The Thirteenth Child

The Thirteenth Child started off strong, but the candle burned out faster than desired.

Hazel, the main character, is an unloved and neglected thirteenth child promised to one of the major gods of this world. Once he finally shows up and tells her, “Yer a wizard healer, Hazel!” She enters a profession she didn't choose, but wants to succeed at nonetheless.

The overarching plot is intriguing, with a decently satisfying ending. I do have some frustrations that I want to share. The pacing in the first half of the book is really slow. It's just a girl studying and practicing her craft. It gets a bit bland, and I understand the choices made, but I wouldn't recommend it to those loving page-turners and staying up just to finish a book because you simply can't put it down.

The part I disliked the most is a dream sequence smack-dab in the middle of this book. I was confused when I read it - it felt like I had missed something, like I was suddenly reading a completely different tale. The writing was too different and it felt jarring to me. It's like an editor saying, “Hey, why don't we add some spice?” and this chapter was added just for that reason. The rest of the book has none of that, it's just one very out-of-place dream.

Something that I felt was also lacking were the plot twists. Everything that supposed to shock you isn't foreshadowed, but forespotlighted. The writing when something is hinted at is so on-the-nose and obvious, you'll see it coming from miles away.

And my major gripe (very mild spoilers for the ending):

How many times can you tell your godfather that you want him in your life only for him to never be around and not even have ANY impact on the ending? How was he not around for all that?

Although it did fall flat for me in some regards, I would recommend this to those looking for a modern fairytale or cute romance!