I was worried this wouldn't be as good as the Hex Hall books, but I was wrong, Rachel Hawkins. So wrong.

Izzy's voice is not Sophie's voice, but since I didn't want a clone of Sophie (from Hex Hall, if you didn't figure that out), that was fine. Just took a little getting used to.

So, why do I love Rachel Hawkins so much and her latest book in particular? Let me list the ways.

Dex
I think I have a new favorite. Dex is not the love interest you typically find in a YA novel. He's kind of a dandy, he has asthma and he's devoted to his granny. Of course he's clever and funny, which are more recognizable traits in our teen heroes, but that's all to the good. Here are a few of my favorite Dex lines, the first from his first conversation with Izzy:

Seriously, I might actually be in love with you now. Would it be awkward if we made out?

Their relationship was already pretty gross. Maybe they were going for some kind of grossness record.

Romy
Izzy's new friendship with the quirky, ghost-obsessed Romy is as important to her as her budding friendship/romance with Dex. And thank Rachel Hawkins there is no icky love triangle where Romy has secretly been in love with Dex, creating angst for Izzy and vomiting for readers. Hurrah!

Fish-out-of-water story
I love this kind of story-it almost always makes me happy. Here, it involves Izzy, who has been homeschooled and trained as a monster fighter until she's 16, enrolling in a high school which her mother suspects is being haunted. So she's kind of undercover, but she has little idea how normal teens interact. Thinking if she watches some TV with high school settings, she might be better preprared, Ma Brannick buys Izzy multiple seasons of a teen soap opera called Ivy Springs , which Izzy quickly becomes addicted to but as quickly realizes it's not the real deal. Still, she periodically compares her actual experience at high school with what she's watched on TV, and the effect is very funny. One of my favorite moments was when she wondered when the appropriate time try a hip bump with her new best friend would be. I also like that there was no angst over hanging out with the "right" people or the "freaks". Izzy is a good judge of character, and she's very straightforward in her friendship choices. This could be due to her not really being up on high school social hierarchy, but I'll take it.

No queen bees
Hard to believe, I know, but there are no mean girls in this plot, trying to lure away the love interest or bullying our heroine every chance they get. Refreshing indeed.

I think I like this book as much for what she didn't do as for what she did do. This book has everything I like and really nothing I don't. She's got humor, a mystery, romance, sweet friendship and a big dose of the supernatural. Wish there was another one to dive into right now. ( )

I always think that Rachel Hawkins' books will be insipid bits of fluff that I will get frustrated with. That's really never the case. Oh yes, this is fluff. Monster slaying homeschool girl takes on high school for the first time in order to banish a murderous ghost. But, as always, great characters, funny and charming dialogue and a decent plotline. Delightful! ( )

Izzy is only 15 and has never attended a normal school because she and her family (her mother and sister) are Brannicks, the last of the monster hunters. They go where the hunt is, and they only stay as long as they need to. But Izzy's older sister, Finley, disappeared on a job 6 months ago, and they haven't had a lead at all, so Izzy's mom decides they need to take a breather and they stop in a small town with what might be a haunting, and enroll Izzy in the local high school. Izzy doesn't know what to expect, but she meets some friends right away, one of whom may be what is called a "Prodigium."

Quote: "But things were different now. For starters, there were no more Brannicks besides me and my mom. Rather than hunt the Creatures of the Night, we worked for the Council that governed them. And they didn't call themselves monsters; they went by the much more civilized term "Prodigium." So the Brannicks were now more or less Prodigium cops. If one of their kind got out of hand, we tracked them, captured them, and did a ritual that sent them directly to the Council, who would them decide their punishment."

I confess that I didn't read the first three books in the Hex Hall series, but this book was advertised as a spin off of that series, so I thought I'd give it a try. It was very easy to follow and can definitely be read as a standalone.

I liked the characters of Izzy, Dex, Romy, and Anderson, but my secret favorite was Torin, the man (warlock) in the mirror.

Quote: "It was the mirror I walked to now, yanking off the heavy canvas cover. Inside the glass, a warlock stared back at me. His name was Torin, and he looked a couple years older than me, maybe eighteen or so. But since he'd gotten trapped in the mirror back in 1583, he was technically over four hundred years old."

Torin is sassy and insufferable, and I really hope we get to see more of him in the next books of this spin off series.

I found that this book was well written and the pacing was quick and easy, making this a fun, quick read. The characters were likeable and the plot was easy to follow.

4/5 stars

I received a copy of this book free of charge in exchange for my honest opinion. I would like to thank NetGalley, the publisher and the author for the chance to read it. ( )

Oh my, she's writing more in that world?!?!! And it's about Izzy?!?!?
The world had better not end then, what with this and all the other books I'm looking forward to. Seriously though, for a woman who has written so little, she's gonna have so much more to give to us her readers. And I love her work so far. :D

¿y esto? ¿por qué nadie me contó? ¿POR QUÉEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE?