Review: Spell Bound by Rachel Hawkins

EEEEEP. I have been waiting for this book for SO LONG. I absolutely ADORED Hex Hall and Demonglass (And Archer. Of course Archer.), so I couldn't wait to get my hands on Spell Bound!


Beware! My review WILL contain spoilers for the first two books in the series, Hex Hall and Demonglass.

Spell Bound by Rachel Hawkins

Hailed as “impossible to put down,” the Hex Hall series has both critics and teens cheering. With a winning combination of romance, action, magic and humor, this third volume will leave readers enchanted.

Just as Sophie Mercer has come to accept her extraordinary magical powers as a demon, the Prodigium Council strips them away. Now Sophie is defenseless, alone, and at the mercy of her sworn enemies—the Brannicks, a family of warrior women who hunt down the Prodigium. Or at least that’s what Sophie thinks, until she makes a surprising discovery. The Brannicks know an epic war is coming, and they believe Sophie is the only one powerful enough to stop the world from ending. But without her magic, Sophie isn’t as confident.

Sophie’s bound for one hell of a ride—can she get her powers back before it’s too late?

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Okay, so, to talk about Spell Bound, first I have to talk about Demonglass. Because, um, CLIFFHANGER. (And before I continue, more disclaimer: STOP READING IF YOU HAVE NOT READ HEX HALL AND DEMONGLASS! SERIOUSLY, DUDE, SPOILERS AHEAD! Not for Spell Bound, but definitely for the others. Okay. Carry on.)


I spent several months in a state of freaking out, occasionally breaking into mental chants of, "Everything's okay, Archer's alive. Archer's alive. He has to be alive. Right? Right? Right?" And things of that nature. (Oh, and I was also very concerned about the well-being of Sophie's dad and Cal and Jenna. Yeah. Definitely.) Anyway, once I had Spell Bound in my hands, there was also a slight moment of "I don't want to read this because then it will be over and I don't want it to be over." (Luckily, this went away quickly as I was informed by my friend (known on Twitter as Cross=Boss or @crossequalsboss in honor of Archer himself) that there would indeed be a SPIN OFF of Hex Hall, which made my day.)


But none of that is really a review (or even about Spell Bound) so let's get to that.


Thanks to Demonglass's cliffhanger of epic proportions (Okay, maybe not the most brain-killing, soul-crushing cliffhanger ever, but still) we're thrown right into the action with Spell Bound. Sophie's taken Cal's advice and taken the Itineris to Aislinn Brannick, and that quickly seems like a bad idea as Sophie promptly lands herself in huge heaps of trouble.


It isn't long, though, before she meets the Brannicks and starts getting answers--answers that pretty much shatter everything she ever thought she knew about her family. As if being a demon weren't bad enough, there's MORE.


Soon Sophie is preparing for battle alongside the Brannicks, while gradually learning the whereabouts of her friends after what went down at Thorne Abbey. Some people got out, both friends...and enemies.


The characters in this installment were just as awesome as they were in the other books. Sophie, of course, was as witty, sarcastic, and awesome as ever. (Everyone knows I love me some sarcasm!) Cal, Archer, and Jenna were awesome as well, as usual. ESPECIALLY ARCHER. Obviously. (Have you noticed I'm in love with him? Yeah.) Even Elodie pretty much rocked. Plus there were some fabulous new characters who were FANTASTIC!


Seriously, though, this book was super full of action, snark, romance, and pure AWESOME. If you loved the other two books (and how could you have NOT??) then you'll love this one too.


But possibly the best part is that there will indeed be a spin off! Which is great, because there while the ending was satisfying, there were definitely things left open that could be developed into more awesome stuff!


(I've just noticed I used the word "awesome" a lot. Note to self: invest in thesaurus.)


Anyway, WITHOUT A DOUBT Spell Bound recieves <*><*><*><*><*>


(:D)
~Mag