Hex Hall

Author: Rachel Hawkins

Pages: 323

Published: March 2010, Disney-Hyperion

Genre: Fantasy

Cover Score: A-

Overall Grade: A

Source: Amazon.com

After a prom spell gone awry, Sophie Mercer, witch-in-training, is sent to Hex Hall--a reformatory school for wayward "Prodigium" (aka witches, faeries, and shapeshifters) by her powerful warlock of a father. There, along with her fellow "freak-teens", she will learn to keep her magic in check and learn more about the world she never knew, growing up with a non-witch mother. However, by the end of her first day, Sophie has gotten on the wrong side of a powerful, model-worthy coven of witches; developed a crush on the school's resident bad-boy; and has befriended the most unpopular girl in school (a vampire). But as Sophie continues her first year at Hex, a series of vicious, attacks on Prodigium occurs--and the suspected predator is Sophie's only friend!

My thoughts: Wow--Hex Hall totally blew me away! After reading the summary of the book, I was expecting a light, fun, magical read. But this story was full of dark events and creepiness that totally bumped up the drama and made the story spooky and addicting.

Sophie was a funny, honest, and amusing main character. She narrated with detail and sarcasm that made you feel up-close-and-personal with what was going on in the story: the characters, the setting, and the events. I could perfectly picture Hex Hall in my head: it was a creative anti-Hogwarts that made a thrilling, spooky background for the action in the story.

And there was a lot of thrilling, magical action. I don't want to give too much away, but the way that the Prodigium attacks (as well as Alice, the coven, and the Jenna drama) were incorporated into the book was chilling and suspenseful. I was madly flipping pages up until the exciting conclusion! My only complaint would be that all the good drama happened in the last few pages of the book.

I want more! I must admit, I'm totally hooked--Hex Hall was possibly one of the best books I've read this year. When does the sequel come out? (:

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