Hexed (The Witch Hunter #1)

3.7

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Author(s)

Michelle Krys

Publisher

Delacorte Press

Genre(s)

Age Range

12+

Release Date

June 10, 2014

ISBN

978-0385743372

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A stolen book. A deadly plan. A destiny discovered. If high school is all about social status, Indigo Blackwood has it made. Sure, her quirky mom owns an occult shop, and a nerd just won't stop trying to be her friend, but Indie is a popular cheerleader with a football-star boyfriend and a social circle powerful enough to ruin everyone at school. Who wouldn't want to be her? Then a guy dies right before her eyes. And the dusty old family Bible her mom is freakishly possessive of is stolen. But when a frustratingly sexy stranger named Bishop enters Indie's world, she learns that her destiny involves a lot more than pom-poms and parties. If she doesn't get the Bible back, every witch on the planet will die. And that's seriously bad news for Indie, because according to Bishop, she's a witch too. Suddenly forced into a centuries-old war between witches and sorcerers, Indie is about to uncover the many dark truths about her life—and a future unlike any she ever imagined on top of the cheer pyramid.

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2 reviews

Hexed

August 19, 2014 (Updated: August 19, 2014)

Overall rating

3.7

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I'm always a sucker for a good witchy tale. So I was really excited to get a copy of HEXED to read.

What worked: The writing is fun, catchy, that reminded me of CHARMED meets SECRET CIRCLE only with witty dialogue and a reluctant heroine.

There's lots to love in this novel. Indigo only wants to be normal and fit in. At first glance, you'd think she was one of the popular kids as she's dating the hot football player, is a cheerleader, and seats at the 'Pretty Table' at lunch with her frenemy Bianca. Life couldn't be sweeter. Only she is kind of embarrassed of her quirky mom who owns an occult shop and who actually believes in things like witches. This backdrop is very fun and I totally devoured the first couple pages as I followed Indigo through LA.

Then things get freaky. A strange hot guy in a leather jacket just happens to get mowed down right in front of her and what's even stranger is he has the address of Indigo's mom's shop in his pocket. Things get even weirder as it seems this guy, who supposedly died, in fact is following her. I loved the rapier banter between these two. Bishop is a fun anti-hero, who readers can tell isn't exactly thrilled with his assignment of watching over Indigo.

I think most readers will relate with the relationship Indigo has with Bianca. Even though Bianca is passive aggressive, Indigo still holds on to their friendship even when they've grown apart for some time.

The nerd next door neighbor Paige is at first the stereotypical 'loser' who tries almost too hard to get Indigo's attention and friendship. But Krys fleshes this character out that makes Paige likeable and more of an ally to Indigo's quest. Think first season Willow of BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER.

There's a quest to find a lost 'Bible' and some very questionable foes that threaten Indigo and her family.

The LA backdrop is right on the mark. I live in Orange County, Ca and have been to a couple of the places Indigo mentions. This setting added a pulse to this story with the quirkiness and fast action.

What I had issues with had to be the chemistry between Bishop and Indigo. I loved their banter and the wise cracks at the beginning but later on I just didn't feel a more intense spark between them. I wanted more! If anything Jezebel, a badass witch was more exciting and had lots of great one-liners. I hope to see more of her in the next book.

The bad guys were a tad bit cliche but the climax at the end was one fast paced roller coaster ride. Let's just say the Prom scene doesn't hold back any punches with reveals, tension, confessions, and a stolen kiss or two.

A fun new witchy series that introduces readers to snarky Indigo as she battles against paranormal forces in LA while learning about her new abilities.

Kim Baccellia, Staff Reviewer Top 10 Reviewer 889 reviews

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2 reviews

Overall rating

3.7

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4.0(2)

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4.0(2)

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A Great Witchy Read

February 24, 2015

Overall rating

3.3

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MY THOUGHTS
This was a very interesting read and I liked it! It is very similar to many other YA paranormal books, but this was still an enjoyable read!

Indigo (Indie) is a popular cheerleader and has a pretty normal life, excerpt for the fact that her mom owns an occult. A boy dies right in front of Indie, clutching the address of the occult shop, and a book Indie's mom is possessive of gets taken. Also, a strange boy gets showing up at the oddest of times. It turns out that Indie might actually be a witch and the book that was stolen? Holds a spell that makes it possible for sorcerers (witches' enemy) to kill all witches.

The idea and the basic plot is very interesting! So much goes on in this book and it is done so well that I was constantly turning the pages to see what happens next!Though, the concepts in this book are very interesting, I have seen some other similar witchy books.

As far as characters, Indie is okay but it does take awhile to like her. I'm not real wild about popular main characters who see their popularity as the most important thing. And, yeah, sometimes these characters aren't very nice. Indie wasn't a mean girl per say, but she is blinded by popularity. She grows as the book goes on though, which I loved! She begins to realize that her 'friends' were not really her friends and that there are much more important things than popularity!

As far as other characters, I liked Paige. Paige is this girl that Indie has ignored most of her life and considers a geek. Paige is such a great character and I really wish she got some more screen time! Though, Indie, again, annoyed me because she did use Paige a lot. Bishop is another character and I don't know if I like him or not. I guess I like his personality overall. He's full of snark and I love that in a character, but I did find him a bit creepy and annoying. 1. because he was a stalker. 2. because he was always evading questions

As far as romance, it was okay. It didn't distract from the plot too much, which gets a thumbs up from me! I already mentioned my thoughts on the love interest (not a spoiler. Us YA readers should be very well-versed in being able to detect who the love interest is early on), so some of my okay-ness of the romance stems on some of my feelings towards him. All in all, though, I did want them to be together.

IN CONCLUSION
This is a bit of a common YA, but I still think it's worth picking up! It is very exciting and does put out some very interesting ideas! The book does end in a bit of a cliffhanger, so I am definitely picking up the next one!

Jessica Jackson Top 50 Reviewer 147 reviews

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Good debut

October 07, 2014

Overall rating

4.0

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Indigo Blackwood is set for high school. She’s a cheerleader, dating the football star, she and her friends own the school. Even with working at her mom’s occult shop and a nerdy neighbor determined to be her friend, Indie feels unstoppable. Then someone dies right in front of her, an old bible is stolen from the shop, and Indie learns the truth about her family’s history. A strange boy named Bishop starts hanging around the same time the trouble stars and seems to love antagonizing Indie, but claims to want to help her. According to him, they must get the stolen bible back or all witches, including Indie, will die.

I really enjoyed this book. I think it could be one that ends up being a book people either really like or really dislike, not a whole lot of ‘it was decent/okay’. I’m glad I fell on the enjoyed it side.

Indie, the main character, is one of those character that can be hard to like. She’s a bit shallow, overly concerned with popularity, the kind of character that could have fallen in complete cheerleader stereotype. But then we get to see this snarky side to her, a girl who cares about her mother and her aunt, this girl who starts to show growth throughout the book and turn into someone easy to root for. I really loved the relationship she had with her mom, really just her mom in general was awesome.

The relationship between Indie and Bishop was also a lot of fun to read. It definitely wasn’t insta-love, maybe an instant love of getting under each other’s skin. There was a lot of snarking at each other that made for great laughs and obvious chemistry.

The pacing was fast but it never felt rushed until close to the end. There was a lot going on in the last 50 pages or so. The writing really flowed during transitions in the mood so I was never brought out of the story and the humor felt natural, not forced into the story for the sake of a joke. There was a little bit of world-building, not a lot, but in this context it made sense. Indie was just as blind to the world as the reader and was learning at the same time as us.

I’m excited to see where Michelle Krys takes the world from this book and how it builds up.