Review Detail

Gabriel is an elemental just like his brothers. He can control fire and finds himself drawn to it. Fire is not always around though, unlike his brothers elements of earth, air and water so he has to create it himself sometimes to learn how to control it. He has always been able to rely on his brothers for help but he seemed very lonely to me in this book. His youngest brother Chris has Becca, his twin Nick is dating Quinn and his oldest brother Michael meets a girl as well. Gabriel is sort of left alone and spends time with Hunter who is also an elemental. That is until he meets Layne. She is a what some would call a nerd, dresses in turtlenecks and seems rather shy. Pretty much the complete opposite of Gabriel. But these two have more in common than they think. For quiet sometime Gabriel's twin Nick has been doing his homework and taking his tests for him. But when the new teacher catches on Gabriel looks to Layne to help him get through this math class so that he will not be kicked out of sports. When a series of fires break out in town everyone seems to be looking to Gabriel as the culprit He is drawn to the fires as much as he is drawn to Layne. The fires also bring up memories from Laynes past. Will these two be able to get past all the obstacles in their way and will Gabriel learn to control his element?

I loved this book from start to finish and ate up every word. While I do love all the Merrick brothers, Gabriel found such a special place in my heart. He really does get put through the ringer in this book. With his brothers all off with their girlfriends he is left to fend for himself most of the time. I really just wanted to wrap him up in a big hug and tell him it would all be ok. While it was nice to see his vulnerable soft side at times lets not forget that Gabriel is a bad boy with a bit of an attitude who can control fire. What's not to like right?

Another character that we meet in this story is Layne's brother Simon. Simon is deaf and has been bullied at school because of it. I loved the interactions between Gabriel, Layne and Simon. The fact that Gabriel doesn't know sign language but gives Simon his phone to type out a text so they can communicate was just so cute and sweet. He really defends Simon against the bullies and tries to help him with his basketball goals. Most of the time Gabriel is such a badass with a bad attitude, it was nice to see this vulnerable sweet side of him. I think it is great that authors touch on these subjects that are real issues in everyday life. I hope we get to see more of Simon in the books to come, I really loved this character.

It is very rare that I find a series where I have to read all of the books one right after the other. Usually I will pick up the first book and then read a few others between it and the second. However, with the elemental series there was no waiting. I read both books and the two novellas right in a row. Now I have to patiently wait for the third in the series Spirit. I can't wait to see what Kemmerer has in store for these characters next. I am sure that it is something that will shock me and leave me wanting more.

Review originally posted on my blog: http://www.ramblingsofabooknerd.com/2013/04/review-spark-elemental-2-by-brigid.html