Draw a circle... place a dead leaf in the center... sprinkle some salt... recite a little Latin... add a drop of blood...
Maybe that last part isn’t exactly simple. Yet somehow it feels right to Silla Kennicott. And nothing in her life has felt remotely right since her parents’ horrific deaths. She’s willing to do anything to uncover the truth about her family—even try a few spells from the mysterious book that arrived on her doorstep ... and spill some blood.
The book isn’t the only recent arrival in Silla’s life. There’s Nick Pardee, the new guy next door who may have seen Silla casting a spell. She’s not sure what he saw and is afraid to find out. But as they spend more time together, Silla realizes this may not be Nick’s first encounter with Blood Magic. Brought together by a combination of fate and chemistry, Silla and Nick can’t deny their attraction. And they can’t ignore the dark presence lurking nearby—waiting to reclaim the book and all its power.
4 stars...one of the best books I've read in a while (which doesn't mean much if you've seen my other reviews). The plot was intriguing and the main characters were pretty developed. I definitely didn't like certain aspects of the book but the author had a style and stuck to it. I admire that.
So Silla (short for Drusilla) and her brother are left orphaned after their father killed both himself and their mother--supposedly. Silla refuses to believe this but her brother accepts it, drops out of college and becomes a drunk. Enter new neighbor, Nick. He's the typical 'guy next door' and while on a walk sees Silla doing the blood magic. This is not foreign to him...and we'll leave it at that.
One thing I really didn't like about this book was the multiple-perspectives. Silla would have a chapter, then Nick, then Silla, then some passage from a diary...etc. It was hard to keep focused on who's who since the author didn't distinguish their voices much. But Nick and Silla were ALWAYS together so the plot didn't jump around as much as the point of view.
Speaking of the diary entries, those were the best part. It created an air of mystery behind teenage love which I was thankful for, when I could read the script. It went from normal type to actual journal-entry-like chicken scratch. I had to squint to read it, but it was worth it (most of the time).
When I wasn't squinting...my god were those two hot 'n heavy! The entire middle of this book was dedicated to almost sex. Driving in a car...almost sex. Walking through a cemetery...almost sex. It's YA, so it was mostly intense make out scenes but really?? Keep it in your pants guys, c'mon.
This leads to the discovery that someone is out to get them, well mostly Silla. Nick just happens to be there all the time. Her name is Josephine and she wants Silla's dead father's bones. And magic book. This part was lame because the villian just walks right up and says "Hey I want this stuff. Give it to me or else." But there was no 'or else' until about 200 pages later. If this part had been cut out I probably would have been very close to giving this book 5 stars. This in-between space was taken up by Silla's self-discovery which was MUCH less interesting than blood magic.
Silla is an actress and therefore puts on invisible masks so the whole world won't actually see how she's feeling. Cliche, right? Nick comes in and breaks those barriers and leaves Silla feeling open and exposed. Obviously. They realize they are so good together and they have 'real' love so they have almost sex a few times. Then the villain returns.
I won't spoil the ending because as long as you set yourself down and prepare to read this (all 405 pages) the end is worth it. I'm considering reading the second one but I'm not sure if I can wait for the library to get its hands on a copy (it has not been released yet).
Blood Magic is not a 5 star book simply because it lacked awesomeness. I think I got caught up in the blood, which is why I liked it so much. The author could have taken the story farther though--she had so many opportunities to do so and decided against it...unless they are further explored in the sequel.
Overall, if you've got time and like blood then go for it. Read this book and see what you think. Happy bleeding!
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