Book Review: Bewitching - Alex Flinn

BEWITCHING:

Published: February 14, 2012

Publisher: HarperTeen

Format: ARC

Page Count: 336 pages

Source: Melina @ Reading Vacation

Series: Book One in The Kendra Chronicles

Kendra Hilferty is a witch. Yes, a witch -- and she has been for hundreds of years. She might be known for the inventive curse she put on one beastly teen guy, but there is more to her story. Here, she chronicles her immortal existence, from first discovery of her powers. While always good intentioned, Kendra has found that her bewitching can backfire, and her magic turns versions of The Princess and the Pea and The Little Mermaid -- set against the real-world backdrops of Versailles and the sinking of the Titanic -- on their heads. Kendra's reminiscences of her past are wrapped around a real-time Cinderella story in which she is trying to play fairy godmother . . . to the stepsister. With dark twists, hilarious turns, and unexpected endings, BEWITCHING is a contemporary read for fairy-tale lovers, fantasy fans, and anyone looking for more Alex Flinn.

"Alex Flinn is one of the greatest fairy-tale tellers of all time, and she definitely proves herself with, in my opinion, her best novel to date."

I read Beastly and Cloaked by Alex Flinn back in 2011 (I still need to read A Kiss in Time!), and loved them both. I thought that Alex Flinn told the fairy-tales in such a great and modern way, and when I found out that this novel was coming out, I nearly had a panic attack because Kendra was my favorite character from Beastly! Going more depth into her story was so much fun, and this book was simply wonderful.

This novel was absolutely stunning. Alex Flinn has weaved a modern fairy-tale that left me breathless, and every minute I was reading this, I was always pleased.

First, the characters. Kendra is one of the best characters in YA Literature ever! I love how she always does things for good, but she's sarcastic and magical. I felt for Emma a lot during the novel of how she was being pushed around by her stepsister and almost everybody in school. This novel had some of the elements that the movie Mean Girls did! There was jerk in there named Courtney who I hated. But the character that I wanted to throw off of a building and hopefully land on a moving semi-truck was a wicked character by the name of Lisette. I cannot stand Lisette! I hate mean characters, especially when the mean characters are mean to the protagonists. Ugh. Team Emma! 

Next, the writing style. I loved how Alex Flinn made this a contemporary novel with fairy-tale aspects thrown in here and there. When she wrote about Kendra in her earlier days, she described everything so well! Through all of Kendra's journey, Alex Flinn never let me down. She's one of the best fairy-tale tellers!

Then, we have Kendra's journeys! From her finding out that she's a witch, to her in The Princess and the Pea, to The Little Mermaid, all the way to the Titanic, and finally to present day, Kendra's journeys were always fast-paced and fascinating. I loved every second of this novel! I picked it up and I just couldn't put it down.

Finally, the novel itself. Alex Flinn did an incredible job on this book, and I honestly think that it's her best book out of the ones that I've read! Bewitching had everything I was looking for in a fairytale.

Overall, Alex Flinn's Bewitching was a wonderful story where good always conquers evil with fairy-tale aspects mixed into the story. It was utterly fantastic!

My Rating: