Thursday, December 30, 2010

Review: Demonglass by Rachel Hawkins

This is my very last review of 2010 - I decided to end up my year (review-wise) with a bang. And Demonglass definitely delivers a bang. I have a wrap-up post set for the 31st, but for those of you who are going out of town or whatnot, thank you so much for the past four/five months. It's been such a pleasure befriending you guys. I definitely can't wait to kick-start 2011 with you all! :)

Demonglass
Author: Rachel Hawkins
Publisher: Hyperion
Series: Hex Hall #2
Pages: 368
Genre: Paranormal
Release Date: February 15, 2011

SummarySophie Mercer thought she was a witch.

That was the whole reason she was sent to Hex Hall, a reform school for delinquent Prodigium (aka witches, shapeshifters, and faeries). But that was before she discovered the family secret, and that her hot crush, Archer Cross, is an agent for The Eye, a group bent on wiping Prodigium off the face of the earth.

Turns out, Sophie’s a demon, one of only two in the world—the other being her father. What’s worse, she has powers that threaten the lives of everyone she loves. Which is precisely why Sophie decides she must go to London for the Removal, a dangerous procedure that will destroy her powers.

But once Sophie arrives she makes a shocking discovery. Her new friends? They’re demons too. Meaning someone is raising them in secret with creepy plans to use their powers, and probably not for good. Meanwhile, The Eye is set on hunting Sophie down, and they’re using Archer to do it. But it’s not like she has feelings for him anymore. Does she?

My Thoughts:
Oh, my, god! That ending! I thought I was upset about Hex Hall’s ending (because I NEEDED to know what happened), but that is nothing compared to Demonglass’ ending. I’m pretty much rendered speechless when I think about it and will stare at Rachel with big puppy dog eyes until the third book releases. I loved Hex Hall, but Demonglass was even better.

Demonglass transitions so well from its predecessor – I was impressed. I have to admit that I do not remember all of the little details of Hex Hall – I read it last Oct – and I was really thankful to Rachel for providing us with a sort of recap of what happened.

The plot finally got a lot scarier. Not by much, sure, but it’s hard not to be scared about losing your soul and dead things that slither and being on a “most wanted list” (figuratively). Unstable demons and the Eye are thrown into the mix, which definitely spiced things up a lot. There are tons of plot twists. There were a couple I didn’t even see coming, but most of it was predictable. The action totally kicked up a notch... and then another notch. Where Hex Hall was shrouded in mystery, Demonglass was enveloped with a fast moving plot with tons of action.

Sophie, as always, was snarky and absolutely hilarious. I had so much fun reading about her this time around because she continuously matured from the Sophie at Hex Hall. She’s always so wild and out of line, so seeing her having patience and willpower was very cool. Throwing Sophie’s dad into the mix was so awesome – I loved seeing the two interact with each other and while Sophie despised her father, I absolutely adored him.

Cal... Oh, my, god can I just say that I totally called it in the first book (and in my review)?! I had predicted what would happen with Cal while I was reading Hex Hall, and to see my prediction come true in Demonglass made me... well, excited, actually! I love Cal – I absolutely adore the strong and silent types. And he seemed to care a lot about Sophie and always went out of his way to help her. I’m so Team Cal, it’s kind of sad (in the I-don’t-think-Sophie-will-end-up-with-Cal kind of way). Archer... Oh, Archer. There are so many things I want to say about Archer, but it’ll spoil something. So I’ll just leave it as: *wistful sigh*. Because although I DO love Cal, Archer seems to fit Sophie more... snugly.

Lastly, back to that ending! I want to know what happened to Jenna, and Sophie’s father! I really didn’t think they would actually go through with what they did to him. And why do I get the distinct feeling that Cal will not be seen again? He didn’t say, “See ya, Sophie,”, he said “Goodbye, Sophie”. And Sophie’s mother being at Aislinn Brannick? Let me tell you this: the ending leaves more questions than it does answers, and I really want the third book already to see what happens!

Cover Musings: Okay while I do love the cover, I need to go on a mini-rant, like I did with Hex Hall. WHY IS THAT CAT ON THE COVER?! It’s driving me nuts! Is it symbolic or does it allude to something? Will there be some big revelation in the future book about it? I mean, Sophie is allergic to cats and she doesn’t even own one. Heck, a cat isn’t even talked about in the books. Am I looking too much into the placement of the cat on the cover? Is it really just there to draw in consumers who associate black cats with witches and magic and is therefore a marketing tactic utilized to get this book into some poor, unsuspecting teenager’s hands?!

