Falling Under The Spell, or Spelled Asleep?

Lately, I have not been in the mood to read anything that was a teenage romance unless it had a huge supernatural element to it. Anyone who knows me knows I am slightly obsessed with the paranormal--yea, I believe in ghosts, witches, vampires, etc. So after reading a few heavily supernatural books I found myself in the mood for something a bit on the lighter side of things, and that was when I decided to start Spellbound by Cara Lynn Shultz. And naturally because I am a little OCD I decided to pick up the sequel Spellcaster. 

Let me start by saying that I genuinely enjoyed Spellbound; it was one of those quick, engaging reads that I finished in about a day. Both novels, follow the ancient, doomed love story of it's main characters Brendan and Emma. As is pretty typical in these types of books, Brendan is the super-hot  and rich James Dean type and Emma is the slightly damaged heroine.

What I loved about Spellbound was that it played on all of latent teen girl fantasies. Hot dude (check); rich (check); badass (check); ready to swoop in at a moments notice and save the girl he loves (check and check). Basically, if I could make a man it would be Brendan.

Spellbound, kept it moving, at no point in the story did I feel bogged down or bored by the plot. It was a fun mixture of serious and ridiculous. Obviously, there were moments when I needed to suspend belief, but they were not that vast.

I'd say Spellbound  was a 7/10.




Let's move on to Spellcaster. First, it took me over a week to complete the book and despite the fact that I work fulltime and do a slew of other things I'm usually averaging 2-3 books a week. Usually, I am especially fast when it comes to reading sequel. Spellcaster, just did not do it for me. The plot felt contrived and forced--all  the sudden Emma is a badass witch and Brendan's player past comes back to haunt them both.

I'll break it down for you guys--there was a very poignant sequel that needed to be written following the events of Spellbound and this really was not it. Not only was the plot of this novel incredibly boring, it very much so moved away from the momentum and the general ideology created by it predecessor.

4/10

Basically, read Spellbound but go ahead and skip Spellcaster.

"Old Magic" An Oldie but a Goodie

Old Magic, by Marianne Curley is not super well-known among avid YA readers. I think one of the largest reasons for that is it's age. The book was originally published in 2009, back before YA become a genre to be rivaled in popular culture. I read it several years back and was absolutely in love; this book is really what sparked a deep love of the YA genre. Recently, I decided to reread to see if it held up to my 24 year old sensibilities the same way it did to the 12 year old version of myself. I'm glad to announce that a 10th (this is an estimate but not an exaggeration) read really cemented this as my favorite book.

Jarrod Thornton is mesmerizing,
but Kate Warren doesn't know why. 
The moment the new guy walks into the room, Kate senses something strange and intense about him. Something supernatural. Her instincts are proven correct a few minutes later when, bullied by his classmates, Jarrod unknowingly conjures up a freak thunderstorm inside their classroom. Jarrod doesn't believe in the paranormal. When Kate tries to convince him that he has extraordinary powers that need to be harnessed, he only puts up with her "hocus pocus" notions because he finds her captivating. However, the dangerous, uncontrolled strengthening of his gift finally convinces Jarrod that he must take Kate's theories seriously. Together, they embark on a remarkable journey -- one which will unravel the mystery that has haunted Jarrod's family for generations and pit the teens against imrmense forces in a battle to undo the past and reshape the future.

The book follows, Kate Warren and Jarrod Thornton as they attempt to break a curse wrought upon Jarrod's family. Old Magic, contains everything I absolutely adore in my YA--magic, romance, and history. Kate and Jarrod's attempts to break the curse on his family lead the two back in time to a confrontation with Jarrod's noble relatives--obviously there are some issues. Curley's writing is incredible and the way she gradually builds the romance between Jarrod and Kate is what creates the timeless quality that keeps me coming back year after year. Old Magic, truly stands the test of time and the only part I don't like is that Curley has not brought more of her magic to the shelves.

9/10

The Beginning

 Hey everyone and welcome! I wanted to start off by just sharing a little about myself and what this blog is about.

First off, I'm an avid book reader and have been for years! After speaking with my friend and fellow book lover-- Alley over at http://imabibliophobic.blogspot.com/. I decided it was time to start blogging on my own. I love reading and love discussing books even more. Problem is, I completely lose track of what I'm reading; meaning I often read books I don't like twice and loose track of series that I really enjoy.

So here it goes!