After hearing so many wonderful things about GoodReads Choice Award winning poet Amanda Lovelace's debut book, The Princess Saves Herself in This One, I was stupidly excited when the opportunity arose to review her new collection, The Witch Doesn't Burn in This One.
I am a big fan of poetry and I am conscious that I don't read nearly enough. I found The Witch Doesn't Burn in this One to be a great introduction to the genre of feminist poetry and I really enjoyed this awe-inspiring, authentic collection of powerful poems.
So many poems spoke to me on so many different levels. The content covers an array of subjects including feminism, body-shaming, eating disorders, the glamorisation of abuse and self-acceptance.
However, the collection itself is based around the metaphor of the Salem Witch Trials - and ultimately the oppression of women.
Whilst the actual style of poetry is not necessarily my favourite, I still really enjoyed reading this anthology. The poems definitely had the desired effects of evoking all sorts of emotions within me.
The passion that Amanda Lovelace writes with really shines through in her works, along with the anger and raw emotion that she pours into her words.

I found many of the poems to be inspiring, particularly 'Things I Still Struggle to Say and That’s Ok', '& I’ve Only Just Begun' and 'We Tried to Warn You' (“Red lipstick, an external sign of internal fire.”- Possibly my favourite quote from a poem ever.)
There's no denying that, as a woman reading this it made me feel strong and also rather powerful in a way that other other poetry collection has before. I felt as part of a team - women united as we battle against the injustices that many of us face and it has to be said - that is a damn good feeling. I'd go so far as to say it's liberating - despite the words and content coming from a place of anger and injustice. (In fact, some of the content is very dark indeed - but it has it's place and works well to contributing to the overall message portrayed by the book.)
This is a great book to skim through and to refer back to when you need to; whether you're struggling with an issue in your life or are just looking for some inspiration.

A fiery and compelling book for fiery and compelling women.

Many thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to review.

As soon as I saw this available on NetGalley, I knew I needed to read it. The Princess Saves Herself in This One was an amazing foray into poetry for me. I do not particularily like poetry, but I was able to connect on a deep level with many of the poems in that collection. So when I knew Amanda was going to have a "sequel" I couldn't wait to get my hands on it. That being said, this one fell flat for me. I did not have the same connection to the writing as I had with Princess.

This collection is all about female empowerment which is important and very timely. I unfortunately, was unable to make that connection with these poems to really truly enjoy this book. Many are going to read this an absolutely fall in love. It is another great collection of poetry, it just was not the collection for me.

*Thanks to NetGalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for the eARC*

Amanda Lovelace once again shares poetry that seeks to share a widespread message of empowerment to female-identifying individuals who may just be in need of that additional written validation.

I loved the first book in those series and I loved those one just as much. These poems are about feminism and being a strong woman. I loved the way she wrote these poems And the subject material about what alot of us woman have been through.

"The Witch Doesn't Burn in This One" is a collection of poetry and a sort of sequel to "The Princess Saves Herself in This One". Before I get into this review, I should note that I haven't read the first in this series of poetry books. Fortunately, though, I don't think that it matters too terribly much what order you read these in.

I have never been a reader of poetry. I used to write poems years ago, but there was never much rhyme or reason to them. No snapping fingers or banging bongo drums accompanied my work. My knowledge of poetry is very limited sadly.

That being said, I was excited to read this, and I felt that all of the poems in this collection were done well. Objectively, I can tell you that this was a good piece of literature, but I'm not the person to appreciate it. I wasn't aware of the subject material before going into this, and I found that I didn't relate to the content.

That definitely does not mean this was poorly done, or someone else won't find things to love or hurt over in "The Witch Doesn't Burn in This One". This was obviously written to empower women and as a letter against rape culture, which I'm on board with completely. Sadly though, I felt there was much generalization about men and how terrible and awful they are, which I don't agree with.

That's not to say there aren't horribly crappy men out there. There are also horribly crappy women. Our world is inherently evil, so there are massive amounts of horribly crappy people in the world. So I think there are plenty of ways to empower women without spitting fire and hatred. Speak out against the rapists and the pedophiles and the creeps. Fight to make sure they get their just desserts. But try to do so without stomping on the men who don't deserve it.

I think men and women alike will find many things to love about what Lovelace has to say, and she should be applauded for writing such a deeply personal and powerful piece. Just because I couldn't connect with it doesn't mean many others won't.

