Hex Hall (Hex Hall, #1) in SOS: Serious Overload of Series

Feb 16, 2012 Paula Phillips rated it really liked it

" My mother says I must not pass too near the glass ; She is afraid that I will see a little witch that looks like me; with a red, red mouth to whisper low, the very thing I should not know"
Sarah Morgan Bryan Piatt
Nineteen schools and counting upwards for Sophie Mercer , she is a half-witch . Her father a warlock and her mother human. With a want to make everyone Sophie casts her spells , but whenever she does something goes wrong and she ends up having to move once again. Until now , she is to ...more

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Mar 13, 2011 Lara rated it really liked it

Loved Hex Hall! Such a surprise for me when I started this book yesterday on my lunch break, not expecting much, and barely put it down again when I got home until I finished it blurry eyed at 2 am this morning. Then.....only to download Hex Hall 2 and dive into that one until I woke up with my Kindle on my chest this morning. Love when that happens :)!! From the first page to the end I never once found myself blah blah blahing through any one area hoping to get to the next. This book made me la ...more

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Aug 17, 2011 Nairabell rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 5-star, teen-ya-paranormal

When Sophie takes pity on a crying girl at the prom, she casts a love spell that goes horribly wrong and the girl ends up outing Sophie as a witch. This means that Sophie has screwed up again and she's sent to Hecate (or "Hex") Hall - a reform school for delinquent witches, shapeshifters and faeries. By the end of her first day Sophie has the three most powerful, and bitchy, girls in school as enemies, a hopeless crush on a gorgeous warlock and a roommate who is the most hated person on campus.. When Sophie takes pity on a crying girl at the prom, she casts a love spell that goes horribly wrong and the girl ends up outing Sophie as a witch. This means that Sophie has screwed up again and she's sent to Hecate (or "Hex") Hall - a reform school for delinquent witches, shapeshifters and faeries. By the end of her first day Sophie has the three most powerful, and bitchy, girls in school as enemies, a hopeless crush on a gorgeous warlock and a roommate who is the most hated person on campus...and the only vampire. And then a mysterious predator starts attacking students, putting Sophie's roommate Jenna as the number one suspect.

I was expecting a light, fun read from Hex Hall and it didn't disappoint. Rachel Hawkins writes with a snarky light-hearted tone and it is easy and enjoyable to read. There are pop-references scattered throughout that make the book feel really self-aware. The story takes a little while to get going as Sophie is allowed to settle into Hex Hall before anything really happens, but this means that the reader has a chance to get to grips with Hex Hall with Sophie. I loved that the book is full of twists and turns, some small and some big. I don't want to give anything away, but the twists keep you guessing and glued to the page until the end of the book.

Unlike a in lot of young adult books, Sophie is a great main character. She's pretty clueless about magic and the Prodigium, as the magical races are known, so she has a steep learning curve at Hex Hall. This is great as it means the reader learns about the other races with her. Sophie's roomate Jenna is a pink loving vampire and a great character. She's sparky and fun, and I hope her story continues alongside Sophie's. The 'bad girls' are well-developed and aren't the standard villans, with Elodie in particular developing throughout the book without having a personality transplant. And of course the romantic interest Archer Cross is great, although at times he needs his head bashed against a brick wall. Refreshingly despite her massive crush on him (that forms very quickly) Sophie doesn't think that Archer is her whole world, and she starts and ends the book as an independent girl.

One thing I really noticed about this book is that it has a lot of similarities with the movie The Craft - starting with the cover, and also with the idea of a trio of teenage witches who target Sophie as soon as she reaches Hex Hall because their coven needs a fourth. The cover played a huge part in me deciding to purchase the book, and although there were echoes of The Craft it didn't detract from the book and almost played out as a nod to the movie.

All in all, Hex Hall surpassed my expectations and I'm really looking forward to Demonglass out in 2011.

Plot: 10/10
Characters: 10/10
Ending: 10/10
Enjoyment: 10/10
Cover: 9/10

Overall: 49/50 ...more

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Mar 21, 2011 Mafi rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: pt, 2011, emprestados

Acabei. Não rendeu mais que um dia x) Gostei mas não vou continuar com a série (menos uma :P). Este livro deixou-me com sentimentos muito confusos, eu gostei e não gostei, ou seja gostei da Sophie, da ironia e do sarcasmo dela e do rapaz por quem ela se apaixona perdidamente não fosse tão perfeito como vemos noutros livros.Ah e a Jenna óbvio xD
O que não gostei...bem basicamente o resto! xD a história faz-me lembrar o Harry Potter (dizia para mim mesma que era diferente e que nao tinha nada a ver ...more

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May 29, 2011 Literary Ames rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: series-abandoned, read-in-2011, magic-users, young-adult, love-triangle, 1st-in-series, fantasy, angels-demons, kindle, cheap-reads

"The Craft" meets Evernight. Despite the fast pace and entertaining story that Evernight comparison is worrying me. I don't want future books to revolve around star-crossed lovers I don't give a hoot about.

Sophie is sent to Hex Hall, an isolated reform school for faeries, shapeshifters and witches, after Sophie uses her magic to perform a love spell gone awry for a friend, risking exposure which could attract various dangerous hunters of the supernatural. Raised by a human mother, her only super ...more

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Feb 29, 2012 Valerie rated it it was ok

Shelves: read-in-2012

This was recommended by several people and seems to be a darling among the YA community, but it didn't work for me.

The sheer amount of high school cliches bowled me over. There's the hot unattainable arrogant stud, the typical "Mean Girl" clique, the odd best friend who's on the clique's shitlist. The one-dimensional characters and narrative voice strongly reminded me of Marked by P.C. and Kristin Cast. I was blown away by how dumb the characters were, especially the administration. Something's ...more

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May 15, 2010 Samantha wickedshizuku Tolleson rated it liked it

Shelves: 2013, witch-or-wizard, title-h, paranormal, reviewed, female-lead, not-manga

After my latest string of horror reads, I absolutely needed something vapid and amusing. I've had this book for quiet some time, and finally got down to reading it.
While I like the atmosphere and the adventure of the plot; I was severely let down by the lack of research done for the details. I mean it was like the author just opened up wikipedia, and called it good on fact checking. The characters were moderately done, and they were semi-realistic. I ask in my mind 'MY EFFING GODS IS THIS WHAT ...more

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