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3.75 AVERAGE
3.75 AVERAGE
So I'll be honest, I don't count the Hex Hall books on my list of favorites. I just didn't enjoy them. But a friend of mine kept insisting 'no this ones better' so I gave it a go.
And loved it. It was really good.
Not only did I enjoy Izzy as a character, I felt far more connected to this story and invested in all the characters. This one was a home run for me.
And loved it. It was really good.
Not only did I enjoy Izzy as a character, I felt far more connected to this story and invested in all the characters. This one was a home run for me.
School Spirits is Rachel Hawkins spin off series from Hex Hall. This book centers around Izzy Brannick who we met in the Hex Hall series. Izzy is one of the last of a long line of Brannicks who fight monsters, except it is now just her mom and her. They are now working for the Prodigium Council tracking down monsters instead of just killing them. A case leads them to Ideal, Mississippi and Izzy's first stint in high school. She quickly becomes friends with the teen's in the Paranormal Management Society (PMS--horrible acronym). They are interested in a ghost named Mary who is supposedly haunting the school. She has been a ghost for over a hundred years, but has recently amped up her activity. Izzy, along with Romy (peculiar girl extraordinaire) and dreamy Dex (who may or may not be magic) have to figure out what Mary is doing before she hurts anyone else.
I love the Hex Hall series. They are fun and witty and entertaining. I think this is going to be another fun series to follow. The banter between Izzy and Dex was wonderful. I also enjoyed the ghost storyline, mainly because it didn't turn out like I thought it would. I am intrigued by this new focus on the Brannicks and can't wait to see where the rest of the series goes.
I received a copy of this from the publishers on Netgalley.com and thoroughly enjoyed it.
I love the Hex Hall series. They are fun and witty and entertaining. I think this is going to be another fun series to follow. The banter between Izzy and Dex was wonderful. I also enjoyed the ghost storyline, mainly because it didn't turn out like I thought it would. I am intrigued by this new focus on the Brannicks and can't wait to see where the rest of the series goes.
I received a copy of this from the publishers on Netgalley.com and thoroughly enjoyed it.
*SPOILERS* YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!!
Isolde or 'Izzy' branick's sister, Finley, (if you read Spell Bound which is the 3rd book in the hex hall series, it will explain who aislin, izzys mom, torin, the warlock trapped in the mirror, and Finley, the sister, as well as archer cross, and Sophie mercer, are.) anyway Finley goes on a mission with izzy. (You're probably wondering mission??? Well, izzy Finley, and their mom are monster hunters, and the last live branick's besides Sophie and her mom. So they battle supernatrual creatures also known as prodigum.) sadly, izzy is the only one who comes home. After long months of searching for Finley, aislin and izzy give it up and follow a lead for a ghost. The ghost is beloved to be Mary Evans. She haunts no other than Mary Evans high, which izzy is forced to attend. But she doesn't know anything about high school! So, to solve that problem she watches a high school soap, called ivy springs. She kept comparing real school to A SHOW. That part annoyed me ALOT. But, this book was really quite amazing. I love ghost books for some reason, so I of course liked this one. Izzy is very brave in this book, and well, I really grew to like her.
Now, onto my favorite part of the book:
•DEX•
Yep. Dex. He is hilarious, sweet, and well, is in love with izzy branick. He was overall my favorite part of the book. He was always so fun to be around. He even helped a girl salt a freaking grave! He is so much better for izzy than that a$$ Adam. In the beginning, Adam was nice, but then, like not even two chapters later, I wanted to push him down a flight of stairs. Izzy says that whenever she touches dex, she feels a buzz. She thinks he's prodigum. Why can't you except that you have feelings for this boy?? You know you do. Even torin and your mom said so. Though that buzz was part magic part love connection. In the end, we find out that dex is, well, um, how do I put this? I'll just get to the point. Dex is dead. Or undead I guess you could say. He died from an asthma, attack, but his Nanna, who just happens to be a hedge witch, saves him by, erm, putting his life in a bracelet I guess. But when she dies, she gives him her life essence, and he's no longer dead. But now he's an orphan. He goes to live with the branicks, and him and izzy bad sucky have to break up. I don't think it will stay that way though. True love cannot be denied. I do and don't like how this ended.
Oh no! I forgot to mention Romy!!
Well, to say sorry, here's my tiny section on her.
xxRomyxx
Romy is our nerd of the book. She is the founder of PMS. Not the lady kind of pms. Ew.
It's none other than PARANORMAL MANAGEMENT SOCIETY!!! This is the group that hunts down out not do friendly ghost Mary Evans. She can be a bit annoying at times, but I liked her. Not really as a person but as a character. She really added to the story, and she was izzy's first best friend!