Memorable Quotes:
I apologize for how excessive my quotes are - Sophie is just too funny for her own good! :P
Cal had been waiting for us at the pond. When he’d seen me, he’d given me a barely perceptible nod, which was the Cal version of waving his hands over his head and yelling, “Hey, Sophie!” (pg. 1)
Cal stepped forward, hopefully to come to my rescue.
“I could toss her off the pier, Ms. Vanderlyden.”
Or not. (pg. 3)
A sudden, horrifying thought came to me: holy hell weasel, were these kids my half-siblings? Had Dad dragged me all the way to England to play out some twisted version of the Brady Bunch? (pg. 39)
"I’ve heard so much about you, both from your father and from Anastasia.”
“Mrs. Casnoff?” Oh, God, if that’s where this woman had gotten her Sophie Mercer gossip, I was surprised she’d greeted me with a handshake instead of an exorcism. (pg. 40)
They were all wearing black uniforms, and had nearly identical smiles plastered on their faces.
“What are those people doing?” Jenna whispered to me.
“I don’t know,” I replied through a frozen grin, “but I’m afraid a musical number might be involved.” (pg. 43)
I held up my hand and did what I thought was the Girl Scout salute. Or it could have been that Star Trek thing. “I solemnly swear to tell Mrs. Casnoff that Elodie’s ghost looked at me. And if I do not tell her, I swear to buy Jenna a pony. A vampire pony.”
Jenna tried not to crack a smile, but no one can resist a vampire pony. (pg. 54-55)
“And of course, your dad was always talking about you, so between him and Jenna, I feel like I already know you.”
Man, first Cal, then Lara and the other Council members, now Vix. Did Dad have a blog about me or something? “My Daughter Sophie and Why You Should All Follow Her and/or Marry Her.” (pg. 171)
But all that time staring at the wall gave me lots of time to think, mostly about Archer. I’d seen the look on his face right after the explosion had gone off. He’d been scared. Shocked, even, and not in the “whoops, my assassination didn’t go off as planned” way. (pg. 240)
This may sound weird, but the first thing I thought as I watched that ten-foot-tall bronze lady plummet toward my face was, “Well, at least that can’t kill me.” (pg. 298)
Overall Thoughts/Final Comments: Demonglass was better than Hex Hall. I can’t say that for many second books in a series, but I can definitely say that for this one. I was so absorbed into the story—my goodness, it was addicting! The action was kicked up a couple of notches and it was definitely a bit scarier than Hex Hall. It made me laugh, it made me hopeful, it was filled with surprises and tons of suspense, and it made me angry at the ending. I seriously want book 3 right now! :( *stares at Rachel with puppy dog eyes*

Rating: 5/5

Want to see what I thought of Hex Hall (Book One)? Find out HERE.
**I received this ARC from Different Area Codes Book Tours

15 comments:

Nina B. said...

You definitely are ending 2010 with a big bang! I love your review and this definitely convinces me that I NEED to read this and Hex Hall.

And thank you for dropping by my blog, and thanks for the comment too :D I had a bit of time in my hands the past month so I was able to really work on my blog. I really hope I can keep up with it and do an even better job in 2011.

And yes, Dash will make a really, really great boyfriend! But if I were to become a boy, I'd love to be him :D

Happy New Year!

Brush Up On Your Reading

Nic @ Irresistible Reads said...

I just skimmed your review as I have yet to read the first book. Some of those quotes made me laugh.

Have a great new years :)

Izzy G. said...

Great review! I haven't read Hex Hall yet, but it's definitely on my TBR list. I'm really glad the sequel is awesome, because I hate it when the first book of a series is great and then it all goes downhill.

-Izzy

Liz. R said...

Aaaah! The ending of Hex Hall almost killed me and now you're telling me the ending of this is even more cliffhangery? I have to read this book. I can't wait for it to be released. Thanks for such a great review - I loved all the quotes!

Jenny said...

AHHHHHH! You lucky lucky girl! I can't wait to read this one:) So glad to hear Sophie is still the snarky girl I loved from Hex Hall and I can't wait to read more about Cal and Archer. Not pumped for another cliffhanger ending, but I've come to expect them. Still no answer for the cat on the cover? Damn. Great review Kristina!

Literature for Lunch said...

1. I really need to read Hex Hall so I can read this book as you have made it seem AMAZING!!

2. Your cover musings are hilarious. Hilarious!

3. I love the way you write reviews - so conversational and you get me so excited about the books you read! I need to take a trip to the bookstore soon and add some more to my collection. :)

Danna (Bananas For Books) said...

Great review Kristina! I haven't read Hex Hall yet but I will...very soon. I just wanted to say that I really enjoy reading your reviews. My favorite part is that you put memorable quotes. I love reading them and they're part of what gets me hyped up about a book. Thanks so much for being a great blogger!
-Danna

Melissa (i swim for oceans) said...

gahhhh! I still need to read Hex Hall, and I can't believe I haven't read it yet! I'm so glad to see such an awesome review for a sequel though...it's sad when the second books don't live up, and I'm glad that is not the case with Demonglass! Great review, Kristina!

Melissa (Books and Things) said...

I haven't read Hex Hall and sort of stayed away from it. Now, I'm totally rethinking it and I think I'll have to pick up Hex Hall and this one when it comes out! Great review!!

Avery said...

I can't believe that you got a hold of this book! I just jokingly picked up "Hex Hall" one day to read and ended up falling entirely in love with it! So I cannot wait for this book/ am super excited to hear that it is just as good, if not better, than the first!
:)

Brodie said...

:O I am SO jealous you've read Demonglass! *refrains from breaking through your window, stealing the book then rendering you unconscious with said book so you can't stop me*

Okay. I'll be happy for you :) I love those quotes! Fantastic review, you've pressured me into rereading Hex Hall before I get my hands on this now. I can't wait!

Angela Tolsma said...

happy new year!! I can not wait to read this series!!! I love the cover for this book!!

Kristina Barnes♥ said...

Nina: I definitely think so, as well! :D You DO need to read this series. So snarky, so fun. ♥

Nic: I didn't include any spoilers (except for the last paragraph). But that's okay - I can't wait to see what you think of the series! :D It was SO HARD picking quotes for this review because I had like... 20+ to choose from. :P

Izzy: You definitely SHOULD read Hex Hall! :D I love books that continually get better, and that was definitely the case with this book!

Liz: LOL YEAH. The ending of Hex Hall doesn't even compare to Demonglass's ending. It was CRAZY. Like... crazy. xD

Jenny: Haha wow, for once, Jenny, I'm the one making YOU jealous. That's weird. xP I gave a letter to Rachel asking about the cat - I hope she answers, because that cat is driving me nuts! xD

Jen: This series is amazing. :) It's so funny and its very unique. I was really critical in my review of Hex Hall, but everything I was so critical of in Hex Hall wasn't that bad in Demonglass because a lot of the magic was amped up. Haha, thanks about my cover musings - I'm totally serious, though... that cat bugs me. xD Also, thank you for liking the way I write my reviews. Sometimes I wonder if they're TOO conversational - I often compare my reviews to others' and feel mine suck in comparison. So for you to say that you like them really makes my day!

Danna: Aww, thank you Danna. :) My memorable quotes section is probably my favorite part of the review, admittedly! It gives me a chance to show my readers what the book is about - moreso than "my thoughts" can convey. I usually pick my quotes on how I want a book to be conveyed. :)

Melissa: Girl, you need to get Hex Hall! :P The second book was SO MUCH BETTER than Hex Hall - so much so that I was blown away (as you can tell). I hope you pick up this series!

Melissa (Books and Things): Whaaat? Why have you stayed away from it? :( You should definitely pick it up ♥

Avery: I can't either, lol! I found myself to be EXTREMELY lucky when I found out I was going to be on the arc tour for this book! It's definitely better than Hex Hall (which I really, really liked, but didn't love).

Brodie: LOL. Technically I don't have the book with me, so you'd be rendering me unconscious for an unfruitful search. D:! I'm glad you like my quotes ♥ I tried not to be too spoilery. x3;

Namine: Happy New Year to you too! :) I'll be waiting to see what you think of it! :)

Emi said...

I really need to read this series. D:

brandileigh2003 said...

I read this so quickly! I couldn't pick between Cal and Archer, they both have awesome points.
Brandi from Blkosiner’s Book Blog

Post a Comment

Hello, readers! ♥ Thank you for taking the time to comment! I try to return the favor as much as I can. :)

Remember that if you're entering for a giveaway or for whatever other reason, leave your e-mail in the following format: helloxthere[at]gmail[dot]com.

Thanks for stopping by! ♥