Perfect for fans of worlds like Harry Potter or Carry On, 'Im a Gay Wizard' is a unique and diverse look at the magical school genre. It's a breath of fresh air in YA, a genre that is predominantly white and straight.

I recommend this book to any YA romance fan.

When I saw the cover and the description I was excited to read it but in the end didn't like that much as I thought.
I liked the idea of the Institute and the rebels, how the children can't even use magic inside the Institute and it's a school for magic. However, I didn't like the characters, sure they are a good representation for LGBTQ but didn't appeal much.
I always like when magic is involved but this magic was weird, didn't sound magic at all. Found some parts confusing and somethings seemed off.
Yet was easy too read and something different.

TW: homophobia and transphobia (and related bullying and violence)

"I'm a Gay Wizard" is a really fun book and definitely something that YA (and fiction in general) needs more of-- people not being white, cis, and hetero and that being an integral part of the story but not the main plot point. Johnny is very much not straight and there are issues in the book relating to him being gay but the plot of the book is that he and his friend Alison (mtf) have accidentally become wizards. After doing one spell Johnny and Alison are kidnapped and taken to a school for people for wizards and navigate what it means to be a wizard. Them being gay and transgender respectively is a part of who they are and how they handle the world, but the book takes such care to make sure that while the ideas of gender and sexuality are always present, the characters and their lives have other issues. Alison is mentioned as trans *after* the fact that she dresses all in black and I think that's marvellous as she is written as a stereotypical quirky female best friend-- the being trans does not change the fact that she is both quirky and female.

The wizardry in this book is quite fascinating as it relies on knowing math and science and not an ability to speak Latin or other arcane phrases. As the story develops Alison and Johnny get love interests and have to deal with their conflicting feelings about staying for said love interests and leaving a place that a dangerous class system and mind-wiped everyone they love.

My one issue with this book is that sometimes the writing can be a bit off. There is a lot of characters saying exactly what they mean which limits some nuance in the writing and makes the beginning of the book less enticing than the rest of it as it is a bit on the nose. The same can be said for the end of the book in that it seemed a bit abrupt and rushed. The ideas were there but the execution of them could have used an extra few pages.

Overall, "I'm a Gay Wizard" was such a fun book and it is so great to see better representation in YA! I look forward to seeing what else VS Santoni brings to the writing world in future!

I could not get past the first couple chapters. The writing style just didn’t mesh for me personally. I won’t rate this on goodreads as I was unable to finish.

3]
I would not say I enjoyed this book, but at the same time, I did not not enjoy it. The book honestly made no sense, but I found that it was really easier to read and I did want to continue reading it. There is no plot, AT ALL. I thought the last book I had read had no plot, but compared to this one, it had the most intricate storyline ever. The characters were also, meh. But I never found myself not liking the book, which is weird, but probably has to do with how short the book is since it wasn't long enough to make me feel like I was wasting my time.

Great great concept. Bad execution. This was a cover, title, and description grab for me. I was super excited to read it. Unfortunately I had to DNF it because I could not get into the writing style or the bullying of the main character.

Thank you Netgalley for an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I can't but compare any book featuring a magic school to Harry Potter. Sorry, it's just how my brain works. But I quickly realized bot books have very little in common. Instead of "yay, magic school" it's "oh no, magic school", since it's clear from the beginning that the people at the school are not the good guys. I really liked the MC, wish we could've seen a bit more of his best friend Alison. Curious to see what happens next.

This was a very interesting book that I was immediately drawn to, but unfortunately the premise was better than the execution.

Johnny and his friend Alison are kidnapped after they perform a spell that makes the magical Institute interested in them. The Institute, which keeps wizards safe from the outside world. Johnny and Alison immediately want to run away but find it difficult to. And ... that's the plot.

What I loved most from this book is the diversity: Johnny is gay and Latinx, while Alison is trans. I liked the book for the most part but it dragged quite a bit. I don't think I'll be reading the next book in the series.

The title of this book really says it all.

I'm a Gay Wizard focuses on Johnny and his best friend Alison. After accidentally causing an earthquake the pair are kidnapped and taken to an institute for wizards where they meet new people and try to escape.

This book was pretty entertaining. The world building could do with a little work but the magic system is pretty interesting and I liked the characters. There are some hard hitting scenes to do with homophobia and transphobia that should be warned about. But...when writing a novel set in a world that's mostly based off our own... It's an unfortunate but realistic addition.

I did really enjoy this book though. It was a bit of a slow start but once it gets going, it's really easy to get through it.

I'd definitely recommend this book.

I was very very disappointed in this book. The writing was awful! No world or character building at all. The characters were very immature and I couldn't get over all of the vulgar language and negativity. It was said to be a cross between Harry Potter and the Magicians which is very very misleading since it is nothing like that at all. There wasn't even really any magic in the book! I don't recommend it at all.

Well, I had tons on fun reading this book. Did it sometimes feel like a debut/Wattpad/fanfic? Sure. Did it have way too many similes? Like grains of sand on a beach! Were there tons of pop culture reference that will not age well in the least? You betcha! Did it stop me from enjoying it? Nope, not a lot.

First of all, the novel's approach to the magical academy trope was truly unique. Instead of a privileged experience of an elite Hogwarts-like school, our protagonist Johnny is kidnapped, his whole existence is erased and - spoiler! - it's not even the worst of it. The worldbuilding was really interesting and left me wanting more. I enjoyed the characters as well: the MC, Johnny, is a gay Latino and his bestie Alison is a trans girl. His love interest, Hunter, is questioning at first, then reveals he is a closeted gay who was gay-bashed by his homophobic father. There is an empowering scene where Hunter stops his father's abuse in the dream world (Everywhen). And finally, there is Blake, Alison's love interest and also the low-key White Knight of the story who can, like, slay any monster, no problem.

The writing and characterization were a bit shaky sometimes, but I held my breath during all the action scenes and found all identity-related dialogues and thoughts very realistic: I could really tell it's an #ownvoices novel and I appreciated that. Johnny's narration wasn't that of a literary genius and he often repeated pretty obvious things, but like, so what? This is a YA book from Wattpad, not the next great American novel. Chill.

On a different note, all these negative DNF reviews from people who expected "unicorns and rainbows" and got angry upon encountering a very realistic description of queer-bashing from an #ownvoices author feel like, I don't know, unfair to the book... This experience is, unfortunately, very common for us queer people and the author even went and put trigger warnings on Goodreads.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC! Looking forward to the sequel. 🌈🦄

Johnny and his friend Alison are extracted (kidnapped really) from their families after they perform a spell that puts them on the Institute's radar. The Institute is a school for wizards meant to keep them safe from the outside world.

The Institute staff act as if this is all okay, as if snatching children from their beds in the middle of the night and keeping them forcefully in prison is perfectly normal. Johnny and Alison want to run away although they've heard it's impossible. Johnny's worried about his father's depression, Alison is worried about her mother who has cancer. The Institute doesn't give a damn about any of that.

I'm A Gay Wizard is a mildly interesting and story. Johnny is a gay Latinx and his best friend is a trans girl dealing with transphobia and crushes. The book touches on some severe bullying in the first few pages that might be triggering.


I enjoyed the overall idea of the book but I found it difficult to get into. The story dragged on a bit with a lot of parts that didn't really do anything for the plot. Although it was an average read I'm interested to see how the story progresses in the next book.

I voluntarily read and reviewed and advanced copy of this book, received through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Finally an LGBT fantasy novel! Since the majority of queer literature leans toward contemporary issues and storylines, as a fantasy lover I had been feeling the lack of LGBT books in this genre, so I was ecstatic when I saw 'I'm a Gay Wizard' in the suggested list. Overall, there were parts of this book I enjoyed, and parts I didn't, but I'd say it was easy to read and interesting.

The plot is a surprise to say the least. From the summary, you get the idea of the main character being taken to a magic school. However, Johhny, the main character, and Alison, his best friend, soon realize that their parent had their memories about them erased and they can't leave the school, which feels more like a prison. They soon start to develop a plan to run away, making friends with other people from school in the process. The take on the school is really interesting, because it's completely different to the usual magic school we see in books. The characters weren't bad, they were likeable and very diverse, I enjoyed the mentions of queer characters casually interspersed in the narrative, although none of them were memorable to me.

If I had to point out two things I didn't like much they would be the magic school and the pacing. There's no mention or explanation about how the school is run, how magic works in that world nor anything at all. You get to understand some things as you read on, but the "magic world" didn't seem to be very developed. As for the pacing, I felt it was off, since everything felt hurried.

I enjoyed myself reading 'A Gay Wizard'. It was a quick read with action and a good premise even if the execution wasn't great.

I liked this. It was cute and clever but it could be more developed. It has major issues with triggering problems such as homophobia and fat shaming and transphobia. It needs several sensitivity readers and then to be re-released.

