Review: Spellcaster by Cara Lynn Shultz

Title: Spellcaster
Author: Cara Lynn Shultz
Published: 27th March 2012
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Series: Spellbound #2
Source: eACR thanks to NetGalley and publisher

Finding your eternal soulmate - easy.

Stopping a true-love-hungry evil - not so much…

After breaking a centuries-old romantic curse, Emma Connor is (almost) glad to get back to normal problems. Although...it's not easy dealing with the jealous cliques and gossip that rule her exclusive Upper East Side prep, even for a sixteen-year-old newbie witch. Having the most-wanted boy in school as her eternal soul mate sure helps ease the pain-especially since wealthy, rocker-hot Brendan Salinger is very good at staying irresistibly close....

But something dark and hungry is using Emma and Brendan's deepest fears to reveal damaging secrets and destroy their trust in each other. And Emma's crash course in über-spells may not be enough to keep them safe…or to stop an inhuman force bent on making their unsuspected power its own. - From Goodreads

After finishing Spellbound I was not jumping at the chance to read the next book in the series. In my head Emma and Brendan had faced the obstacles in the way of their relationship and the story was finished. So why was there another book? I could see it possibly focusing on another character, alas no, Emma and Brendan have another issue to overcome.

Emma and Brendan have faced down a centuries old curse which was destined to kill Emma once they couple were together. Not only this, but Emma has discovered that she is a born witch. Now with Emma and Brendan trying to figure out their relationship someone is gunning for their blood, literally. True love is the strongest type of magic and when used in a spell can grant the witch immense power. Emma and Angelique must figure out who is out to get her and how to stop them.

I really liked both Emma and Brendan in the last book, but in this book there were a few things that really niggled me! Emma felt a little less of the witty, spirited book I like in the first novel. I am unsure if this is a reflection of the super-possessive Brendan or if her character has run out of steam a little. Where did the girl go who may not have always stood up for herself but had some really funny comebacks in her head after the fact.I suspect it is the influence of Brendan. Brendan was cool in the last book, but in this book there are some serious boundary issues that I felt he crossed. I like a manly man, but I felt that Brendan smothered her and treated her like a child. Bad Brendan!

With all of my thoughts on those two annoying me every couple of paragraphs, I thought that this book had a pretty entertaining plot. If you can get past the nonsense about it being another story in this magical book (why have neither of them just sat down and read it if it is so important) which was one of Emma's past lives (!!!!) then there is an good supernatural mystery waiting for you.

I found this book a bit of a challenge to get through, although that could be due to the fact that I never felt like another book was needed in this story. I am hoping that this is the end and that in my head everyone can live happily ever after.

Review: Spellbound by Cara Lynn Shultz

Title: Spellbound
Author: Cara Lynn Shultz
Published: 21st June 2011
Publisher: HarperTeen
Series: Spellbound #1
Source: Own Kindle Copy

What's a girl to do when meeting The One means she's cursed to die a horrible death?
Life hasn't been easy on sixteen-year-old Emma Connor, so a new start in New York may be just the change she needs. But the posh Upper East Side prep school she has to attend? Not so much. Friendly faces are few and far between, except for one that she's irresistibly drawn to—Brendan Salinger, the guy with the rock-star good looks and the richest kid in school, who might just be her very own white knight.
But even when Brendan inexplicably turns cold, Emma can't stop staring. Ever since she laid eyes on him, strange things have been happening. Streetlamps go out wherever she walks, and Emma's been having the oddest dreams: visions of herself in past lives—visions that warn her to stay away from Brendan. Or else. - From Goodreads

I was not blown away by the cover for this book, and I admit that it took me a while to getting round to reading it and clearing it out of my TBR pile. I picked it up when I received the second in the series from NetGalley! This book was not what I was expecting and in my mind it morphed during my reading of it from a romance to a paranormal romance.

Emma has moved in with her Aunt Christine in New York. After losing both her twin brother and her mother in the space of a year her alcoholic stepfather almost kills her in a car accident. It is at this point that Emma realised that she probably needs to be in a more stable environment. When she starts at the prestigious Upper East side school she meets Brendan, a mysterious guy she can't stop thinking about. As the school year progresses and Emma makes both friends and enemies and finds out that there may be more between her and Brendan than she first thought.