This review is also found on my blog at spinelessbookwyrm.wordpress.com

Sometimes sequels really aren’t as good as the first instalment. Lovelace’s second poetry collection lacks the power the first had for me. The message is definitely something I can get behind but the poems feel less personal and altogether a little less meaningful.

This collection is a cohesive piece about feminism and strong women. All the poems work well together, unfortunately, they sort of resemble each other a little too much. Despite the four distinct section labels, each section felt sort of the same. Not only that but nothing here feels revolutionary or raw the way some of the poems in the previous collection did. I’ve seen all these emotions, statements and ideas all over the internet. There’s nothing transformative here.

I know I will be in the minority. This is a poetry book many people will love but I feel that it is so much weaker than the original that I barely enjoyed it. I felt, at times, like I had read the same poem several times throughout the book. In the princess saves herself in this one I was constantly pulling quotes to share. I was deeply affected. I was in love. There are poems in this book that I enjoyed, but nothing I’ll carry with me for long.

Lovelace has created a strong collection of angry feminist poetry, and it will certainly suit the taste of many people. It just wasn’t what I was hoping for. It felt so impersonal (though this may not be the case) to me compared to her last collection and I don’t feel like it left me with any fresh takes on the world.

"there exists
a fine line
between
being
selfish
&
being
selfless"

Having read "The Princess Saves Herself in this One" and loved it, you can tell I was so excited to know Amanda Lovelace is coming out with a companion! Her poetry style is something that is so elegantly simple and yet reaches so deep and clutches your heart strings (in a good way).

She did receive a little bit of criticism (amongst many other authors) regarding her style of writing, and wether this new wave of ~tumblr poetry~ is even poetry at all. As art is something that is so> subjective, I do think poetry can come in all forms, and the only rule that exists for poetry: is that it makes you feel.

"They scratched it
out of the history books,

but on all the
great innovations

you will find
scorch marks

in the shape of
a woman's

magnificent
handprint."

Women are libraries about to burst made me burst with emotion, I loved the way Amanda phrased the meaning behind her words. With raw fire and an urge to leave a message.

Many poems in this book made me have to stop, and just relish in the words..... And in my opinion, if poetry doesn't make you do that, then its not poetry.

Amanda's passion is very clear, though I didn't like every poem of the book. There were definitely moments where I was just, confused as to what a certain piece is doing, and what is it adding to the bigger picture.

But there is no denying that the author poured all of her heart and vulnerabilities into the completing this book. The topics discussed are a bit deeper, and there is a sense of healing.

Another one of my favourite pieces at the end of the collection, entices such courage and warm feelings in my, and I'm so thankful it.

"today
you are
the fire

& tomorrow
you will be
the sea

& they'll
have no choice
but to hear your siren song."

Though this poetry collection is not for everyone, there is no denying I enjoyed so many poems featured and they've inspired me to create. Enjoyed making this gif to go along with the review! if you are interested in seeing more gifs and reviews, find me on @endlessyarning! we moved to Wordpress!

Why are witches evil and wizards good when the only difference is their gender? This is the question that rolled over and over in my head while I read this book of poetry. I really liked the journey this collection took us through. I felt my anger build, especially in the poems about rape culture, and I was worried that this collection would do nothing more than promote anger (anger isn't bad, but anger alone doesn't help anyone), but the fourth part of this collection addressed that very nicely. Most of the poems individually I did not find particularly remarkable, but there were a few that struck me (and a few I disagreed with), and, overall, I thought the collection was beautiful and provocative. It definitely made me think: Why are witches evil and wizard good when the only difference is their gender?

I was given this ARC by NetGalley in return for an honest review.
As the introduction to this collection of poems states, it deals with abuse, assault, body issues, eating disorders and childhood trauma.
Having had personal experience with a few of these topics myself, reading these poems was truly a journey through a range of intense emotions.
I appreciated the poet taking her time and exploring the emotions before moving on and almost guiding the reader to begin the healing process. The anger and hurt and suppression felt leads the way to stand up, speak up and fight, which in turn leads to allowing the reader to heal.
Overall, I haven’t had a chance to read the first collection in this series, but will do so as soon as it is available at my local library. As the poet warns, her poems deal with a lot of sensitive topics and one should practice self-care at all times. Having said that, I appreciated the poet’s sincere and honest address of these issues and I would recommend this collection of poems.

This was amazing. I loved Amanda's first poetry collection and this one did not disappoint. I loved how she combined the imagery of witches into her poems and made them so vivid and real. I especially love the message of femininity and womanhood present in all those poems and some of them made me so happy to be a woman.

