandma Rose was so sweet. I didn't even predict that this would be the outcome early on, so this was definitely a good twist. It made the ending much better than I thought it would be.

Overall, this was a very short and sweet story about family, faith, and Carnival celebrations. My only complaint is that I wish this had been slightly longer to have the story not feel rushed. I definitely recommend this to anyone looking for a good, short read.