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In this companion book to the Hex Hall series, we meet Izzy Brannick, the youngest daughter of the last surviving Brannick. Having spent her life fighting monsters, she’s pretty much prepared for anything — except when something goes wrong and her older sister disappears. Neither Izzy nor her mom are quite prepared to handle that, and the tension between them mounts. For a multitude of reasons, they end up packing up and moving to Ideal, Mississippi, on the trail of a murderous ghost. And Izzy takes it on as her first solo mission.
And as part of that, she gets to go to high school. Surely a Brannick can handle that. Right?
Much like the other Hex Hall novels, this was a lot of fun. It’s not as magical as I was expecting, which is silly of me because Izzy’s not a Prodigium, but rather someone who is able to detect magic. And, even though there’s a murderous ghost hanging around, it’s not very creepy either.
What it is, however, is a very simple, very enjoyable love story. Even though it’s awkward for her at first, Izzy does manage to make a few friends — Romy, Dex, and Anderson. She joins the Paranormal Management Society (the PMSs), and even goes to a basketball game. Hawkins has written a great friendship chemistry, and the eventual (probably predictable) pairing off was quite satisfying. (Yes, there is a really hot make-out scene in a cave. Not many people can pull that off.)
Is it as good as the Hex Hall series? Probably not. But that didn’t stop me from thoroughly enjoying the fun.
Rated: Mild for a few instances of swearing and some paranormal violence, and a make-out scene.
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