Review: Spell Bound

Reviewed by Jen
 

I loved this book. Loved it so much, in fact, that it may be my very favorite Otherworld book of all time. Yes, I know that's a pretty bold statement. And not everyone will agree. After all, generally the best Otherworld books are Elena books and I'm the first person to say so. But what makes this book so fantastic is that even though Savannah is the narrator,it brings everyone together. Savannah, Adam, Paige, Lucas, Hope, Karl, Elena, Clay, Jeremy, Jamie, Benicio, Troy, Griffin, Sean, Bryce, Kristof, Jaz, Rhys... The only major player missing was Eve (and she did get a mention.) Kelley Armstrong has taken threads from her previous books and woven them together into this awesome creation, like it was some giant master plan all along.

The story picks up right where Waking the Witch left off. Savannah is without her powers and she believes it's because she offered to exchange them to right one of the wrongs in the last book. She and Adam investigate and, sure enough, little Kayla and her grandmother have been reunited. But now what? There are witch-hunters still after Savannah and despite her feelings in a moment of weakness, she needs her powers. She and Adam work to figure out how to restore them while sniffing out the witch-hunters and foiling their murderous plans.

As if that weren't enough to deal with, there is a group of supernaturals that are pushing to out themselves to the human world. They believe now is the time, because of a prophecy that foretold key events: Savannah's birth, the werewolf twins, Jaz's powers, and the birth of Rhys' clairvoyant grandchild, among others. The group's leaders also have ties to the immortality questers we learned about in Broken. It's all very complicated and conspiracy-theorist and there is still a lot we don't know about them, even as the story ends. --That's right. This story won't reach it's conclusion until the next book... which will also be (**sniff**) the last book in the series. I'm sure that's going to turn a lot of people off, and I'm no fan of cliffhangers, myself. But I like that Armstrong is making this final story epic... to go out with a bang. I'd rather that than some lame rush job, trying to make it all fit in one book.

If you're wondering about the romance we were missing in Waking the Witch, (**spoilers**) there is a little bit of progress. We all know that Adam is Savannah's HEA, but they have some serious hurdles to overcome. But... since you clicked the spoiler button, you obviously want to know... we do get one good kiss, which shows we are headed in the right direction.

I will miss this series when it's over. Armstrong has created such a rich world for these characters with the wealth of novels and short stories she has written. But I am so impressed that she is pulling them all together for a ending that is fitting and worthy of the characters and stories she has given us.  I can't wait to see what happens.  5 stars.

*ARC Provided by Dutton

Spell Bound

by Kelley Armstrong

Release Date: July 26, 2011

Publisher: Dutton Books