the witch doesn't burn in this one

⚠️ Unpopular Opinions Ahead ⚠️ I’ve read Amanda Lovelace’s the witch doesn’t burn in this one twice now. I wasn’t familiar with Amanda’s poetry and was intrigued so read it immediately after I downloaded it. I had strong contradictory feelings about it and wanted to know how I’d feel after it sat with me for a while and then reread it. My review may well feel like one big soapbox moment but if this book has reminded me of anything it’s that I am entitled to speak my truth and you are just as entitled to speak yours, whether we agree or not. What I Loved Trigger Warning - I really respect an author who knows the content of their writing may be triggering for some and points it out at the beginning so readers can make an informed choice about the suitability of that book for them personally. This book came with a detailed trigger warning for topics including: “child abuse, intimate partner abuse, sexual assault, eating disorders, trauma, death, murder, violence, fire, menstruation, transphobia & more.” The Girl Power - I’m all about women speaking their truth. I love anyone of any gender overcoming adversity and stereotypes to achieve what others told them was impossible for them. I love strong role models and people who are able to transform what could have destroyed them into something that’s able to inspire others. This Book Being Published - Just the fact that a woman who’s openly refuting the patriarchy and speaking her passionate truth has had her words published for anyone who wants to read them is a triumph. Sure, western society as a whole has a long, long way to go in terms of equality, glass ceilings, you name it. But this book has been published. This woman has not been silenced. We are free to read or not read it, and we are free to have our own opinions about it, even if they differ from other people. What I Didn’t Love The Generalisation of Men - While I certainly acknowledge the unfathomable acts that some men have perpetrated against women and have known my fair share of them, I also want to acknowledge all of the men that don’t fit in the perpetrator category. I know some extraordinary men who I know I could trust with my life and I don’t think it’s fair to make sweeping statements that are true of some but certainly not all. Yes, I realise this book isn’t about the trustworthy, respectful men but sometimes I worry that by generalising and only pointing out the bad (that I don’t deny is there), we forget to recognise those who have a positive impact on those whose lives they touch. The Style of Poetry - By all of the positive feedback this collection is receiving it’s obvious this poet and her writing is resonating with a lot of people. It’s just not the type of poetry I typically enjoy and while I felt like shouting out a “Woohoo! Girl power!” at the beginning, by the end the almost constant rage against patriarchy and men exhausted me. There were a couple of instances of positivity such as “we can’t lose our empathy” and “you can be benevolent & love this world back to life”, but I felt emotionally and physically drained when I finished reading. If you loved this book and were empowered by it, that’s fantastic. I do expect it will be very well received by plenty of people. I think in the end it boils down to this book and I not being made for one another. Thank you so much to NetGalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for the opportunity to read this book.

Just as terrible as the first book. If you would tell me this was written by an angsty, edgy teenager who spends too much time on tumblr I would believe you. These "poems" are incredibly hollow and uncreative. Both her works only make me want to stay far away from feminism

This was interesting.

When I saw that Amanda’s second book was up on NetGalley I jumped at the chance to read it.From the get go I was impressed simply because the font was also red. I wanted to love and cry over this book as much as her previous one. However this wasn’t really the case. Don’t get me wrong I enjoyed this poetry collection, in fact I’m sharing two of my favourites that I picked out for you, it just didn’t have the same grip for me that her first book did. No doubt I’m still gonna buy a copy! I enjoyed how powerful they felt and how its very true to what a lot of women have to deal with. Amanda definitely knows her target audience, knows her fans, and writes amazing poetry for them. I’m definitely somewhat included. I felt a few poems were noticeably weaker due to the over use of hyphenated words as they made the flow of the poetry difficult to read for me. I know the repetitive use of these words were part of the aesthetic and highlighted the themes to the poems but for me it just didn’t work and lowered my enjoyment. So whilst this wasn’t a favourite of mine, I still enjoyed most of the poems and will continue to read whatever else Amanda creates! Keep up your hard work Amanda, I know you’re a huge inspiration to many people.

Poems of strength and the fire within us

The Witch Doesn’t Burn in this One is a strong poetry collection full of strong emotions. I love Amanda Lovelace’s writing style and her use of emotion to drive her poetry. There are many hard topics in this collection, but I think people can relate on all different levels to these poems. A big bonus is the red text throughout the book! I can’t wait to see what more Amanda Lovelace has in store!

I recently read The Princess Saves Herself In This One, and was completely stunned by everything about it. I loved Amanda’s writing style and the story it told as it unravels. It actually brought me to tears, or should I say sobs. When I saw this one on Netgalley I had to give it a try and request it. Let me tell you I was NOT disappointed. I loved this one even more than the first. The writing is impeccable and really spoke to me in ways I can’t get out on paper. Poetry is a pretty new thing to me, and I want to read ALL the poetry out there! After reading this one, it’s going to be so hard to live up to my idea of amazing poetry. I loved the fact that the author had trigger warnings, just in case you are sensitive to certain topics. I feel that is completely necessary in this day in age. I definitely found this one as a more feminist read than her first, and I loved it! I found this one extremely empowering and inspirational. If you are new to poetry I feel like this is a wonderful place to start. It was a stunning and emotional read and I would highly suggest reading her first book of poetry before entering into this one. I feel the first was a stepping stone into the amazingness that is this book!

It was very deep and really made my feelings go crazy.

It's a good book. The poems are good. However it has nothing to do with what is says it's about. It has trigger warnings in the beginning of the book like the first one did, but it doesn't touch on those topics at all. It mostly talks about how all men are trash and not much else. It also brought some politics into it. Not a fun topic to read about especially when it doesn't mention it at all in the summary or trigger warning page. The first book was definitely better.

Another incredible collection of work from Amanda. Her voice has grown and her work is incredibly powerful.

This collection is feminism to the fullest and I love it! It makes me so proud knowing that Amanda is using her voice to speak about the importance of a woman and her voice and her choices. Once I was through reading I felt empowered. I felt supernatural. She is not afraid to say the things that most are. I admired this book just as much as I did the first. They both hit me but in different ways. This is a collection I will shop for when gifting to the women in my life. And also, for the men, so that they can learn a thing or two