WinterHaven Books: Review & Giveaway: Spellcaster by Claudia Gray

Sunday, March 3, 2013

Review & Giveaway: Spellcaster by Claudia Gray

Spellcaster by Claudia Gray
Publisher: HarperTeen
Release Date: March 5, 2013
Pre order: Amazon / Barnes & Noble

When Nadia’s family moves to Captive’s Sound, she instantly realizes there’s more to it than meets the eye. Descended from witches, Nadia senses a dark and powerful magic at work in her new town. Mateo has lived in Captive’s Sound his entire life, trying to dodge the local legend that his family is cursed - and that curse will cause him to believe he’s seeing the future … until it drives him mad. When the strange dreams Mateo has been having of rescuing a beautiful girl—Nadia—from a car accident come true, he knows he’s doomed.

Despite the forces pulling them apart, Nadia and Mateo must work together to break the chains of his family’s terrible curse, and to prevent a disaster that threatens the lives of everyone around them. Shimmering with magic and mystery, New York Times bestselling author Claudia Gray’s new novel is sure to draw fans of the Hex Hall and Caster Chronicles series, and fans of the hit CW TV show The Secret Circle.

My Thoughts:
This was a very pleasant surprise. I have seen a few reviews go up that weren’t that encouraging but after about 100 pages in I was hooked. I won’t say that this was the greatest book ever written or that it tops Gray’s Evernight series, but Spellcaster did hold my attention and honestly a reader can’t ask for more than that..

Spellcaster was very different than what I was expecting. Nadia was definitely an interesting character and Gray’s take on magic is one that I haven’t seen before. I am used to the witches needing certain ingredients to perform spells, but it seemed that Nadia only needed to touch her bracelet most of the time, say a few sentences, and then think of something that would make her feel certain emotions. It took me awhile to grasp this concept but by the end of the story I understood it somewhat. I would have liked a better explanation, but I am happy that it finally clicked in my brain. Like I was saying Nadia was a unique character and her story was just as unique. She is a witch and after her mom decides to leave her family, Nadia her dad and brother all move to a tiny town to try and start over. Nadia has no one to teach her anymore about her Craft and when she feels something sinister in her Chemistry class she doesn’t know who to turn to. She finds friends in a strange way and ends up having to fight for not only her family but for the whole town with her new friends. There is a romance for those out there that like having one in their stories, but it isn’t a huge one. Mateo and Nadia were very sweet together, but the storyline curtained more on the curses on the town and certain people which I appreciated. I did like the whole steadfast aspect of the story. I haven’t ever heard of this before but it was new and unique twist at least to me and it was interesting.

Honestly I am still a little confused as to why the villain (I don’t want to give the name away) needed to destroy the town. In the end we kinda get a reason, but it felt a little to late in my opinion. The whole story I kept saying “why” and we do get certain clues but it isn’t until the last chapter that we finally get to see the whys of everything. I would have liked to have seen a tighter plot and known more about the villain’s plot, I think if I had known more my heart would have been beating faster and I would have had that OH NO moment. As is though I didn’t have any real strong emotions towards the whole thing and I kinda wanted the villain to succeed so the plot would be uncovered. Also after everything happens I was a little shocked that we don’t get to see what happened with the Chemistry lab. It played such a huge role in the overall storyline that it felt wrong not to have it be even mentioned at the end. We know from the villain’s conversation that something happened, but I would have thought Nadia would have gone there first to see if what she felt was still there. Unfortunately we are left completely hanging. And what the hale is up with the mother??!! I can’t believe we are left with no answers on her end. I hope that if we are given a new installment that part of the story is answered because after reading 370 pages I really expected to have that side story answered. I won’t say much more since it will spoil a part of the story but just know I am seriously ticked about that part. Even with all this though I actually enjoyed the story. It was creepy at times and I felt spellbound by the villain which I am not sure is a good thing but they caught my attention and I am dying to know more about them.

The story ends on a cliffhanger and I haven’t looked yet to see if this will be a series, but I am hoping it will be since I want more of this certain person. There are a lot of questions still unanswered and I hope we get to see a new installment. If you are looking for something witchy with a twist then this is the book for you. It, in my opinion, is different enough to keep the reader entertained and it has a dark meanie in it that you don’t want to pass up meeting.

3 Snowflakes