Basil and Oregano

The cooking magic is very pretty but little time is spared for explaining how it works, which is disappointing. The diverse cast is great, though early on it feels like the author had a checklist of what to include. The romance is very cute and the only bullying is wealth/class related, which is a relief with all the diversity afoot.

The story is cute, but I did feel a little confused at the beginning. I was not quite sure what the school or magic is about. However, it became clearer pretty quickly. I liked how we see everyone's motivations by the end, so we get to know more about each person and care more about them. Cute, but also with heart,

3.5/5 stars
To enjoy this you really need to not ask questions throughout the read. As much as I loved it, it seemed like it had a lot going on for how short it was. This made a lot of things make zero sense in terms of the given context. There were multiple characters I believed would be more important but barely got any development. The magic & school system made little sense (at least to me). I was confused as to how much time had passed because one moment they were moving into their dorms and the next they were worrying about finals. It definitely threw me off but I decided to just continue reading and try not to mind too much.

There were a couple of things that I wished had happened. I wish Basil had a conversation with her parents about their financial situation instead of burning herself out trying to get the no 1. spot. Whether it's about how she has been feeling or about what they would do if she did not get the scholarship. Second I wish her other friends weren't sidelined as much as they were. We barely get to know them and it's almost as if they barely exist.

As I mentioned before this is a cute queer read that in order to enjoy you have to avoid overthinking about it & asking too many questions.