There's more than one way to be powerful . . .It is during a routine school project that Abby Silva--sixteen and nearly friendless--makes a startling discovery: She is descended from women who were accused of witchcraft back in 1600s Salem. And when Abby visits nearby Salem, strange, inexplicable events start to unfold. Objects move when she wills them to. Candles burst into sudden flame. And an ancient spellbook somehow winds up in her possession.
Trying to harness her newfound power, Abby concocts a love potion to win over her longtime crush--and exact revenge upon his cruel, bullying girlfriend. But old magic is not to be trifled with. Soon, Abby is thrust headlong into a world of hexes, secrets, and danger. And then there's Rem Anders, the beautiful, mysterious Salem boy who seems to know more about Abby than he first lets on.
A reckoning is coming, and Abby will have to make sense of her history--and her heart--before she can face the powerful truth. Goodreads.
This was a fun, quick read for me. It may be a little sick of me, but I've always found the history of Salem interesting, so I enjoyed seeing familiar names and places through a different perspective. Coming from someone who doesn't read a ton of witch-themed books, it was also nice that the reader isn't bombarded with unfamiliar terms and rituals.
The main complaint I've heard about this book is that it relies on stereo-types. I'm not going to argue against that, because it does, but here's my opinion: Why not use them if they work? The shy, overlooked girl, the handsome jock, the mean-girl clique. We all know those people. So it didn't really bother me at all.
If I had to pick out one thing that did bother me, it would be that at times the plot moves so fast, I I felt disconnected from Abby. Sometimes her decisions felt really rushed, and I would have liked to see more of her thought process, how she jumped from plan A to B. Also, I just never understood the attraction to Travis, but that could just be me.
I totally got the attraction to Rem. I kinda want a Rem of my own. The level of tension and anticipation Maya Gold was able to create between Rem and Abby without even a single kiss was impressive. I've said it before, but I really respect authors who rely on the story, not sex and language, to get the attention of their audience. So hats off to Ms. Gold on that one.
In all, if you're looking for an in-depth book on modern witches, or something with an earth-shattering plot, this isn't it. But if you want a clean, quick, fun story about plain-Jane getting superpowers, you should check it out!
YA notes: None
I received a copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
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