Review: Blood Magic by Tessa Gratton

Blood Magic

(The Blood Journals #1)
Written by Tessa Gratton
Release Date: May 24, 2011
Published by Random House Books for Young Readers
*arc provided by Amazon Vine in exchange for an honest review

Summary from Goodreads:

"This page-turning debut novel will entice fans who like their paranormal romances dark and disturbing. It's a natural next-read for fans of Stephanie Meyer, Carrie Jones, and Becca Fitzpatrick. But instead of mythical creatures, blood magic has everything to do with primal human desires like power, wealth, and immortality.

Everywhere Silla Kennicott turns she sees blood. She can't stop thinking about her parents alleged murder-suicide. She is consumed by a book filled with spells that arrives mysteriously in the mail. The spells share one common ingredient: blood, and Silla is more than willing to cast a few. What's a little spilled blood if she can uncover the truth? And then there's Nick—the new guy at school who makes her pulse race. He has a few secrets of his own and is all too familiar with the lure of blood magic. Drawn together by a combination of fate and chemistry, Silla and Nick must find out who else in their small Missouri town knows their secret and will do anything to take the book and magic from Silla. "

My Thoughts:

After you read this book you will never look at your blood in the same way again!  I really enjoyed reading Blood Magic! The plot was so original and had enough twists and turns in it to give you whiplash! Magic, romance, danger, suspense, murder, and the quest for immortality made it difficult to put down and kept me reading way too late into the night.  I felt like I really got to know the characters and I felt connected to them.  The chapters alternated points of view between Silla and Nick, as well as occasional journal entries from other characters.  I like this style of writing and I feel that it adds to the character's development. Silla and Nick were my favorite characters.  Silla was dealing with some heavy emotions and the discovery of her 'magic' was the spark that brought her back to life.  Nick was just a really cool guy.  He was not as easy to figure out as Silla and their relationship was very natural and sweet.  I really enjoyed the unexpected plot twists!  It was hard to figure out who the villain was!  I have to say that when it was finally revealed I was very surprised!  The pace of the book was fast enough to keep you engaged, but not so fast that you feel that the story is rushed.  Tessa Gratton did a great job with the setting and tone of the book.  I could easily picture everything in my head, especially the graveyard that is the central point of most of the important events in the story.  I would highly recommend Blood Magic to readers that enjoyed books like Beautiful Creatures and Beautiful Darkness by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl or anyone that likes a good gothic romance!  It is a stunning debut novel and I can't wait for the next installment in The Blood Journals series!