Cover Image: Wicked As You Wish

Wicked As You Wish

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I tried, but this was just too much of an info dump of qualities that didn’t mesh well together. There was so much STUFF thrown my way that I really didn’t know what to make of it all. In the end, I was 25% through and I wasn’t a fan of it. I wish I had loved this, but it’s not for me at all.

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Unfortunately this book was not for me. I found it to be confusing and even though I tried to keep pushing through it, I had to set it down. I couldn’t finish it because I just couldn’t wrap my head around what was happening in this book.
From the beginning it felt like we were thrown into this world with no explanation, and it felt like none was ever given. I also didn’t like the combination of urban fantasy and dystopian elements and I also didn’t understand the magic system and who has it and who doesn’t and why.

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Wicked as You Wish by Rin Chupeco is the first book in the urban fantasy series, A Hundred Names For Magic. It explores what happens when you mix politics, magic, and teenage angst. While bright, colorful and full of #OwnVoices magic and wonder, the book is light on world building and as a result, comes off as a mixed bag.

Wicked As You Wish takes place in the small desert town of Invierno, Arizona. Prince Alexei, the last remaining royal of the infamous kingdom of Avalon, is sent to the town to hide. Avalon was a kingdom who’s queen turned on it, forcing its people to escape as refugees across the world. We also meet Tala, who is a high schooler from a long line of Filipino spell breakers, magic doesn’t work on them. Tala’s family is charged with hiding and protecting Alexei, until he can take back his kingdom and restore it. In this world, natural magic is almost gone but people can still access it in doses, almost like prescription pills. For example, students can take certain spells to help them ace tests. When the long fabled Firebird, arrives into town, the team have to embark on a journey to fight the Snow Queen once and for all.


I loved reading about Tala and her family. Their relationship is genuine and warm. Through them we learn more about Tala’s culture and how it has shaped her as a person. The incorporation of Tagalog was very fun to read, and I enjoyed that words in another language were not italicized. The book is at its strongest when we are given insight into the depth of their connection and bond.

The concept of Spellcast, a type of modern spell technology is wickedly ha puns) cool. It is fun to see an urban fantasy incorporate elements of almost science fiction into its story line. I appreciated how Chupeco merged these two genres into a really interesting concept that felt refreshing and new.

However, the pacing of the book is a little scattered. We jump right into the action, but we aren’t given time to quite understand the world of the book. This is especially noticeable in the first act because while the plot moves forward, as a reader, you are still trying to comprehend how any of the magic, laws, and setting works. I found myself re-reading pages and stopping to think of the logistics of how events were happening while reading. The US and many magical fairy tale lands and characters (like Neverland, Peter Pan, Hook, etc) co-exist, but often they are mentioned in just passing, without greater detail. Because this book is the first in a series, I hope that in the sequels, greater attention is given to bringing dimension to the world of the story.

Fan of shows like Once Upon a Time will enjoy Wicked As You Wish, a book with great potential that plants a lot of interesting story lines for its future installments.

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A few months ago, in the month of January, I tried reading "Wicked As You Wish." The premise had everything I wanted in a book: Filipino representation (because I am Filipino and heard of 'Maria Makiling') and a unique magic system (which includes a kingdom). What's not to want?

Unfortunately, I never got the chance to pick this book up again. I find myself wanting to read another book, or I find myself getting so confused to the point that I completely zoned out. I can't tell if the latter is the reason why I find the whole world-building + magic system confounding. I really thought I was going to like this book, hence I didn't give up on this one. However, March was the last straw and I didn't come back to it ever since.

One of the reasons I gave up was the large cast of characters. It made the entire world-building seemed bland to me. For instance, how can I care about this unique and magical world if the main character has this fun and close-knit family that I want to know more about? Additionally, the book felt too long. If I could not get invested in any of the characters and the world-building/magic system, I can't find any reason to keep reading. Needless to say, I was getting bored. I was disappointed with this book because I expected this one to be one of my favorite releases of 2020, however, it just was not for me.

