Grey Magic - JT Lawrence

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I am breathless, and it’s not just because of asthma.

What a gripping and engaging book. I don’t usually read books about witches (Harry Potter doesn’t count in this case) But after reading the short story in Lawrence’s Sticky Fingers, I craved more. Lucky for us, Lawrence  already started working on the full novel.

Raven is a hip, hexing-and-texting sorceress - or at least, she used to be. Now her ancient timber house is falling down around her, and the bank wants to repossess it. Nothing would make her cantankerous neighbour happier than seeing Raven and her messy menagerie out on the street. To add to her stress, the reckless Wicked Witches are causing mischief and it's her job to reign them in. Worst of all is that her magic seems to be fading.

We follow Raven, an eccentric modern-day witch, accused of murder, she must explore her past lives in order to keep her freedom and find her magic. Along the way to proving her innocence, Raven encounters some very interesting characters.

There aren't any of the characters that you feel shouldn’t be there, all play a crucial part in the story and Lawrence has a way to write characters. I loved Raven immediately she was witty, funny and her conversations with her inner voice were hilarious.

The last chapters had me holding my breath and needing my inhaler, which I found very ironic.

Was intense and beautifully written, would recommend in a heartbeat. 

Miss Peregrine’s Home For Peculiar Children – Ransom Riggs

♥♥♥♥

A story that will creep you out if you aren’t used to reading books like this.

We follow Jacob Portman, a sixteen-year-old, who experienced a horrible trauma in the family. He goes on this quest to find the people from his grandfather’s stories. He journey’s to a remote island in Wales, where he stumbles across the crumbling ruins of what was Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. He discovers his grandfather was someone completely different.

The vintage photographs throughout the book are creepy and chilling and somehow does actually add to the story.

I enjoyed the story, it drew me in, and Riggs’ writing is engaging and has a way to take you along on the journey. I liked all the characters, my only problem was when it came to the love interest it was cringe-worthy.

When it comes to first books in a series, this was a good foundation and I can’t wait to get stuck into the rest of the series to find out what Jacob’s adventure has in store for us.