It's a great concept and title but I struggled with the writing style and ultimately didn't finish. I appreciate the chance to review.

I’m a Gay Wizard is a refreshing, imaginative, and deeply heartfelt urban fantasy that brings much-needed queer representation to the magical coming-of-age genre. With its unique blend of magical realism, teen angst, and LGBTQ+ romance, this story offers a vibrant ride that feels both familiar and wonderfully new.

At the heart of the novel is Johnny, a sarcastic and sensitive protagonist whose emotional journey is as compelling as his magical awakening. Alongside his fiercely loyal best friend Alison, Johnny stumbles into a world of real magic when a seemingly harmless summer of spellcasting accidentally triggers a literal earthquake in Chicago. This wild moment of magical chaos lands them in the mysterious Marduk Institute—a Hogwarts-meets-queer-camp kind of school for young magical misfits.

The story really shines in its exploration of identity. Johnny’s queerness isn’t just part of the title—it’s beautifully woven into every aspect of his character and emotional arc. His attraction to fellow students like Hunter and Blake is portrayed with honesty, humor, and tenderness, and the romantic moments, though subtle, are endearing and earned. The book doesn’t shy away from discussing real issues like bullying, isolation, and self-worth, grounding its fantastical elements in very real emotional stakes.

The magical world is full of inventive creatures, mysterious powers, and shadowy danger, though at times it can feel a little underdeveloped or fast-paced, especially in the latter half when the plot ramps up. Some world-building elements could benefit from more depth or clarity, and side characters occasionally fade into the background. Still, the heart of the story—Johnny and Alison’s unbreakable friendship and their fight for self-acceptance—keeps the narrative grounded.

What makes I’m a Gay Wizard stand out isn’t just the magic—it’s the joy of seeing queer teens front and center in a story where they’re not sidelined, tokenized, or tragic. They’re powerful, complicated, brave, and sometimes messy—and that’s exactly what makes this book such a magical read.

With snark, sparkle, and soul, I’m a Gay Wizard is perfect for fans of Carry On, The Magicians, or anyone who ever wished their coming-of-age story came with a wand, a crush, and a whole lot of courage.

I'm a Gay Wizard by V.S. Santoni is a great read. It was filled with a humor, heart, and magic. I'm A Gay Wizard follows Andrew, a teenager who discovers that he's not just gay, but also a wizard. This novel is also a coming-of-age story and about identity, coming out, and trying to figure out who you are.

I'm A Gay Wizard has other themes such as being accepted and self-discovery. I believe the protagonist Andrew is a relatable character. He seems a bit awkward at times, but very much charming. I enjoyed his growth throughout the book which kept me hooked.

I'm a Gay Wizard is definitely worth the read. I felt it was faced paced and heartwarming novel.

Sadly this one wasn’t for me. I wasn’t a fan of the storyline. I also felt the characters were hard to get true feelings for.

You can find hidden gems on Wattpad and fanfiction sites. For example, I loved A. V. Geiger's Follow Me Back when I read the duology several years ago, and I was hoping for the same love to be given to Santoni's I'm a Gay Wizard.

Trigger warnings: homophobia, bullying, kidnapping, assault

I don't know if a story can be 'too wattpady' but this was. The magical aspects were not executed well nor were they explained at all. The romances seemed cliche...however, I did DNF it not even 20% through so maybe they get better. Also, the main character Johnny is unbelievably awkward and just so different from everyone else. Johnny and his classmates behave similar to 12-year-olds rather than 17/18-year-olds, based on their communication and the number of times "freak" is used as an insult.

There was also just a lot to unpack with the string of homophobic slurs and assaults targeted on the main characters, and I wasn't comfortable that the main characters nor any bystanders at the busy mall the assault took place did not go to the police and charge the assailants. This situation was not realistic.

From other reviews, this is a good story for some and not for others. I just am in the latter group, unfortunately.

Sadly a DNF — time just got away from me, and this one didn’t hit me at the right mood. Still love the title, but check other reviews for guidance.

Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my review in any way, and the thoughts expressed are my own.
Content warning for this book: it contains a lot of scenes full of homophobia and transphobia, including slurs and violence. As a queer person, this made me uncomfortable, especially since it continued for so long with little positivity to counteract it. I would have thought that a book with the title of ‘I’m A Gay Wizard’ would be more positive about the gay and trans characters, but a huge portion of it was spent on homophobia and transphobia, it was only at the 60% mark that things started to become more positive in that regard. It was very much just characters taking hit after hit for being queer and it got tiresome quickly, especially since there were other things they could have been bullied about apart from simply being queer.
The writing style was basic and repetitive. It came across as a book with little plot or character development, and challenges arose and were handled very quickly with little problem. Pop culture references were used to do large parts of the heavy lifting, with frequent obvious references to The Matrix and Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. There were also numerous times of infodumping or characters randomly telling things that had little relation to the current scene.
Overall, the writing style was a 3 star but the heavy focus on homophobia/ transphobia made it lose a star for me, so I give it 2/5.

The blurb made it seem very funny and intersting, and i went into it with kind of high hopes.
But meh. It was written too boring and meh. I did not get that funny, amazing and interesting feeling.

An interesting take on a magical school, but one that is more obviously meant as control and not education. I am definitely interested in the world building, but less invested in the characters. The relationships fell a bit flat for me, and they were noticeably not as vivid as the world they live in.

The premise was interesting, but the execution was lackluster. It felt like so much was just thrown together at random. The narration also didn’t seem to consistently match the tone of a teenage boy. The excessive use of off the wall similes was very odd. It was also off-putting that the main character seemed to be white washed with being called Johnny when that’s essentially an anglicized version of his name.

Ok this was just as fun as I anticipated it to be. The title really describes what this story is and I really enjoyed it. I would definetly read more by this author.

Firstly I want to thank NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. What better title to attract my attention. Really enjoyed this title and know that a lot of other people will too

I mange to get to about 11% and (once again) realised I wasn’t connecting at all to the characters. I’m definitely more of a character reader. Don’t get me wrong, I really really love my plots, but badly written characters spoil the vibe for me and is the main cause of me dnfing a book.

Plus, there was a lot of information being shoved at the reader in the tiny part that I read and that’s another reason to not carry on reading. I like having information but not that much in such a little timespan.

Let's be honest, I'm not going back to this book. I managed 18% and it was extremely triggering. I saw that another reviewer had a similar experience. This wasn't a fun read. While the premise is interesting, the whole kidnapped by the government thing was the least of the awfulness. I'm fine with dark topics, but you need to be warned about them first and there needs to be more redeeming elements than I found in this book.

Thank you to NetGalley and Wattpad Books for providing me with an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

This book wasn't for me--the pacing and characterization felt a bit slow, so my interest waned before the plot started ramping up. The book has the feel of a young debut author, and I'll be finding one of their newer books to see how they're honed the talent they show here

This ended up being a DNF for me - not because it was a bad book, but because we didn't suit each other. I would happily recommend it to other readers I know, but it's not quite for me!

This was such a goofy little novel. I loved the queer representation, but the rest of this was super cheesy and maybe not well thought out? There’s going to be a little gay wizard who picks this up one day and feels SEEN and I love that for them.

This is one of those books that I keep trying to pick up and keep having to put it down. The plot is interesting, I like the characters but I feel like I'm never in the right headspace and I can't figure out why. Maybe it's the pacing? Maybe it's just that I'm still in the setup? Maybe it's my ADHD or the world feeling like it's coming to an end? In any case, I look forward to the day I can finally read this and give it a proper GoodReads review. Thank you for opportunity, I'm sorry that I just couldn't get through this book.

This was..... bad. The language in this was hugely harmful and I really had to force myself not to DNF immediately for the purposes of this review. Even then, this took me so long to read because I had to keep putting it down because I was so uncomfortable and disgusted. I can't think of a single redeeming point for this book.

Honestly, this book was forgettable. While reading it, I enjoyed the experience, but I can't even remember the characters or the majority of the plot points in the book.