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I’m not sure how to even start this review...my feelings on Wicked As You Wish are so mixed. On the one hand, this book had so many elements that I absolutely loved: quirky characters, a vast fantasy world to discover, references to other folklore and fairy tales, and wonderful representation. But on the other hand, the way the history and world-building were delivered was just...off. I felt like I was continuously getting thrown new pieces of info about the world, but not truly given anything in enough depth for me to relate to the story. And it really bums me out, because the world of this story is amazing, and has SO much potential! The alternate history and interwovenness of fairy tales from different times were honestly so intriguing to me that I ended up caring more about that then I did about the characters themselves! I honestly could sit there and read a fictional history of this world!

But unfortunately, that is not what this story is trying to do, and as result, every time I felt I got more tidbits of info about the world or it’s history, I found myself being drawn in more by that than I was to what was going on with the actual characters. And there was nothing wrong with the characters themselves! I honestly quite liked them all and absolutely loved how diverse the cast was! (My personal favorite was the Firebird though, to be honest!) It was just that the vastness of the world they were in and my desire to know more about it ultimately overshadowed the story for me.

Overall this is a tough one for me to review, because I really enjoyed this book, but was also frequently frustrated with it. I’m glad it’s going to be a series because I’ll definitely keep trying with the next book and hopefully the story will become a little bit more involved. One thing that I’m definitely taking from this experience is that I have to get to reading Chupeco’s other books for sure now because I can tell her world-building skills are something I really enjoy.

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Wicked as You Wish reminds me of a puzzle made out of bajillion pieces sporting individual photos but when arranged correctly, paints a grandeur that is so satisfying. It’s refreshing to read about the melding of olden tales and magic in a modern day setting. Since her The Bone Witch trilogy, I can surely say that Rin Chupeco has the delicate skill of choosing the raw threads which she masterfully weaves into the perfect tapestry of a tale. This particular one’s busy and bold.

The magic system of these worlds is a double-edge sword and may dissuade a certain reader for its complexity and volatile nature. In my case, it served as a seed that slowly taken root and flourished in no time. I liked the overlapping and cross-sectional approach. Although there are clear rules and thresholds in the magic, there are times when the information was limited that it kind of blurs how things work. I liked when we are just given a glimpse enough to feed our imagination and with it I say that there is great potential for the magic in this world to be fleshed out in succeeding installments. I am happy to see familiar techniques in the use of culture and birthright as she introduces worlds, factions, and characters. Chupeco’s use of backstory and prophecies to offer a glimpse of the future without spoiling the current events is truly impeccable.

Wicked as You Wish also tackled the dark underbelly of several socio-economic and political issues that ring de facto in real world setting. It coursed through racism, discrimination, enmity in immigration, consumerism, power struggles, and more. Evidence to these are depictions of superior-complex in the Royal States of America as they question immigrants such as the Makilings and Katipuneros as well as bullying in passing laws that would allow mega-corporations to acquire Avalonian magic to their gain and without grave consequences. Moreover, I appreciated that although there is a depiction of it being challenged, sexual orientation and gender identity are somewhat normalized at least in the Order of the Bandersnatch. This one centers people often pushed to the sides in most fantasy narratives. It offered a glimpse of what a world would be without the ill prejudices people have of one another.

In the very center of it all, Rin Chupeco boasts Philippine folklore as the story is anchored to the main character Tala Makiling Warnock, one of the Spellbreakers who possess the power to negate magic — the very agimat, the gift (or curse) from Maria Makiling’s sacrifice. I am so delighted to have read accurate representation in Pinoy culture. I couldn’t help but laugh at how we Pinoys hold an extravagant feast, how we champion the hospitality spirit, as well as, the portrayal of extended families gathering at one place — the titas and titos and of course, the wisdom from our feisty lolas.

Notwithstanding the undertakings of the complex urban fantasy, this book celebrated diversity and representation. The cast is a handful to take. The Katipuneros are an image of teamwork and resiliency. Tala, our main character, is a reluctant hero despite having an ability that can flip the outcomes of the longstanding war with the Snow Queen. In the opposite end of the pole, we have Alexei Tsarevich, the only surviving royal and key to thawing frozen Avalon. He is headstrong and at times foolhardy displacing the people around him. We also get to meet the Order of the Bandersnatch, a band of talented Avalonians selected for their familial origins and use of segens, spelltech or weapons passed down generations of prestigious bloodlines. This group flaunts multi-faceted perspectives as they figure out individual causes while fulfilling their promise to protect the prince.

