This little book made my heart happy. It was lovely to see so much solid, positive representation. As a self described fat woman it is genuinely refreshing to see fatness portrayed in a healthy, positive way. Additionally, the characters are delightful and the world which Lizzy Ives built is alive and enjoyable to read about.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing an Advance Reader Copy in exchange for an honest, fair review.

Going into this book, I was excited to read about an unabashedly body positive fat witch and the fun adventures of her summer. I can connect to Thrash in some of those ways—I was a plus size teenager that just wanted to feel comfortable in her body. And so, I was excited to read it.

As for things it did well: I loved the friendship dynamics and the progression of Trash’s relationship with her mother, especially at the end. It was rather believable how they worked together and I can really resonate with how their friendship formed. When I was in high school, I was somewhat lonely until my little coven (the choir kids) scooped me up and claimed me as their own. I know this could be relatable to a lot of high schoolers.

I was also interested in the magic system. At first, I wondered why there were only three types of magic and why those specifically, but as the story unfurled, it made more sense.

As for things it didn’t do so well: the story definitely did deliver on a fun summer trip (though definitely written for young adults), I think it absolutely did not as a happy-go-lucky fat witch story. While, yes, Trash did stand up for herself and often question people who were cruel and looked down on her because of her size, she frequently did the same thing to herself. To me, there was a lot of internalized fatphobia that kind of made the title moot.

Also, and I know this is nit-picky, but the -rix at the end of every single job title made it hard to read, and at times, understand. I get it. I do. But it annoyed me.

Is it a cute story? Yes. Will it be something I recommend? Yes. But I don’t think the title really sums up what the story’s actually about: friendship and breaking through barriers that hold you back.

Thank you to Sword Rose Press and Netgalley for the review copy in exchange for an honest review.

This book did not disappoint! I’ve heard it described as Dumplin meets The Craft and I’d say that’s an accurate assessment.

In Fat Witch Summer, our main character, Thrash dreads reaching the age where she will receive her witchy Gift: her mother Osmarra is a powerful Glamour witch who expects Thrash to embrace the same gift as her, but Thrash is happy and proud being her plus-sized, dyed-hair, rebellious self and would rather have a more useful Gift. An accidental mishap reveals that Thrash has a powerful natural magic, but instead of going through the Gift ceremony, she decides to join the Lunes, a trio of "cool" girls, on their road trip to claim their own Gifts instead.

This adventurous road trip/coming-of-age story offers a different take on witchcraft, with a tradition that focuses on three critical Gifts (Glamour, Growth, and Sight) as opposed to the natural witchy gifts. This book is able to blend a fun adventure and vibrant, diverse characters with more serious issues. I appreciated that the book didn't focus solely on Thrash: each of her friends (Cresca, Saki, and Emerald) had backgrounds and personalities, and goals. That made them a more believable team.

I was also impressed with the plus-sized representation. The plus-sized character was body positive but still had some insecurities which made them that much more relatable because I feel that is a universal struggle. I’m happy to live in a world where books like this are available. I wish I would have had such a book in my teen years.

DNF at 50%. The premise of this book was really interesting, and I really tried to push through, but at times I found it really slow, and I did not really connect with any of the characters at a deep level. I was interested to find out what happens at the end, but the middle part did not provide enough motivation for me to finish. To be fair, this is a young adult book, so it also may be that I’m not the intended audience. The witchy aspect is fun, and I could see where this might be more compelling for a teen audience. Going for two stars to acknowledge that, while I personally did not finish the book, it would probably hit different for a younger audience.

Dnf at 52%
I tried so hard to read this but it’s just so boring! It’s half way through but they are still running away with same thoughts again and again. It felt repetitive so I dropped it.

This book was such a fun concept! I loved how the tees magic appeared to them in knacks and how it was different for every witch. This was the perfect found family with each teen dealing with different backgrounds and issues and them coming together in the end. Even though Thrash didn't think she belonged with the lunes, they ended up saving each other so many times!

Fat Witch Summer is one of those books I desperately wish had been written 15-20 years ago, because it's the kind of book I needed as a teenager.

It's so positive and joyful, while also being a rollicking adventure and alternate-history examination of the United States. I appreciated the ways Izzy Ives found to make this book reflect modern America in her own world. I truly enjoyed Thrash and the rest of the Lunes as characters; they are messy, realistic teens that I wish had been MY friends back in high school.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sword & Rose Press for the opportunity to read the ebook ARC. All opinions are, for better or worse, mine alone.

