Firespell was written by Chloe Neill. It is the first novel in the Dark Elite series.
Lily Parker is sent to a fancy boarding school in Chicago, because her parents have some special, once-in-a-lifetime work to do in Germany. Her new school is St. Sophia’s School for Girls, a former convent. The only person keeping her sane at this new school is her roommate, Scout. Scout has her secrets. She often disappears in the middle of the night.
One night, Lily decides to follow Scout on one of these outings. Scout kind of brushes off what happens. The brat pack (also known as the preps) pulls a prank on her that leaves Lily trapped in the catacombs under the school. She’s attacked by something that should only exist in your nightmares, or so the book tells you. She is hit with something known as Firespell that is a catalyst for awakening the magic within her. Scout then has to tell her everything. The truth is that Scout and her friends are fighting a secret war to protect Chicago against demons, vampires, and corrupted magic users known as the Reapers. This book mostly focuses on the war between the Reapers. Reapers are the ones who keep there magic so long that they have to be like psychic vampires and use others’ energy to keep using the magic.
When Scout is kidnapped by the Reapers, Lily must do what’s right: rescue your best friend. She convinces most of the Adepts in Enclave Three to help her get Scout back. Scout was starting to be drained for the benefit of the Reaper elders. Lily hones her powers enough for a minute to use Firespell on the Reaper who used it on her. She’s apparently the only Adept known to be able to use it. After some scolding from the supervisors (way to make it sound like a business), she joins the enclave. Lily is also starting to date the werewolf, Jason Shepherd (seems to be a corny surname for a werewolf).
While reading the book, it felt like the narrator was talking down to me. I also had a hard time connecting with the characters. The protagonist constantly makes sarcastic jokes that just get annoying. I sometimes wondered if the author knew how teenagers actually talk. This is probably a better read for someone in Junior High. Some of the concepts could have been taken further, but it would be more entertaining for teens in Junior High.
Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy
Stars (out of 5): ***
Cat on the Bookshelf 