~Torin~
Torin. Out mirror man. See, he did a spell a few thousand years ago, that was to much even for a powerful warlock such as him, and he became trapped in a mirror forever. I always secretly liked him from hex hall and from this book. Up until the end. He lied to aislin about Finley and he had feelings about izzy and,well, I wanted to help aislin break that mirror with the hammer. So I'm not happy with our mirror buddy right now.
~~
That pretty much concludes this review. I loved this book. It was good enough to own. I give it 10 stars. Bye for now guys! I would also like to note that I typed this all on my phone. -Megan
This wasn't horrible but it wasn't pulling my love bone for it. Fun and light, almost like a supernatural version of One Tree Hill. Izzy faced more than just trying to prove she can do a monster hunt on her own to her mother. She also struggled to try to blend in at high school for the first time while working said monster hunt.
Whimsical and even a little angsty, this was kind of typical and rather predictive. It was nice that it wasn't overwhelming. Too much intensity in a book can be exhausting all the time. While I liked this, I'm not reaching out for the other books with eager anticipation. If I come across them while thrifting then I'll snag them, but otherwise, feeling meh. Still, Something that was pretty cool is that I didn't have to read the previous books to enjoy this and understand the backstory of Izzy and her life as a Brannick. That definitely was a major plus.
Full Review:
https://thescarletreaderreviews.wordpress.com/2021/12/11/my-so-called-monster-hunting-life-school-spirits-a-book-review/
Whimsical and even a little angsty, this was kind of typical and rather predictive. It was nice that it wasn't overwhelming. Too much intensity in a book can be exhausting all the time. While I liked this, I'm not reaching out for the other books with eager anticipation. If I come across them while thrifting then I'll snag them, but otherwise, feeling meh. Still, Something that was pretty cool is that I didn't have to read the previous books to enjoy this and understand the backstory of Izzy and her life as a Brannick. That definitely was a major plus.
Full Review:
https://thescarletreaderreviews.wordpress.com/2021/12/11/my-so-called-monster-hunting-life-school-spirits-a-book-review/
Good companion to Hex Hall. I love hearing more about the Brannicks, but this series definitely needs to continue because it feels like there are just too much fleshing out left to do. The Brannicks have an interesting mentality, and this book started showing where it comes from and the personalities that can hold the views, but it needs more. And Izzy is a fun character.
Actual rating 3.75 stars.
Another great addition to the Hex Hall Universe. This time our protagonist is Izzy Brannick, Sophie’s younger monster-hunter-in-training cousin.
This was cute and in the same vein as the other Hex Hall novels. Izzy is struggling to prove herself, stumbling along and trying to hone her skills... as well as keep her cover as a regular high school student when she is anything but regular. Izzy has no idea about friendships, classes, and a plethora of other typical teen girl things. It was a fun, clumsy fish out of water story that dripped clues along the way in order to solve the mission Izzy had been tasked with.
I have to say that this novel feels a bit messy – only because it’s basically a standalone, but reads as the start to a new series. Not all plot points are tied up. Rachel Hawkins has stated that she is not writing any more on this collection, but it felt like she had a different intention when penning ‘School Spirits.’
I was also hoping there was going to be more presence of Sophie as well. The cast in ‘School Spirits’ is fairly compact. Izzy, her mum, Torin (the mirror enslaved warlock), and the three school friends all of whom are members of the P.M.S. (Paranormal Management Society.)
Still with all the aspects that I love about Hawkins writing: twists and turns in the plot, an ending I did not easily predict, fun interesting characters that hint to many hidden secrets waiting to be uncovered.
It saddens me that this the end to the Hex Hall collection. I felt like I was just starting to really get into it and then it ended… abruptly. With too many things left up in the air.
Fun easy read, I devoured it in a day accompanied with a bowl of cookies and a several cups of tea. Perfect for an autumn weekend.
Another great addition to the Hex Hall Universe. This time our protagonist is Izzy Brannick, Sophie’s younger monster-hunter-in-training cousin.
This was cute and in the same vein as the other Hex Hall novels. Izzy is struggling to prove herself, stumbling along and trying to hone her skills... as well as keep her cover as a regular high school student when she is anything but regular. Izzy has no idea about friendships, classes, and a plethora of other typical teen girl things. It was a fun, clumsy fish out of water story that dripped clues along the way in order to solve the mission Izzy had been tasked with.
I have to say that this novel feels a bit messy – only because it’s basically a standalone, but reads as the start to a new series. Not all plot points are tied up. Rachel Hawkins has stated that she is not writing any more on this collection, but it felt like she had a different intention when penning ‘School Spirits.’
