Spells Trouble

I loved the prologue, and would have loved more of that. However, I didn't care much for the rest of the story.

Twin witches Hunter and Mercy perform a coming of age ritual that acknowledge them as full fledged witches and protectors of the Gates to the underworlds, but something goes wrong with the ritual and the gates are opened, releasing monsters, leading to their mother sacrificing herself to save the twins. As monsters begin to kill more townsfolk, the twins must seal the gates once again, and get rid of the monsters. It was an interesting premise, and certainly hooked me with the prologue. However, the book fell flat for me after the prologue, and as much as I enjoy witch stories, I wasn't able to get into the book. The writing was weak, and I thought the pacing could have used some improvement. I struggled to get emotionally invested in either twins, so it was a little hard to continue the book. That being said, I don't think the book was bad, it was just not my thing, but I do think fans of Vampire Diaries, its spinoffs, Supernatural, and other similar shows would probably enjoy this more than I did.

DNFed. Just wasn’t for me. I don’t really vibe with paranormal books, and this one just didn’t work for me.

I had a little trouble getting into the book at first but as soon as I did, I couldn't put it down. I really enjoyed their house of night series and that is why I picked this book up. There were times the twins did get on my nerves but I feel like that was the point. I switched back and fourth from the audio and ebook which I loved. I really enjoyed the audio book as well and the narrator kept me focus. I want to thank Netgalley and Macmillan Audio, Macmillan Young Listeners for letting me read and review this book.

I had a little trouble getting into the book at first but as soon as I did, I couldn't put it down. I really enjoyed their house of night series and that is why I picked this book up. There were times the twins did get on my nerves but I feel like that was the point. I switched back and fourth from the audio and ebook which I loved. I really enjoyed the audio book as well and the narrator kept me focus. I want to thank Netgalley and St. Martin's Press, Wednesday Books for letting me read and review this book.

I'm always in search for a great witchy book; I think we definitely need more of them in YA and NA. PC Cast and Kristin Cast are very familiar names to me. I adored HON when I was in High school, so I obviously wanted to give this series a try, even if it was just for that nostalgic feeling. Here is what I will say. I do think my high school self would have loved this series. It meant for YA anyways, so clearly I am not the target audience. The story was fine, I enjoyed the characters well enough, and the writing is typical for a Cast book. All that to say, is if you are a lover of YA, you will probably love this story. If you enjoy YA at times, you might also love this story, but it definitely wasn't anything spectacular. I listened to the entire book but I could not tell you the plot, other than twin sisters lost their mother and have to protect the boarder. Other than that, I was not invested in the story much, but clearly invested enough to continue to listen to it. I think I have officially outgrown my taste for Cast, which is unfortunate.

2.25 Stars I feel like if you've ever read the Casts' other works, you're going to know exactly where this book is going. I really loved their House of Night series (I even have a quote tattoo from that series) and while it definitely had some issues I thought I'd read this new series because surely they've progressed since then. I'm not so sure about that. This book really did read like the first HoN book but with two MCs instead of one. But let's talk non-comparison things, shall we? Firstly, 98% of this book reads like a lower age YA book. No difficult terms, regular life things, totally normal, a bit whimsy, could possibly even be MG. The other 2%? Explicit sex scene. It was so far out of left field. And y'all, I read adult romance novels, so I'm not against the sex part. And realistically, I know that 16 y/o's are having sex. I get it. But it didn't fit with the tone of this book at all. It was just like normal, normal, normal, graphically detailed sex scene, normal, normal, normal. And honestly what's worse is it didn't even fit with the character motivation. Like, There was no character progression to even make sense of why it happened other than as a plot device that just didn't take off. The magic system is interesting, I did like that aspect of it. I like that it's all about intention and stating what you want. But ya know, rolling back into comparison things, it's similar to their HoN magic system in that it does deal a lot with Wiccan rituals. Which I mean, they're witches, I get it but it's just, two different worlds with pretty similar magic systems. The plot meanders like nobody's business. As long as this book is, SOMETHING should have happened but it was just like, meh. I was bored. And there were no real plot twists or surprises. Zero. Honestly, I may have judged this book harshly. If this had been someone's debut I probably would have rated it higher. But as long as these two women have been in the business? This felt lazy and just a recycled version of a story they've already told, repackaged into a new way to make money. Edited to add: WTF I didn't even mention that one of the sisters starts a fight with a guy and then right as he's about to swing a punch she just walks away from him and lets her best male friend "handle himself" like no bitch. He's handling shit you started. While I'm not saying that the dude you started a fight with didn't deserve it, if you want to start a physical altercation with someone, you don't just step aside and let another male finish it for you. That's not his job. He's your friend, so he's going to protect you, but he shouldn't HAVE to. And you're a pretty shitty friend for putting him in that situation. cover 2; characters 3; plot 3; pace 2; writing 2; enjoyment 2.

