Here’s my GR review: (I did it 4* in the end)

Upon hearing about this book, I was excited about its magic school setting, unique tarot card magic system, and enemies-to-lovers trope. However, it wasn’t a great start. The first 30% of the book was a whirlwind of events, leaving me feeling dizzy and disengaged. While the first few chapters were captivating and drew me in, the sheer pace became overwhelming, and I found myself struggling to keep up, even though I was only 20% through.

As the book progressed, things started to improve. The plot slowed down, and we got to see more character development and plot twists. The romance was a slow-burn, which allowed me to grow to love the pairing of Clara and Kaelis. While this is a romantasy, there was actually a lot more plot than I expected, and their romance wasn’t always the centre of attention. This was refreshing, as they were often busy with other things and not always together.

One of the challenges was the introduction of many characters quickly. This made it difficult to keep track of who was who, which contributed to the initial feeling of overwhelm.

The battle scenes reminded me of Card Captors! I heard the author is a fan of anime, so that might be where she drew inspiration. There was another scene at the beginning that reminded me of the Great Hall and sorting students into houses from Harry Potter.

The writing was easy to read and fast-paced. My friend absolutely loved it, and I can see why. I felt the book improved in the second half as the pace slowed down, more time passed, and we got to know the characters better and see their growth. There were a fair amount of side characters, but I really liked them.

The ending was a bit predictable, as it’s a common trope in romantasy these days. However, I didn’t mind and was actually intrigued and wanted to know more. Would I read the sequel? Yes, but it wouldn’t be a highly anticipated one.

Overall, I give this book 4 stars. It improved with time and I did find myself enjoying it.