Double double, twins spell trouble…
I was initially granted eARC access to Spells Trouble by P.C. Cast & Kristin Cast via NetGalley, but unfortunately, I had too much on my schedule at that time and missed publication. Now that I’ve been approved for the second book as well (thank you for trusting me despite missing this deadline!) I grabbed the audiobook through my local library to the get full immersive experience and get this review done. My thoughts are my own and my review is honest.
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About the Book
Spells Trouble
Sisters of Salem Book One
by P.C. Cast & Kristin Cast
Print/eBook
Published 25 May 2021
Wednesday Books
Page Count: 320
Audiobook
Published 25 May 2021
Macmillan Audio
Narrator: Cassandra Campbell
Length: 10 hours and 43 minutes
Genre: YA Urban Fantasy, Paranormal Mystery
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Double double, twins spell trouble…
Hunter and Mercy Goode are twin witches, direct descendants of the founder of their town of Goodeville. As their ancestors have done before them, it is now time for the twins to learn what it means to be Gatekeepers–the protectors of the Gates to different underworlds, ancient portals between their world and realms where mythology rules and nightmares come to life.
When their mother becomes the first victim in a string of murders, the devastated sisters vow to avenge her death. But it will take more than magic to rein in the ancient mythological monsters who’ve infected their peaceful town.
Now Hunter and Mercy must come together and accept their destiny or risk being separated for good.
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My Review
My Rating: 3.5 Stars
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I devoured the House of Night series when those books were new, buying each in hardcover as they came in stock at the grocery store I was working for at the time. Nostalgia is a powerful thing, so when I saw that this mother-daughter team was starting a new series, I just had to give it a try! I was hoping for something a little more mature than House of Night had been, and I dare say this is. The main characters, twin witches, are still teenagers in high school, but they’re a little older than the thirteen-year-old vamps in the early books of The House of Night, and the subject matter is much darker.
That’s not to say there isn’t any regular teenage shenanigans, though. We’ve got boyfriend drama, sibling rivaly, gay best friends, and football games. All the mandatory hallmarks of an American high school drama, right? This could easily be the untold story going on in the background of any of the 1990s or 2000s Disney channel movies starting teen actors and set at a middle-class-anywhere USA public high school.
This book is a paranormal mystery at its core. Grieving teen witches and their mother’s Maine Coon cat familiar-turned-woman “Aunt” Xena (Zena? Like I said, I ended up listening…) must figure out what killed their mother and their best friend’s father, what’s killing the trees that stand guard over a interdimensional gate in the local park, and do it all in time to save the town from paranormal destruction.
The good: Cat aunt is hilarious and well worth the read! I also loved the world-building and I can see a lot of potential for this series.
The bad: The plot was way too all over the place for much of this book. It feels like this book was trying to accomplish far too much for the first book in a YA series, and I hope the second book proves to be a little more seamless.
I’m looking forward to book two!
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I think i be putting this one on my book list to read. It sounds very interesting.