I was really hoping that I would enjoy this book because it's an LGBTQ+ book but I was wrong. There were definitely aspects that I enjoyed but the parts that frustrated me far outweighed the good. Something that I enjoyed was the way Hunter's character was written at the beginning but what I disliked which made me really not like the whole story was how his character suddenly shifted. Hunter was such a likable character and I was hoping to see him develop a lot more, and he did but it just didn't seem like Hunter anymore. It seemed like we just got another copy of Johnny which was annoying. I also didn't really enjoy the action scenes that were written near the end. While the other action scenes in this book picked the pace up a lot the end scenes just dragged on.

I couldn't finish this book. This book had potential and was one of the reasons that I requested it but I didn't get on with the writing style and honestly what I read made me uncomfortable and angry. The use of homophobic slurs and bullying of the main character was not what I signed up for.

Honestly this whole book was disgusting. The amount of homophobic slurs this book contains is ridiculous. Not to mention it's intended for "Young Adult" audience. I didn't even finish reading it. It literally upset me beyond words. The writing it self as a whole just seemed generic from what I did read. Over all of I could give a real rating it would be a 0 ZERO for me, for poor execution. This is my honest opinion.

I'm always a sucker for an own voices novel because I love to read and understand perspectives that are not my own. I found this story to be unique and the world building was wonderful allowing me to truly be engulfed in the story as it was unfolding before me. I feel as though some of the characters could have been more developed. The romance between Johnny and Hunter was really sweet and does not feel like a love at first sight cliche that a lot of YA novels fall into.

Overall, this book is super unique with the latino-gay wizard perspective and the writing is able to bring you into the world even if it is fantasy based! I would recommend to anyone looking for something different.

Having seen the whirlwind involving this novel prior to requesting, I was so excited to be able to read it. After around the first 5%, that excitement was extremely quickly dwindling. The frequent use of homophobic slurs and constant bullying of the main character began to really grate on me and started to make me extremely angry. So I put it down thinking maybe another day and a different mood would make me love it as much as so may had before.

Unfortunately, when I started reading it again, it continued to attract my ire. Within the first 10-15% of the novel, the MC had been called various homophobic slurs including 'faggot', there was constant taunting and abuse towards the MC and his best friend and there had also been a scene whereby the two had beaten to a pulp by some nasty teenagers. Had this been advertised as a contemporary, I could have understood but unfortunately it was not.

By the time the MC is kidnapped and taken to 'wizarding school' I had developed so a uncomfortable feeling towards the novel that I struggled to get any further. Usually one to take maybe a week or two to read a novel, this took me more than a month of reading small portions just to tamp down the rage that steadily built inside with every sitting.

So, I found the MC to be superficial and unlikable (usually I like unlikable characters - Lila Bard is the bomb but so not a 'nice' character). I found him to have very few redeeming features despite the fact that he has been abused which is extremely unfortunate as he should have been a person I could at least pity.

The writing was extremely simple. While it is a young adult novel and one would not expect a writing style similar to that which would win a Pulitzer, I at least expected some better than basic vocabulary.

The story line felt tedious and provided me endless frustration despite the fact the blurb makes it feel fantastical and wonderous. I also felt that there were so many similarities between I'm A Gay Wizard and many different popular franchises that I felt I was reading a poorly disguised fanfiction rather than an independent work.

I was extremely hopeful for this novel as it was own voices. Unfortunately the 'own voice' seemed more like the author hates his own identity rather than someone who I felt should be celebrating his own sexuality.

Overall I found this novel to be a disappointment. I find it extremely difficult to find a redeeming feature however I am sure many will find it an enjoyable novel - It simply was not for me. I would warn any person who reads this novel that the language and behaviour of multiple characters within this novel will be triggering

INTERESTING PREMISE, POOR EXECUTION

Actual rating: 2.5 ⭐️

I was so excited for this book mainly because if the title - I mean, how can you not get excited about a book about a gay wizard who so openly claims his sexuality that the books is named after it?! Sadly, it had a lot of issues that made it hard to love this book as much as I wanted to.

"Just two guys riding a unicorn. Nothing gay about that."

THE THINGS I LIKED

Queer representation: Johnny is gay. Alison is transgender. Hunter is a little unsure of his sexuality at first. Blake is probably pansexual though it is never voiced. I loved how each of these were represented.

THE THINGS I DISLIKED

Magic?: What magic? Though this is a book about magic and wizards, there is actually very little magic in it...

Pace: The pace was just all over the place, making the story feel oddly patchy and fragmented.

Writing: Sorry, but the writing felt almost amateurish, there were simply too many unnecessary descriptions.They hindered the story instead of driving it forward.

World building: Yeah, this part was REALLY lacking. Everything was super confusing because it was unexplained. And the different fantasy elements just didn't seem to go together somehow, it was as if there were too many ideas. They were left un-executed and almost seemed like three different fantasy-worlds patched together into one.