This book is definitely a must in my life and I am thus going to pre-order it.
Mark your calendars! This is not a book you want to miss!

I haven’t read poetry in a while, but this didn’t capture me like I hoped it would.

This just wasn't good. I don't expect all poetry to be to my liking but this tumblr poetry, where they apparently use the same sentiments and lines (as admitted by the author herself when called on a poem that blatantly copies Rachel Wiley), is not something that is truly repugnant to me. I guess as long as something looks nice against a floral background, the masses will consume.

Although I have some qualms over whether The Witch Doesn’t Burn in this One is actually poetry, I do not have any trouble in acknowledging how important this book will be for a lot of women living in 2018.
I mean, who even cares if it should be classed as poetry or tumblr prose when each and every one of Amanda Lovelace’s compositions are as resonant and impactful as the ones included in The Witch Doesn’t Burn in this One. In so few words, she is able to convey an incredible amount of emotion in regards to the content and topics covered and you simply cannot deny the importance of each subject matter.
Whether you regard it as poetry or simply a book of quotes, at only 208 pages I can see this being the perfect book for women everywhere, to throw in their bags and flip to a random page when they’re feeling alone - because within these pages, Amanda Lovelace is always there to tell them that we are strong and that we can all get through this together.
Honestly, The Witch Doesn’t Burn in this One hit me like a punch to the gut and now, I can finally understand why so many of my peers have fallen head over heels for the feminist voice that we so dearly needed.

So excited that I get an advance copy from Netgalley in exchange for a review. I absolutely loved this collection of short poetry just like I loved the first collection from this author. This collection has a lot to do with women and everything that's been going on lately in the news with rape culture, men abusing women and all the other terrible things they are capable of doing to women. It's also about empowerment and women rising above, supporting each other, and not taking it anymore in a misogynistic and unequal patriarchy society. This is a call to arms to keep going and don't back down when it comes to sharing your story and not letting men get away with shit ever again. Oprah said it best in her recent speech, a new day is dawning for women and men who hurt women your time is up. If you think you can hurt women and silence them you're so wrong. I love the message of this book and think it's such an important one for this day and age.

This was once again incredibly empowering and I am so happy I got this from Netgalley! Amanda Lovelace hits hard topics of abuse, rape, eating disorders and women's rights. We live in a time where women are told to be only seen and not heard. No one wants to hear our stories of the world being unfair to us just because we are only guilty of being women. Amanda Lovelace gets right in the world's face with this collection and is calling out men for what they have done not only in the past but to this day. This is a call to arms for women. We never ever have to be ashamed of our sex. We are a million times more powerful than men. And we need to recognize that! Thank you, Ms. Lovelace! You have told the world the story of the women who are being silence. Thank you.

Going into this book, I was not sure what to expect, having never read anything by this author before, and ended up completely falling in love with it. Lovelace unapologetically covers the topics she sets out to explore in this collection, through allegories of witches, fire, and the occasional pop culture reference.

With gorgeous prose and imageries which will resonate with readers, as well as make them cackle with satisfaction (in keeping with the witchy metaphors), this book is a veritable celebration of womanhood.

I highly recommend this to everyone, especially readers who wish to explore poetry revolving around themes such as feminism and womanhood. And for those who are perhaps not very familiar or comfortable with poetry in general, this collection is a great place to start as although it covers an array of significant topics, the prose remains very accessible to everyone, especially first-time poetry readers.

I admire poetry like this that is so raw and open. I thought this was a beautiful, pail filled effort that really packs a necessary punch. Thought provoking, intense, and uninhibited these poems will stay with you and impress themselves upon you.

Thanks to Andrews McMeel Publishing for the ARC!

This is the second book in the "the women are some kind of magic series", but you don't necessarily need to read the first one before this. I recommend that you do, though. I liked this one better.

In my opinion, the author did a great job writing about rape culture and feminism. Women all around the world can certainly relate to these words. Men should also read it to educate themselves and understand how we feel. I love the poems "how to prevent getting sexually assaulted" and "how to prevent sexually assaulting someone". They seem so obvious, but still, they're so important. With a few words, she sends a very powerful message.

And also, thanks for the trigger warning. I didn't find anything disturbing, but it's important to see that message there for those who might feel uncomfortable for some reason.

Amanda Lovelace has once again ripped out my heart causing laughter, rage, tears and immense joy. So much of this poetry really resonated with me. Especially regarding our president and she who should have been president. I can’t wait to get my own copy when this comes out.