I was also hoping there was going to be more presence of Sophie as well. The cast in ‘School Spirits’ is fairly compact. Izzy, her mum, Torin (the mirror enslaved warlock), and the three school friends all of whom are members of the P.M.S. (Paranormal Management Society.)
Still with all the aspects that I love about Hawkins writing: twists and turns in the plot, an ending I did not easily predict, fun interesting characters that hint to many hidden secrets waiting to be uncovered.
It saddens me that this the end to the Hex Hall collection. I felt like I was just starting to really get into it and then it ended… abruptly. With too many things left up in the air.
Fun easy read, I devoured it in a day accompanied with a bowl of cookies and a several cups of tea. Perfect for an autumn weekend.
This is a spin-off of the Hex Hall series, starring Sophie's cousin Izzy as the lead. Within the first few pages, it becomes evident that something horrible has happened between when we met the Brannicks in the Hex Hall books and the beginning of School Spirits: Izzy's older sister has disappeared. As a result, there is tie spent on the effect on her mother and sister and the relationship the two have since developed, and how it affects their work. The main mystery that Izzy is working to solve comes in the form of her attending a standard school for the first time as she tries to solve the mystery behind a local haunting. Watching Izzy attempt to adapt is not unlike Mean Girls in a sense, and, at times, provides a light hearted addition to the story. It ends in a way that is very suggestive of a sequel.
So I read (and loved) the first Hex Hall. Read and liked Demonglass (Hex Hall #2), though I wasn't madly in love with it because it felt like half a book. And then....
Yeah I totally forgot about this series until this book popped up as available at my library. It wasn't until after I started it that I realized these people don't seem familiar. Oh, right. I never got around to book 3 in the Hex Hall series. I still decided to go on with this one because it mostly can stand on its own, though I do think the third Hex Hall book (Spell Bound) would have given me some back story I am missing here.
The story is primarily that of Izzy a teenaged girl who, with her mother, fights what they describe as monsters. Demons? Bad ghosts? That's their job. Deal with that. Izzy, having never been sent to a regular school, is going undercover as a typical high schooler. Not an easy task when she has no idea what being a typical teenager means. Her mom attempts to give her space. Let Izzy start working on her own. That's what the women of her family have always done -- fight the monsters alone.
Caught up in a dangerous haunting may be the least of Izzy's problems though. There's boys. There's friends. There's papers to write. At least she has some teen soap opera dvds to show her all she needs to know.
This is one spin off that really didn't need to happen. It's okay, but nowhere near as good as Hex Hall was. Maybe my expectations were too high. This just seems like you're run of the mill teenage girl paranormal hunter type of thing. The one part of the story that I LOVED was Torin (the boy who has been trapped in a mirror with Izzy's family for centuries). I found him far more interesting than the missing sister. The dynamic between the mother and daughter. The ghost hunt I think was still important -- girl needs something to do besides talk to the boy in her mirror. Still I think this spin off maybe spun the wrong way. Izzy isn't the most interesting character here and that's a problem.
I'll still read more Rachel Hawkins, she's definitely better than this book.
Yeah I totally forgot about this series until this book popped up as available at my library. It wasn't until after I started it that I realized these people don't seem familiar. Oh, right. I never got around to book 3 in the Hex Hall series. I still decided to go on with this one because it mostly can stand on its own, though I do think the third Hex Hall book (Spell Bound) would have given me some back story I am missing here.
The story is primarily that of Izzy a teenaged girl who, with her mother, fights what they describe as monsters. Demons? Bad ghosts? That's their job. Deal with that. Izzy, having never been sent to a regular school, is going undercover as a typical high schooler. Not an easy task when she has no idea what being a typical teenager means. Her mom attempts to give her space. Let Izzy start working on her own. That's what the women of her family have always done -- fight the monsters alone.
Caught up in a dangerous haunting may be the least of Izzy's problems though. There's boys. There's friends. There's papers to write. At least she has some teen soap opera dvds to show her all she needs to know.
This is one spin off that really didn't need to happen. It's okay, but nowhere near as good as Hex Hall was. Maybe my expectations were too high. This just seems like you're run of the mill teenage girl paranormal hunter type of thing. The one part of the story that I LOVED was Torin (the boy who has been trapped in a mirror with Izzy's family for centuries). I found him far more interesting than the missing sister. The dynamic between the mother and daughter. The ghost hunt I think was still important -- girl needs something to do besides talk to the boy in her mirror. Still I think this spin off maybe spun the wrong way. Izzy isn't the most interesting character here and that's a problem.
I'll still read more Rachel Hawkins, she's definitely better than this book.