Aug122011

GUEST REVIEW: Blood Magic by Tessa Gratton

by Guest Reviewer • Posted in 4.5 Star Reviews

Blood Magic (The Blood Journals #1)
by Tessa Gratton | Paperback, 405 pages
Doubleday Children’s (July 2011)
Paranormal YA

Guest Reviewer: Vicki

Wow, wow, and wow I LOVED this book. I’d had it sitting on my to read pile a while and although I was looking forward to it, I wasn’t desperately excited about it. So when I turned to the first page I wasn’t expecting to be anywhere near as gripped as I was. Combining two of my favourite styles – duel narrative and flashback diary entries, along with a dark tale and passionate romance, this book was pretty near perfect for me.

And boy is this one dark, possibly one of the darkest YA PNR books I’ve read. Warning: if blood makes you squeamish in the slightest this book may not be for you. As the title suggests it features pretty often in the book, with some gruesome scenes and descriptions of blood letting it’s definitely not for the faint hearted.

I loved the duel narrative between main characters Silla and Nick and found the frequent switch, sometimes a few times per chapter, kept me hooked to the story. The romance between the pair does come quick and is immediately intense and passionate, but in this instance it really worked. Not only because they have a common trait to bond over but because we see the relationship develop from both sides. Silla is genuinely messed up, not just angsty, with the tragic and violent death of her parents haunting her…yet she’s still feisty, brave and determined. I found her believable and sympathised with her easily. Nick is prickly, moody, and passionate with a penchant for poetry, which didn’t come across as contrived… and hot! Yup I could totally see why they fell for each other so hard and quickly.

My favourite parts however where the frequent diary entries from the past, courtesy of Josephine Darley. At first they seem harmless, a way to inform the reader of the ritual of Blood Magic, but as the book moves on Josephine’s story clearly becomes integral to the present day plot…only how remains a mystery right up until the end. As much care is given to this character’s development as it is to Silla and Nick, and with each entry grows more and more dangerous and sinister. I loved it!

VERDICT:

Blood Magic was certainly a fresh and exciting read, with beautiful prose, a sinister dark plot and fantastic character development throughout…not to mention the intense romance! I devoured this book over two sittings… I couldn’t tear myself away and quickly that ‘little bit more’ turned into over a hundred pages. If you like your paranormal dark and addicting, then I can’t recommend Blood Magic enough although would caution younger readers as in my opinion it sits firmly at the upper age of YA fiction with a definite adult crossover appeal.

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