Review: Hexbound by Chloe Neill

Book Description via Goodreads:

Lily Parker is new to St. Sophia’s School for Girls, but she’s already learned that magic can be your best friend…or your worst enemy.

They say absolute power corrupts absolutely. Turns out, even a little magic can turn you to the dark side. That’s why Lily has to learn how to control her newly discovered paranormal abilities, on top of avoiding the snobs who think they run her school, nursing a crush on a cute sophomore with a big, werewolf-y secret, and fighting the good fight with her best friend Scout as they take on Chicago’s nastiest nightlife—including the tainted magic users known as Reapers.

Then Lily’s invited to a private meeting with Sebastian. He’s hot, powerful, and offering to help her harness the magic flowing in her veins in a way no one else can. He’s also a Reaper. Lily can’t hide her suspicions. But she’ll soon find out that the line between good and evil isn’t always clear…

Source: Penguin USA (Thank you!)

My Thoughts:

*Might contain spoilers for people who haven’t read Firespell.

In Hexbound, Neill introduced the paranormal world to science. It was a good move in establishing modernity of the setting while expanding the possibilities of the supernatural. Set a few weeks after Firespell, the sequel took on a more interesting air. I enjoyed this more than the first book. The span of the story was rather short but I liked the pace. The advantage with this short span was that Neill could really focus on the little details of Lily’s life.

I got to see the strengths and frailties of the relationships that she shared with other people. After the headmistress of St. Sophia hinted that she was kept in the dark for her own good, Lily began to think and suspect. Lies did not help her case and she felt far from her parents. But during her stay, she met scout, a true friend and a co-Adept, a captive that Lily and the other Adepts of Enclave Three rescued from the reapers.

Neill introduced new characters from the Enclave Two and the Pedway, a section connected to the tunnels which was guarded by vampires. She expanded her story world and tied several characters and events together. The Pedway also held another story within its halls, bloodlust and coven issues.

Sebastian, a Reaper who was responsible for giving her firespell, seemed to appear where Lily was. Having a stalking Reaper who claimed they should talk was unsettling and suspicious. Lily realized that the world was not plainly black and white. There was always something out of the two sides, something in the middle. I have to admit I really really liked Sebastian for Lily. Yes, he was a Reaper but he also helped her and saved her. That was something, right? The mysterious and badboy vibe was also another factor.

Amidst fighting off Reapers and all supernatural creatures that were crawling in the tunnels and surviving St. Sophia, Lily began to get close to another Adept, Jason, who has a secret binding him to his nature. Like with Sebastian, she realized that not all things were simple. Most were complicated, far more complicated than she would like them to be. Going through curiosity, suspicion, doubt and shock was not easy. And Lily had several things to be shocked about.

Hexbound is a quick, engrossing read. Supernatural meets Science in a balanced mixture of surprise, suspicion, danger and romance. I actually liked it a lot! The writing and the story improved in this installment. I recommend this to fans of Chloe Neill, paranormal romance, and magic.

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