I liked Emma, she is a sweet, funny and strong character who does not dwell on her crappy past. There was the occasional niggle in the back of my mind that if it had been me that lost a twin and my mum that I might be a little more upset, but Emma just gets on with her life. Emma has a quick wit, that I often wish I had myself, coming back with brilliant one liners that often made her extra enemies. Brendan to me felt a little two dimensional. I don't think we get a good sense of Brandon and to an extent he feels a bit like an add on character. Now this is not to say that I did not thoroughly enjoy the scenes with him and Emma, I did, I just wish we knew more about him!

The rest of the characters were your standard characters for a YA paranormal romance. We had the cool and kooky aunt; the sweet and goofy younger cousin; the gay best friend; the bitchy blonde mean girl; the witchy best friend; and the douchey jock! Even though these characters were nothing new and we have seen them in books a thousand times before I liked reading them and thought they added to the story to make it richer and more enjoyable.

The story itself was a star crossed lovers type of story with a centuries old curse which would cause Emma's death if Emma and Brendan were together (not like that, just together! Tut-tut!). There was flash backs to the origin of the curse, for me this lasted a bit too long and I wanted to get back to the main story and find out what would happen next.

I liked this story. It started out a bit like a contemporary romance as there was practically no paranormal activity until a good way into the book and even then the paranormal takes a back seat to the romance in this story. I would be happy for this story to stop at the end of the book. I don't feel we were left with any cliffhangers, however this is part of a series and even though I feel no need to pick up the next book,  I will to see how the story continues next.

Review: Beastly by Alex Flinn

Title: Beastly
Author: Alex Flinn
Publisher: HarperTeen
Published: 1st October 2007
Source: Own Copy

I am a beast.
A beast!
Not quite wolf or bear, gorilla or dog but a horrible new creature who walks upright. I am a monster.
You think I'm talking fairy tales? No way. The place is New York City. The time is now. It's no deformity, no disease. And I'll, stay this way forever ruined unless I can break the spell.
Yes, the spell, the one the witch in my English class cast on me. Why did she turn me into a beast who hides by day and prowls by night? I'll tell you. I'll tell you how I used to be Kyle Kingsbury, the guy you wished you were, with money, perfect looks, and the perfect life. And then, I'll tell you how I became perfectly...beastly. - From Goodreads

So from reading my past reviews of books such as The Lying Game and The Secret Circle, it should come as no surprise that when I saw there was a movie coming out for Beastly I wanted to read the book. I thought the trailer looked great and (I am truly ashamed when I say this) I thought this was the book of the movie (I know I'm hanging my head in shame) and grabbed a copy. Now it was stupid of me to think that the movie came first, but what I got was a richly woven tale of magic and romance.

It is a story we all know, beauty and the beast. Kyle is popular, vain and a total ass. Everything is all about him and these are the morals his father has instilled in him, to get ahead you have to be attractive. So when the unusual looking Kendra asks Kyle to the school dance he decides to make a bit of an example from her by standing her up in front of everyone and waling in with someone else. But Kendra is a witch and gets her revenge later on that evening. She turns him into a Beast. Over the next 2 years Kyle has to find true love. He is also banished to a house with only a housekeeper and a tutor by his father.

OMG I loved this book so much. I thought the film was good, but there were some important parts which were changed from the book to film. At the start of the book Kendra appears as a tubby unattractive girl, but this is just what she is portraying to Kyle, she is actually quite an attractive witch who we learn has made quite a few mistakes in her past. Kyle and Kendra can communicate with each other through a magic looking glass.

Kendra was one of my favourite characters. I thought she brought some humour to the role, worrying about messing up again and making mistakes. There were other snapshots of humour peppered through this book with short chapters of conversations going on in an internet chat-room. The conversation is between other mystical creatures like a frog / prince and a mermaid.

In the film the very pretty Alex Pettyfer is made to be bald with weird tattoos and scars all over him, however in the book Kyle is a proper Beast. Hair, claws and all. I think this is more of a challenge and made his reclusiveness seem to make more sense.

I loved this book. I loved it so much I felt like I wanted to slow down my reading of it towards the end so that I made it spin out just a little more. There was little mystery in the story as we all know what happens in Beauty and the Beast, but this made little difference to me. This tale was worked with such enchanting magic that I can't wait to read Bewitched which will focus on some of the other spells Kendra has cast and the fallout!

