Waiting on Wednesday (62) - Spell Bound

Spell Bound

Rachel Hawkins

Publisher: Hyperion Book CH

To be released: March 13, 2012

Summary (from Goodreads):

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?

I cannot wait for this book. I loved Hex Hall and Demonglass and I cannot wait to see how this series ends, especially with how Demonglass ended. I cannot wait to see the final twists and turns that Rachel Hawkins has in store for us.

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event highlighting exciting upcoming releases. It is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine.

Review: Demonglass

Demonglass

Rachel Hawkins

Publisher: Hyperion Books CH

Release Date: February 15, 2011

Pages: 368

Source: Borrowed from Danielle B at Frenzy of Noise

Ratings: 5 Stars

Summary (from Goodreads):

Sophie Mercer thought she was a witch.

That was the whole reason she was sent to Hex Hall, a reform school for delinquent Prodigium (aka witches, shapeshifters, and fairies). But that was before she discovered the family secret, and that her hot crush, Archer Cross, is an agent for The Eye, a group bent on wiping Prodigium off the face of the earth.

Turns out, Sophie’s a demon, one of only two in the world—the other being her father. What’s worse, she has powers that threaten the lives of everyone she loves. Which is precisely why Sophie decides she must go to London for the Removal, a dangerous procedure that will destroy her powers.

But once Sophie arrives she makes a shocking discovery. Her new friends? They’re demons too. Meaning someone is raising them in secret with creepy plans to use their powers, and probably not for good. Meanwhile, The Eye is set on hunting Sophie down, and they’re using Archer to do it. But it’s not like she has feelings for him anymore. Does she?

Where do I start with Demonglass? This book literally blew my mind! After I finished reading it my brain literally could not comprehend anything else. It kept me up thinking about it hours after I finished it. Boy, was this book EPIC!!!!

Demonglass picks up not long after Hex Hall ends and draws you back into Sophie’s world starting from the first chapter. A lot of familiar faces from Hex Hall are part of Demonglass but then there are new characters who add a lot to Demonglass. Persoally, one of my new favorite characters who we actually get to meet in Demonglass is Sophie’s dad. While he maybe head of the council and Sophie might not like him that much at first, their relationship with each other was one of my favorite aspects of the book. Sophie learns so much more about her dad then she knew previously and their relationship grows in such a nice way.

Sophie is as snarky as ever in this book. Once again, Hawkins had me laughing aloud at Sophie’s quips. While Sophie is as snarky as ever, she has definitely changed from her experiences in Hex Hall and you see that reflected in her actions and character in Demonglass. Sophie really has to come to terms and try to deal with who she is and the power she has, along with her boy troubles. While Sophie is still a funny character, she is much more serious in Demonglass which works so well with this story.

Hawkins adds so much to the world of the Prodigium in this book. She brings Sophie and Jenna to London to the Headquarters of the Prodigium and we meet more Prodigium and people then in Hex Hall. I loved that this book went outside of Hex Hall and placed Sophie in new situations and territories making the book feel fresh.

I must say, the love triangle in this book is one of the best I’ve read. I loved that in this book we learned so much more about Cal who had a small role in Hex Hall. You really got to learn more about Cal and grow to like him a lot. It is really sweet how much he cares for Sophie too. And then there is Archer. God. Love him still even if he is with the bad guy. Sophie’s relationship with both Archer and Cal are so different because the guys are so different. This is one of the only love triangles were I’m still not sure if I’m Team Cal or Team Archer, especially after the ending. Both guys are great in different ways and you can imagine the situation Sophie is in.

The plot of this book was FAN-FREAKING-TASTIC. The story constantly kept me engrossed, turning every page with anticipation. And let me tell you, Rachel Hawkins is EVIL. The twist in this book is great and heart wrenching. And that ending. I was literally balling my eyes out towards the end. So many things occurred that left me stunned. And Rachel Hawkins is EVIL!! I mean that in the nicest way possible too. She is an evil genius because of that ending. Demonglass’s ending is one of the best I have ever read. I was literally willing more pages to appear because I couldn’t believe how it ended. Demonglass’s ending is the perfect example of a PHENOMENAL cliffhanger ending.

Once again, I could go on and on about this book FOREVER it is so good. I was dying for months to talk to people about this book because the ending leaves you stunned!  I have theories about what occurs in the final book of the Hex Hall series and I cannot wait to read it to see if they are true because THAT ENDING! GAHH!! I wish we do not have to wait a full year to see how Rachel Hawkins concludes one of the best series I have read. I will be picking up the final book immediately once it is released to see what sort of final ride Hawkins has in store for us. 

Review: Hex Hall

Hex Hall

Rachel Hawkins

Publisher: Hyperion Books CH

Release Date: March 2, 2010

Pages: 323

Source: Bought

Ratings: 5 Stars

Summary (from Goodreads):

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.

When I first read Hex Hall last year I was immediately blown away. Hex Hall was one of the best books I read in 2010 and probably one of my all time favorites.

The magic, the humor, the story, the characters, everything is just spot on perfect in this book. After I read Hex Hall in one sitting, the next day, I sat down and reread it again because I just loved it so much. Hex Hall is the only book I have ever reread right after reading it for the first time. I wanted to go back in to Sophie’s world immediately after finishing.

Rachel Hawkins knows how to write one funny, kick ass, awesome book that leaves you on the edge of your seat. The writing was spot on perfect. It was the right blend of humor, snark and seriousness when need be. And boy, does Hawkins now how to write one hell of a story with an awesome twist. Seriously, she is like an evil genius with the plot. One funny evil genius.

One of the best things that immediately sucks you into the book is Sophie. Sophie is such a great character and gives the book so much life. From the start, Sophie is just pure awesome. She is so sarcastic and humorous that I was literally laughing aloud. I loved that Sophie was a strong character. Sophie stood up for her friends and stood up for what she believed in; she was always doing what is best and trying to help people, which is how she ended up in Hex Hall in the first place. And then there is my other favorite character, Archer. Now what any book be without some swoony worthy guy? Archer is definitely swoon worthy. Not only is he snarky and funny he is also just sexy. Yeah. And there is definitely more to him than meets to the eye.

Now what would Hex Hall be without magic? In some books, when you add supernatural creatures and magic powers to the mix it just falls flat and feels so forced and just fails. But in Hex Hall the supernatural element just fits in so perfectly. The magic element just feels right and is so important to the story. Magic is just part of Sophie and Sophie’s world, but it doesn’t dominate the story which I really liked. Hex Hall wasn’t just about magic and the supernatural but about the characters and their story and the characters just happened to be different from normal humans.

I could wax on and on for ages about this book but that would bore you. But everyone needs to read this book. Seriously, I will force it into people’s hands at the book store. And the ending will leave you wanting more. There is a great twist at the end that makes Rachel Hawkins an evil genius (and SHE IS AN EVIL GENIUS AS THE SEQUEL WILL SHOW). I did pick up the sequel to this book because how could I resist? I wanted to desperately to see what happens next. This is one of those series that everyone needs to read because of its awesomeness.

Teaser Tuesday: Demonglass

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by Mizb at Should be Reading

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure what you share doesn't give too much away! You don't want to ruin the books for others!)
• Share the title and author too so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR lists if they like your teasers!

My teaser this week comes from:

Demonglass by Rachel Hawkins

"Well, yay," I said. "So glad my skill at blowing crap up impresses you, Dad."

Demonglass Cover

The cover to the sequel of Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins was revealed today. The sequel is entitled Demonglass. 

Doesn't the cover look pretty?? And it fits so well with the first cover too! Cannot wait to read!!!