3.5 stars 
 Okay... so I enjoyed it... mostly... 
 On one hand, I really liked Meridia's character, and the magical realism did end up growing on me. On the other hand, I'm an overly empathetic person and all of the arguing, bickering and misery really started to wear me down. I despised Eva, who essentially treated everyone like puppets, and seemed put-out that they wouldn't behave. 
 I'm not sure what the difference is between magical realism and just plain fantasy, because this book was entirely ruled by magic. I didn't like that magic was essentially used as an excuse for (view spoiler)[cheating spouses, as though they don't have control over their own actions. (hide spoiler)] I did, however, appreciate how it could also make the intangible visible. Eva's nagging takes the form of bees, stinging her hapless victims until they can no longer resist. I'm sure that kind of incessant yammering can easily sting, and push anyone to lose their temper and give in.