Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins

Hex Hall (Hex Hall, #1)

by Rachel Hawkins

In the wake of a love spell gone horribly wrong, Sophie Mercer, a sixteen-year-old witch, is shipped off to Hecate Hall, a boarding school for witches, shapeshifters and faeries. The traumas of mortal high school are nothing compared to the goings on at "Freak High." It's bad enough that she has to deal with a trio of mean girls led by the glamorous Elodie, but it's even worse when she begins to fall for Elodie's gorgeous boyfriend, Archer Cross, and frankly terrifying that the trio are an extremely powerful coven of dark witches. But when Sophie begins to learn the disturbing truth about her father, she is forced to face demons both metaphorical and real, and come to terms with her own growing power as a witch.

Reviewed by inlibrisveritas on

4 of 5 stars

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I'm so happy I managed to finally get this book. I had my skepticism about how good this was going to be since the hype about it was pretty high, and from past experiences not a lot of young adult novels live up to their hype. However this one does, it's a wonderful and gripping story.

It is a fairly quick and easy read, but there was the feeling of something slightly missing but it wasn't terribly overwhelming. The story seems like it would be just about witch story but it has it's own little unique quirks that make this a new experience. Sophie is a great character and very down to earth, she's got a great personality and there are moments when you think "that's what I would say/do". It's great that the character felt so real. I really liked her friend Jenna, who is a vampire...and adores pink. Archer Cross is definitely worth swooning over and so is Cal...though he doesn't get very much in the way of face time. The plot and premise is fairly unique once you get past the slight similarities to Harry Potter, which in truth don't even need to be compared because the stories are different. Overall a very wonderful book. I was expecting the explanation that was given for the magic, nor was I really expecting her absent father to have an real part in this. I really enjoyed this and I can't wait to read the second one, I actually might start it immediately.

I would recommend trying to find a copy of this to read. I know some female Harry Potter fans would really like this book.

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Reading updates

  • Started reading
  • 17 May, 2011: Finished reading
  • 17 May, 2011: Reviewed