Spellbound – Cara Lynn Shultz

What’s a girl to do when meeting The One means she’s cursed to die a horrible death?

Life hasn’t been easy on sixteen-year-old Emma Conner, so a new start in New York may be just the change she needs. But the posh Upper East Side prep school she has to attend? Not so much. Friendly faces are few and far between, except for one that she’s irresistibly drawn to—Brendan Salinger, the guy with the rock-star good looks and the richest kid in school, who might just be her very own white knight.

But even when Brendan inexplicably turns cold, Emma can’t stop staring. Ever since she laid eyes on him, strange things have been happening. Streetlamps go out wherever she walks, and Emma’s been having the oddest dreams: visions of herself in past lives—visions that warn her to stay away from Brendan. Or else.

When I started reading this book, I thought “ok, this is starting out like 3 other YA books that I’ve read”.  Teenage girl with a somewhat traumatic life, shipped off to another school where she meets a boy who has her mesmerized.  Even though I was tempted to stop reading this, thinking this was going to be like the others, I’m glad I stuck with it.

Emma’s living with her Aunt, after escaping a death at the hands of her drunken step father.  She’s enrolled it a very posh private school, where her aunt is on the board and her younger cousin is her only ally amongst the student body.  When she meets Brendan Salinger, she doesn’t expect her reaction.

     “He turned and looks at me for a brief second – any my pulse sped.  I didn’t expect my response.  I’d been around good looking guys before — but this guy looked like a rock star.  Long black lashes framed his green eyes – twinkling green eyes that locked with mine.”

I like that Emma had issues fitting in at the new school.  She didn’t fit into any of the pre-established “cliques” and didn’t really try, figuring out what the dynamics were at the school pretty quickly.  She did manage to make friends with the “outcast” Angelique, when no one else would because she was a scholarship student.  I also like the fact that even though Emma felt drawn to Brendan, she wasn’t overly obsessive about him (which could have very easily happened).

Brendan was one of those male characters that we all wished we had as our first (and true) love in high school.  Once he stopped running from what he was feeling, he was the boyfriend that made his girlfriend feel like a princess.  He was protective, but not in the “I’m going to put you in a bubble” sense.  Even when he knew that the two of them being together could be disastrous for Emma, he admitted he wasn’t willing to let her go.

The story did have it’s villans and they were spectacular in a high school kind of way.  Kristin was the ultimate bitch and made sure to make Emma’s life a living hell.  How dare she snag the hot guy!  And we can’t forget about Anthony.  He was evil, in every sense of the word.

Sprinkle in a little magic, some century old curses and plain old high school woes and you’ve got yourself quite an enjoyable read.  I recommend this one.