Spellbinder

Happy Book Release Day!  I love the day when wonderful new book show up on my Kindle!  Scam Chowder by Maya Corrigan, A Batter of Life and Death by Ellie Alexander, The Longest Yard Sale by Sherry Harris, and All Dressed Up and No Place to Haunt by Rose Pressey are four cozy mysteries out today.  The Witch of Bourbon Street by Suzanne Palmieri, Change of Heart by Molly Jebber, and Little Girls by Ronald Malfi are some other books that were released today! 
 
Spellbinder by C. C. Hunter is a young adult novel about young witches.  Miranda Kane is seventeen and forced to compete in magical competitions by her mother.   Her mother offers her an incentive to do well at this latest competition.  The winner gets to go to Paris for the next competition.  If Miranda comes in first, her mother will pay for her two best friends, Kylie (fae with chameleon shifting abilities) and Della (a vampire) to go to Paris with her.

Miranda has a form of dyslexia which is why her spells go wonky (plus her mind tends to wander).  Miranda is going to try hard to win this one.  She wants to go to Paris to see Perry.  Perry was her boyfriend who went to a special school in Paris.  Miranda still cares for Perry and wants to see him.  Miranda does well in the first two parts of the competition.  The third one goes well until a fire ball goes awry.  Turns out it was not Miranda’s fault (Miranda was shocked as well as her friends).  Someone is trying to kill of the contestants.  Miranda does win the competition and heads to Paris with bodyguards.  Miranda and her friends try to figure out who is killing off the contestants before anyone else gets hurt (including themselves).  Miranda will also discover a family secret that will change her life.

I give Spellbinder 3 out of 5 stars.  It is okay, but not great.   It is evidently part of a series called Shadow Falls (did not notice this when I picked the book nor was it mentioned).  There is some teenage romance mixed in the book as Miranda has two boys that she is attracted to and can imagine kissing (her mind tends to wander to the subject frequently).  I did enjoy the plot twist with the family secret.  I wish the book had contained more magic as well as more background information (for those that have not read the other book in the series).  I think I would have understood the book better if I had read the previous books in the series.  Spellbinder is out today (June 30, 2015).

I received a complimentary copy of Spellbinder from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  The review and opinions expressed are my own.

I hope everyone had a lovely day!  Take care, drive home safely, and have a relaxing evening.  Happy Reading!

Kris
The Avid Reader