Review: The Fairest Kind of Love (Windy City Magic #3)
Title: The Fairest Kind of Love (Windy City Magic #3)
Author: Crystal Cestari
Pages: 320
Format: Hardback from SearchOhio and e-book from Overdrive
Published: 5 March 2019
Synopsis (from Goodreads): “Amber Sand has spent half her life solidifying other people’s happily-ever-afters. As a matchmaker, she has the ability to look into anyone’s eyes and see their perfect match. But lately, her powers have been on the fritz, and not only is she totally unsure whether her matches are true, she can’t see anyone in the eyes of her boyfriend Charlie Blitzman. With Amber and her friends graduating high school and about to take off for various colleges, Amber is hoping to have one last carefree summer-but she’s also dying to find a way to fix her powers, and learn, for better or worse, if she and Charlie are truly meant to be.
So when an online matchmaker named Madame Lamour comes to Chicago, Amber sets out to talk to her and find out who her match is once and for all. Of course, when it comes to the magical community, nothing’s ever that easy, and Amber soon finds herself caught up in a breathless showdown that involves a fairy family feud and a magical-creature auction–and requires teaming up with a certain siren nemesis. Can Amber and her friends save the day one more time before setting off for their new lives? And will Amber ever learn whether Charlie is her one true love?”
Rating:
Review:
I so appreciate books like this, because it seems like teen books are getting darker and grittier every year. Sometimes it’s just nice to read something fun and cozy, and this trilogy has been the most fun I’ve had reading in a long time.
The third installment of Windy City Magic was sadly my least favorite. I was so excited about a new fairy plot as well finding out why Amber’s magic was glitching. It seemed like two interesting plots to explore, and had they not been so rushed I really think they would have been.
It was the rush that took some of the enjoyment out of everything for me. Problems happened and were resolved within a blink of an eye, and character development seemed to halt for everyone except Ivy. Not to mention our new fairy friends seemed all over the place in who they were as characters, especially Peter. By the end, I felt like I barely new Peter, Rose, and Jane at all.
I will say that I liked how fairies were portrayed in this book. I’m used to Cassie Clare novels where fairies are tricksters who can’t be trusted and thrive off of taking advantage of mortals. In this book, however, the fairies were the ones who were constantly taken advantage of due to their access to fairy dust, which left them feeling untrusting and angry towards magic and anyone who wasn’t a fairy. That was pretty interesting and the most well-written part of the book.
Amani, Charlie, Vincent, Kim, and friends played such small roles that it was kind of disappointing. It felt more like they made little cameos here and there, and Amber and Charlie’s relationship felt overly sugary-sweet. I feel like we lost who they were as individuals this time. I’m glad they didn’t have the same amount of conflicts as they did in the last book, but this time around their relationship barely felt genuine. It was Hallmark level sweet.
Overall, The Fairest Kind of Love was still really enjoyable, but it didn’t measure up to the first two books. I’m not sure the story really knew where it wanted to go. There were too many small plots that were rushed to be resolved and not enough character development or heartfelt moments to help.
However, I’m still really sad that the series is over! I absolutely adored Amber Sand and her friends, and I wish there were more fun series like this.
Happy reading!
Syl Reads 