Thursday, March 3, 2011

Demonglass by Rachel Hawkins

Oh Demonglass, where to begin. First off, I must say that Demonglass is the second book in the Hex Hall series. So, if you haven't read Hex Hall, you might not want to read this review yet, and how dare you, go read it right now!!! With that here's a synopsis of Demonglass from BN.com.

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?



Demonglass by Rachel Hawkins


Released: March 1, 2011


Reviewed by: AmyG


The Sister's say: Snarky, Sassy, Superb


Now, on to the review. I have anxiously been waiting for Demonglass for too long now. I loved Hex Hall for so many reasons which all make a reappearance in Hawkin's new novel but namely Archer, Archer, and more Archer. This book was like seeing an old friend I hadn't seen for a long time, whom I had totally forgotten how much i loved! It's so refreshing to be pulled into a 2nd novel in a series just like the 1st.


I'll start with all the lovelies that Demonglass possessed (pun intended).
1. Oh snarkiness, how I love thee
2. Surprises
3. Great set-up for the 3rd novel

1. The absolute most wonderful thing about this series is Sophie's snarkiness! She can manage to make a joke out of any outrageous situation which deserves a lot of props, especially if you know Sophie. With the introduction of Sophie's dad, James Atherton, who happens to be the head of the council of prodigium, we see where Sophie gets her devastating wit. The father/daughter 1, 2 punch combo adds to the overall clever banter that keeps the novel moving at a fast pace.

2. Like most 2nd books, Ms. Hawkins does spend a lot of time building up for the great war of a finale that will be in the 3rd book, but it is refreshing to still be shocked in a 2nd book. The surprises start as early as the 2nd chapter. And for those of you who have already read Demonglass,

***Spoiler alert***
***read at your own risk***Betrothed?!?!?! Really?!?!? I totally did not see that one coming!
***end spoiler***

And, the twists just keep coming. When the book starts, the lines are clearly drawn between The Eye, the Prodigium and the Brannicks, but just when you think you have everything figured out, she throws you another curve ball leaving everything you thought you knew in tatters.

3. Considering the build up mentioned above, I can hardly contain myself with my excitement for Hex Hall 3. The setup for the 3rd novel leaves us with a compelling love triangle, Team Cal or Team Archer, (get your shirts ready) and blurs the lines between friend and foe. There are secrets that have not been revealed yet. Who's on whose side makes for a great puzzle, and the wondering of who will make it out alive keeps me up at night. The book of course ends with a huge cliff hanger, but one thing we do know, we are in for a civil war of epic proportions between prodigium and humans alike.

If I had to pick something that I didn't like and this would be a gun to my head scenario, I'd say that some parts were a bit predictable. From the moment we find out that the Casnoff family used to run the council, but are now 2nd in command; what happens next becomes pretty obvious, cue the melodramatic foreshadowing music. Also, Archer. I loved, loved, loved every inch of mysterious, snarky Archer in Hex Hall. ***slight spoilers*** However, in my heart of hearts, I was hoping that Archer was forced to be in the Eye, that they were holding his beloved little brother or cousin or an African orphan hostage in order to force him to obey their every whim. Sadly, we find out in this novel that that is not the case. Come on Archer, raised by The Eye or not, that was a pretty weak excuse!!! You're a warlock, you should be able to stand up for what is right!!!***spoiler over***

Okay, all that being said, should you read this? HECK YES!!!


Now, let's do a little exercise that is my absolute favorite thing to do while waiting for the next book in YA book series: predicting what's to come!!! I'll give you some questions that are burning a hole in my brain to get us started!

***Questions will contain spoilers***

1. Who are you rooting for, Cal or Archer? (I'm kind of leaning toward Cal unless Archer redeems himself by kicking some serious Eye butt.)

2. Why is Sophie's mom with the Brannick sisters? How long have the known each other? Is she a Brannick?

3. How had James, Sophie's father, preferred the enemy so to say? Which enemy, the Eye or the Brannick sister's?

There's just a few to get us started!