Review: Hex, by Ramona Wray

Hex, A Witch And Angel Tale
Ramona Wray
Paperback, 254 pages
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Source: Author
Rating: (Avg 4.0)

Like most girls at Rosemound High School, seventeen-year-old Lily Crane is acutely aware of Ryder Kingscott. Hands down the cutest guy in school, Ryder is cool, mysterious, and utterly untouchable…especially for Lily. For when she touches someone, Lily instantly learns all about their lives. And while such a skill might seem nifty, in truth it is wrecking Lily’s life. So she is shocked when Ryder asks her out — and even more shocked to discover he has a rival. Lucian Bell is the gorgeous new kid who can’t take his eyes off of Lily. Being pursued by two hotties should make a girl happy, but Lily is skeptical. The boys act as if they’ve met before, hating each other with a passion that could only be rooted in a dark, dangerous past. A past full of terrible secrets. The kind of secrets that could get a girl killed.

Obviously, the first thing you're going to notice about this book is the cover. You're either going to think, "Oh my God, that's the cutest cover EVER!" (like I thought), or you're going to think, "Wow... what a frilly pink cover." Either way, you can't deny that it's not an eye catcher. But if you're really expecting a frilly story to match the cover, you're going to be sorely disappointed. Why? Because Hex: A Witch and Angel Tale reaches deeper than just a fun, young adult book. But if you're looking for a story rich in action, well-written characters, plot, romance and suspense; well then, you've come across the right book!

I don't know what I was truly expecting from this book. I think when author Ramona Wray asked me to review her book, I was thinking it'd be a fun and fluffy read. What I didn't expect was to be so completely swept up in Lily's story. Lily is one of the strongest females that I have come across in some time, but she's not without fault. While she's smart, strong-willed and witty as ever (her one-liners had me crying, I was laughing so hard!), she's still confused and vulnerable. She knows that there are connections with Ryder and Lucian, but she doesn't know what those connections are and has to figure it out for herself throughout the story.

Ryder and Lucian are also both strong characters. While both are mysteries at the beginning, you get to know them better as the story is told. Both of their fates are twisted together with Lily's and it was nice to see that they both took steps into determining their own fate, not completely depending on Lily to do everything herself. While the idea of a love-triangle was flirted with between the three of them, I'm impressed at how well it was tackled. For once, we don't have a weak girl indecisively flitting back and forth between the two guys. No, we have a girl who makes a decision and, while some things that come to her attention may confuse her and make her think she made the wrong choice, she never strays. She sticks by her decisions and her feelings, and doesn't sway just because she's being led to think that it's the right thing to do. Because of this, I wanted to jump up and scream a hallelujah! Finally, an author gets it. Yes, you can have a girl that's chased after by more than one guy without making her seem completely careless with the guys' feelings, leading both of them on while she "finds herself" or whatever excuse they use these days.

The past and present in this story is intricately weaved together seamlessly, giving you just the right taste of what's going on to help you understand what needs to happen in the story. Twists and turns are around every corner in this book. Between the action, the backstory and hilarious commentary, this story will have you flipping anxiously until the very end. And just when you think you know what's going to happen, BAM! You get hit with a curve ball that you don't see coming. The conclusion of the story is bittersweet, yet perfect. I couldn't see it ending any other way. This book far exceeded anything that I could have anticipated when picking it up. I am absolutely enthralled by it.

My sincerest praises go out to the author who is not only a great person to talk to, but an incredible storyteller with a very promising future in writing. She is definitely one that I will continue to follow.

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