Review: Serpent and Dove

This has been a long-awaited read for me. I've heard everyone raving about how good it is, and my local library was all out of copies, so I'd been waiting a good while to finally get my hands on this book. And let me just say, it didn't disappoint. Serpent & Dove is classified as: YA Fantasy Fiction, Romance

Synopsis:

Bound as one to love, honor, or burn.

Two years ago, Louise le Blanc fled her coven and took shelter in the city of Cesarine, forsaking all magic and living off whatever she could steal. There, witches like Lou are hunted. They are feared. And they are burned.

Sworn to the Church as a Chasseur, Reid Diggory has lived his life by one principle: thou shalt not suffer a witch to live. His path was never meant to cross with Lou's, but a wicked stunt forces them into an impossible union—holy matrimony.

The war between witches and Church is an ancient one, and Lou's most dangerous enemies bring a fate worse than fire. Unable to ignore her growing feelings, yet powerless to change what she is, a choice must be made.

And love makes fools of us all.

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First of all, I LOVED Lou. My absolute favorite character. She's loud, funny, smart, brave, and can fight. What more could one want in a woman? She carried this entire book on her shoulders with her humor and knack for embarrassing Reid. Hell, I loved her almost as much as Jude from The Cruel Prince and I don't love anyone like I love Jude. She was part of almost all the banter in this book and it was so entertaining.

Next, I love the relationship between Lou and Ansel. They have such a cute friendship and I'm jealous of them. Same with Coco. One of my favorite female friendships, no doubt. I also really enjoyed the 18th century France but reimagined with witches setting. It adds to the allure of this book for me, since I've always been obsessed with France.

I really like the slow burn enemies-to-lovers. It was done really well. Not too fast, not too slow. And not to mention Reid's character arc. In the beginning, he was so flustered at everything Lou did and had a set belief about how women should act. But Lou changed all that. He became more like her and loved her because of who she is, not in spite of it.

Lastly, the plot is really cool. There's a lot of foreshadowing, and when the final plot is actually revealed, I was surprised but very excited. There are LOTS of unexpected turns and plot twists, and it was very enjoyable to read. This whole book is very original. I've read lots of magic-centered books before, some with witches and some without, and this is definitely different from what I've encountered before.

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I have to say, it was a little difficult to get into at first. The book basically starts after the first 100 pages, so I really wasn't interested until then. Serpent & Dove is slow-paced for the majority of it since it's focused on how Lou and Reid's relationship develops, but after Morgane le Blanc enters the picture (around pg. 300), everything falls apart and that's where it really picks up.

I also think the magical element should've been expanded on more because I barely know how it works. I definitely don't know how Coco's magic works, and I have just a base understanding of how Lou's does.

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Overall, Serpent & Dove was a really fun read, mostly because of Lou. It was super entertaining and very original, and the romance was good as well. There are a couple things that could've been better, but this is great for a debut novel. 4/5 stars.