This book had so much potential but I was left disappointed. I really wanted to read about new witches finding themselves with new powers. But instead, I was left with more of the backstory of the witches. I know, I know. It's important to know the backstory to the plot of the series. We as readers need to know what's going on and why it is important to know. But it should not be in the whole book. Sorry, I wanted more focus on the new witches, not backstory.

2.5/5 Stars ** I received this as an E-ARC from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review, Thank you!** I am not the biggest fan of the books. I will start by saying I loved all the witch stuff that was present. That is the main reason I finished reading it. Unfortunately, I didn't really enjoy the writing. It felt too young while the story itself felt too old. I just did not enjoy the way it all flowed together. The characters were all right, if not predictable. I also detested the way one of the male characters was a jerk just for the sake of more drama, that part could've been excluded because it added nothing to the actual book. Overall this read fell flat and just wasn't for me.

Disclaimer: I received this arc from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own. Book: Spells Trouble Author: P.C. and Kristen Cast Book Series: Sisters of Salam Book 1 Rating: 2.5/5 Recommended For...: ya readers, fantasy, witches Genre: YA Fantasy Publication Date: May 25, 2021 Publisher: Wednesday Books Pages: 320 Recommended Age: 16+ (Alcohol usage, Sex scene, Language, Violence, Gore) Synopsis: Hunter and Mercy Goode are twin witches, direct descendants of the founder of their town of Goodeville. As their ancestors have done before them, it is now time for the twins to learn what it means to be Gatekeepers–the protectors of the Gates to different underworlds, ancient portals between their world and realms where mythology rules and nightmares come to life. When their mother becomes the first victim in a string of murders, the devastated sisters vow to avenge her death. But it will take more than magic to rein in the ancient mythological monsters who’ve infected their peaceful town. Now Hunter and Mercy must come together and accept their destiny or risk being separated for good. Review: For the most part this was an ok book. It did well with the world building and that prologue was absolutely amazing. I also felt like the plot, as far as the prologue and what's advertised on the back, was a good promise. However, this book is a mess. The book definitely doesn't know where it's going and the plot is all over the place. If I had a book with just Sarah Goode I'd be in love because the prologue was amazing. The rest of it? Mediocre at best. The world building was non-existent, the characters were strangers, and I felt so confused by some of the random stuff thrown into this book, like a sex scene in the middle for... Laughs? The teen rating? I don't know for sure. Verdict: It wasn't for me and there's better witch books.

3.5 // 5 stars. RTC

*3.5 STARS*

Y’all, I really, really wanted to enjoy this book. I used to read P.C. Cast when I was in high school, and they have a werewolf series that I really enjoy (and wish had a different ending). But I could not get into this book. The writing was fine, and the first chapter had me interested, until we met all the other teenagers and I just… it was another teenage witch story, nothing about it really stood out. The writing was good, the characters had depth, and if you are looking for a witch novel that has a different spin on magic and where it comes from, give this a try. If you are looking for a unique story, maybe you’ll have more luck than I did. I was given a copy of the audiobook in exchange for my honest opinion.

Ik hou van Kristin Cast, terwijl ik eigenlijk heel veel negatieve dingen lees over haar boeken (en haar boeken in combinatie met haar moeder). Ik ben juist degene die dus direct het boek aanschaft, als er weer een nieuwe van 1 (of beide) auteurs uitkomt. Spells Trouble gaat over Mercy en Hunter Goode en de Goode witches, het begint met een flashback, maar snel daarna leer je Hunter en Mercy kennen als de karakters die ze nu zijn, met hun flaws en perks. Ik begrijp niet volledig waarom bepaalde elementen belangrijk waren in het verhaal, maar ik vermoed dat deze elementen dus wel later terugkomen in de rest van de serie. Ook ben ik van mening dat de ‘side – characters’ niet genoeg uitgediept zijn. Ze hadden meer kunnen zijn, en ik had ook meer willen weten van deze personen. Ook dat hoop ik terug te lezen in een vervolg deel. Al met al was het voor mij dus een boek wat een mooi eerste deel was, waarvan deel 2 nodig is om het verhaal compleet te maken. Er zijn nog teveel open en losse stukjes om dit verhaal ‘af’ te noemen. Ik ben dus benieuwd!