Book Review: Blood Magic by Tessa Graton

I read this book a while ago and considering its sequel will be published later this month I decided to post my review for you. Though the story was nothing special I will definitely be reading The Blood Keeper, I'm very curious as to what happens next to Silla and Nick.

It starts off simply.

Draw a circle... place a dead leaf in the center... sprinkle some salt... recite a little Latin... add a drop of blood...

Maybe that last part isn’t exactly simple. Yet somehow it feels right to Silla Kennicott. And nothing in her life has felt remotely right since her parents’ horrific deaths. She’s willing to do anything to uncover the truth about her family—even try a few spells from the mysterious book that arrived on her doorstep ... and spill some blood.

The book isn’t the only recent arrival in Silla’s life. There’s Nick Pardee, the new guy next door who may have seen Silla casting a spell. She’s not sure what he saw and is afraid to find out. But as they spend more time together, Silla realizes this may not be Nick’s first encounter with Blood Magic. Brought together by a combination of fate and chemistry, Silla and Nick can’t deny their attraction. And they can’t ignore the dark presence lurking nearby—waiting to reclaim the book and all its power.

Blood Magic tells the story of Silla, a young girl whose parents tragically passed away a few months ago. The people say it was her dad who murdered her mother and then commited suicide, but Silla doesn't believe it. When she receives a spell book from a mysterious person known as The Deacon changes her life. Together with her brother and her new boyfriend Nick she learns about the magic. Blood magic.

The story itself was quite interesting. Nothing extraordinary, but twisted in a nice and new way. How you have to make a sacrifice in order to use magic, blood. This concept did get me questioning the way the magic worked though, as sometimes there was no blood around yet magical things started happening.
I also liked Gratton's writing style. The way she described characters' feelings especially stood out to me. The most disturbing part, however, was the fact the story was told in two different point of views. Add the diary fragments and it sometimes really confused me and I had to read parts again to realize what was happening.
Lillith's different names were a tad disturbing as well.

Silla's character was well thought of, though I never really connected with her, I couldn't empathize with her. This was a pity, with Silla just having lost her parents and being depressive and lonely. Sometimes I really felt she had to be screamed at or slapped in the face, by the way she acted.
Nick was more likeable, the new boy in town.
The only thing between these two was their sudden love. I don't believe in the love at first sight story, the fact Silla was seen as the crazy girl didn't make it very believable either. Nick was warned by multiple people about Silla and how she went crazy since her parents' deaths. Still he runs after her the first opportunity he gets.

All in all I liked the story, though it was nothing special. If you want to read something other than werewolves and vampires it wouldn't hurt giving this one a try though.

Cover

I like the cover, it shows the scary feeling this book has very well.

My rating of this book

Source

Borrowed a copy from my friend.

Other links

Find this book on Goodreads

Visit Tessa Graton's website here

~ Sylke