With pride, Wicked as You Wish hammered its marker deep as it delivers the opening salvo to the A Hundred Names of Magic series. Rin Chupeco never fails to at holding attention while carefully plotting the course of the next installments. This book is definitely a salad bowl teeming with stories old and new, adventure, and the quest to finding the power of choice — all these painting a vista out of magical pieces a hundredfold.

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I finished "Wicked as you wish" some days ago and sadly it wasn't for me.
But I think you should just give it a try. 😂

Though it's urban fantasy, I thought the fantasy elements were very present and kind of a mix of mythologies and tales from all around the world.
We have a very diverse cast and a focus on Filipina culture, what I loved.
This book also explores topics like the racist immigration policies and the horrible treatment of refugees.

It's a magical, diverse story, that also discusses a lot of important topics.

So it sounds really good, but I had a hard time to focus on everything. It felt like a lot for me. Please go and check out reviews by Own Voices reviewers.

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I really, really loved WICKED AS YOU WISH!

Chupeco's writing is absolutely breathtaking. Her world-building is phenomenal, and the magic system utilized throughout the story is so unique and well-developed!

I loved the entire concept of fairy-tale characters existing in *our* world, and how legends such as Sleeping Beauty were woven into the alternative-world's history. I loved the diversity (diversity in sexuality, in race, in religion, in gender identity: everything was covered, and covered BEAUTIFULLY). The story was sharp and exciting, and I couldn't put it down!

WICKED AS YOU WISH is fantastic. ALL of Rin Chupeco's works are fantastic. DEFINITELY pick this story up - you'll love it!

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This book is literally just all the fairytales and stories you can imagine combined and put into one book. It’s not just a retelling it’s all the retellings! I enjoyed this book but it was a little too much for me. It reminded me a lot of The Hazel Wood, since they are both really magical, so if you liked that I’d recommend this book for you. I don’t really know how I feel about retellings, my favorites are usually the ones that more have inspiration from the original story but don’t follow the exact storyline. It was nice that this took a spin on the whole concept and even though I didn’t love this book I’ll still read Rin Chupeco’s other books because I still really liked the writing of it.

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The combination of fairy tale worlds/countries mixed in with modern countries sounded like an interesting premise, but being thrown into the deep end from the very beginning was overwhelming and not an entirely pleasant experience. It felt like an info dump and I wasn't able to catch my breath and understand the history of this world, much less where Tala, her family, her friends etc. were meant to stand in all of it. Events and titles that sound important lose their impact because we're scrambling to figure out who belongs where or what their relevance is.

It was/is slightly confusing to be thrown into the story which, one finds out, combines many classic elements of fairy stories (i.e. Avalon, Wonderland, etc.) and trying to keep track not only of what ones are present, but what of their original source material remains in this new work and how it interacts with all the others and WAYW original casting.

Normally a boat load of fairy tale references would be fun, like Once Upon a Time or something. I think the issue was that in this instance it felt overwhelming. There was so much in the first 10%, like I was expected to know lineages and war history and so forth already and felt nigh on incompetent for not getting what Tala & others were talking about. The overload killed me.

Rin's writing is normally engaging, but the excessive info dump in the beginning made WAYW disappointing.

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This is the second book I've tried from this author and I think it's time to just call it quits as it's not meant to be. I tried to read this book several times and couldn't muster any interest in the characters or story. The world was interesting enough but I wasn't latching on to anything to make it more than a cool setting. After taking months to reach the 35% mark, I DNF-ed due to a lack of interest and investment.

For this reason I will not be sharing this review beyond this platform.

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I was really looking for to reading Wicked as You Wish by Rin Chupeco! It checked all my boxes with heavy world-building, a new magical system, a little romance and a diverse cast of characters.
Unfortunately, for me, this book fell flat. The first 9 chapters of the book include a lot of character introductions, a brand-new world with a complicated magical and political system, and too many plot twists. I was hoping by chapter 10 the book would settle and the introduction of new characters and new magical elements would stop. Unfortunately, the book continues to pick up speed.
I found the introduction of ICE and the comparison of magic in this world to undocumented immigrants in our world interesting, if not a little heavy handed.
I was desperate to like this book, but the continued clichés are wearing me down, murdered parents, frog prince, evil ice witch, double crossing evil love interest.
I might give this book a try again in the future but for right now I cannot dedicate anymore time to it.
DNF-didnotfinish

