Review: Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins

Title: Hex Hall
Author: Rachel Hawkins
Series: Hex Hall, #1
Publisher: Hyperion Book CH
Release Date: March 2, 2010
Pages: 323
Rating:

Three years ago, Sophie Mercer discovered that she was a witch. It's gotten her into a few scrapes. Her non-gifted mother has been as supportive as possible, consulting Sophie's estranged father--an elusive European warlock--only when necessary. But when Sophie attracts too much human attention for a prom-night spell gone horribly wrong, it's her dad who decides her punishment: exile to Hex Hall, an isolated reform school for wayward Prodigium, a.k.a. witches, faeries, and shapeshifters.

By the end of her first day among fellow freak-teens, Sophie has quite a scorecard: three powerful enemies who look like supermodels, a futile crush on a gorgeous warlock, a creepy tagalong ghost, and a new roommate who happens to be the most hated person and only vampire on campus. Worse, Sophie soon learns that a mysterious predator has been attacking students, and her only friend is the number-one suspect.

As a series of blood-curdling mysteries starts to converge, Sophie prepares for the biggest threat of all: an ancient secret society determined to destroy all Prodigium, especially her.

I have been holding off on this book for so long and I don't know why, but it was amazing. I haven't read that many witch books, because I had this strange feeling that they would not be as good as the vampire and shifters books, but boy was I wrong, you learn plenty about how complicated it is to be a witch, just ask Sophie. So girl does wacked up spell that gets human yelling, "WITCH! WITCH!", and then girl gets transferred to school where everyone's is different exactly like her. Sound familiar? It is familar to other books I have read, but that is where the similarity ends. This book was so very orginal.

Sophie was an interesting character, very ordinary and normal, but in the witch world she is very known because of her father. Sophie is smart and though she didn't know much about being a witch she is learning more and more throughout the book and I believe one day that she will become one of the strongest. Sophie's love interest, Archer is just too wonderful. He is one of those guys that you hate but at the same time love. By the end of the book, I wonder about Archer, because we don't really know anything about this guy and you just need to know more. I think almost every book has the "mean girls", the girls that you just want to slap across the face and I wanted to do so much more than just slap them across the face. I think that they are important and they make the book what it is and they show redemptation towards the end a little bit.

"Let's just say you may regret that second piece of cake.' Oh my God. Regret cake? Whatever was about to happen must be truly evil."

Sophie also has a best friend, Jenna who I love and hope that we get a little inside look at her a little bit in the next book. And there is just somethin I love about a vampire who is obsessed with pink. Cool. Mom and dad. I am kind of mad at her parents, I mean if you are a teenager and do not know a thing about yourself, what you are, where you come from, you would think your parents would have the decentcey to fill you in, "well, I was just waiting for the right moment", right moment? right moment? When is the right moment, when she's 30! I think this occurs a lot in young adult books, but I always feel the parent are so irresponsible with this. I think that first of all, Sophie should know all about who her father is, and what she is. Hiding it is not the right way to go. And it is not nice to know that the whole school nows except you, which after the ending the next book should be pretty interesting.

We hear so much about her father and I really want to know about this guy, who is he and what happened with him and Sophie's mother. Sophie has never met her father, because her parents are divorced. There are so many questions that need answers and I hope we get a lot of them answered in book 2, Demonglass. Overall, this book was outstanding. It was a real page-turner and I could not put this book down. We have a cliffhanger that leaves you hungry for the next book and I really want to continue on this journey with Sophie to find out how to handles what is thrown at her next.