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This is going to be a strange review for me to write, because I’m not sure I’m entirely settled on WHEN WE WERE MAGIC.

To be clear, I’m an enormous fan of Sarah Gailey. Of their books that I’ve read, their online musings, tweets, blog posts…Sarah Gailey’s is just a voice that I completely adore. And WHEN WE WERE MAGIC is beautiful at times. Funny, weird, achingly sweet and romantic, and a book that doesn’t pander to its audience. I think with this book, Gailey demonstrates phenomenal skill in being able to jump from adult fiction to YA. No doubt we will be seeing some brilliant YA books from Sarah Gailey in the future!

My hesitation with this book feels somewhat spoilery, although what I’m about to describe takes place literally on the first page, and is the central plot point moving forward. So, I guess… beware? But this is not something I can leave out of the review.

The book follows a group of teenage girls, all of whom can do different types of magic. The story opens with the main character, Alexis, in the immediate aftermath of a prom night tragedy. While attempting to lose her virginity to a guy named Josh, there’s a mishap putting on the condom, and well…Josh’s dick explodes.

Josh’s dick explodes and he bleeds out and dies.

And then a lot of the story is built around the girls (who are all still learning how their magic works, to varying degrees) attempting to find ways to bring Josh back, while also concealing evidence and lying about what they do & don’t know.

So, this is one of those things that just… is tonally a bit confusing. Because even as I write it out, it sounds like I’m telling a joke about an exploding dick. And it’s played off a bit light in the book, which is where things feel…uneven when considering the book as a whole. I’m just not sure the severity of the incident is given the attention it needs.

But despite the pall cast over the book by this event, there is a lot about WHEN WE WERE MAGIC that I loved. Like…a lot. This is a dynamic & diverse group of friends, all finding their way & figuring out who they want to be. And while there are relationships within the group of friends that have their own unique vibe, all of these girls are looking out for each other, no matter what. The bond that Gailey creates between these characters is really just beautiful.

I guess this is something of a mixed bag for me. As a quirky, funny, incredibly well written supernatural YA novel with lots of delightful queer romance, this book is outstanding. But again, there’s just this intense sense of darkness around the edges of the story that never totally coalesces.

Hmm. I’m still thinking on it, I guess.