Review: The Witches of the East by Melissa de la Cruz

Title: The Wiches of the East
Author: Melissa de la Cruz
Publisher: Little, Brown Book Group
Published: 21st June 2011
Series: The Beauchamp Family #1
Source: Copy Borrowed from AB

Freya, Ingrid and Joanna Beauchamp love their sleepy life in the East Hamptons. A new engagement, promotion at work, a happy home - its all going perfectly. And, to top it off, no one's come close to discovering the secret of what they can really do in hundreds of years. But throw a few accidental love potions in the mix the Beauchamp girls are going to need more than a broomstick to clean up this mess... - From Goodreads

When I saw that this was in a pile of books one of my friends was lending me I was excited because I had not read any books by Melissa de la Cruz and this would be my first. It took a little looking on Goodreads for me to find out that this is actually the UK title for Witches of the East End which had been on my TBR list for ages, then started my happy dance!

This book is slightly older than the YA books I have been reading recently, but I loved it anyway. In the small town of East Hampton Freya, Ingrid and Joanna Beauchamp (even their family name is great!!) try to live a normal magic free life. Over the course of the book however the sisters Freya and Ingrid start to use magic more and more. Before we know it the police are looking for a scapegoat to some crimes and the fingers are beginning to point to the sisters.

This book was atmospheric and took a while to describe the town and the people who lived there. We are pulled into this small town and the rich descriptions bathes us in a feeling that we are actually there. This also gave some depth to the characters and allowed us a proper glimpse into how they lived their lives without magic. I really liked Ingrid as a character, even though she is the more sensible of the two characters in life, she is the one who is more willing to break the rules.

What I liked the best about this book was the mythology behind the Beauchamp Family, what happens when one of the sisters dies or is killed, where they came from and why they can't use their magic. I thought this was all well thought through and left me wanting to know much more. I wish this book had looked at this for longer, but it did not really come in until the end of the book, presumably as a build up to the next in the series.

I really enjoyed this book. It took a little while to get into the meat of the story as there was a lot of setting the scene going on at the start. Once I was into it though I found it hugely entertaining and I did not want to put it down. I wanted to know more about the witches and their history, so I will definitely be picking up book 2 (also because the cliff hanger at the end has left me with many more questions!!).

Review: The Initiation by LJ Smith

Title: The Initiation
Author: LJ Smith
Publisher: HarperPrism
Published: 15th September 1992
Series: The Secret Circle #1
Source: Own Kindle Copy

The author of the bestselling The Vampire Diaries presents a suspenseful new trilogy. Seduced by the Secret Circle, Cassie is initiated into the mysterious "in-crowd, " a coven of young witches whose power has controlled New Salem for 300 years--and risks falling prey to the dark powers in order to have the coven leader's boyfriend. - From Goodreads

So, I admit it... I read this book because I thought the new TV series on the CW was great. Being the impatient woman I am, I decided that I would just figure out what was going on by reading the book! Well you would have thought I had learned my lesson with The Vampire Diaries, Pretty Little Liars and The Lying Game - the book is nothing like the TV show! That's not to say that this book was not entertaining!

Cassie and her mother move back into the family home in New Salem after Cassie has a mysterious encounter with a handsome boy on a beach a few towns away. Being the new girl at school is difficult in New Salem, especially when you stand up to the head mean girl, Faye! Faye who hangs voodoo dolls in lockers, makes your bag look like it is moving and steals your poetry!

There are a lot more witches in their coven also and there seemed to be quite a bit of unrest within the group with us getting the impression that the coven was split into good magic and bad magic! I also have to remind myself while reading books by L. J. Smith, that these books were written pre mobile phones. When ever a character gets in a jam I find myself wondering "why not just phone for help?"

I enjoyed this book, it was filled with forbidden love, magic, a crystal skull, mean girls and a likeable main character, but I felt that it was over just as the story began. I think, like the vampire diaries, instead of being a trilogy it feels more like one book split across three. I will be picking up the other two because they are super fast reads!

Review: Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake

Title: Anna Dressed In Blood
Author: Kendare Blake
Published: 30th August 2011
Publisher: Tor Teen
Series: Anna #1

Cas Lowood has inherited an unusual vocation: He kills the dead.

