ARC Review and Giveaway: School Spirits by Rachel Hawkins

I was very excited to receive a copy of this book for sure, as I loved the Hex Hall series so much. But to receive two copies, well, that made my day because for sure I could do a giveaway!

Title: School Spirits (School Spirits #1)

Author: Rachel Hawkins

Publisher: Disney Hyperion

Publication Date: May 14, 2013

Blurb from Goodreads: 

Fifteen-year-old Izzy Brannick was trained to fight monsters. For centuries, her family has hunted magical creatures. But when Izzy’s older sister vanishes without a trace while on a job, Izzy's mom decides they need to take a break.

Izzy and her mom move to a new town, but they soon discover it’s not as normal as it appears. A series of hauntings has been plaguing the local high school, and Izzy is determined to prove her worth and investigate. But assuming the guise of an average teenager is easier said than done. For a tough girl who's always been on her own, it’s strange to suddenly make friends and maybe even have a crush.

Can Izzy trust her new friends to help find the secret behind the hauntings before more people get hurt? 

Rachel Hawkins' delightful spin-off brings the same wit and charm as the New York Times best-selling Hex Hall series. Get ready for more magic, mystery and romance!

  The Cover Contessa's Review:

I want to thank Disney Hyperion for sending me a copy of this book to read and review. I was very excited to receive it as I really loved the Hex Hall series and wanted to see where Hawkins would take this. Receiving this book for free has in no way influenced my opinion or review.

So, first thing I have to say is how much I love this cover. Like the Hex hall series, I love how you see two sides of the main character; a reflection of how the character is torn between her life!  And the colors are so pretty. I actually prefer this cover to any of the others so far from Hawkins. It's really quite beautiful.

If you enjoyed Hawkin's Hex Hall series, then you will definitely love this book. It's a totally different story, but  if you know the other story you can see the connections. But you by no means have to read that series to be able to read this one. There's enough of a difference for it to e a totally different and engaging story.

Isolde, well, if you read the Hex hall series, you remember her a bit from the final book. She is Sophie's cousin, and she is a Brannick. I love Izzy's character. She is smart and witty. She keeps herself closed off to the world in order to preserve herself and her family. I love that she's so unique. She's not a paranormal being, but she does fight them! She's also different than any other teen: she's never been to a school, she doesn't own electronics such as a TV or cell phone, and she doesn't have any friends. So, when she's thrown into situations where all these things are now thrust at her, you can imagine she has a bit of a hard time adjusting. But she does a good job of it. She maintains her secret life while trying to blend in. But it's hard and she's is challenged by it daily.

The supporting characters are really great. There's Dex, kind of a geeky good looking nerd who quickly becomes a love interest for Izzy. And Romy, Izzy's new truly colorful best friend. Then there's Anderson, who is kind of a funny geek guy. They all adopt Izzy almost immediately when she enters Mary Evans High, and quickly become her clique. Finally, we are reintroduced to Torin, a character we met from in the Hex hall series. He's a warlock who lives in a mirror in Izzy's house. He kind of strikes me as the third leg of what could be a love triangle between her and Dex and him, but I'm not sure it's going in that direction. We shall see.

Hawkins does not go deep into this book. It's an easy read that doesn't require much thinking, which I really liked since I needed something light to read for review! She has an easy way with words and they flow evenly off the page. You see the witty dialogue you may have grown to love in Hex Hall, although I don't think these characters use it as well. The snark was just lacking. And, of course, there is a paranormal element that keeps you intrigued and wondering where the story will lead. And Hawkins throws in a slight twist at the end that involves Dex, which I have to say I saw coming but wasn't sure how she would present it.

All in all I enjoyed this book a great deal. It wasn't fantastic but it wasn't boring at all. There is a bit of a hurry at the end to wrap things up but still leave you with the chance that a second book is in the works. It's not a cliff hanger, but you are wondering why things happened and where it will go. I will definitely be moving on to read the next book in this series to see where it leads.

3/5 stars.

So, since I received two ARCs of this book, I thought I would do a little giveaway. It's international, YUP YUP! You read that right. I rarely do International out of my own pocket, but I really wanted to let someone else read this story. So go on, enter, you know you want to!

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