BOOK REVIEW 📚Fat Witch Summer by Lizzy Ives
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Thank you to Sword and Rose Press and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this eARC for review 💗

Thrash (or Theodora Blumfield-Wright as her mother named her) has parent issues. With dyed hair and a thicc body, she isn’t living up to the reputation of her influential Protectrix witch mother, Osmarra. Thrash is looking down the barrel of a long, tedious summer vacation when she suddenly manifests a ‘knack’- a magical talent (by breaking a mirror of all things!).
Suddenly, her future looks brighter! Thrash will receive one of three gifts- Glamour, Growth or Sight- to help strengthen her magic and, for some reason, three of the popular girls, sassy Cresca, half- mermaid Emerald and winsome Saki seem interested in being… friends?!
But critical Osmarra refuses to grant Thrash the gift of Sight and their rocky relationship goes from bad to worse.
When Cresca hatches a plan to break into New Salem University, steal Gifts and choose for themselves, a nervous but determined Thrash jumps on board.
Making their way through the 13 states, the girls combat bounty hunters, low blood sugar and Emeralds need for salt water soaks AND have to stay ahead of Thrash’s mother who throws her political weight into the hunt for the 4 young women. On their journey, however, the girls discover that there is more at stake here than just their own futures and they will soon need to make choices both dangerous and life-changing.

I immediately related to Thrash, as a fellow bookworm, and colourful haired lady 😆 I wasn’t sold on this storyline, it seemed at first like the typical coming-of-age story. However, the introduction of so many whimsical, witchy elements made it a pleasure. From enchanted book carts, mer princes and voicemail recording crystals, this book had me in thrall. Add to this the characters of the “the Lunes“ and their inside jokes and banter, and you have a five star read on your hands. This book includes some touchy subject matter like parental control, body dysmorphia, and diet control and anxiety, but also addresses social issues with LGBTQIA + representation and body positivity.
I love that this book would appeal to so many age demographics, and I can’t wait to read more from this author.

This review will be posted on Goodreads, as well as may be included in reels on Instagram @tinydragonbooks (once a physical copy is obtained)

Thank you for allowing me to read this ARC. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

Fat Witch Summer by Lizzy Ives was a delightful read. The main cast of characters were really interesting, I loved discovering their motivations for their trip and seeing their bond form and grow.
I really liked the complex nature of the mother-daughter relationship between Thrash and Osmarra, it felt very realistic and relatable!

This was a very enjoyable YA read! I think its relatability and cosy magical vibes will prove popular!
4 stars!

Really enjoyed this coming of age story of friendship, self discovery and magic.
The magic system was so unique, interesting and very well developed.
Overall very fun read with a strong message of body positivity and acceptance of who people are.

How does one review a book that has it all? I went into this expecting friendship, summer vibes, magic, and body positivity, but it was all that and so much more! From representation of anxiety, to tackling issues like colonisation and repression, death of a family member, gay and NB rep, self-doubt to self-belief and building each other up, to humor and beautiful relationships. It was a breezy read, made me laugh often, and had me hooked from start to finish. I would quite honestly recommend this book to everyone I know!

this was a really good! I liked the characters, and they were super well-developed. the plot was super cool and fun to read, and the writing was also smooth and easy to understand
highly recommend

I've been in a bit of a reading slump but this book has helped me a ton. It follows 4 people, Thrash, who doesn't really have a friend group in her new town, and 3 friends that are titled the Lunes (self-titled?). These girls all agree to go on an adventure to stake claim to their own magical destiny. In a world where parents decide their child's magical gift, these girls either can't go that route or don't want to.

I loved how each character, Thrash, Saki, Em, and Cresca were of different identities and abilities. Thrash is a plus-size character who was raised with two mothers, one who unfortunately passed away. Saki is someone who deals with anxiety despite being perceived as beautiful and sure of herself. Em deals with chronic pain and illness due to being half-mermaid and her parents are very overprotective of her. Cresca has a magic hating family and a complicated relationship with her sister.

The story follows the girls as they outrun a manhunt and go against the odds to decide their own destiny. So much is revealed about the society in which they live, and there is so much lore behind it all to explore. This is an adorable book about female friendship, queer and fat identities, disabilities, and so much more.

The only thing preventing me from rating it 5 stars is the fact that I wasn't always wow-ed with their decision making skills. But I mean they are teens. I'm super excited to see where this foursome goes next.

This book started off really slow for me, and if it hadn’t been an ARC I probably wouldn’t have kept going. The voice of the main character, Thrash, just wasn’t clicking with me. The magic system was kind of odd, and seemed flat and not interesting. Once I passed about 25% everything changed. Suddenly I was in love with the Lunes, the magic system began to flesh out, and I realized this book was more than it seemed. I am normally a DNFer by about 20%, but I am SO GLAD I kept going. The pace picked up, the characters became more lovable, and the intrigue commenced. I think the budding friendship between Thrash and the Lunes was my favorite part. They went from flat “popular girls” to fleshed out people with motivations and insecurities. If you’re looking for a cute witchy summer read, this is definitely a contender.

"Sixteen-year-old Thrash doesn’t enchant eyeliner over her lids or clear her acne with magic. She is plus-size, but she doesn’t hate what she sees in the mirror—that’s the realm of her mother, Osmarra, a slim and elegant Glamour witch. When Thrash unexpectedly breaks a mirror with her mind, she discovers she has a knack for magic and will receive one of the three sanctioned Gifts: Glamour, Growth, or Sight. The only problem is that mothers choose the Gifts, and Osmarra is convinced that the Gift of Glamour will fix her daughter’s looks."

Road trips and coming of age stories filled my own adolecent years, so I was looking forward to Fat Witch Summer. I was not disappointed, this was such a fun novel filled with friendship, mistakes, self acceptance, magic, and some Familiars with humor. I would really enjoy finding out more about the world that Thrash and her friends live in, the would bulding was so much larger than what this one novel can contain. What I really loved about this novel was a plus sized heroine, I didn't get to have any heroines who looked like me as a teen, so it's really a treat to find some now and know that the kids will be alright. Fat Witch Summer really did female friendships justice by switching view points and giving the reader insight into each character. Just because we think a person feels or thinks a certain way, doesn't mean they do. Insecurities get to all of us. Great book and I hope to see more in the future!

The cover? Stellar. The story? Even better. I was hooked from page 1 and could not put it down. This may become a staple in my comfort read rotation, as the book had me feeling like I was in the car with Thrash and her friends.
I loved the way Thrash began her journey of self-discovery, and the coming-of-age and self-love feelings were so visceral. I could read a whole series about Thrash and the Thirteen States, and I hope that Ives does continue sharing this joy. This book delivers on its promise of Dumplin’ meets The Craft, and I loved every minute. I read this while working on finals and it was the perfect stress relief for a high-stress week.

I received an ARC of this book from Sword & Rose Press through NetGalley and am leaving this review voluntarily.

Thrash as a fat character is neat. She draws attention to her being fat, and she isn’t ashamed of it, exactly. She doesn’t like how she thinks people view her and tries to cover up with black clothes and coloring her hair bright magenta. But she doesn’t try to change how she looks fundamentally. Being fat annoys her, especially in the summer when it’s all about chub rub and sweat in uncomfy places. She’s very real for this. The Lunes are also very realistic, with real world problems and reactions. Their dialogue and bonding experiences are really well done.

The magic isn’t well explained until later and even then it feels kind of weak. Especially when it comes to the magical government. I don’t quite understand how it works, nor do I understand the ultimate conclusion of everything very well. It doesn’t seem like anything changed after the girls’ adventure.

There are no major romantic relationships here, which I appreciate. I half expected Thrash to fall for Cresca, or for a relationship to crop up amongst the Lunes. I’m glad it didn’t, though I feel like a few interactions could have led to something more. There was something bigger happening, in the form of healthy female bonding. It was kind of bonding by necessity, but it felt valid and real all the same.

Because of the magic system being a little confusing, and the government not really making sense to me, I downrated a tad. While I liked the characters, the setting just didn’t do it for me in a lot of ways. I need more of an explanation, rather than having all these terms like protectrix etc thrown at me without much of an explanation. For a moment, it felt like a scifi novel with all these new terms put in place with a little bit of context so I had to parse out the meaning on my own. These terms became less later, but I still had moments where I didn’t really know what was happening.

All in all, a fairy good read. Quick and some funny moments. I would recommend this book for some light beach reading and for people who enjoy female bonding and friendships, with a little magic thrown in.

Body positivity flows from the pages of this book. Alongside deep world building and a unique magic system that is easy to get lost in.
Fun characters, easy to read.

Fat Witch Summer was a fantastic summer road trip romp with a plus size main character. This is another book I wished I had when I was growing up as a fat teenager, going through issues with friend group dynamics. It's the representation I craved and am so glad future generations have access to. I rated Fat Witch Summer a 4 out of 5 only because I felt that it was lacking something in the way of romance. A ship between two of the girls was eluded to, but never expanded on. I related so much to Thrash. She lives with a parent who has exacting standards and feels like she can never please her. She also doesn't have any friends who she feels she can truly rely upon. All she wants is unconditional love, someone to love her for who she is, even if she's fat. If you feel this way, you need to read this book. The way the author allows all of the girls to bloom is truly uplifting. Plus there's an undercurrent of the backlash of colonialism, racism, and social unrest to keep everything super interesting.

The story follows Thrash, who is a young which just coming into her power. In the world of the Thirteen States, witches cover about 20% of the population and they live with the "typicals" out in the open. Similarly to the US as we know it, there have been revolutions and government creation that has shaped the country. The witches from across the pond in Europa colonoized the native land and enforced their ways. Witches magic manifests as a knack. .Thrash's manifests when she causes a mirror to explode after a weird conversation with Cresca, one of the girls in the magical clique known as the Lunes. Thrash is a plus size girl, who has been forced to take the Gift of Glamour from her mom, Osmarra, the Protectrix of her town (a kind of mayor/governor). Thrash has never felt that she lived up to exacting standards, and it only got worse after her Mum Duna, a gifted seer, lost her battle with cancer, leaving her in the care of Osmarra. Thrash teams up with the Lunes to travel across the country and take their Gifts into their own hands. Along the way they find out that nothing is as it seems, and everything they were taught about Gifts is a lie to make people comply. All of the girls grow into their own and realize things about themselves that they never would have if they didn't take this trip of their lives. You will absolutely need to read to find out what happens on this summer trip of a lifetime.

A fun, fantastic witchy adventure about being seen for who you know you truly are. I love the rich characters, the fast-paced plot, and the unique worldbuilding. Hell yes to more fat protagonists!