Maya Gold’s Spellbinding has a tried and true plot with a magical spin. Abby is a loner at her school with only one person whom she considers a friend. She’s crushing on the clueless (but brilliant) cute guy whose girlfriend is the popular girl that terrorizes anyone who gets in her way. Abby is given a history assignment to research her family tree, she finds that her mother’s family were descendants of Salem witches and just around the same time, strange things start happening.

Spellbinding was a really quick read, but there were a lot of parts that seemed rushed or left me scratching my head, the first being how quickly Abby accepts that she has supernatural powers. The family history didn’t seem very compelling, it only spoke about a distant relative being accused of being a witch during the trials and there wasn’t a lot of convincing evidence that she inherited powers, but she practically jumped on that explanation when strange things start to happen around her. It might have been more interesting if Abby found a diary instead of just a spell-book—this would also mean that she could have discovered more about her family history.

I also wasn’t convinced with the romance. As with many YA novels, there is a love triangle (though it wasn’t an annoying one), Abby finds herself drawn to the new, mysterious guy—who might also have super powers—and her high school crush. The redeeming thing about this love triangle though, was that it helped move the story along, even if I thought it took away the focus from other aspects of the book.

All these aside, I did enjoy Spellbinding. It’s a quick weekend getaway read; definitely a beach time book.
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I really loved this book. If you love fantasy and romance, this is the book for you. Abby is your average girl who's mother died when she was 11. But, after her 16th birthday, strange things start to happen. A traffic cone moves by its self, and candles flicker off and on at her command. And then there is the confusing matter of the mysterious boy Rem, who seems to know more than he will let on. Over all, I think that Spellbinding is a really, really, really, good book, and I feel that it will be read so many times that the cover will forever stay open! ( )

Thank you netgalley.com for allowing me early access to this title.

I think I have a fetish for anything to do with the Salem Witch trials and that time period. I love to read anything that has mention of that or relates back to those events. This was a fun read. I liked how it tied into the real people in the past. It was also a typical "teen finds magical powers - teen gets revenge on enemy" type of novel.

All in all, I enjoyed reading this and I will add it to our collection. ( )

I have a love for all things involving witches, it started young and I still love everything about them and stories that feature them. When I saw this book on Netgalley I immediately requested it, sadly due to being a huge slacker it has taken me forever to read it, but it was a wonderful book and only took me a night to get through it.

Abby is a high school Junior about to be done for the summer, but not without a few more assignments. One of which is extra credit after a test that did not go well, and the assignment turns out to be researching your family tree. Knowing more about her father’s side of the family, she quickly writes up that part but hits a few roadblocks as she researchers her mother’s side. She is eventually drawn to Salem, MA and find out she is descended from the accused witches.

The story follows her discovery, her attraction to Salem, and then a more sinister plot held by the modern day witches of Salem. The plot of which was pretty straightforward. I think I enjoyed the book so much because of the research Abby went through to find out about her descendants and how she finds out more about herself as a person. She is a sixteen year old but seems a lot younger in the beginning of the story and progresses as she accepts her fate and learns how to use her heritage. Not to mention the swoon-worthy character of Rem, a mysterious, sends multiple signals, type guy who appears very suddenly into Abby’s life.

I don’t think that this book is for everyone, I thin that you really have to have a thing for witch lore to enjoy it. There are elements of YA romance, but they aren’t too deep, and the action of the plot does not really show up until the end of the book and it isn’t even all that threatening until then either… I did enjoy it very much though regardless. ( )

I can say this book is very entertaining. I loved the fact that it was a page a turner, and you wanted to know what was going to happen next. It may not have been a “wow, that has never happened” in a witch book, but it was enjoyable.
The writing style sucks you into wanting to learn more, and I appreciated that. This book is an easy read, and you will get to know the characters as the story line develops.
You will either like Abby, or not. I genuinely liked her, she is just an average sixteen year old, that grows with mistakes, and learns sometimes you can’t have everything you want. She meets Rem in Salem, and sometimes their relationship was up and down, and not a lot of depth. I did enjoy reading about them though, and one of the reasons for this book to be a page turner. ( )