Review: Microscopes and Magic by Andi R. Christopher

Microscopes and Magic (Windflower Book 2)
by Andi R. Christopher

My Rating: 4 stars

Genre: Cozy Fantasy
Age Category: New Adult
Type of romance: f/f

Blurb:
Some magical problems take spells and potions to solve… but others can only be understood through the lenses of a microscope.

Marigold Nightfield’s life changed when she absorbed the magic stored in a family heirloom. Now, she’s part of a growing network of magic-working scientists who are trying to change the world for the better, and has a girlfriend from a sprawling, powerful, witchy family.

Things should be coming together perfectly for her… but her magic has a time limit. It’s not hers for keeps and one day, she’ll lose it for good.

When her girlfriend’s work is destroyed by possible sabotage, and strange things start appearing in Wellington’s green belt, Marigold’s amazing new life starts to unravel. With unknown motives and dubious players at work, she faces a destructive force spreading through the city and beyond. She’ll have to not only draw on her scientific background and magical abilities, but make new connections and grow in confidence to face this new threat.

This second edition also includes the bonus short story, Magic on the Waves.

My Review

I recently re-read Spells and Succulents and then shortly after that started the second book in this series. I am glad I did the re-read of book 1 as that helped me get back into the series. Microscopes and Magic takes place about half a year later than book 1 and this time it’s all from Marigold’s perspective rather than Laurel. This took me a bit by surprise, but I also liked it as it gave me the chance to get a better feel for Marigold.

In this book Marigold and Laurel have to deal with something harming Laurel’s succulents, but they aren’t sure what. And Marigold starts to investigate. I liked the combination of magic and science in this one and seeing how Marigold approached this problem. I also liked the side characters they meet along the way. It was fun to see how this got resolved. I also liked seeing marigold deal with now being a witch and how she handled that as well as what she struggles with. I liked getting a better understanding of her in this book.

I also liked seeing Marigold and Laurel’s romance from Marigold’s perspective now. And it was fun seeing them grow closer. I would’ve liked a bit more of them spendign time together, but there are some fun scenes and I look forward to seeing how their romance develops after this.

There’s also a short story set between books 1 and 2 at the end of this one, about Laurel and Marigold celebrating Christmas with Laurel’s family. Which was a fun little extra and I liked seeing these two character enjoy their Christmas celebrations as well as seeing more of Laurel’s family. It contains a short magical mystery as well, which was fun. This story was from Laurel’s perspective.

To summarize: This was a great sequel. I was glad I re-read book 1 first to get back into the series. This book changes this up and is from Marigold’s perspective instead of Laurel. I liked getting to know Marigold a bit better and see how she deals with things. There is a bit of a mystery in this one with something harming Laurel’s succulents and Marigold investigates. I liked the mix of science and magic in this one and it was fun seeing how the plot line got resolved. I also liked seeing more of their romance. And there’s a fun short story at the end of the book about their Christmas vacation, which was a fun extra. I look forward to the next book!

Links:
– Goodreads
– Bookbub
– Amazon
– B&N
– Kobo

You can also read my review on Goodreads and Bookbub.