Spells (Wings #2) by Aprilynne Pike
Pages: 359
Genre: YA Fantasy
Pub. Date: May 4, 2010
My rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Goodreads says, "Six months have passed since Laurel saved the gateway to the faerie realm of Avalon. Now she must spend her summer there, honing her skills as a Fall faerie. But her human family and friends are still in mortal danger--and the gateway to Avalon is more compromised than ever. When it comes time to protect those she loves, will she depend on David, her human boyfriend, for help? Or will she turn to Tamani, the electrifying faerie with whom her connection is undeniable?"
*This review contains spoilers. If you haven't read the first book in the series, Wings, check out my review of it instead!
Like any good sequel, Spells picks up where Wings left off. Laurel, now a bonafide faerie, saved the gateway to Avalon. She also learned the truth about her childhood and was involved in an intense fight with the evil troll, Barnes. She is still dating her human boyfriend, David, but has deep-rooted feelings for Tamani, who is a faerie as well as her friend. It's summer now and she will be spending it at the academy in Avalon. Laurel needs to jam a ton of faerie education into one summer; this won't be a pleasurable visit. The academy is encouraging Laurel to learn as much as possible and Laurel is motivated to in order to protect her human mother, father, and friends. Rumor has it the troll and enemy, Barnes, is back and didn't die, which is prompting her to learn what it takes to be a faerie. One problem that is in the back of Laurel's mind is the fact that she will be leaving David for the whole summer and spending it in Avalon. Avalon pretty much equals Tamani. Who do you think Laurel will choose? Do you think Barnes will be back for revenge? These were just a few of the many questions I thought of as I was reading Aprilynne Pike's compelling bestseller, Spells.
One of the best parts of this series is the Laurel/David/Tamani love triangle. Pike truly writes love triangles well; it never once felt forced or contrived. I can understand the fact that Laurel is torn because David represents her life with humans and Tamani with the faeries. In many YA novels, the love triangle becomes played out or too obvious, but it never felt that way when I was reading Spells. It must be said that this novel gets a little more steamy than Wings; however, it's still very appropriate. Which leads me to another aspect of this novel which I like. I enjoy the fact that I can recommend this series to my students without being hesitant. It is very appropriate in comparison to many of the young adult novels out there. Lastly, I felt that Wings was good, but Spells is even better. Pike is definitely improving as an author and I felt captivated a bit more with this one than the first in the series. The action is intense, the dialogue is interesting, and the story line is compelling. In fact, the ending of Spells truly kept me wondering and questioning. Thankfully, there are four books in this series!
My only complaint (this has nothing to do with Spells or Aprilynne Pike) is Miley Cyrus. Just let me vent for a second and if you read my review of Wings, you already know how I feel. Why Miley? Why did they cast Miley Cyrus as Laurel for the movie adaption of Wings? I am SO over Miley and I think many others are. It's like a Miley overdose lately. She was in The Last Song
, she's going to be in Wings
and now the latest young adult novel turned movie, Wake
. I know my students will probably gush over all of this, but comon'.....she's played out. Miley is not even a close resemblance to the person I visualized as Laurel. What do you guys think? I suppose the reason for the casting may be the simple fact that it's a Disney film and Disney always backs Miley. I pray they don't cast a Jonas Brother as Tamani or David. And to make matters worse, Miley's Nonetheless, I truly look forward to the third installment in this series and I wait with bated breath for Pike to unveil the cover as well as the title. By the way, I LOVE the covers for both Wings and Spells; they are simply beautiful. However, it looks like us fans will have to wait until April 8, 2011 for the third book....lets just hope they don't put Miley on the cover.
Great review. I have read the first book and thought it was great. I still have to buy a copy of this one. When I was in Belgium I saw the Dutch translation of this book and me and my friend where discussing the book. We both where dissapointed that Miley is going to play Laurel. I do not like this girl at all. The movie is so going to be so blah with her in it.
ReplyDeleteThis review has me wanting to reads Spells. After reading Wings, I wasn't really sure if I wanted to read more about Laurel. But now I feel that I should give her another chance.
ReplyDeleteAnd I agree about Miley Cyrus - she doesn't look anything how I pictured Laurel to look or Janie for that matter. There are so many other young actresses that they could have chosen or they could have gone with an unknown actress.
Thanks for the comments, Nina and Maria. I appreciate it. Couldn't agree more with you regarding Miley. UGH!
ReplyDeleteSpells is better? ooooo now I want to buy it :)
ReplyDelete