So did his father before him, until he was gruesomely murdered by a ghost he sought to kill. Now, armed with his father's mysterious and deadly athame, Cas travels the country with his kitchen-witch mother and their spirit-sniffing cat. Together they follow legends and local lore, trying to keep up with the murderous dead—keeping pesky things like the future and friends at bay.
When they arrive in a new town in search of a ghost the locals call Anna Dressed in Blood, Cas doesn't expect anything outside of the ordinary: track, hunt, kill. What he finds instead is a girl entangled in curses and rage, a ghost like he's never faced before. She still wears the dress she wore on the day of her brutal murder in 1958: once white, now stained red and dripping with blood. Since her death, Anna has killed any and every person who has dared to step into the deserted Victorian she used to call home.
But she, for whatever reason, spares Cas's life. - From Goodreads

It has been about 12 hours since I finished reading this book and I am still thinking about it. This book was exactly what I needed to get me back into the habit of reading in my lunch hour and going to bed slightly early to give me more time to read before I turn off my light! It was the perfect balance of spooky, gruesome and fun which made it an amazing read and left me wanting more.

For some reason for the first couple of chapters I had difficulty picturing the main character as a boy. It may just be because I have read so many books recently with female leads and, let's face it, it is more common for the main character to be a female. Once I could wrap my head round Cas being a boy I thought he was a great character and possibly one of the better male leads I have read in a long time. He was smart but still sometimes had trouble piecing together problems, he is charming but without trying to get all of the girls for himself and he is brave but not stupid.

I love the way the other characters in this booked worked as well. Carmel, Will, Mike, Thomas, Cas's Mum and Anna are all well written characters who seemed to come to life in my mind, warts and all. They were all integral to the story, but did not overpower the story lines which is very focused on Cas and how he thinks through and rationalises his decisions.

There was only one thing that did not feel quite right to me. Without giving too much away, something important is taken during the story. Now if I know if someone took something like that from me then I would fight to get it back. I felt that the character had a relaxed attitude to getting it back. To me the actions did not feel to match the words which was a tiny bit frustrating.

So with that little annoyance out of the way I absolutely loved this book. It was just creepy enough and the writing was fluid with an exciting story that kept moving the whole time. Bring on the next book, I'm not sure I can wait until 2012!

Review: Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins

Title: Hex Hall (Hex Hall #1)
Author: Rachel Hawkins
Publisher: Hyperion Book CH
Published:  2nd March 2010
Series: Hex Hall #1
Source: Own Copy on Kindle

Three years ago, Sophie Mercer discovered that she was a witch. It's gotten her into a few scrapes. Her non-gifted mother has been as supportive as possible, consulting Sophie's estranged father--an elusive European warlock--only when necessary. But when Sophie attracts too much human attention for a prom-night spell gone horribly wrong, it's her dad who decides her punishment: exile to Hex Hall, an isolated reform school for wayward Prodigium, a.k.a. witches, faeries, and shapeshifters. By the end of her first day among fellow freak-teens, Sophie has quite a scorecard: three powerful enemies who look like supermodels, a futile crush on a gorgeous warlock, a creepy tagalong ghost, and a new roommate who happens to be the most hated person and only vampire student on campus. Worse, Sophie soon learns that a mysterious predator has been attacking students, and her only friend is the number-one suspect.

As a series of blood-curdling mysteries starts to converge, Sophie prepares for the biggest threat of all: an ancient secret society determined to destroy all Prodigium, especially her. - From Goodreads

I love a delinquent! I love a book about high school! I love magic and the unusual! I love being surprised! Luckily for me this book has everything I love and more. Hex Hall is a school for Witches, Faeries and Werewolves who misuse their magic.

When Sophie misuses her magic and creates a disaster at her old school she is sent to Hex Hall. Set away from society Prodigums (Supernaturals - Witches, Faeries, Shifters etc...) can learn to control their powers and more importantly, hide their powers from those who want to hunt and kill them. Sophie is assigned a room with the only vampire on campus and when students start turning up attacked all fingers are pointing at the Vampire.


This has a bit of everything I love and it did not disappoint me. The story was exciting, thrilling and fun all at the same time. The romance aspect of this book was good and has a way of throwing you in different directions. This book felt like it was over way too fast for me because I gobbled it up in one go and it left me wanting more! Bring on Sophie and her magical drama!!