Book Review: Entangled by Nikki Jefford

Thursday, March 07, 2013

Entangled (Spellbound #1) by Nikki Jefford

(Started: February 28, 2013; Finished: march 03, 2013)

Summary/Description:

Two months after dying, seventeen-year-old witch Graylee Perez wakes up in her twin sister Charlene’s body.

Until Gray finds a way back inside her own body, she’s stuck being Charlene every twenty-hour hours. Her sister has left precise instructions on how Gray should dress and behave. Looking like a prep isn’t half as bad as hanging out with Charlene’s snotty friends and gropey boyfriend.

The “normals” of McKinley High might be quick to write her behavior off as post-traumatic stress, but warlock Raj McKenna is the only person who suspects Gray has returned from the dead.

Now Gray has to solve the mystery of her death and resurrection and disentangle herself from Charlene’s body before she disappears for good.

***Entangled is a young adult paranormal fantasy romance suitable for ages 15 and up.*** (From Goodreads)

Review: 3 stars

Release Date: February 19, 2012

Source: Nikki Jefford and Independent Book Publishers' Association (IBPA) through Netgalley

Shelf: Goodreads, Shelfari

There was something about that cover that somehow got my attention. It was really lovely in an enigmatic way. I might even think it was about a snow princess or something but definitely in the line of fantasy. As I read the book, well, I was on the right track with the genre but no snow princess.

I think this story has potential to be a great one since its definition sound really great and promising. It has a twist—the very first one the readers will encounter and I will not elaborate on to avoid spoilers—that have quite an astonishing impact for me. I was not able to predict that crucial turn of events which momentarily happens to me as I reach the brink of reading. It totally got me when I was just losing my grasp over the story since it has a slow pace in the beginning. So I have to commend the author for the bit of shock I was able to experience because that helps excite and capture the interest of the readers. I sort of like the ending as well since Graylee was able to redeem herself in the most satisfying payback she could do which I was also able to predict but the good thing was that’s how I wanted it to turn out.

What disappointed me was the loopholes and how it was written. At first my mind was fogged by all the thrill and exhilarating sequence but as I gave it a second thought it gave me a much clearer perspective to see the details and lack thereof. I have so many questions after reading it that were not answered which I somehow expected to get at the end of the novel. Like for example, what happened to Mrs. Perez? What made Adrian fail at the end? Why wasn't the coven able to detect the cause of death? I’m giving it a chance since it is a series so I hope I will get these queries cleared. With the writing, it tends to give off a vague connotation at times that misled me. There are some ambiguous parts which will shock me and think if I have time warped to a few pages and missed some along the way. I think it would be best to avoid such loopholes to avoid readers’ confusion. Another is that I think there could have been more to this story. There was so much that the author could have done to give a stronger impact to the readers since this genre can actually let the writer to create something out of this world and not limited to execute such plots. I agree to the others who have read the book and asking for more monologues from the characters since it was forced to be too fast phased that adds up to my confusion. I do not like how the characters did not progress to a better version of themselves. Instead of empowering Graylee, she turned out to be like her twin sister which didn't make her the better person.

But overall, it was still a good read if you are looking for stories to easily digest.

Have a glimpse on this book through the trailer: