Soul Eater, Vol. 1

Ohkubo, Atsushi. Soul Eater, Vol. 1. 2009. 208p. ISBN 9780759530010. Available in the graphic section of the library.

Shinigami-Sama is Death incarnate, and he employs many agents to harvest the souls of humans and monsters. Known as weapon meisters, these agents partner with living weapons to accomplish these goals. Maka is one such weapon meister, and her partner, named Soul Eater, is a powerful death scythe. At 99 souls already devoured, Soul Eater only needs to eat one more, that of a witch to complete his transformation into Death’s ultimate weapon. Unfortunately, the witch they encounter is not ready to lose her soul.

Black Star and his weapon, Tsubaki, have yet to collect even one soul, so Shinigami-Sama sends them on a delicate mission to capture a witch and her human bodyguard, whose soul is strong enough to be worth 99 normal souls. Unfortunately, Black Star is such a show off that collecting these two souls will prove tricky.

Finally, Death the Kid, Shinigami-Sama’s own son, fights with twin revolvers Liz and Patty, sisters, has a very unhealthy relationship with symmetry, which causes him all sorts of trouble.

The three of them must face off against the strange and deadly enemies of the underworld to complete Shinigami-Sama’s objectives, but their own interests and quirks are likely to undermine their abilities to do just that!

Hex Hall

Hawkins, Rachel. Hex Hall. 2010. 323p. ISBN 9781423121305. Available both at FIC HAW on the library shelves and as an audiobook on Overdrive

At thirteen, Sophie discovered she was a witch. This explained a lot of things. Her mother and her moving all the time. The tingling she felt whenever odd things happened. Coming into her magical powers untrained was hard, though, and Sophie performed one too many spells when she tried to create a love spell matching two people during prom.

Now the Council, which governs witches of the world, has decided to send her to Hex Hall, a reformatory boarding school for witches, shapeshifters, faeries, and the odd unlucky vampire. There, students are expected to learn how to control their power before their 18th birthday and release into society. They are also prepared to fight the Eye, a secretive organization dedicated to eliminating the Prodigium, also known as all paranormal creatures.

Once at Hex Hall, Sophie discovers that unlike everyone else here, she is not versed in the history or conflicts of the Prodigium. For instance, her father, whom she’s never met, is the head of the Council, and therefore most students hate her. By the end of her first day, she’s made powerful enemies of a dark witch coven who want her to join. She’s also annoyed some of the shapeshifters. She’s smitten with a sexy warlock who happens to be dating the head of the coven. And she’s rooming with the school’s only vampire, who is both hated and suspected of killing her previous roommate. What could possibly go wrong?

Hex Hall is a very entertaining book about paranormal beings experiencing very human emotions. Fans of Hawkins other books, such as Rebel Belle, will thoroughly enjoy the secrets and twists that Hex Hall harbors.

Truthwitch

Dennard, Susan. Truthwitch. Book 1 of the Witchlands series. 2016. 415p. ISBN 978-0-7653-7928-3. Available at FIC DEN on the library shelves.

Many of the inhabitants of the Witchlands have strange powers. Known as witches, they control one or more aspect of life, from water to fire to the threads that bind people together. Twenty years ago the nations of the Witchlands agreed to a binding twenty years truce, but this only provided time for leader to re-arm and re-equip their troops and plan new attacks. Nineteen years later, the last months of the truce are ticking by and everyone is ready to head back to war.

Safiya and Iseult are thread sisters, and both of them are also witches. Current residents of Venaza City in the Dalmotti Empire,  Iseult is a Nomatsi, a group of nomads reviled by non-Nomatsi people. She is a threadwitch, and she sees the connections between people as well as the threads that define their thoughts and feelings. Safiya is a domna of Cartorra, a noblewoman of the Empire of Cartorra. She’s a truthwitch, one of the rarest of witches. She can discern truth from lie, a useful power to have when the world is heading back to war. She was sent to Venaza City by her uncle to get her away from the Emperor of Cartorra, but she has done nothing but get herself in trouble, much to her tutors’ dismay.

When Safiya and Iseult attempt to rob the wrong caravan, they become the target of a bloodwitch, a man with the power to smell the blood and the quality of the witchcraft within. Assisted by Prince Merik, a wind witch, Safiya and Iseult must now run for their very lives are threatened, and as war gets set to resume, the two thread sisters will either be the salvation of the continent as predicted by the old Carwen prophecy or its doom.

The Witch of Blackbird Pond

Speare, Elizabeth. The Witch of Blackbird Pond. 1978. 256p. ISBN 0440995779. Available as an ebook and an audiobook on Overdrive.

When Katherine Tyler’s grandfather, Sir Francis Tyler, died, she was forced to leave Barbados. Her grandfather, who had been taking care of her since the death of her parents years earlier, left the estate in shambles and with mounting bills. Kit was able to settle all debts, but she had to sell everything. One of the men owed money informed her he would forgive the debt if she married him.

To escape she makes her way to a new community, cold, dreary and puritan New England. She’s never met her mother’s sister, but they exchanged many letters over the years, and aunt Rachel has two daughters near Kit’s age. Arriving in Connecticut Colony in the late 1600s, she finds an unwelcoming community, one used to strict control of thoughts and stricter enforcement of compliance with the rules.

A free spirit, Kit begins to chafe under the rules. Running to hide  in one of the meadows by the river, she comes across Hannah, a Quaker who has been exiled out of the village. They soon become friends, but Kit’s uncle forbids her to go. Kit continues to visit, however, and reconnects with beautiful Nat, who was one of the sailors on the Dolphin, the ship that took her here. She’s also pursued by the richest man in town, and as winter begins to oppress the land Kit feels the full weight of solitude.

When children become sick and begin to die, Hannah is accused of witchcraft. Kit risks her own life and saves her from being caught, getting her aboard the Dolphin. Faced with suspicion and fear since her arrival, Kit is the one who becomes accused of witchcraft, and the penalty is death. Will anyone come to Kit’s defense?

If you liked this book you will enjoy The Scandalous Sisterhood of Prickwillow Place.