- Title: Spells Trouble
- Author: P.C. Cast & Kristin Cast
- Narrator: Cassandra Campbell
- Publisher: Macmillan Audio on May 25, 2021
- Genre: Teens & YA
- Length: 10 Hours 43 Minutes
- Formats Available: Hardcover, Audio, Audio CD, & Digital
- Rating: 1/5
Trigger Warnings: Mentions of past bullying
NetGalley provided me with an audiobook ARC copy of Spells Trouble with a request for an honest review.
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Spells Trouble Blurb
Double double, twins spell trouble….
Hunter and Mercy Goode are twin witches, direct descendants of the founder of their town of Goodeville. As their ancestors have done before them, it is now time for the twins to learn what it means to be Gatekeepers – the protectors of the Gates to different underworlds, ancient portals between their world and realms where mythology rules and nightmares come to life.
When their mother becomes the first victim in a string of murders, the devastated sisters vow to avenge her death. But it will take more than magic to rein in the ancient mythological monsters who’ve infected their peaceful town.
Now Hunter and Mercy must come together and accept their destiny or risk being separated for good.
Amazon
My Review (Spoiler Included)
I had high hopes for this novel. Unfortunately, the book does not live up to its premise. The Prologue was incredible. Seeing how Sarah Goode got away from her captors in Salem excited me. I assumed that the story picked up from her heritage at some point and kept the story in the same realm.
However, after three chapters, I had to call it quits on this book. There are many reasons why I couldn’t go on. But what made me turn the book off was that the mother’s reaction to her 16-year-old daughter having her first boyfriend was to talk about how to get said boyfriend to stimulate her clitoris. I’m sorry, but this is unnecessary and disgusting.
Another thing I didn’t like was that Mercie’s boyfriend is a complete jerk. I don’t care if the guy is nervous, or drunk, or any other excuse out there. There is no excuse to behave like a jackass, period. All this does is teach young men that it is okay to act this way and teach girls to expect disrespectful treatment. This portrayal is unacceptable and a huge problem in American culture.
The narration is horrible. The woman reading this book sounds like a 40-year-old pretending to be 16. The voices are shrill and gave me a headache. Also, while I understand that teenagers curse and act foolishly when at a party. Peer pressure is a real thing, but the affected voices are ridiculous.
It is with great sadness that I rate Spells Trouble 1 star out of 5.
About the Authors – P.C. Cast & Kristin Cast
PC was born in the Midwest, and grew up being shuttled back-and-forth between Illinois and Oklahoma, which is where she fell in love with Quarter Horses and mythology (at about the same time). After high school, she joined the United States Air Force and began public speaking and writing. After her tour in the USAF, she taught high school for 15 years before retiring to write full time. PC is a #1 New York Times and #1 USA Today Best-Selling author and a member of the Oklahoma Writers Hall of Fame. Her novels have been awarded the prestigious: Oklahoma Book Award, YALSA Quick Pick for Reluctant Readers, Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice Award, the Prism, Holt Medallion, Daphne du Maurier, Booksellers’ Best, and the Laurel Wreath. PC is an experienced teacher and talented speaker. Ms. Cast lives in Oregon near her fabulous daughter, her adorable pack of dogs, her crazy Maine Coon, and a bunch of horses. House of Night Other World, book 4, FOUND, releases July 7th, 2020. More info to come soon about the HoN TV series!
Author Contact Links: Website | Twitter
Kristin is a #1 New York Times and #1 USA Today bestselling author who was born on an Air Force base in Japan and grew up in Oklahoma where she explored everything from tattoo modeling to broadcast journalism. After battling addiction, Kristin made her way to the Pacific Northwest and landed in Portland. She rediscovered her passion for storytelling in the stacks at dusty bookstores and in rickety chairs in old coffeehouses. For as long as she can remember, Kristin’s been telling stories. Thankfully, she’s been writing them down since 2005.
Yikes! thanks for the heads up on this one.
It was really bad. I’ve never given a one star rating to anything before but this book was terrible. I think it was even worse on audio because the narrator irked me.
Oh my goodness, this sounds awful. Sorry you had to read even 3 chapters of it! I read The House of Night series by this author years ago and I remember really enjoying them but I don’t think I would if I were the read them now! I’ve not been tempted to read anything else she’s written either.
It was really awful. After reading a few reviews of this on Amazon there are a lot of readers who say the same as you. It’s a pretty popular opinion.