Bring Out Your Witches! Strike Your Matches! (the witch doesn’t burn in this one – A Book Review)

the witch doesn’t burn in this one (Women Are Some Kind of Magic #2)

Author: Amanda Lovelace

Published: 2018

On Goodreads

My Rating:

Rated W for the witch in all women and it coming out to seek retribution

Burn whoever tries

To

Burn

You

After the first installment of princesses saving themselves and becoming their own heroes in this poetry series comes the sequel about witches burning those who’ve burned them and overcoming traumatic scaring both internally and externally. Encouraging and vivid in its storytelling and encouragement to find oneself and burn those who try to destroy you.

Women Are Some Kind of Magic Series Reviews

the princess saves herself in this one

I love poetry and this sequel was on fire! Truly emotional and wicked. A rage for feminism and against men that disrespect and harm women. Each poem was increasingly fast and uplifting. I really loved the coven rules the most in this collection. As much as there was expression to keep strong for yourself, they came across as a memento, a set of rules to build for yourself. Ultimately the book gives off the feels of anger, trauma, and self-care. The key elements: lighting a match, being burned, coming from powerful witches, and more give way to great imagery and is a great use of metaphor.

always put yourself first
sacrifice at you own
discretion
 - coven rule #1

burn whoever tries to burn you
 - coven rule #2

make no apologies; accept no apologies
 - coven rule #3

know that anger has its limits
& act accordingly
 - coven rule #4

When I think of witches I think of Sally Owens, Bonnie Bennett, Piper Halliwell, Diana Bishop, and even the perky Willow Rosenberg. Women that radiate power but wholesomeness and strength and bravery and independence. I wish there’d been more reflection on those that are inspiring to this cause. Independence is great, but we all learn from some sort of role model. I can’t help but wonder which witches inspire Lovelace or which ones she loves.

Rebloggy

The negative? There were poems that felt like repeats while there were more that didn’t come out poetic but as a rant. Prose free-form typically weaves its own path and the sheer, raw emotion really drives it. This is a fantastic book, even if some poems come out bland and seem already overdone.

Overall

Certainly a war cry for sisterhood and alliance in dark times. A moment of standing up against the unjust that has been happening to women for too long. This has truly been a great read and experience. Still definitely recommending this series so far.

Quotables:

she's
so scared
to
takeupspace
that even
the weight
of her
bones
sometimes
feels like
too much

 - the hollow-girl (p. 48)

This one hit me from two angles. Eating disorders are a subject that Lovelace approaches with fire but I also felt like this touched on depression and how sometimes you’ll feel like you shouldn’t be int his world and so you try to disappear. Really earth-shattering for me.

be the
      unlikable
      woman
      protagonist

(synonyms:
      bitch
      realistic
      manhero)

all the
      men
      just love to
      complain about

- it's so much more fun that way, isn't it? (p. 114)

There’s nothing like taking your power back or taking it period. A moment of standing up against those that suppress you and who you are and who you could be because they have no fecking power over you and they’ll say and call you every ugly word they can think of because that bothers them.

call me
bitch

call me
villain

call me
she-wolf

call me
bad omen

call me
your worst nightmare

wearing a
red-lipped smile

 - even better, call me by my name (p. 125)

Call me what you want. It’ll no longer have the effect you want because it’s true and we’ve embraced it. This one really makes me shiver with delight. Both a taunt and end to letting anyone, particularly men have any power over women.

write the poem
(write the pain)
burn the poem
(burn the pain)

- blow the ashes in their eyes (p. 158)

There’s nothing better than a feck you and exactly how this one registered. Powerful in brevity and intention. Poetry is a fantastic outlet for pain and this poem doesn’t just act as a mantra to encourage writing it to release the pain but to utilize it. Beautiful.

More to come soon…                                                                                                

  -K.

P.S. Song today? Nightmare by Halsey.

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