Review: SPELL BOUND by Rachel Hawkins

The last book in the Hex Hall trilogy starts pretty much where Demonglass (review here) left off: Sophie coming out of the Itineris in search of her mom and the Brannicks, a group of Amazonian-esque redheads who want to destroy people like Sophie--i.e., demons, witches, werewolves, fairies, etc. With her best friend, dad, fiance, and boyfriend all possibly dead, Sophie has to figure out a way to stop the Casnoffs from turning the rest of her high school into a demon army.

That plot sounds like bit of a potboiler, doesn't it? Actually, Spell Bound is a very light, fun read with a lot of humor. I think it's a successful conclusion to the Hex Hall series, although not as good as Demonglass. Sophie is always quick with the one-liners, and that gives Spell Bound some much-needed humor (my personal favorite was, "Jackass, jackass on the wall, where's the info on Hex Hall?").

That being said, it doesn't feel like a lot goes on in Spell Bound. For most of the book Sophie is recovering from her adventures in Demonglass and trying to figure out how to defeat the Casnoffs. There is a lot of build-up to the final battle, but the solution feels too easy and pat. I also have issues with the events that happened in the last fifty pages--again, it was all just too convenient. There wasn't really a sense of emotional resonance at the conclusion of the series that I would have liked.

Overall, though, I think Hex Hall has been a pretty successful YA trilogy. I had some doubts when I read the first book (review here), and there are things in the plot that are very cheesy and predictable; but Rachel Hawkins manages to pull it off with great writing that makes the novels fun and enjoyable.

Review: THE FLOWER BOWL SPELL by Olivia Boler

Memphis Zhang is a journalist/dog walker living in San Francisco who can see fairies and do magick--even though she chooses not to. When she meets the older brother of a long-deceased friend, however, Memphis' past starts coming back to haunt her in a big way. First a woman she knew passingly when they were both children drops her kids off for indefinite babysitting, and then the older brother--who just happens to be an attractive rock star, win--invites her to go on tour with him. It's only after Memphis agrees that she begins to suspect some rotten magick is afoot.

I am a sucker for books about witches. A book about a witch set in San Francisco, with a rock star to boot? I'm all over that. While I did like a lot of individual elements in The Flower Bowl Spell, it didn't quite come together for me.

For the most part, this is due entirely to the way the story is told--I felt like this book might have had a great story arc, but the plot doesn't get going until you're halfway through the novel, and before that it seems like every five pages more backstory pops up, which slowed The Flower Bowl Spell down considerably. When major plot developments do happen, it's difficult to tell if they're important or not because the pacing of the novel is pretty much set at one speed. It could--and probably should--have been edited down by about a fourth.

Even with the slow pacing, though, I have to say that, thanks to the writing style, I wasn't bored--just impatient. Once Memphis goes on tour with the rock star's band, things pick up. Admittedly, this might be because the rock star--whose name is Tyson--was the only thing I cared about in this novel. Memphis' regular boyfriend, Cooper, is a creeper. You can tell because he used to be her high school French teacher. Not to mention that Tyson is a ROCK STAR! I loved every minute he was on the page, even when what was going on made zero sense to me.

There's more to this novel than Tyson, though--a lot more, and while it's interesting and not formulaic, sometimes it doesn't seem to lead anywhere. I can't help but compare The Flower Bowl Spell to A Discovery of Witches (review here), another novel I read recently about a witch trying to lead a normal life. Both books have similar problems, but I think I prefer the writing style in The Flower Bowl Spell. I also like the main character of The Flower Bowl Spell, Memphis, and find her more believable and mature than the heroine of Discovery.

The Flower Bowl Spell isn't perfect, but it is unique. Where else are you going to find a novel that has fairies, witches, French restaurants, rock stars, and a Chinese-American heroine? In a lot of ways I think think The Flower Bowl Spell is an ideal candidate for self-publishing, because it doesn't easily fit into any genre but is definitely worth checking out.


Thank you to the author and ABG Reads Book Tours for providing me with a copy of this book for review!



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