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Wicked as You Wish is the first book in a series and its based around the Magical Kingdom of Avalon and the people of that kingdom who were stuck in Arizona after their Kingdom was set in ice after the Snow Queen waged war on the worlds. This is the story of a girl with secrets, a Prince in Hiding, a team of protectors and a firebird, all finding their way through a magical kingdom to save the land.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book (so much so that I've loaned it to a friend who is also enjoying it!) - it was a nice and easy read with a lot going on. The world building I enjoyed, it was well done and easy to understand for me. Starting in 'our' world and moving to the kingdom of Avalon the story build up well and I felt like it explained itself well. The teenager angst was written well and the nods to Disney were, for me, a very welcome addition. They really made the book for me and helped to add to the fantastical nature of some bits. The writing was well done although read quite young at times. From a little research it seems like this book was orignally written years ago by the author and shelved as it wasn't thought to be good enough to be published. It was her first book that she wrote, and although it was very good I do think that you can tell its a younger and 'first' book.

Overall this was a very enjoyable read and I look forward to picking up book 2! 3 out of 5* for me!

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Unfortunately, I didn't love this book. The premise was strong, and I had high hopes for the author after hearing so many wonderful things about The Bone Witch and it's follow ups.

The story revolves around a world where magic exists, but has been blocked and destroyed. A lost prince tries to return to his kingdom with the help of a young magician and a rag tag group of allies. Sadly, I found the characters predictable and the story far too contrived. Great idea, poor execution.

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I enjoyed this book the more I got into it. I felt lost at first, because there are a LOT of details. There is also a lot of name-dropping, like the author tried to put every magical being known to man in her universe history. I still don't know if all of it was necessary in the first book, or if it could have been dispersed throughout the story.

However, when the action kicked in... I was ALL IN! The magical obstacles that the group have to overcome are delightful and imaginative. I really enjoyed living this quest with them. And the ending is pure dynamite. We can be assured that the second book will be awesome.

Many thanks to Sourcebook Fire for the complimentary e-copy of this book through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

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Unfortunately this book was a DNF for me at about 40%. The world building was extremely confusing and I just couldn't figure out what was going on with any of the magic system, despite the multiple information dumps that occurred. But probably the biggest problem I had with this book was I just couldn't relate to any of the characters. I really, really wanted to relate to them, especially Tala who sounds like an amazing character, but I just could not connect. I really enjoyed that the characters were very diverse but that was where the enjoyment ended. They felt very one dimensional and didn't feel like they had any substance to them. I really wanted to like this book but I just couldn't push myself to even finish it. I have not rated this on goodreads because I did not finish it (I think it is unfair to give a rating to a book you do not finish) but NetGalley makes me select a rating so I had to pick something.

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DNF 50%

I thought the idea was good, and the world-building was pretty cool, but I was unable to make a connection with the characters. I found myself thoughts wondering through the pages and at that point I realized I probably wasn't going to enjoy it any longer. This is a shame because I was really looking forward to this book. Will still give the author another chance.

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I stopped reading this book at the halfway point. I think the premise is really cool, and I love all the culture throughout the story. However, there is so much going on that I found it hard to keep up. I didn't connect with the characters and found myself just not caring about what happened to them. I might try this again in the future because I do like the way the author writes, but this book just isn't for me at this time.

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DNF @ 10%

Man, I pride myself on loving and enjoying fantasy--and I've read some that were quite dense--but Wicked As You Wish was extremely difficult to fall into and understand. I kept waiting for that moment where I could read it without having to concentrate and think so hard, where I could be taken along for the ride, but it never came. And the blurb and cover really drew me in, too, which made it even more disappointing when I couldn't enjoy it. I gave it some time after trying it prior to publication, but at this point I'm going to have to hang it up for good. It's just not for me sadly.

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DNF @ 25%

I was so excited to read this book because it highlights my culture. But maybe this is not the time to read it. I think I need to get used to the author's writing style. Because I am actually having difficulties getting into it right now. But maybe it's just me.

But I will get to this once I am in the right state of mind and I have prepared myself to really invest myself into this book.

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